SEO Best Practices for CO3DEX

This guide outlines the SEO optimizations implemented and best practices for maintaining optimal search engine visibility.

Implemented Optimizations

1. Meta Tags & Head Section

  • ✅ Proper title tags with site hierarchy
  • ✅ Meta descriptions (auto-generated from summaries, max 160 chars)
  • ✅ Keywords meta tag (from front matter + categories + tags)
  • ✅ Author meta tags
  • ✅ Language and locale settings
  • ✅ Viewport and character encoding
  • ✅ Canonical URLs for all pages

2. Open Graph Tags

  • ✅ og:title
  • ✅ og:description (truncated to 200 chars)
  • ✅ og:image with alt text
  • ✅ og:url
  • ✅ og:type (article vs website)
  • ✅ og:locale
  • ✅ article:published_time
  • ✅ article:modified_time
  • ✅ article:author
  • ✅ article:section (from categories)
  • ✅ article:tag (from tags)

3. Twitter Cards

  • ✅ twitter:card (summary_large_image when thumbnail present)
  • ✅ twitter:site and twitter:creator
  • ✅ twitter:title
  • ✅ twitter:description (truncated to 200 chars)
  • ✅ twitter:image with alt text
  • ✅ twitter:url

4. Structured Data (JSON-LD)

  • ✅ BlogPosting schema for posts
  • ✅ WebPage schema for pages
  • ✅ BreadcrumbList schema for navigation
  • ✅ Organization schema (publisher)
  • ✅ Person schema (author)
  • ✅ ImageObject schema

5. Technical SEO

  • ✅ robots.txt file
  • ✅ Sitemap (auto-generated via jekyll-sitemap plugin)
  • ✅ humans.txt file
  • ✅ RSS feed
  • ✅ Canonical URLs
  • ✅ Proper permalink structure
  • ✅ Mobile-friendly viewport

Content Creation Best Practices

Post Front Matter Template

Every blog post should include the following front matter:

---
layout: post
title: "Your SEO-Optimized Title (50-60 characters)"
summary: "Compelling meta description that includes primary keyword (150-160 characters)"
author: hogjonny
date: "YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS -0600"
category: techart  # or python, rendering, tools, etc.
thumbnail: /assets/img/posts/your-post-slug/featured-image.png
keywords: primary-keyword,secondary-keyword,tertiary-keyword,related-term
permalink: /blog/your-post-slug/
usemathjax: false  # set to true if using math equations
modified_date: "YYYY-MM-DD HH:MM:SS -0600"  # optional, add when significantly updating
---

Title Optimization

  • Length: 50-60 characters (to avoid truncation in search results)
  • Include primary keyword near the beginning
  • Be specific and descriptive
  • Consider using: How to, Guide, Tutorial, Introduction, Best Practices
  • Examples:
    • ✅ “Python Logging Best Practices for Game Development Tools”
    • ✅ “Image-Based Lighting Setup Guide for O3DE”
    • ❌ “Logging” (too vague)
    • ❌ “Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About…” (too long & clickbait)

Summary/Description Optimization

  • Length: 150-160 characters (Google typically displays 155-160)
  • Include primary keyword naturally
  • Write compelling copy that encourages clicks
  • Include a call-to-action or value proposition
  • Examples:
    • ✅ “Learn how to implement defensive logging strategies in Python tools for game development. Transform fragile prototypes into production-ready applications.”
    • ✅ “Master Image-Based Lighting in Open 3D Engine. Complete guide to HDR environments, skyboxes, and global illumination setup for realistic rendering.”
    • ❌ “This post is about logging” (not compelling)

Keyword Strategy

  • Primary keyword: Main topic (1-2 words)
  • Secondary keywords: Related concepts (2-4 terms)
  • Long-tail keywords: Specific phrases users might search (3-5 terms)
  • Separate with commas, no spaces after commas
  • Include 5-10 keywords total
  • Examples:
    • python,logging,tools,game-development,debugging,pyside,qt
    • ibl,image-based-lighting,o3de,rendering,hdri,global-illumination

Image Optimization

  1. Thumbnails:
    • Recommended size: 1200x630px (optimal for social sharing)
    • Format: PNG or JPG
    • File size: < 200KB for performance
    • Path: /assets/img/posts/YYYY-MM-DD-post-slug/thumbnail.png
  2. Content Images:
    • Use descriptive filenames: o3de-lighting-setup.png not img001.png
    • Add alt text for accessibility and SEO
    • Compress images before uploading
    • Use appropriate format: PNG for screenshots/diagrams, JPG for photos
  3. Alt Text Best Practices: 
    ![Descriptive alt text](path/to/image.png)
    • Be specific and descriptive
    • Include keywords naturally
    • ✅ “O3DE editor showing global illumination settings with HDR skybox”
    • ❌ “screenshot” or “image1”
  • Use descriptive slugs that include primary keyword
  • Keep short and readable (3-5 words ideal)
  • Use hyphens to separate words, not underscores
  • Avoid: dates in URL (already in filename), special characters, stop words
  • Examples:
    • ✅ /blog/python-logging-best-practices/
    • ✅ /blog/image-based-lighting-setup/
    • ❌ /blog/2026/02/25/post/
    • ❌ /blog/a-guide-to-the-best-practices/

Content Structure for SEO

Headings Hierarchy

  • Use one H1 per page (automatically from title)
  • Use H2 for main sections
  • Use H3 for subsections
  • Never skip heading levels (H1 → H3)
  • Include keywords in H2 headings when natural

Internal Linking

  • Link to related posts naturally in content
  • Use descriptive anchor text (not “click here”)
  • Aim for 2-3 internal links per 1000 words
  • Update older posts to link to new content

Content Length

  • Tutorial/Guide: 1500-3000 words (comprehensive)
  • How-To: 800-1500 words (focused)
  • News/Updates: 300-800 words (concise)
  • Quality over quantity - don’t add fluff

First Paragraph

  • Include primary keyword in first 100 words
  • Hook readers with value proposition
  • Preview what they’ll learn

Technical Considerations

Performance

  • Images should be optimized (compressed)
  • Use lazy loading for images below the fold
  • Minimize CSS/JS where possible
  • Enable caching (handled by hosting platform)

Mobile Optimization

  • All pages are mobile-responsive
  • Test on actual devices
  • Ensure images scale properly
  • Verify readability of text size

Analytics Setup

Consider adding:

  • Google Analytics 4
  • Google Search Console
  • Monitor: traffic, popular content, search queries, click-through rates

Schema Validation

  • Test structured data: https://search.google.com/test/rich-results
  • Validate Open Graph: https://developers.facebook.com/tools/debug/
  • Check Twitter Cards: https://cards-dev.twitter.com/validator

Monitoring & Maintenance

Regular Checks

  • Weekly: Monitor new post indexing in Search Console
  • Monthly: Review top performing content and keywords
  • Quarterly: Audit and update old content
  • Yearly: Comprehensive SEO audit

Content Updates

When significantly updating a post:

  1. Add modified_date to front matter
  2. Update meta description if scope changed
  3. Add/update keywords if relevant
  4. Consider refreshing images/screenshots
  5. Update internal links

Common Issues to Avoid

  • ❌ Duplicate content
  • ❌ Missing or duplicate meta descriptions
  • ❌ Broken internal/external links
  • ❌ Images without alt text
  • ❌ Non-descriptive page titles
  • ❌ Thin content (< 300 words without reason)
  • ❌ Keyword stuffing
  • ❌ Slow page load times

Resources & Tools

Validation Tools

SEO Tools

  • Google Search Console (required)
  • Google Analytics 4 (recommended)
  • Bing Webmaster Tools (optional)
  • Ahrefs / SEMrush (for advanced analysis)

Learning Resources

Quick Checklist for New Posts

Before publishing, verify:

  • Title is 50-60 characters with primary keyword
  • Summary is 150-160 characters and compelling
  • Keywords include 5-10 relevant terms
  • Thumbnail image is 1200x630px and < 200KB
  • Permalink is descriptive and keyword-rich
  • First paragraph includes primary keyword
  • Images have descriptive alt text
  • Content has proper heading hierarchy (H2, H3)
  • 2-3 internal links to related content
  • Content is 800+ words (for substantial posts)
  • Proofread for spelling/grammar
  • Mobile-friendly (test on phone)
  • All links work (no 404s)

Contact

For questions about SEO implementation, contact the site author or check the latest at schema.org and Google Search Central.