Put simply, a headless contented absorption strategy (CMS) separates a website’s contented from its plan and code.

It functions otherwise from a accepted CMS, similar WordPress, and truthful requires antithetic considerations for SEO arsenic well. While general SEO champion practices and rules stay the same, however you spell astir implementing them volition disagree successful a headless setup.

This is simply a beginner-friendly usher covering everything you request to cognize astir headless CMS SEO, including:

• How headless SEO is antithetic from regular SEO
• The benefits of utilizing a headless CMS
• Headless SEO champion practices

But first, let’s marque definite we’re connected the aforesaid leafage astir the ins and outs of what a headless CMS is and however its differences whitethorn impact your SEO strategy.

In a accepted CMS, each your content, code, and plan unrecorded successful 1 place. While you tin plan a responsive layout for immoderate devices, the contented cannot beryllium displayed separately from the website itself.

Like a pizza, you can’t easy abstracted each the ingredients. It’s an all-or-nothing deal.

A headless CMS, however, separates your content, code, and plan truthful you tin make contented erstwhile and administer it crossed antithetic channels and devices easily.

For example, a headless eCommerce tract tin propulsion its pricing and inventory from 2 antithetic systems and past propulsion these to the website oregon different applications independently of immoderate different content.

A headless CMS allows your contented organisation to beryllium greater than the sum of its parts successful a mode that a accepted CMS ne'er volition beryllium capable to achieve.

For example, ​​when you physique a webpage utilizing a accepted CMS, you’ll often usage a ocular drag-and-drop exertion that looks a spot like this:

How you participate contented and images present volition intimately correspond what your website visitors see.

Now, let’s accidental you privation to administer the contented you’ve added present done a antithetic instrumentality oregon channel, similar a VR headset oregon an physics billboard.

With a accepted website CMS, you simply can’t bash that. You would request to recreate your contented and accommodate it to the level you’re delivering it on.

But, with a headless CMS, you don’t person specified a limitation. That’s due to the fact that however you signifier and put your contented wrong the CMS is wholly different. It looks a spot like this:

Source: Stackbit

Instead of adding contented and images based connected however you privation it to look, you simply participate the contented arsenic a postulation of abstracted “ingredients.” These ingredients tin past beryllium dynamically distributed and designed to lucifer the needs of each antithetic transmission and device.

Headless SEO is the signifier of optimizing your headless CMS truthful that it meets hunt motor optimization champion practices and gives your contented the champion accidental of ranking for applicable keywords.

Since contented tin beryllium distributed crossed different channels, beyond the website, headless SEO offers a much flexible attack towards optimizing contented nary substance wherever it’s viewed.

If the tagline for a headless CMS is “create contented once, administer it everywhere,” past the tagline for headless SEO would beryllium “optimize everything, everywhere, each at once.”

There are a fewer cardinal differences betwixt doing SEO for a headless CMS vs accepted SEO.

1. You’ll person greater power and flexibility

Have you ever wanted to customize immoderate constituent of your method SEO setup but recovered that a CMS wouldn’t fto you? Yeah, it’s a communal gripe and happens much often than SEO pros would like.

With headless SEO, you get to custom-design your CMS to beryllium exactly however you privation it to be.

• Want a circumstantial SEO-friendly URL structure? Easy peasy!
• Want a customized robots.txt oregon sitemap file? Coming right up!
• Want circumstantial schema templates for antithetic types of content? You got it!

It is (quite literally) a lawsuit of “ask and you shall receive.”

Any optimization that you tin imagination of, a headless CMS tin achieve, but only if you inquire your developer to make it and usher them connected however you privation it done.

The caveat with this is that you’ll beryllium 100% liable for everything to bash with your SEO setup. You’ll request to deliberation astir things you whitethorn not usually person to interest astir erstwhile utilizing a accepted CMS, like:

• Adding validation rules to forestall mistakes
• Adding customized logic to canonicals
• Architecting faceted navigation systems
• Defining pagination preferences
• And more

Tip

You tin usage Ahrefs’ Site Audit instrumentality to get a database of implicit 170 method SEO issues to amended your devs astir truthful they don’t accidentally marque mistakes with your headless SEO implementation.

Make definite to docket automated audits truthful you tin show these issues implicit time. If you’re unsure however to nonstop your developers to hole immoderate of them, click the “?” adjacent to each contented to spot a statement and immoderate advice.

2. You’ll request to optimize content, codification & plan separately

Perhaps the astir hard happening to accommodate to with headless SEO is that you’ll request to optimize content, code, and plan independently of each other.

• Content Optimization: Mainly occurs done a process called “content modeling.” Content models interruption your contented down into assorted record formats and blocks which tin beryllium optimized individually. More connected this successful a moment.
• Technical Optimization: Technical SEO is implemented separately from on-page. Writers tin upload contented without bogging down leafage velocity oregon different show metrics. And, developers tin deploy updates without halting publishing activities (unlike with immoderate accepted CMS’).
• Design Optimization: Instead of trying to compression method and SEO requirements into your plan process, you tin absorption 100% connected designing optimal idiosyncratic experiences for each instrumentality and transmission that your contented volition look on.

There’s a batch much readying and architecting progressive erstwhile it comes to headless SEO and you’ll request to enactment intimately with developers to marque definite your optimizations are implemented arsenic you privation them to be.

3. You request to make and optimize contented models alternatively of pages

If you’re utilized to utilizing a CMS similar WordPress, past you’re besides utilized to optimizing implicit pages and posts for the most part.

But with a headless CMS, you’ll request to physique and optimize contented models alternatively of pages. What’s a contented exemplary you ask?

Content modeling structures and organizes your contented successful a mode that APIs tin past administer to immoderate benignant of interface. Not lone tin you specify the attributes each benignant of contented volition feature, but you tin besides make relationships betwixt antithetic types of content.

Think of a contented exemplary arsenic the look needed to instruct your codification connected wherever it should nonstop assorted types of content.

Like immoderate bully recipe, a contented exemplary volition stitchery the close ingredients (your contented blocks) and signifier them successful a mode that volition present a circumstantial result (a implicit portion of contented adapted to the interface it’s displayed on).

Without a recipe, you extremity up with an “everything” pizza that combines each ingredients, always—even if it doesn’t marque consciousness to see them. For instance, connected WordPress, the mobile, tablet, and desktop views of a website are each antithetic slices of the “everything” pizza, but connected a headless CMS, they’re wholly antithetic meals.

The large happening astir contented modeling for SEO is that you tin make a tract oregon property for perfectly thing you want.

For example, if you person a existent property business, past you’ll request to see spot listings and accusation astir your agents successful your contented model. And, you’ll request to see each the attributes you’ll request for each of these types of content.

Here’s an illustration of what that whitethorn look, like:

Things similar the “property title” oregon the “agent’s name” are the attributes that acceptable each benignant of contented best. You’ll request to deliberation astir each the attributes needed for each contented benignant you adhd to your headless CMS.

Now, conscionable due to the fact that you person 2 antithetic types of content, it doesn’t mean they can’t amusement connected the aforesaid page. They tin indeed.

Notice however the spot listing includes a notation to the cause managing that property? This notation connects the 2 antithetic contented types to each different and allows each spot listing to show accusation astir the applicable agent.

When it comes to headless SEO, you’ll request to see a akin benignant of notation for contented types that necessitate SEO metadata oregon peculiar types of schema markup, like so:

Doing this allows your website to see each the applicable on-page optimizations you need. But past you tin besides take not to load this metadata for platforms and channels wherever SEO is not a priority, similar successful a mobile app.

Here are the biggest ones:

• Publish contented crossed channels much easily, reaching much radical successful the process
• Lighter and much versatile website
• Remove bottlenecks betwixt dev and contented teams

For example, astatine Ahrefs, we usage a headless model to amusement contented astir Google algorithm updates successful 2 places: the integrated postulation illustration successful Site Explorer…

… and our leafage listing Google algorithm updates (that anyone can view):

Each clip a caller Google update is released, we simply adhd accusation astir it successful our headless CMS and it gets pushed to some locations. Even better, arsenic there’s nary request to impact developers, our contented squad tin determination accelerated and support everything updated with ease.

But we’re not the lone ones benefitting from a headless approach. My buddy Dion Lovrecich astatine Extra Strength (a selling bureau present successful Australia) precocious implemented it for a lawsuit and had this to say:

Despite the galore benefits that headless systems offer, determination are besides immoderate disadvantages to consider.

For example, these systems are much analyzable than accepted CMS solutions. They necessitate a batch of resources to physique and maintain. It’s besides hard for non-technical teams to get started with headless owed to the integrative quality and the assorted APIs that whitethorn request to beryllium connected.

Even with developer support, you’ll request a greater method accomplishment acceptable truthful you tin little developers correctly and minimize mistakes successful your headless SEO setup.

These limitations marque it challenging for smaller businesses and non-technical teams to successfully enactment successful a headless environment. That being said, determination are galore emerging solutions that marque headless sites easier to physique and optimize and it’s apt we’ll spot smaller organizations statesman to follow specified technologies successful the future.

Headless SEO champion practices typically travel the aforesaid rules arsenic immoderate SEO strategy. You should inactive make invaluable contented that meets hunt intent, present optimal idiosyncratic experiences, and guarantee hunt engines are crawling a lean, optimized website.

However, headless SEO besides requires a greater grade of competency and cognition erstwhile it comes to immoderate method and on-page SEO implementations which we’ve outlined for you below.

1. Brief your devs connected method SEO champion practices

This whitethorn dependable boring but you really can’t win with headless SEO unless your devs recognize what they request to implement. And that comes down to however good you pass with them.

For example, alternatively of instructing them to simply “add a sitemap,” get specific. “I request an XML sitemap that updates dynamically connected a regular ground and lone includes indexable, canonical URLs with a 200 presumption code.”

Then, you tin leverage Ahrefs’ Site Audit to support way of however developers are implementing your requests. Set up a regular audit docket truthful you tin support tabs connected captious errors crossed a database of implicit 170 method issues.

For example, present are each the ones for sitemaps that you tin usage to audit the implementation of the supra instructions:

2. Use keyword insights to make your contented models

The champion spot to commencement contented modeling is by doing keyword research. Not lone tin you uncover the ascendant hunt intents your contented volition request to meet, you tin besides get truly chill insights connected attributes to see successful your contented models.

For example, let’s accidental you’re a existent property cause successful New York. Using Ahrefs’ Keywords Explorer, you spot that determination are a fig of specific, medium- to long-tail keywords radical hunt for:

From these, we can:

• Infer hunt intent, similar if radical privation to bargain or rent.
• Discover attributes radical attraction astir about, similar the fig of bedrooms oregon a lakefront location.
• Map retired suburbs with a batch of interest, similar Rochester oregon Charlton.
• Consider categories for antithetic spot types, similar apartments oregon commercialized properties.

With these insights, we tin past make the pursuing successful our contented model:

• Categories based connected a acquisition oregon rental intent
• Property listings with meaningful attributes included
• Categories and tags based connected determination oregon spot types
• A dynamic representation with filters for circumstantial attributes

And this is conscionable a starting point! The possibilities headless SEO provides are endlessly customizable and utilizing keyword information volition assistance you hone successful connected what matters astir to your audience.

3. Map retired your taxonomies similar tags and categories

Taxonomies assistance name, describe, and classify your contented truthful you tin easy find it and truthful it appears dynamically successful the close places.

When it comes to headless SEO, you volition request to make a elaborate program truthful the close contented shows up astatine the close clip and is optimized correctly for the instrumentality oregon transmission it’s being viewed on.

Tags and categories are communal examples of taxonomy structures you tin usage to signifier your content.

For example, a existent property cause mightiness make categories based on:

• Location: e.g., New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco
• Property types: e.g., Apartment, house, villa, multi-plex
• Intent: To buy, to rent, to sell

Furthermore, you tin make tags that align with the attributes of each property.

Instead of simply tagging a page oregon post, however, you’ll beryllium tagging each contented types successful your headless CMS. This means you whitethorn request to see taxonomies that won’t show connected the front-end view layer.

For instance, you tin categorize your contented based connected things similar the benignant of record it is (image, video, text) oregon the instrumentality it’s champion viewed connected (mobile, desktop, VR headset).

4. Add abstracted fields for schema markup

Schema markup helps hunt engines amended recognize content. Many hunt engines usage schema markup to heighten the interface and show contented successful a much visually affluent manner.

The large happening astir headless SEO is that your contented models tin easy beryllium converted into affluent schema markup.

For example, if you make a contented benignant for your existent property agents, you tin align the attributes with those required for elaborate person schema. Then, schema tin beryllium created programmatically and included everywhere those fields show (even if they’re not connected your website).

You tin besides petition that your devs make a tract for inputting customized schema instead. This tin beryllium done for each URL oregon for each contented constituent successful your contented mode, and you tin acceptable rules for delivering it successful a azygous publication connected the front end.

5. Think astir heading hierarchy and integrate it into your model

Heading hierarchy relates to the narration betwixt main headings and sub-headings successful your content. There are SEO and accessibility champion practices that are champion for your contented to abide by, but with a headless CMS, it tin beryllium hard to way the heading hierarchy for each page.

As a modular rule, lone usage 1 H1 tag and reserve it for the main rubric of the page. You tin bash this successful the presumption furniture of the website by denoting the tract for the main rubric to beryllium tagged arsenic a H1 successful the HTML code.

You tin default to H2 oregon H3 headings for the remaining sub-headings. However, it is important your designers lone allocate heading tags to contented that is portion of the main body.

Designers tin often adhd heading tags for things they privation to look visually similar, adjacent if those elements aren’t portion of the main content, truthful marque definite you instruct them not to get carried away!

6. Use references for interior links

When it comes to interior links successful a headless SEO strategy, see adding references alternatively of afloat URLs. A notation operates successful the inheritance of your CMS and connects contented dynamically to each other.

If you alteration a URL down the track, each notation to it volition update automatically connected your unrecorded site. This tin prevention your squad hours of clip that would different beryllium wasted uncovering and fixing breached links, each without them having to interaction a azygous portion of code.

Final thoughts

There are immoderate wide advantages to utilizing a headless CMS for SEO. But, SEO is not the lone origin to consider, and it’s often a determination extracurricular of the SEO team’s control.

It’s worthy pitching headless SEO to the decision-makers successful your enactment if:

• You request a much flexible attack to contented deliverability.
• You’d similar full power implicit each on-page and method SEO element.
• You’d similar to unlock omnichannel selling capabilities.
• You request a much scalable solution for contented publishing.
• You’d similar to present amended idiosyncratic experiences connected your front-end.
• You’d similar to amended conception contented by locale oregon language.

Have immoderate questions? Got a chill headless SEO usage lawsuit to share? Reach retired connected LinkedIn and fto me know.