How To Create An SEO Table of Contents In Webflow

Capturing the attention of your readers is very important for any business; after all, how can you expect anyone to value your content if they don't even look at it? Surprisingly, 55% of people spend less than 15 seconds on an article page, giving you only 10 seconds to make an impression. Sounds impossible, right? Well, a table of contents for SEO is just what you need. 

This article is your go-to guide to creating a Webflow table of contents. From the SEO benefits and steps of creation to some advanced secret tips, we have revealed everything! So, let's get going! 

Understanding the SEO Benefits of a Table of Contents

SEO is an aspect that no content manager can overlook. It won't be wrong to say that no business can succeed without a good SEO plan, especially in the digital world. In fact, 46% of business owners claim that SEO leads to content marketing success. A table of contents is a simple but often overlooked addition to articles and blog posts. But the SEO benefits are shockingly impressive. 

Here are just a few of the major benefits that you can gain from a simple table of contents: 

Improved User Experience

A table of contents makes your content easier to explore, keeping your readers engaged for a long time. They have a guided view of your content, preventing frustration with long, unstructured text. When readers stay on your page longer due to a positive user experience, search engines take notice, which will potentially lead to higher rankings. 

Enhanced Page Navigation

A table of contents helps incoming readers find what they are looking for. They get a clear view of each section and what it will be about. This also allows them to jump from one section to another. A clickable table of contents will get them right where they want to be in the whole article. 

When such a thing happens, the users will not leave your site immediately, thus causing a lower bounce rate. A lower bounce rate is the perfect SEO indicator that will become your greatest advantage. 

Search Engine Crawling 

Search engines and crawling are very important for SEO. The more crawls your site gets, the more organic visibility you get. With a table of contents, you have a structured content layout that gives those search engines an easy way to quickly crawl and index your article. A TOC structure makes it easier for search engines to discover and understand the relevance of the information presented. 

In-Depth Views 

There is a huge difference between casually scrolling through an article and viewing it in depth with thorough exploration. A table of contents helps get those in-depth readers to spend more time on your pages. This results in the search engines valuing your pages and site much more than your competitors. 

A table of contents gives unlimited SEO benefits. Creating one is simple, but you must keep in mind that making a proper plan for a good TOC will have a higher impact on SEO. 

Planning Your Table of Contents for Maximum SEO Impact

It might seem pointless to many business owners to work on planning a table of contents for each article, but a properly planned strategy is a need of time. Artificial intelligence and automation are taking over, and search engines are tirelessly working to filter out such content. A TOC plan will help you overcome any such negative updates and rank your pages in the top spots. 

1. Identify key sections of your content.

For a good table of contents, you must first study your content closely. The most important part is to identify the primary sections and subtopics. It should have a logical flow, summarizing all your useful and pressing data into one table. This way, it will help your SEO visibility and attract your readers, potentially convincing them to explore the article or blog post. 

2. Properly use heading tags for SEO benefits

Many content managers often forget how useful heading tags are for SEO. Search engines give more importance to content that has header tags. A TOC should have all your headings, mainly the H2 and H3 ones. But for a good table of contents, you need to know where to use these heading tags. 

• The <H2> tags are for the main section headings. 
• The <H3>  and <H4> tags are for subheadings. 

This does not mean you must stuff your article and blog posts with headings. It is best to maintain a good balance and ensure that every important part has a separate section with proper headings. This will make your TOC much more suitable and proper. 

3. Write keyword-rich headings

When formatting your headings, you have to ensure they are understandable and relate to the content paragraphs. It is best to do proper keyword research and then naturally fit them into headings and subheadings for good SEO results. One major point to keep note of is to avoid keyword stuffing, as it will negatively impact your site. 

Complete Guide to Creating a Table of Contents in Webflow

Using Webflow is a debatable topic for many, especially on whether one should use Webflow over WordPress and other design tools. However, there is no doubt that Webflow has many more advantages than the rest. 

Before creating a table of contents in Webflow, you should familiarize yourselves with all the tools and components needed in the TOC creation. The Webflow editor, anchor links styling options, tool designs, and HTML heading tags are necessary tools you must understand before moving forward with the creation. 

Once you are done with it, you can officially start the simple steps to creating a table of contents in Webflow:

Step 1: Structuring Content

The first step, as discussed before in the planning of TOC, is the structuring of your content with different headings, including the H2 and H3 tags. A properly structured content will be the start of an effective table of contents. 

Step 2: Creating Anchor Links

Once your headings are ready, you should start creating anchor links in Webflow. These links will connect the TOC and the content of the specific section, making it easy for readers to click on the heading they want to go to and automatically reach that part of your content.  

Step 3: Styling Phase

After creating the anchor links, you can start styling for a customized table of contents. Webflow gives you many styling options; you can adjust the fonts, colors, and even spacing to match your website theme. This styling phase will give a visual appeal and help in user engagement. 

Step 4: Testing Phase 

The last and most important step is the testing phase. It is better to test the compatibility of your TOC with mobiles, as 61% of visitors will leave a site that’s not mobile-friendly. Satisfaction with your content and the real purpose of a table of contents won't be fulfilled if it is not mobile-suitable. Another aspect is to check the functionality with multiple users accessing your content at once. This will help you fix any factor that is stopping user engagement. 

Webflow has multiple helping tools that will guide you throughout your Webflow table of contents creation. So, you do not have to worry much about getting stuck in the process and finding no appropriate solution. 

Advanced Tips & Tricks

In addition to the above steps, you should follow these advanced tricks as they will make your work much easier and simpler:

• Using Javascript will help enhance your user experience. The Javascript libraries will make it easy to create a dynamic TOC. 
• Use the smooth scroll functionality in Webflow to create a more pleasant navigation experience for your incoming visitors. It will enhance the professionalism of your website and will also potentially increase user satisfaction. 
• Make sure to set your scroll speed and test it on different browsers before finalizing it.
• Google Analytics will help you monitor your table of contents interaction. You can identify the popular sections and even analyze user behavior, which will help you improve your TOC strategies. 

The Role of Ongoing Website Maintenance

Just like it is advised to regularly update your blogs and article content, a TOC should also be prioritized when it comes to website maintenance. This is particularly important for your site's SEO. When you maintain your table of contents, you enhance the SEO performance by fixing any broken links, keeping the content fresh, and allowing the algorithm to detect your changes. 

You should never forget that a well-maintained website (content and the TOC) will positively affect your SEO and contribute to your overall success. 

How Zanger Digital Can Help

Zanger Digital is a professional web service company that offers a Webflow maintenance service designed to keep your website running smoothly. With us, you can benefit from expert care as we ensure that your Webflow site remains up to date with proper functioning and optimized data. 

At Zanger Digital, you can also get custom solutions for the integration of a table of contents on your Webflow site. With the promise of regular maintenance and affordable pricing, you won't find any other service provider with such enticing offers and packages! 

Conclusion 

A table of contents is a small addition to your article but will prove to be amazing, especially for SEO purposes. You will see an increased user visiting rate on your articles and a lower bounce rate once you regularly use a TOC in all your blog posts. 

Zanger Digital can help you boost your website's rankings through a well-made table of contents and other maintenance services. Contact us today for a consultation, and get ready to be surprised by our team's brilliance!