Search Engine Land
  • SEO
    • > All SEO
    • > What Is SEO?
    • > SEO Periodic Table
    • > Google: SEO
    • > Bing SEO
    • > Google Algorithm Updates
  • PPC
    • > All PPC
    • > What is PPC?
    • > Google Ads
    • > Microsoft Ads
    • > The Periodic Tables of PPC
  • Focuses
    • > Local
    • > Commerce
    • > Shopify SEO Guide
    • > Content
    • > Email Marketing Periodic Table
    • > Social Media Marketing
    • > Analytics
    • > Search Engine Land Awards
    • > All Focuses
  • SMX
  • Webinars
  • Intelligence Reports
  • White Papers
  • About
    • > About Search Engine Land
    • > Newsletter
    • > Third Door Media
    • > Advertise

Processing...Please wait.

Search Engine Land » Google » Google Algorithm Updates » Single Page Websites & SEO

Single Page Websites & SEO

Single page websites are quite popular right now; I see more and more each week on sites like The Latest and Product Hunt. No doubt they look cool when filled with great fonts, graphics and transitions. But can you SEO a single-page site and rank? Google’s Matt Cutts had this to say: (video autoplay) It’s […]

Tom Schmitz on January 31, 2014 at 9:00 am

Single page websites are quite popular right now; I see more and more each week on sites like The Latest and Product Hunt. No doubt they look cool when filled with great fonts, graphics and transitions. But can you SEO a single-page site and rank?

Google’s Matt Cutts had this to say: (video autoplay)

It’s going to depend on what your particular area is, what the topic is, and what kind of layout you come out with. But if it works for you and for users to have that all on one page, for the most part, it should work for Google as well.

I took a look at what others have to say about SEO optimizing single-page sites. Common advice includes adding sub-pages or a blog. My only problem with this is it skirts the issue by turning your one page site into a multi-page site. Does this mean you should throw in the towel?

Authority

At first blush, authority might seem like an argument in favor of single page sites. Every off-site, inbound link will point to the same URL. The counter argument is that it’s more difficult to earn links for the same content again and again than it is to get them for fresh content.

And while Matt says single page sites can work for Google, SEO experts believe having multiple pages with off-site links improves the overall credibility of a website.

  • Page Authority/PageRank: It’s possible to benefit by having all links point to the same URL.
  • Domain Authority: Questionable/unknown: having a 1:1 ratio of links to pages, and having only one page may inhibit domain-wide authority benefits.
  • Link Building: It may be difficult to earn a continuous flow of new links over time.

Content

Search engine algorithms seek relevancy; they match queries with content. While a single page site may improve relevancy for your primary keywords, it’s more likely you will dilute relevancy for sub-topics and terms that might rank easier on their own pages.

Consider Google’s Hummingbird update. It strives to better match the meaning of a query to relevant documents, not just matching the words in a search with words on pages. If you have only one page describing everything about your product or service, features and benefits, sales pitch, case studies or top customers, potential user markets or industries and all the other stuff found within a typical business website — how relevant can one page be, as a whole, for any one section?

Crawlability

Can search engines crawl your single-page site? If you have any transitions that load new content as users scroll down, you must make certain search engines can crawl and cache your page from top to bottom. Search spiders have limited support for executing javascript.

If you’re not sure, copy a line of text from the bottom of your page and search for it in Google Search within quotes. Does it appear in the search results? Another test is to turn off CSS and javascript before loading your page. I use the Web Developer Toolbar for this.

I’ve seen some designers advise serving a static version of the page to search engines while displaying the dynamic version to people. I’d be cautious about doing this. Google defines cloaking, a penalty and banning offense, as serving different content to people and search engines. If you serve a static version to search engines you better be sure the page content is exactly the same, indistinguishable.

SEO For Single Page Sites

If you’re not dissuaded at this point, you may be wondering: how do you SEO optimize a single page site?

1. Defined Content Sections

Design each section of content as if it were a separate webpage. Select the keywords you desire to rank for and draft the appropriate headline, copy, image alt tags and any other SEO signals.

2. Separate Content Sections in DIVs

Place each section of content inside its own DIV. Look at the code on The .GIFYS. Their sections include:

...content...
...content...
...content...
...content...

CSS id names are not considered SEO keyword signals, but it’s a good way to keep things organized. You can also use them for anchor links, which are SEO signals.

3. Anchor Links

We know Google looks at anchor links. Not to be confused with anchor text, anchor links take you to a specific place within a webpage. In search rankings, we’ve sometimes seen Google list anchor links as site links.

On The .GIFYS, each link on the left side navigation menu is an anchor link. The link http://thegifys.com/#art-design will take you to the Art + Design content section. I like having an on-page navigation section like this.

Try to optimize each DIV id for both usability and keyword SEO. You want them to make sense for people using your website and have a relevant keyword for the section.

To create an anchor link for each section,

Name the DIV id.

Link to it.

Art + Design

From another page the link would be:

Art + Design

4. Give Each Content Section an H1 Tag

This is probably the one time I’ll suggest multiple H1 tags on the same page. An H1 signals that what follows is distinct and separate from the rest of the page. Only use one H1 per section.

Conclusion

Single page websites can be great for new sites and special projects. I don’t recommend them as long-term solutions and, if you have a multi-page website, I do not recommend switching to a single-page site.


Opinions expressed in this article are those of the guest author and not necessarily Search Engine Land. Staff authors are listed here.


New on Search Engine Land

    How privacy changes affect B2B paid search marketing

    Google search results spam for ‘Bill Slawski obituary’ shows the dark side of SEO

    New mobile Google ad experiment puts favicon in-line with display URL

    Google launches video health tools to help publisher monetization

    SEO pioneer and expert Bill Slawski passes away

About The Author

Tom Schmitz
Thomas Schmitz is a longtime digital marketing professional who works with startups, SMBs, enterprise, media and not-for-profit organizations. Regarded as an expert in inbound and content marketing, search engine optimization and social media, Tom's an innovative growth creator and turnaround specialist. Follow Tom at @TomSchmitz.

Related Topics

Google Algorithm UpdatesLink BuildingSEO

Get the daily newsletter search marketers rely on.

Processing...Please wait.

See terms.

ATTEND OUR EVENTS

Learn actionable search marketing tactics that can help you drive more traffic, leads, and revenue.

March 8-9, 2022: Master Classes (virtual)

June 14-15, 2022: SMX Advanced (virtual)

November 15-16, 2022: SMX Next (virtual)

Learn More About Our SMX Events

Discover time-saving technologies and actionable tactics that can help you overcome crucial marketing challenges.

Start Discovering Now: Spring (virtual)

September 28-29, 2022: Fall (virtual)

Learn More About Our MarTech Events

Webinars

Take a Crawl, Walk, Run Approach to Multi-Channel ABM

Content Comes First: Transform Your Operations With DAM

Dominate Your Competition with Google Auction Insights and Search Intelligence

See More Webinars

Intelligence Reports

Enterprise SEO Platforms: A Marketer’s Guide

Enterprise Identity Resolution Platforms

Email Marketing Platforms: A Marketer’s Guide

Enterprise Sales Enablement Platforms: A Marketer’s Guide

Enterprise Digital Experience Platforms: A Marketer’s Guide

Enterprise Call Analytics Platforms: A Marketer’s Guide

See More Intelligence Reports

White Papers

Reputation Management For Healthcare Organizations

Unlock the App Marketing Potential of QR Codes

Realising the power of virtual events for demand generation

The Progressive Marketer’s Ultimate Events Strategy 2022 Worksheet

CMO Guide: How to Plan Smart and Pivot Fast

See More Whitepapers

Receive daily search news and analysis.

Processing...Please wait.

Topics

  • SEO
  • PPC

Our Events

  • Search Marketing Expo - SMX
  • MarTech

About

  • About Us
  • Contact
  • Privacy
  • Marketing Opportunities
  • Staff

Follow Us

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Newsletters
  • RSS
  • Youtube

© 2022 Third Door Media, Inc. All rights reserved.