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I don't know how many of you have forums here, but I thought I'd do a quick guide that over a few tips on how to do SEO for forums.
This is actually the first time I've done SEO for a forum, and it's quite a bit different than doing SEO for a WordPress blog. After all, you have users posting content for your forum, so a lot of comes down to focusing on the technical side of things.
Tip #1: Use Full-Friendly URLs
This is actually a basic option in Xenforo. It's a good thing to enable since these types of URLs improve search engine readability
Tip #2: Fill Out Subforums Descriptions
Any opportunity to describe what a subforum is about should be taken.
Tip #3: Keep Your Forum Organised
You want your forum to be easy to browse for not just your users, but also for search engines.
One thing to avoid is creating a bunch of pointless subforums within subforums that even your own community struggles to find. Yes, that is about a certain someplace specific.
Tip #4: Submit a Sitemap URL
As you would for any website, submit your sitemap to Google Search Console. This helps Google discover and crawl your website's pages more efficiently since they basically have a way to every page important URL of your website.
Tip #5: Sticky Top-Notch Content In Each Subforum
If a member of your forum posts something really in-depth and helpful, you should sticky this thread. Not only will it encourage more users to post similar content, but think of this like writing a pillar article for a blog; it's the type of content you really want search engines to see on your forum.
This is actually the first time I've done SEO for a forum, and it's quite a bit different than doing SEO for a WordPress blog. After all, you have users posting content for your forum, so a lot of comes down to focusing on the technical side of things.
Tip #1: Use Full-Friendly URLs
This is actually a basic option in Xenforo. It's a good thing to enable since these types of URLs improve search engine readability
Tip #2: Fill Out Subforums Descriptions
Any opportunity to describe what a subforum is about should be taken.
Tip #3: Keep Your Forum Organised
You want your forum to be easy to browse for not just your users, but also for search engines.
One thing to avoid is creating a bunch of pointless subforums within subforums that even your own community struggles to find. Yes, that is about a certain someplace specific.
Tip #4: Submit a Sitemap URL
As you would for any website, submit your sitemap to Google Search Console. This helps Google discover and crawl your website's pages more efficiently since they basically have a way to every page important URL of your website.
Tip #5: Sticky Top-Notch Content In Each Subforum
If a member of your forum posts something really in-depth and helpful, you should sticky this thread. Not only will it encourage more users to post similar content, but think of this like writing a pillar article for a blog; it's the type of content you really want search engines to see on your forum.
