Launch Yoast SEO: Setup and Configuration
Budget: $8 – $15 USD
Initial Setup: Start with Yoast SEO & News SEO Configuration
1. Verify Yoast SEO Premium
2. Enable key Yoast SEO features: breadcrumbs, cornerstone content, redirect manager (if available).
3. Configure SEO title and meta description templates for each content type.
4. Adjust visibility settings for taxonomies (e.g., categories, tags, author pages).
5. Set schema output types (e.g., WebPage, Article) for each post type.
6. Configure social metadata (Open Graph, Twitter Card) under Yoast Social settings.
7. Set canonical URLs and indexing preferences (e.g., noindex media pages).
8. Install and activate the Yoast News SEO plugin.
9. Configure publication name, genres (e.g., Blog, PressRelease), and stock ticker (if applicable).
10. Enable the News Sitemap and select post types to include (typically “Post”).
11. Ensure NewsArticle schema is used and output correctly on all news posts.
12. Confirm the news sitemap URL is accessible and includes only recent articles (last 48 hours).
13. Check WordPress permalink settings (recommended: /%postname%/).
14. Disable indexing of thin or unnecessary post types: media, author archives, tags (if needed).
15. Audit and clean category and tag taxonomy structures.
16. Mark cornerstone content using Yoast’s interface.
17. Generate and verify the main XML Sitemap and News Sitemap.
18. Remove sitemap sections for non-indexable content types (e.g., tags or media).
19. Update robots.txt to allow proper crawling and include both sitemap URLs.
20. Submit both sitemaps (main and news) to Google Search Console.
21. Verify the site in Google Search Console (domain or URL-prefix property).
22. Monitor coverage reports, sitemap status, and enhancements.
23. If applicable, configure Google Publisher Center: set up branding, content labels, and sitemap link.
24. Confirm structured data output using JSON-LD format.
25. Validate schema using Google’s Rich Results Test and the Schema.org validator.
26. Ensure NewsArticle and Article types are rendered correctly with proper timestamps.
27. Check for schema conflicts between theme, plugins, or manual markup.
28. Run a full technical crawl using Screaming Frog or Sitebulb.
29. Identify and log issues: broken links, duplicate titles, redirect chains, orphan pages.
30. Review crawl depth and internal linking structure to prepare for optimization phase.
1. Verify Yoast SEO Premium
2. Enable key Yoast SEO features: breadcrumbs, cornerstone content, redirect manager (if available).
3. Configure SEO title and meta description templates for each content type.
4. Adjust visibility settings for taxonomies (e.g., categories, tags, author pages).
5. Set schema output types (e.g., WebPage, Article) for each post type.
6. Configure social metadata (Open Graph, Twitter Card) under Yoast Social settings.
7. Set canonical URLs and indexing preferences (e.g., noindex media pages).
8. Install and activate the Yoast News SEO plugin.
9. Configure publication name, genres (e.g., Blog, PressRelease), and stock ticker (if applicable).
10. Enable the News Sitemap and select post types to include (typically “Post”).
11. Ensure NewsArticle schema is used and output correctly on all news posts.
12. Confirm the news sitemap URL is accessible and includes only recent articles (last 48 hours).
13. Check WordPress permalink settings (recommended: /%postname%/).
14. Disable indexing of thin or unnecessary post types: media, author archives, tags (if needed).
15. Audit and clean category and tag taxonomy structures.
16. Mark cornerstone content using Yoast’s interface.
17. Generate and verify the main XML Sitemap and News Sitemap.
18. Remove sitemap sections for non-indexable content types (e.g., tags or media).
19. Update robots.txt to allow proper crawling and include both sitemap URLs.
20. Submit both sitemaps (main and news) to Google Search Console.
21. Verify the site in Google Search Console (domain or URL-prefix property).
22. Monitor coverage reports, sitemap status, and enhancements.
23. If applicable, configure Google Publisher Center: set up branding, content labels, and sitemap link.
24. Confirm structured data output using JSON-LD format.
25. Validate schema using Google’s Rich Results Test and the Schema.org validator.
26. Ensure NewsArticle and Article types are rendered correctly with proper timestamps.
27. Check for schema conflicts between theme, plugins, or manual markup.
28. Run a full technical crawl using Screaming Frog or Sitebulb.
29. Identify and log issues: broken links, duplicate titles, redirect chains, orphan pages.
30. Review crawl depth and internal linking structure to prepare for optimization phase.