Showit SEO Guide

The Complete Showit SEO Guide & Checklist

A deep, no-fluff guide to ranking a Showit website — written for designers, agency owners, and DIY founders. Includes a 75-point checklist with step-by-step walkthroughs for every item.

✍️ By Adil Makhdoom 📅 Last updated: May 2026 ⏱ ~30 min read 📋 75-point checklist

Part 1

How SEO Works on Showit

Before you touch a single setting, you need to understand how Showit actually serves a website to Google. Most "Showit SEO" advice fails because people treat Showit like Squarespace or WordPress. It is not either of those. It is a hybrid, and the hybrid is where 90% of ranking issues come from.

1.1 The Showit + WordPress Architecture

A Showit site is really two systems glued together:

The Showit Design App — handles your main pages: Home, About, Services, Contact, Portfolio, landing pages. These are pure Showit pages, edited on a visual canvas.
WordPress (optional, on Tier 2+ plans) — handles your blog. Every blog post, blog index, category page, tag page, and author page is rendered by WordPress, not Showit.

This matters because the two systems have completely different SEO controls:

For Showit pages, you set SEO inside the Showit Design App's SEO Settings panel.
For blog posts and blog templates, you set SEO inside WordPress, usually via the Yoast SEO or Rank Math plugin.

Common mistake: A Showit designer perfectly optimizes the Home and Services pages, then publishes 40 blog posts with empty Yoast fields. Google ranks none of them. If you only optimize one side, half your site is invisible.

Showit also auto-generates a sitemap at yourdomain.com/siteinfo.xml for the Showit pages, and Yoast generates a separate sitemap (typically yourdomain.com/sitemap_index.xml) for the WordPress blog. Both must be submitted to Google Search Console.

1.2 Page Titles (Title Tags)

The page title is the clickable blue link in Google search results. It is the single most important on-page SEO element — for both ranking and click-through rate.

Length: Aim for 50–60 characters. Google truncates around 580 pixels.
Format: Put the primary keyword near the front. End with your brand name on most pages.
Example (service page): Showit Website Designer for Photographers | Adil Makhdoom
Example (home page): Adil Makhdoom – Showit & SEO Designer in Lahore
Uniqueness: Every page needs a unique title. Duplicate titles dilute relevance and confuse Google.

Beginner trap: The H1 heading on the page and the title tag are different things. The H1 is visible on-page text. The title tag lives in the page's <head> and is invisible to visitors — you only see it in the browser tab and in Google results.

In Showit, this is the Page Title field inside SEO Settings — not visible text on your canvas.

→ Guide: How to set the Page Title in Showit

1.3 Meta Descriptions

The meta description is the short snippet under the blue link in Google. It does not directly influence ranking, but it heavily influences click-through rate, which indirectly influences ranking.

Length: 140–160 characters. Google may rewrite if it's too short or irrelevant.
Include: Primary keyword, a clear value proposition, a soft call-to-action.
Tone: Write to the human, not the algorithm. Treat it as ad copy.

Every Showit page has its own Meta Description field, right under the Page Title in SEO Settings.

→ Guide: How to write and set Meta Descriptions

1.4 Page URLs and Slugs

The URL slug is the part of the URL after your domain. yoursite.com/showit-website-designer has a slug of showit-website-designer.

Lowercase only.
Hyphens between words — never underscores or spaces.
3–5 words max. Shorter is better.
Include the primary keyword.
No stop words (the, and, of, a) unless essential for meaning.
No dates, IDs, or random numbers.

❌ Bad: /page-2-final-v3-2024
✅ Good: /showit-seo-services

URL changes break links. Once indexed, do not change a URL without setting up a 301 redirect first.

→ Guide: How to set the Page URL/Slug in Showit

1.5 OG Image / Social Share Image

When someone shares your URL on Facebook, LinkedIn, WhatsApp, Slack, or iMessage, the platform pulls a preview card using the OG image you set.

Why it matters: A well-designed OG image can 3–5× your click-through rate from social shares. Without one, the platform grabs a random, badly cropped image.
Dimensions: 1200 × 630 pixels (1.91:1 ratio) — the Facebook/LinkedIn standard.
File size: Under 1 MB.
Format: JPG (smaller) or PNG (sharper text).
Design tip: Include your logo, the page title, and a clean focal image — readable at thumbnail size.

Set this per page in Showit's SEO Settings → Share Image field. Blog post share images are set inside WordPress as the post's Featured Image.

→ Guide: How to set the OG / Share Image

1.6 Favicon

The favicon shows up in browser tabs, bookmarks, and Google search results next to your URL on mobile. No direct ranking impact, but it dramatically affects brand trust and CTR in mobile SERPs.

Specs: 32 × 32 pixels, PNG format, square.
Design: Usually a single letter, monogram, or simplified logo mark — not the full wordmark.
Use favicon.io to generate one from a logo or letter.

The favicon is global — set once in Site Settings, applies to every page.

→ Guide: How to set the Favicon

1.7 Heading Structure (H1–H6)

Headings tell Google — and screen readers, and humans skimming the page — the structure of your content. They are semantic HTML tags, not just visual styles.

One H1 per page. Always. The H1 is the page's main title. It should contain the primary keyword. Multiple H1s confuse Google and break accessibility.
H2 for major sections. H3 for sub-sections inside H2s.
Never skip levels. Don't go H1 → H3.
Don't use headings just to make text bigger — that's what font sizes are for.

Showit-specific trap: In Showit, the heading tag and the visual style are decoupled. Designers routinely make the brand name in the nav an H1 because it's the biggest text on the page, accidentally creating an H1 conflict with the actual page title.

The Text Tag dropdown lives inside the Text Properties panel on the right when a text box is selected.

Mobile-first warning: Desktop and mobile canvases can have different heading tags. If you set H1 correctly on desktop but the mobile canvas has the same text as a Paragraph, Google uses the mobile version — and sees no H1.

→ Guide: How to set H1, H2, H3 heading tags in Showit

1.8 Image SEO and Alt Text

Every image on your site is an SEO opportunity. Showit-heavy sites are image-heavy by nature, which makes this even more important.

The three image SEO levers

File name (before uploading): showit-website-designer-lahore.jpg, not IMG_4521.jpg. Lowercase, hyphens, descriptive.
Alt text (after uploading): A natural-language description of the image. Showit calls this the SEO Description in the image properties panel.
File size: Compress before uploading. Under 200 KB for hero images, under 100 KB for everything else. Use TinyPNG, Squoosh, or ShortPixel.

Alt text rules

Describe what's in the image, not what you wish it ranked for.
Don't keyword-stuff. "Showit website designer Showit SEO Lahore Showit expert" is spam.
Don't write "image of…" or "photo of…" — screen readers already say that.
Decorative images (dividers, background patterns) can have empty alt text.

Gallery images in Showit have their alt text set per-image inside the gallery's image list — same panel as the Image Title.

→ Guide: How to add alt text to images and galleries

1.9 Internal & External Linking

Links are still one of Google's core ranking signals. Most Showit sites under-link internally and over-link externally.

Internal linking

Every important page should be reachable in 2 clicks from the home page.
Use descriptive anchor text. "Showit SEO services" beats "click here."
Link from blog posts to service pages. This passes link equity to pages that convert.
3–8 internal links per long-form post is healthy.

External linking

Linking out to authoritative sources actually helps SEO. It signals you've done research.
Set affiliate or sponsored external links to rel="nofollow" or rel="sponsored".
Always open external links in a new tab. Internal links in the same tab.

In Showit, links are set via Click Actions on any element. Action types include: Site Page (internal), Web URL (external), Anchor Tag, Email, and Phone.

→ Guide: How to add internal and external links in Showit

1.10 Schema Markup (Structured Data)

Schema markup is invisible code that tells Google what your content is — not just "here's some text" but "here's a service, priced at $X, offered in Lahore, by a business with these reviews."

Why it matters more than ever

Rich snippets in Google (star ratings, FAQs, price ranges, breadcrumbs) all come from schema.
AI Overviews, Perplexity, ChatGPT, and Google's AI Mode all preferentially cite content with clean structured data.
Local businesses without LocalBusiness schema get crushed in local pack results.

Schema types every Showit site should consider

Page	Schema Type
Home	ProfessionalService or LocalBusiness
About	Person (for solo brand)
Each service page	Service
Pages with FAQs	FAQPage
Contact	LocalBusiness (if local)
Blog posts	Article / BlogPosting (Yoast/Rank Math auto-handles)

Showit doesn't have a native schema builder. You add it as JSON-LD code, pasted into the Custom Head HTML field — either site-wide (Site Settings → Integrations) or per page (Page → Advanced Settings → Custom Head HTML).

Generate the JSON-LD with a free tool like TechnicalSEO.com Schema Generator or Schema App, then paste the output into Showit.

→ Guide: How to add Schema Markup in Showit

1.11 Mobile Canvas SEO — The Showit-Specific Trap

This is the single most overlooked Showit SEO issue. Google uses mobile-first indexing. Your mobile canvas is the one Google reads for ranking — not your desktop canvas.

Showit gives you two separate canvases per page. They can have different text, different headings, different images, different elements entirely. If they're out of sync, you have a serious problem.

Common mobile-only SEO mistakes

Important paragraphs hidden on mobile to "clean up the design." Google treats that content as missing.
The H1 on desktop is a beautiful display headline. On mobile, the same text is a Paragraph tag.
Alt text was added to desktop images, but the mobile canvas uses a different image with no alt text.
The mobile menu uses a hamburger that opens a hidden canvas — and the menu items inside have no link click actions.

The rule: Whatever is critical for SEO (H1, body copy, alt text, internal links) must be present and correct on the mobile canvas — even if styled differently.

→ Guide: How to audit the mobile canvas for SEO

1.12 Site Speed & Core Web Vitals

Google's Core Web Vitals (LCP, INP, CLS) are real ranking factors. Showit sites can be fast, but the platform's design freedom makes it easy to build slow ones.

Most common speed killers on Showit

Uncompressed images. A single 4 MB hero image can tank your Largest Contentful Paint.
Auto-playing video backgrounds on mobile.
Too many custom fonts — each font weight is a separate HTTP request.
Heavy third-party embeds (Calendly, Typeform, Instagram feeds, multiple analytics scripts).
Massive canvases on mobile — a 10,000px-tall canvas with 30 elements on a mid-range Android phone is slow.

How to measure

PageSpeed Insights — official Core Web Vitals scores from Google's CrUX data.
GTmetrix — good for waterfall analysis.
Chrome DevTools → Lighthouse → Mobile.

→ Guide: How to optimize Showit site speed

1.13 Indexing, Sitemap & robots.txt

Indexing means Google has crawled your page and added it to its database. If a page is not indexed, it cannot rank. Period.

Showit auto-generates a sitemap at yourdomain.com/siteinfo.xml.
The WordPress blog uses Yoast/Rank Math to generate its own sitemap at yourdomain.com/sitemap_index.xml.
robots.txt is automatically handled by Showit. You don't get to edit it directly.
Each Showit page has an "Ask Google to ignore this page" toggle inside Advanced Settings. If checked, the page gets a noindex directive.

Most common indexing issue: A designer builds a site, accidentally leaves "Ask Google to ignore this page" checked on a key page (often left over from when it was a draft), and then wonders why it never ranks. Always audit every important page.

Verify indexing in Google Search Console by pasting the URL into the top bar.

→ Guide: How to submit your sitemap and check indexing

1.14 Canonical URLs

A canonical URL is a tag that tells Google "this is the official version of this page." It prevents duplicate content issues when the same content is reachable via multiple URLs.

Showit automatically sets canonical URLs for each page. You normally don't need to do anything. The only times this matters:

You're running a paid landing page with UTM parameters and want to canonicalize it to the clean URL.
You have a syndicated blog post that originally appeared elsewhere — set the canonical to the original source.

For the WordPress blog, Yoast/Rank Math handles canonicals automatically and lets you override them per-post.

1.15 Blog SEO via WordPress

Your blog is your SEO engine. Showit pages tend to be static. Blog posts are where you target long-tail keywords, build topical authority, and earn backlinks.

The setup

Install Yoast SEO or Rank Math in WordPress. (Yoast comes pre-installed on Showit's basic blog plans.)
Configure the plugin: site name, social profiles, default title/meta templates, schema (Person vs Organization).
For every post: set the focus keyphrase, write a custom SEO title, write a custom meta description, set the slug, upload a featured image with alt text, and use proper H1/H2/H3 structure.

Blog content strategy

Pillar pages (long, comprehensive guides) target broad head keywords.
Cluster posts (shorter, specific) target long-tail keywords and link back to the pillar.
Internal link from every cluster post to the pillar, and from the pillar to every cluster.

→ Guide: How to set up WordPress blog SEO with Yoast/Rank Math

1.16 AEO — Optimizing for AI Search

Search is changing. Perplexity, ChatGPT, Claude, Google's AI Mode, and Bing Copilot answer questions directly — often citing 3–5 sources. To get cited, your content needs to be structured for extraction.

What AI search engines look for

Clear question-and-answer formatting. Use H2s/H3s phrased as actual questions.
Direct answers in the first 1–2 sentences under each heading. The model needs a clean snippet to pull.
Structured data — FAQ, How-To, and Article schema are heavily used.
Author bylines and dates. AI engines weight E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) heavily.
Tables, lists, and definitions. Easy for an LLM to parse.
Original data, opinions, examples, screenshots. Generic regurgitated content gets ignored.

Practical Showit moves

Add an FAQ section at the bottom of every important page, marked up with FAQ schema.
Use the pattern: question as H3, answer as the next paragraph.
Add author bio canvases to blog posts (Yoast can render Person schema).
Publish original research, case studies, and before/after comparisons.

→ Guide: How to optimize for AI search engines

1.17 Local SEO Fundamentals

If you serve a specific city or region, local SEO multiplies your visibility.

The five local SEO pillars

Google Business Profile — free, verify it, fill out everything, post weekly.
NAP consistency — your business Name, Address, and Phone must be identical across your website, Google Business Profile, social profiles, and directory listings.
LocalBusiness schema on your home page and contact page.
Location-specific landing pages — if you serve multiple cities, build one page per city.
Reviews — real reviews on Google Business Profile, optionally marked up with Review schema.

→ Guide: How to set up local SEO for a Showit site

Part 2

The 75-Point Checklist

Work through this top to bottom on a new site, or use it as an audit on an existing site. Click any item to mark it done.

Phase 1 — Foundations (Before You Optimize a Single Page)

1. Confirm your domain is connected and SSL is active (HTTPS). → Guide
2. Decide on www vs. non-www and stick to it across all marketing. → Guide
3. Set your favicon (32 × 32 PNG) in Site Settings. → Guide
4. Set a default site-wide social share image. → Guide
5. Install Google Analytics 4 (GA4) via Site Settings → Integrations. → Guide
6. Verify your site in Google Search Console. → Guide
7. Verify your site in Bing Webmaster Tools (powers ChatGPT search). → Guide
8. Submit your Showit sitemap (/siteinfo.xml) to Search Console. → Guide
9. Submit your blog sitemap (/sitemap_index.xml) to Search Console (if you have WordPress). → Guide
10. Set up a 301 redirect plan for any old URLs from a previous site. → Guide

Phase 2 — Page-Level SEO (Repeat for Every Page)

11. Write a unique, keyword-optimized Page Title (50–60 characters) for every page. → Guide
12. Write a unique, compelling Meta Description (140–160 characters) for every page. → Guide
13. Set a clean, keyword-rich Page URL slug (lowercase, hyphens, 3–5 words). → Guide
14. Upload a custom Share Image (1200 × 630 px) for every important page. → Guide
15. Verify "Ask Google to ignore this page" is unchecked for every page you want ranked. → Guide
16. Set noindex on thank-you pages, hidden landing pages, and duplicate test pages. → Guide

Phase 3 — Content & Headings

17. Do keyword research for every page using Semrush, Ahrefs, Ubersuggest, or Google Keyword Planner. → Guide
18. Map one primary keyword + 2–3 secondary keywords to each page. Don't target the same keyword on two pages.
19. Set exactly one H1 per page, containing the primary keyword. → Guide
20. Use H2s for major sections, H3s for subsections. Never skip levels. → Guide
21. Confirm headings are correct on both desktop and mobile canvases. → Guide
22. Write body copy that genuinely answers what the searcher is looking for. Minimum 300 words per Showit page, 1,000+ for pillar blog posts.
23. Naturally include primary and secondary keywords in the first 100 words.
24. Add an FAQ section to your most important pages. → Guide

Phase 4 — Images & Media

25. Rename image files before uploading (e.g. showit-seo-services-lahore.jpg). → Guide
26. Compress every image to under 200 KB (hero) or 100 KB (other) before upload. → Guide
27. Add alt text (SEO Description) to every meaningful image. → Guide
28. Add alt text to every image inside Showit galleries individually. → Guide
29. Leave alt text empty on purely decorative images.
30. Avoid auto-playing video backgrounds on mobile.

Phase 5 — Internal & External Linking

31. Every important page should be reachable in 2 clicks from the home page. → Guide
32. Add 3–8 internal links from each blog post to other relevant pages. → Guide
33. Use descriptive anchor text. No "click here." → Guide
34. Set external links to open in a new tab. → Guide
35. Add nofollow to affiliate or sponsored links.
36. Audit for broken links monthly using Ahrefs Broken Link Checker or Dr. Link Check.

Phase 6 — Technical SEO

37. Run PageSpeed Insights on home page, key service pages, and a blog post. Aim for 70+ mobile, 90+ desktop. → Guide
38. Address any Core Web Vitals warnings (LCP, INP, CLS). → Guide
39. Customize the 404 page so visitors who land on a broken URL still convert. → Guide
40. Delete or unpublish placeholder/template pages you're not using — don't just hide them.
41. Test your site on a real mobile device (not just Showit's mobile preview).

Phase 7 — Schema Markup

42. Add LocalBusiness or ProfessionalService schema to your home page. → Guide
43. Add Person schema to your About page (if you're a solo brand). → Guide
44. Add Service schema to each service page. → Guide
45. Add FAQPage schema to any page with an FAQ section. → Guide
46. Validate all schema with Google's Rich Results Test. → Guide

Phase 8 — WordPress Blog SEO

47. Install and configure Yoast SEO or Rank Math. → Guide
48. Set default title and meta description templates in the plugin. → Guide
49. Configure the plugin's schema settings (Person vs Organization, social profiles). → Guide
50. For every blog post: focus keyphrase, SEO title, meta description, slug, featured image + alt text. → Guide
51. Install the Redirection plugin in WordPress to manage 301s and monitor 404s. → Guide
52. Set blog permalinks to Post name (/%postname%/) in WordPress → Settings → Permalinks.

Phase 9 — AEO (AI Search Optimization)

53. Add FAQ sections to your most important pages. Use H3 questions + paragraph answers. → Guide
54. Mark FAQs up with FAQPage schema. → Guide
55. Open every blog post with a direct, 1–2 sentence answer to the post's title question.
56. Add author bylines, dates, and bio sections to blog posts. → Guide
57. Publish original research, opinions, case studies, or data nobody else has.

Phase 10 — Local SEO (If You Have a Local Business)

58. Claim and fully complete your Google Business Profile. → Guide
59. Ensure NAP (Name, Address, Phone) is identical on your site and Google Business Profile. → Guide
60. Add LocalBusiness schema with full address and geo coordinates. → Guide
61. Embed a Google Map on your contact page.
62. Build location-specific landing pages if you serve multiple cities.
63. Get listed on 5–10 high-quality directories relevant to your industry.

Phase 11 — Launch & Post-Launch

64. Use Screaming Frog (free up to 500 URLs) to crawl your site and find issues.
65. Manually request indexing for top 5 pages in Google Search Console. → Guide
66. Set up Google Search Console email alerts for indexing and Core Web Vitals issues.
67. Set up uptime monitoring (UptimeRobot, free).
68. Share your launch on LinkedIn, Pinterest, Instagram — early backlinks help indexing.

Phase 12 — Ongoing Maintenance (Monthly / Quarterly)

69. Monthly: Review Search Console Performance report. Find queries you almost rank for and improve those pages.
70. Monthly: Check for broken links and fix or redirect them.
71. Monthly: Publish at least 2 new blog posts targeting researched keywords.
72. Quarterly: Audit page speed and Core Web Vitals.
73. Quarterly: Refresh meta titles/descriptions on underperforming pages.
74. Quarterly: Audit competitors' new content and backlinks.
75. Annually: Full SEO audit — re-run this checklist top to bottom.

Part 3

Step-by-Step Guides

Every checklist item that requires more than a one-line action is detailed below. Bookmark this section.

3.1 How to Connect Your Domain and Confirm SSL

In the Showit Design App, click Site Settings (left sidebar, under the Site tab).
Find the Domain section and click Edit next to your domain. If no domain is connected, click Add a Custom Domain and step through the wizard.
Showit will give you DNS records (an A record and/or CNAME). Add them in your domain registrar (GoDaddy, Namecheap, Cloudflare, etc.).
Wait 24–48 hours for DNS propagation.
Once connected, Showit automatically issues a free SSL certificate. Visit your site — the URL should start with https:// and show a padlock icon.
Decide on www vs. non-www (most modern sites use non-www). Make sure the other version 301-redirects to your chosen version — Showit's domain settings handle this for you.
Use that exact version everywhere: Google Search Console, Analytics, social profiles, business cards.

3.2 How to Set the Favicon

Create a 32 × 32 pixel PNG of your logo mark. Use favicon.io if you need to generate one from a letter or upload a larger logo.
In the Showit Design App, click Site Settings in the left sidebar.
Find the Favicon setting.
Click Choose Image, upload your favicon file and select it.
Preview how it looks in the browser tab.
Click Publish in the top right of the Design App.

It can take up to 24 hours for the favicon to update for visitors who've already cached your site.

3.3 How to Set the OG / Social Share Image

Site-wide default

Design a 1200 × 630 pixel image in Canva or Photoshop. Include your logo, a clear headline, and an on-brand background. Save as JPG under 1 MB.
In Showit, open Site Settings and find the Default Share Image field.
Upload and select your image. This will be used for any page that doesn't have a custom share image.

Per-page share image

In the Design App, click the page name at the top of the canvas (so no canvas is selected — you should see page-level SEO Settings in the right panel).
Scroll to Share Image and click Choose Image.
Upload your custom 1200 × 630 image and select it.
Publish.

Blog post share image

In WordPress, edit the post.
In the right sidebar, find Featured Image and click Set featured image.
Upload your 1200 × 630 image. Add alt text. Click Update.

To test: paste your URL into Facebook's Sharing Debugger or LinkedIn's Post Inspector and click "Scrape Again" to clear the cache.

3.4 How to Install Google Analytics 4 (GA4)

Go to analytics.google.com, create an account and a GA4 property for your domain.
After creating the property, GA4 will show you a Measurement ID (format: G-XXXXXXXXXX).
In the Showit Design App, open Site Settings → Integrations tab.
Find the Google Analytics field and paste your Measurement ID. Save.
Click Publish in the Design App.
To verify: open your live site in an incognito window, then check GA4's Reports → Realtime view. You should see yourself as an active user within a minute.

Showit → Site Settings → Integrations → Google Analytics — paste your GA4 Measurement ID here

The same Integrations panel also has a field for Google Tag Manager — paste your GTM container ID there if you use GTM alongside GA4.

Showit → Site Settings → Integrations → Google Tag Manager — paste your GTM-XXXXXXX container ID here

3.5 How to Verify in Google Search Console (and Bing)

Go to search.google.com/search-console.
Click Add Property and choose URL prefix.
Enter the full URL exactly as it appears in browsers (e.g. https://yourdomain.com — match www/non-www exactly).
Choose the HTML tag verification method. Google gives you a meta tag like <meta name="google-site-verification" content="...">.
In Showit, open Site Settings → Integrations → + Add Custom Code. Paste the meta tag into the Head section. Save.
Click Publish in Showit.
Back in Search Console, click Verify. It should confirm within 30 seconds.

For Bing Webmaster Tools: go to bing.com/webmasters, import directly from Google Search Console (one-click), and you're done. Bing powers ChatGPT search — this matters.

To request indexing of a specific page

In Search Console, paste the URL into the search bar at the top.
Wait for the URL inspection report.
Click Request Indexing. Google will crawl within hours to days.

3.6 How to Submit Your Sitemap

Confirm your sitemap exists by visiting https://yourdomain.com/siteinfo.xml in a browser. You should see an XML page listing your pages.
In Search Console, click Sitemaps in the left sidebar.
Enter siteinfo.xml in the "Add a new sitemap" field and click Submit.
If you have a WordPress blog, also submit sitemap_index.xml (Yoast) or wp-sitemap.xml (WordPress core / Rank Math).
Wait 24–72 hours. Search Console will show "Success" and the number of discovered URLs.

3.7 How to Set Up 301 Redirects

For Showit pages

Open Site Settings, click Edit next to your domain.
Click the gear icon at the top right of the Update Domain window.
In the redirect panel, enter the old page slug on the left and the destination URL on the right.
Click Add, then Close. Publish the site.

The page you're redirecting away from must not exist in Showit. If a Showit page has the same slug, Showit serves the page and ignores the redirect.

For WordPress blog redirects

In WordPress, go to Plugins → Add New.
Search for Redirection (by John Godley, 2M+ installs). Install and activate.
Go to Tools → Redirection.
Enter the Source URL (relative, e.g. /old-blog-post/) and Target URL (full URL). Click Add Redirect.

Never redirect to the home page as a "lazy fix." Google sees that as a soft 404.

3.8 How to Set the Page Title

In the Showit Design App, click your page name in the left sidebar (so the page is selected — not a canvas inside it).
In the right sidebar, you should now see SEO Settings. If you see Canvas Settings instead, you accidentally selected a canvas — click the page name again.
In the Page Title field, write your title in 50–60 characters.
Format: Primary Keyword + Modifier | Brand Name. Home page exception: brand name first.
Publish.

Title formula examples

Home: Adil Makhdoom — Showit Designer & SEO Expert in Lahore
Service: Showit Website Design Services | Adil Makhdoom
Blog post: How to Add Alt Text in Showit (2026 Guide) | Adil Makhdoom

To verify: right-click your live page → View Page Source in Chrome → search for <title>. Your title should be there.

Showit SEO Settings — click the page name (not a canvas) to see these fields

3.9 How to Write and Set Meta Descriptions

Same place as Page Title — click the page name, then SEO Settings in the right panel.
In the Meta Description field, write 140–160 characters.
Structure: Hook → Value → CTA
Naturally include the primary keyword once. Don't force it.
Publish.

Example: Custom Showit website design for photographers, coaches, and creatives. SEO-optimized, fast, on-brand. Book a free strategy call with Adil today.

3.10 How to Set the Page URL / Slug

Click the page name in the left sidebar.
In the right panel, look for the Page URL field (sometimes labeled "URL Slug").
Enter the slug in lowercase with hyphens. Example: showit-seo-services.
Showit will warn you if the slug conflicts with another page.
Important: Once a page is live and indexed, do not change its slug without setting up a 301 redirect first.
Publish.

3.11 How to Use the "Ask Google to Ignore This Page" Toggle

Click the page name in the left sidebar.
In the right panel, click the Advanced Settings tab (next to SEO Settings).
Find the Ask Google to ignore this page checkbox.
Uncheck it for every page you want to rank.
Check it for: thank-you pages, hidden landing pages, gated content pages, test pages.
Publish.

This adds a noindex meta tag to the page's HTML head. It's one of the most common reasons Showit pages never appear in Google.

Advanced Settings → scroll to the bottom to find the noindex toggle

3.12 How to Do Keyword Research

Brainstorm seed keywords. What does your ideal client type into Google? Write 10–20 phrases.
Expand using a tool:
- Free: Google Keyword Planner, Ubersuggest, Answer the Public, Google autocomplete, "People Also Ask" boxes.
- Paid: Semrush, Ahrefs, Mangools KWFinder.
Filter for: monthly volume (50+ for niche, 500+ for broader), Keyword Difficulty under 30 for new sites, and search intent that matches your page.
Map keywords to pages in a spreadsheet: URL, Primary keyword, 2–3 secondary keywords, Search intent, Current ranking.

One primary keyword per page. Never target the same keyword on two pages — that creates keyword cannibalization where your own pages compete with each other and neither ranks well.

3.13 How to Set H1, H2, H3 Heading Tags in Showit

In the Design App, click on the text box you want to tag.
In the right panel, find the Text Properties section.
Locate the Text Tag dropdown.
Choose: H1, H2, H3, H4, H5, H6, Paragraph, or Navigation.
Logic: H1 = main page title (one per page, contains primary keyword). H2 = major section headers. H3 = subsections. Paragraph = body text.
Switch to the mobile canvas and verify the same tag is applied there too.
Publish.

To audit heading tags, install the HeadingsMap Chrome extension. It shows your full heading outline — multiple H1s, skipped levels, and missing structure all appear immediately.

Text Properties → Text Tag dropdown — set H1, H2, H3, Paragraph on any text element

3.14 How to Add Alt Text to Images and Galleries

For a regular image on a canvas

Click the image in the Showit Design App.
In the right panel, find the Image Properties section.
You'll see two fields: Image Title and Alt Text.
Image Title: Short, descriptive name. Example: showit-portfolio-laura-wedding-photographer.
Alt Text: Write a natural 1-sentence description. Example: Showit homepage hero for Laura, a wedding photographer in Lahore.
Save. Publish. Repeat on the mobile canvas if a different image is used there.

For images inside a Showit Gallery

Click the gallery → in the right panel, click Gallery Images.
Click each individual image in the list and fill in Title and Alt Text one at a time.

For WordPress blog images

In the post editor, click the image.
In the block sidebar, fill in the Alt text field.

Image Properties — fill in both Title and Alt Text for every image

3.15 How to Add Internal and External Links (Click Actions)

Click any text, image, button, or shape on a canvas.
In the right panel, find Click Actions.
Click + Add Click Action.
Choose the Action Type:
- Page — internal link to another page on your Showit site.
- URL — external URL. Toggle "Open in new tab" on.
- Canvas — jumps to a specific canvas on the same page.
- Email / Phone / SMS — opens email client or dialer.
Use descriptive link text ("Read our Showit SEO guide" — not "click here").
Repeat on the mobile canvas. Publish.

Click Actions → Link Type dropdown — all link types available in Showit

3.16 How to Add Schema Markup (JSON-LD) to Showit

Step 1 — Generate the schema

Use TechnicalSEO.com's Schema Markup Generator or Schema App.
Choose the schema type (LocalBusiness, Person, Service, FAQPage, etc.).
Fill in all relevant fields (name, address, phone, hours, social profiles, etc.).
Copy the generated JSON-LD code.

Example JSON-LD for a ProfessionalService:

<script type="application/ld+json">
{
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "ProfessionalService",
  "name": "Your Name",
  "url": "https://yourdomain.com",
  "telephone": "+XX-XXX-XXXXXXX",
  "address": {
    "@type": "PostalAddress",
    "addressLocality": "Your City",
    "addressCountry": "XX"
  },
  "areaServed": "Worldwide",
  "priceRange": "$$"
}
</script>

Step 2 — Add to Showit site-wide

Go to Site Settings → Integrations → + Add Custom Code.
Paste the <script> block into the Head section.
Save. Publish.

Step 2 (alternative) — Add to a single page

Click the page name in the left sidebar.
In the right panel, click Advanced Settings.
Find Custom Head HTML and click it.
Paste the <script> block into the popup. Save. Publish.

Advanced Settings → Custom Head HTML — paste your JSON-LD script here

Step 3 — Validate

Go to Google's Rich Results Test.
Paste your live URL and confirm the schema is detected with no errors.

3.17 How to Audit the Mobile Canvas for SEO

In Showit, switch to the mobile canvas view (toggle at the top of the editor).
For every page, verify:
- The H1 is present and tagged as H1 (click the text → Text Properties → Text Tag).
- H2s and H3s are present and tagged correctly.
- No critical body copy is hidden on mobile (check the Visibility toggle — make sure important paragraphs aren't set to "Hide on mobile").
- All images have alt text on the mobile version.
- All internal links (Click Actions) work on mobile elements.
Test the live mobile site on a real phone — not just Chrome DevTools emulation.
Run Google's Mobile-Friendly Test on each key URL.

3.18 How to Optimize Showit Site Speed

Images

Compress every image before uploading. Use TinyPNG, Squoosh, or ShortPixel.
Hero images: target under 200 KB. Other images: under 100 KB.
Use JPG for photos, PNG for graphics with transparency, SVG for logos and icons.
Don't upload a 4000-pixel-wide image to display at 800 pixels. Resize before uploading.

Fonts

Limit yourself to 2 font families. Each adds load time.
Limit weights — pick 2–3 (e.g. 400, 600, 700). Don't load all 9 weights.

Third-party embeds

Audit your Custom Head HTML and Integrations. Remove unused scripts.
Replace Instagram feed embeds with manually uploaded images for the home page.
Load Calendly/Typeform only on the contact page, not site-wide.

Video

Don't auto-play video backgrounds on mobile.
Host videos on Vimeo or YouTube and embed — don't upload large MP4s directly.

Measure and re-test

Run PageSpeed Insights on your home page, a service page, and a blog post.
Fix the top "Opportunities" in the report. Re-test. Repeat.

3.19 How to Customize Your 404 Page

In the Showit Design App's left sidebar, scroll to the Pages list. You should see a default 404 page.
Click the 404 page and customize it: branded design, friendly headline, helpful links back to Home, Services, Blog, and Contact.
Make sure the 404 page has "Ask Google to ignore this page" CHECKED — you don't want it indexed.
Verify it has a proper SEO Title like Page Not Found | Brand Name.
Publish.

3.20 How to Set Up WordPress Blog SEO (Yoast or Rank Math)

Install

In WordPress, go to Plugins → Add New.
Search for Yoast SEO or Rank Math. Install one (not both). Activate.

Initial configuration (Yoast)

Click Yoast SEO in the WordPress sidebar and run the First-Time Configuration wizard.
Set: Site type, Person or Organization (Person if solo brand), social profiles.
Search appearance: Posts and Pages = indexed; Tags, Author archives, Date archives = no (thin content).

Per-post optimization

Edit a blog post. Scroll to the Yoast SEO meta box.
Fill in: Focus keyphrase, SEO title (50–60 chars), Meta description (140–160 chars), Slug.
Set the Featured Image. Add alt text to it.
Inside the post body, use proper H2/H3 structure.
Link to at least 2 other relevant posts or pages on your site.
Click Update / Publish.

Permalinks & sitemap

Go to Settings → Permalinks in WordPress. Choose Post name (/%postname%/). Save.
Your blog sitemap is at yourdomain.com/sitemap_index.xml. Submit to Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools.

3.21 How to Optimize for AI Search (Perplexity, ChatGPT, Google AI)

Structure content for extraction

Open every important page with a direct, 1–2 sentence answer to the page's main question.
Use H2s and H3s phrased as actual questions someone would type or speak into ChatGPT.
Follow each question with a concise answer (1–3 sentences) before expanding into detail.

Add FAQ sections

At the bottom of your home page, services page, and key blog posts, add an FAQs canvas in Showit.
Use H3 for each question. Use paragraph text for each answer.
Mine real questions from "People Also Ask," client emails, and Reddit threads in your niche.
Mark the section up with FAQPage schema — see Schema guide above.

E-E-A-T signals

Add an author byline to every blog post (Yoast/Rank Math do this automatically with Person schema).
Add a brief author bio canvas at the bottom of blog posts with a photo and 1–2 sentence credential summary.
Include publish dates and "Last updated" dates on every blog post.
Link to your LinkedIn and other professional profiles from the author bio.

Original, citable content

Publish at least one piece of original research or data per quarter.
AI engines preferentially cite content with original data because nobody else has it.

3.22 How to Set Up Local SEO for a Showit Site

Claim Google Business Profile and verify with postcard or video.
Fully complete the profile: business name (exact match to your site), category, address, phone (local number), website URL, hours, service list, 10+ photos.
NAP consistency: The Name, Address, and Phone on your Showit contact page must match Google Business Profile exactly — same abbreviations, same punctuation.
Add LocalBusiness schema via Custom Head HTML — see Schema guide. Include address, geo coordinates, openingHours, and areaServed.
Embed a Google Map on your contact page. In Google Maps, find your business → Share → Embed a map → copy the iframe code → paste into a Showit Embed element.
Get reviews. Email past clients with a direct review link from your Google Business Profile dashboard. Aim for 10+ in your first 6 months.
Local citations: get listed in 5–10 reputable directories (Yelp, BBB, industry-specific like Clutch or DesignRush for designers).

Part 4

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Showit good for SEO?

Yes. Showit is fully SEO-capable. It gives you control over page titles, meta descriptions, URL slugs, heading tags, alt text, share images, schema markup, redirects, and sitemap submission. The platform also pairs with WordPress for blogging, which means you get the full power of Yoast or Rank Math for content SEO. The only thing Showit will not do for you is the strategy and execution — rankings still come down to keyword research, content quality, internal linking, and backlinks, the same as any other platform.

Where is the SEO Settings panel in Showit?

Click the page name in the left sidebar (not a canvas inside the page). In the right panel, you will see a section called SEO Settings. It contains Page Title, Meta Description, Page URL, and Share Image. If you see Canvas Settings instead, you have a canvas selected — click the page name at the top to deselect it.

How do I add an H1 tag in Showit?

Click the text box you want to tag, then look at the Text Properties section in the right panel. Find the Text Tag dropdown and choose H1. Use only one H1 per page, and make sure the same text box is also tagged H1 on the mobile canvas — Showit treats desktop and mobile as separate views, and Google indexes the mobile version.

How long should a Showit page title be?

50 to 60 characters. Google truncates titles at roughly 580 pixels, which usually falls near 60 characters. Put your primary keyword near the front and your brand name at the end on inner pages. On the home page, lead with the brand name.

What is the recommended OG image size for Showit?

1200 by 630 pixels, saved as JPG or PNG, under 1 MB. This matches the Facebook and LinkedIn standard and looks correct on every major social platform. Set a site-wide default in Site Settings and override it per page in the page-level SEO Settings panel.

What favicon size does Showit need?

32 by 32 pixels, PNG format, square. Set it once in Site Settings under the Favicon field. It applies to every page on the site. It can take up to 24 hours to update for visitors who have already cached your site.

How do I add alt text to images in Showit?

Click the image on the canvas. In the right panel, find the Image Properties section. The SEO Description field is your alt text — write a natural one-sentence description of what the image shows. For gallery images, click the gallery, expand Gallery Images, then click each image individually to set its alt text.

Why is my Showit page not showing up on Google?

The most common cause is the "Ask Google to ignore this page" checkbox being left checked under Advanced Settings on that page. Other causes include: the page is brand new and Google has not crawled it yet (request indexing in Search Console), the sitemap was never submitted, the page has no inbound internal links, or the content is too thin to rank.

How do I submit my Showit sitemap to Google?

Showit auto-generates a sitemap at yourdomain.com/siteinfo.xml. In Google Search Console, go to Sitemaps in the left sidebar, enter siteinfo.xml in the field, and click Submit. If you have a WordPress blog, also submit your blog sitemap (sitemap_index.xml for Yoast or Rank Math).

Does the Showit mobile canvas affect SEO?

Yes, heavily. Google uses mobile-first indexing, which means it reads your mobile canvas to determine ranking. If your H1 is correct on desktop but tagged as a paragraph on mobile, Google sees the mobile version. If important body copy is hidden on mobile to clean up the design, Google treats that content as missing. Always audit the mobile canvas for headings, body copy, alt text, and internal links.

Can I add schema markup to a Showit website?

Yes. Showit does not have a native schema builder, but you can paste JSON-LD code into the Custom Head HTML field. For site-wide schema like LocalBusiness, use Site Settings → Integrations → Add Custom Code. For per-page schema like FAQPage or Service, click the page name, open Advanced Settings in the right panel, and paste the code into Custom Head HTML.

How do I set up 301 redirects in Showit?

Open Site Settings, click Edit next to your domain, then click the gear icon at the top right of the Update Domain window. Enter the old page slug on the left and the destination URL on the right, then click Add. The old page must not exist as a live Showit page, or Showit will serve the page and ignore the redirect.

Do I need WordPress for Showit SEO?

Not strictly. You can rank a Showit-only site for static pages like Home, About, and Services. But if you want to publish ongoing blog content, target long-tail keywords, and build topical authority, the WordPress integration is essential. Showit pages are not designed for blogging — WordPress is, and Yoast or Rank Math give you full per-post SEO control.

Should I use Yoast SEO or Rank Math on a Showit blog?

Either works. Yoast is more popular and comes pre-installed on Showit's basic blog plans. Rank Math has more features in the free tier (built-in schema generator, redirection manager, 404 monitor). Pick one, do not install both, and stick with it. Switching plugins later requires re-doing all per-post SEO settings.

How do I optimize images for Showit?

Compress before uploading — aim for under 200 KB for hero images and under 100 KB for other images. Use TinyPNG, Squoosh, or Photoshop Save for Web at 70–80% quality. Rename files descriptively before uploading (showit-portfolio-wedding-photographer.jpg, not IMG_4521.jpg). Then add alt text inside Showit via the SEO Description field in Image Properties.

Can a Showit website rank in Google AI Overviews and Perplexity?

Yes. AI search engines preferentially cite content that is well-structured for extraction. That means clear H2 and H3 questions, direct one-to-two sentence answers under each heading, FAQ sections marked up with FAQPage schema, author bylines with Person schema, and original data or examples nobody else has published. Showit can deliver all of this — the structure matters more than the platform.

How long does it take for Showit SEO changes to show up in Google?

For new pages: 1 to 14 days for initial indexing if you submit the sitemap and request indexing in Search Console. For ranking changes on existing pages: 2 to 8 weeks for Google to recrawl, re-evaluate, and update positions. Brand-new domains can take 3 to 6 months to build enough trust to rank for competitive keywords.

Is the Showit canvas designer bad for Core Web Vitals?

Not inherently. Showit applies responsive image sizing and lazy loading automatically. The common issues are user-controlled: uploading uncompressed images, loading too many custom font weights, embedding heavy third-party scripts on every page, or building extremely tall mobile canvases with dozens of elements. Optimize those and Showit sites pass Core Web Vitals fine.

How many keywords should I target per Showit page?

One primary keyword and two to three secondary keywords per page. Do not target the same primary keyword on two different pages — that creates keyword cannibalization, where your own pages compete with each other and neither ranks well.

Do I need to do anything different for local SEO on Showit?

Yes. Claim and fully complete your Google Business Profile, ensure NAP (Name, Address, Phone) is identical between your Showit site and Google Business Profile, add LocalBusiness schema with full address and geo coordinates via Custom Head HTML, embed a Google Map on your contact page, and build city-specific landing pages if you serve multiple locations.

SEO is not a one-time task. It's a system. The most successful Showit sites are the ones where the designer goes through this checklist at launch, then revisits it quarterly — adjusting for new Google updates, new keywords, and new content.

Build this page as a pillar page, link to it from every blog post you write about Showit or SEO, and update it twice a year. That single pillar can drive more organic traffic than the rest of your site combined.

Last updated: May 2026 · Written by Adil Makhdoom