Search Engine Optimization
Title Tag
The Santa Barbara Independent
Length: 29 character(s)
Length: 29 character(s)
Ideally, your title tag should contain between 10 and 70 characters (spaces included).
Make sure your title is explicit and contains your most important keywords.
Be sure that each page has a unique title.
Make sure your title is explicit and contains your most important keywords.
Be sure that each page has a unique title.
Meta Description
Founded in 1986, the Santa Barbara Independent is the leading source for news, arts & entertainment, and lifestyle coverage in the greater Santa Barbara area.
Length: 158 character(s)
Length: 158 character(s)
Meta descriptions contains between 100 and 300 characters (spaces included).
It allow you to influence how your web pages are described and displayed in search results.
Ensure that all of your web pages have a unique meta description that is explicit and contains your most important keywords (these appear in bold when they match part or all of the user's search query).
A good meta description acts as an organic advertisement, so use enticing messaging with a clear call to action to maximize click-through rate.
It allow you to influence how your web pages are described and displayed in search results.
Ensure that all of your web pages have a unique meta description that is explicit and contains your most important keywords (these appear in bold when they match part or all of the user's search query).
A good meta description acts as an organic advertisement, so use enticing messaging with a clear call to action to maximize click-through rate.
Meta Keywords
No Keywords
Meta Keywords are a specific type of meta tag that appear in the HTML code
of a Web page and help tell search engines what the topic of the page is.
However, google can't use meta keywords.
However, google can't use meta keywords.
Headings
| <H1> | <H2> | <H3> | <H4> | <H5> | <H6> |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 0 | 22 | 10 | 0 | 4 |
| <H3> Santa Barbara Volleyball Club to Build New Indoor Facility </H3> |
| <H3> WWII-Era Grenades Found in Santa Barbara Attic, Prompting Evacuations </H3> |
| <H3> Historic Ortega Park Murals Vandalized in Early December </H3> |
Use your keywords in the headings and make sure the first level (H1) includes your most important keywords. Never duplicate your title tag content in your header tag.
While it is important to ensure every page has an H1 tag, never include more than one per page. Instead, use multiple H2 - H6 tags.
While it is important to ensure every page has an H1 tag, never include more than one per page. Instead, use multiple H2 - H6 tags.
Google Preview
The Santa Barbara Independent
independent.com/
Founded in 1986, the Santa Barbara Independent is the leading source for news, arts & entertainment, and lifestyle coverage in the greater Santa Barbara area.
This is an example of what your Title Tag and Meta Description will look like in Google search results.
While Title Tags & Meta Descriptions are used to build the search result listings, the search engines may create their own if they are missing, not well written, or not relevant to the content on the page.
Title Tags and Meta Descriptions are cut short if they are too long, so it's important to stay within the suggested character limits.
While Title Tags & Meta Descriptions are used to build the search result listings, the search engines may create their own if they are missing, not well written, or not relevant to the content on the page.
Title Tags and Meta Descriptions are cut short if they are too long, so it's important to stay within the suggested character limits.
Alt Attribute
We found 67 images on this web page
10 ALT attributes are empty or missing.
10 ALT attributes are empty or missing.
| https://www.independent.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Screenshot-2025-12-17-at-12.19.20-PM.png?fit=1576%2C2046 |
| https://www.independent.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Screenshot-2025-12-10-at-12.54.36-PM.png?fit=1570%2C2032 |
| https://www.independent.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/Screenshot-2025-12-03-at-12.47.45-PM.png?fit=1566%2C2036 |
Alternative text is used to describe images to give the search engine crawlers (and the visually impaired).
Also, more information to help them understand images, which can help them to appear in Google Images search results.
Also, more information to help them understand images, which can help them to appear in Google Images search results.
Keywords Cloud
- santa45
- barbara45
- arts14
- sports14
- “the10
- food8
- real8
- estate8
- ellaheydenfeldt8
- more8
- opinion7
- indoor7
- holiday7
- living6
- drink6
This Keyword Cloud provides an insight into the frequency of keyword usage within the page.
It's important to carry out keyword research to get an understanding of the keywords that your audience is using. There are a number of keyword research tools available online to help you choose which keywords to target.
It's important to carry out keyword research to get an understanding of the keywords that your audience is using. There are a number of keyword research tools available online to help you choose which keywords to target.
Keyword Consistency
This table highlights the importance of being consistent with your use of keywords.
To improve the chance of ranking well in search results for a specific keyword, make sure you include it in some or all of the following: page URL, page content, title tag, meta description, header tags, image alt attributes, internal link anchor text and backlink anchor text.
To improve the chance of ranking well in search results for a specific keyword, make sure you include it in some or all of the following: page URL, page content, title tag, meta description, header tags, image alt attributes, internal link anchor text and backlink anchor text.
Text/HTML Ratio
HTML to Text Ratio is: 3.99%
| Text content size | 10451 bytes |
| Total HTML size | 261739 bytes |
Code to text ratio represents the percentage of actual text on a web page compared to the percentage of
HTML code, and it is used by search engines to calculate the relevancy of a web page.
A higher code to text ratio will increase your chances of getting a better rank in search engine results.
A higher code to text ratio will increase your chances of getting a better rank in search engine results.
GZIP compression
Wow! It's GZIP Enabled.
Your webpage is compressed from 256 KB to 48 KB (81.3 % size savings)
Your webpage is compressed from 256 KB to 48 KB (81.3 % size savings)
Gzip is a method of compressing files (making them smaller) for faster network transfers.
It allows to reduce the size of web pages and any other typical web files to about 30% or less of its original size before it transfer.
It allows to reduce the size of web pages and any other typical web files to about 30% or less of its original size before it transfer.
WWW Resolve
Great, a redirect is in place to redirect traffic from your non-preferred domain.
Redirecting requests from a non-preferred domain is important because search engines consider URLs with and without "www" as two different websites.
IP Canonicalization
No your domain IP 192.0.66.2 does not redirect to independent.com
To check this for your website, enter your IP address in the browser and see if your site loads with the IP address.
Ideally, the IP should redirect to your website's URL or to a page from your website hosting provider.
If it does not redirect, you should do an htaccess 301 redirect to make sure the IP does not get indexed.
Ideally, the IP should redirect to your website's URL or to a page from your website hosting provider.
If it does not redirect, you should do an htaccess 301 redirect to make sure the IP does not get indexed.
XML Sitemap
A sitemap lists URLs that are available for crawling and can include additional information like your site's latest updates, frequency of changes and importance of the URLs. This allows search engines to crawl the site more intelligently.
We recommend that you generate an XML sitemap for your website and submit it to both Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools. It is also good practice to specify your sitemap's location in your robots.txt file.
We recommend that you generate an XML sitemap for your website and submit it to both Google Search Console and Bing Webmaster Tools. It is also good practice to specify your sitemap's location in your robots.txt file.
Robots.txt
A robots.txt file allows you to restrict the access of search engine robots that crawl the web and it can prevent these robots from accessing specific directories and pages. It also specifies where the XML sitemap file is located.
You can check for errors in your robots.txt file using Google Search Console (formerly Webmaster Tools) by selecting 'Robots.txt Tester' under 'Crawl'. This also allows you to test individual pages to make sure that Googlebot has the appropriate access.
You can check for errors in your robots.txt file using Google Search Console (formerly Webmaster Tools) by selecting 'Robots.txt Tester' under 'Crawl'. This also allows you to test individual pages to make sure that Googlebot has the appropriate access.
URL Rewrite
Good, all URLs look clean and friendly
Your site's URLs contain unnecessary elements that make them look complicated.
A URL must be easy to read and remember for users. Search engines need URLs to be clean and include your page's most important keywords.
Clean URLs are also useful when shared on social media as they explain the page's content.
A URL must be easy to read and remember for users. Search engines need URLs to be clean and include your page's most important keywords.
Clean URLs are also useful when shared on social media as they explain the page's content.
Underscores in the URLs
Oh no, you are using underscores (these_are_underscores) in your URLs
Great, you are not using ?underscores (these_are_underscores) in your URLs.
While Google treats hyphens as word separators, it does not for underscores.
While Google treats hyphens as word separators, it does not for underscores.
Embedded Objects
Perfect, no embedded objects has been detected on this page
Embedded Objects such as Flash. It should only be used for specific enhancements.
Although Flash content often looks nicer, it cannot be properly indexed by search engines.
Avoid full Flash websites to maximize SEO.
Although Flash content often looks nicer, it cannot be properly indexed by search engines.
Avoid full Flash websites to maximize SEO.
Iframe
Oh no, iframe content has been detected on this page
Frames can cause problems on your web page because search engines will not crawl or index the content within them.
Avoid frames whenever possible and use a NoFrames tag if you must use them.
Avoid frames whenever possible and use a NoFrames tag if you must use them.
Domain Registration
Exactly how many years and months
Domain Age: 31 Years, 40 Days
Created Date: 10th-Nov-1994
Updated Date: 10th-Sep-2023
Expiry Date: 9th-Nov-2028
Domain age matters to a certain extent and newer domains generally struggle to get indexed and rank high in search results for their first few months (depending on other associated ranking factors). Consider buying a second-hand domain name.
Do you know that you can register your domain for up to 10 years? By doing so, you will show the world that you are serious about your business.
Do you know that you can register your domain for up to 10 years? By doing so, you will show the world that you are serious about your business.
WHOIS Data
WhoIs domain information can help you determine the proper administrator, billing and technical
contact information.
contact information.
| Domain Name: INDEPENDENT.COM |
| Registry Domain ID: 27973_DOMAIN_COM-VRSN |
| Registrar WHOIS Server: whois.networksolutions.com |
| Registrar URL: http://networksolutions.com |
| Updated Date: 2025-05-10T06:25:27Z |
WhoIs domain information can help you determine the proper contact for any domain listed in the Whois database.
A WhoIs lookup identifies the administrator contact information, billing contact and the technical contact for each domain name listing or IP in the WhoIs database.
A WhoIs lookup identifies the administrator contact information, billing contact and the technical contact for each domain name listing or IP in the WhoIs database.
Indexed Pages
Indexed pages in search engines
This is the number of pages that we have discovered on your website.
A low number can indicate that bots are unable to discover your webpages, which is a common cause of a bad site architecture & internal linking, or you're unknowingly preventing bots and search engines from crawling & indexing your pages.
A low number can indicate that bots are unable to discover your webpages, which is a common cause of a bad site architecture & internal linking, or you're unknowingly preventing bots and search engines from crawling & indexing your pages.
Backlinks Counter
Number of backlinks to your website
Backlinks are links that point to your website from other websites. They are like letters of recommendation for your site.
Since this factor is crucial to SEO, you should have a strategy to improve the quantity and quality of backlinks.
Since this factor is crucial to SEO, you should have a strategy to improve the quantity and quality of backlinks.
Usability
URL
http://independent.com
Length: 11 characters
Length: 11 characters
Keep your URLs short and avoid long domain names when possible.
A descriptive URL is better recognized by search engines.
A user should be able to look at the address bar and make an accurate guess about the content of the page before reaching it (e.g., http://www.mysite.com/en/products).
A descriptive URL is better recognized by search engines.
A user should be able to look at the address bar and make an accurate guess about the content of the page before reaching it (e.g., http://www.mysite.com/en/products).
Favicon
Favicons improve a brand's visibility.
As a favicon is especially important for users bookmarking your website, make sure it is consistent with your brand.
As a favicon is especially important for users bookmarking your website, make sure it is consistent with your brand.
Custom 404 Page
Great, your website has a custom 404 error page.
When a visitor encounters a 404 File Not Found error on your site, you're on the verge of losing the visitor that you've worked so hard to obtain through the search engines and third party links.
Creating your custom 404 error page allows you to minimize the number of visitors lost that way.
Creating your custom 404 error page allows you to minimize the number of visitors lost that way.
Page Size
256 KB (World Wide Web average is 320 Kb)
Two of the main reasons for an increase in page size are images and JavaScript files.
Page size affects the speed of your website; try to keep your page size below 2 Mb.
Tip: Use images with a small size and optimize their download with gzip.
Page size affects the speed of your website; try to keep your page size below 2 Mb.
Tip: Use images with a small size and optimize their download with gzip.
Load Time
1.66 second(s)
Site speed is an important factor for ranking high in Google search results and enriching the user experience.
Resources: Check out Google's developer tutorials for tips on how to to make your website run faster.
Resources: Check out Google's developer tutorials for tips on how to to make your website run faster.
Language
Good, you have declared your language
Declared Language: EN-US
Declared Language: EN-US
Make sure your declared language is the same as the language detected by Google
Also, define the language of the content in each page's HTML code.
Also, define the language of the content in each page's HTML code.
Domain Availability
| Domains (TLD) | Status |
|---|---|
| independent.net | Already Registered |
| independent.org | Already Registered |
| independent.biz | Already Registered |
| independent.us | Already Registered |
| independent.info | Already Registered |
Register the various extensions of your domain to protect your brand from cybersquatters.
Typo Availability
| Domains (TLD) | Status |
|---|---|
| undependent.com | Already Registered |
| jndependent.com | Available |
| kndependent.com | Available |
| lndependent.com | Already Registered |
| ondependent.com | Available |
Register the various typos of your domain to protect your brand from cybersquatters.
Email Privacy
Email address has been found in plain text!
We don't recommend adding plain text/linked email addresses to your webpages.
As malicious bots scrape the web in search of email addresses to spam. Instead, consider using a contact form.
As malicious bots scrape the web in search of email addresses to spam. Instead, consider using a contact form.
Safe Browsing
The website is not blacklisted and looks safe to use.
Safe Browsing to identify unsafe websites and notify users and webmasters so they can protect themselves from harm.
Mobile
Mobile Friendliness
Oh No! This page is not mobile-friendly.
Your mobile friendly score is 0/100
Your mobile friendly score is 0/100
Mobile Friendliness refers to the usability aspects of your mobile website, which Google uses as a ranking signal in mobile search results.
Mobile View
The number of people using the Mobile Web is huge; over 75 percent of consumers have access to smartphones. ??
Your website should look nice on the most popular mobile devices.
Tip: Use an analytics tool to track mobile usage of your website.
Your website should look nice on the most popular mobile devices.
Tip: Use an analytics tool to track mobile usage of your website.
Mobile Compatibility
Bad, embedded objects detected.
Embedded Objects such as Flash, Silverlight or Java. It should only be used for specific enhancements.
But avoid using Embedded Objects, so your content can be accessed on all devices.
But avoid using Embedded Objects, so your content can be accessed on all devices.
Technologies
Server IP
| Server IP | Server Location | Service Provider |
|---|---|---|
| 192.0.66.2 | Not Available | Not Available |
Your server's IP address has little impact on your SEO. Nevertheless, try to host your website on a server which is geographically close to your visitors.
Search engines take the geolocation of a server into account as well as the server speed.
Search engines take the geolocation of a server into account as well as the server speed.
Speed Tips
Tips for authoring fast-loading HTML pages:
Too bad, your website has too many CSS files.
Too bad, your website has too many JavaScript files.
Perfect, your website doesn't use nested tables.
Too bad, your website is using inline styles.
Too bad, your website has too many CSS files. Too bad, your website has too many JavaScript files. Perfect, your website doesn't use nested tables. Too bad, your website is using inline styles.
Website speed has a huge impact on performance, affecting user experience, conversion rates and even rankings.
???By reducing page load-times, users are less likely to get distracted and the search engines are more likely to reward you by ranking your pages higher in the SERPs.
Conversion rates are far higher for websites that load faster than their slower competitors.
???By reducing page load-times, users are less likely to get distracted and the search engines are more likely to reward you by ranking your pages higher in the SERPs.
Conversion rates are far higher for websites that load faster than their slower competitors.
Analytics
We didn't detect an analytics tool installed on this website.
Web analytics let you measure visitor activity on your website.
You should have at least one analytics tool installed, but It can also be good to install a second in order to cross-check the data.
You should have at least one analytics tool installed, but It can also be good to install a second in order to cross-check the data.
W3C Validity
W3C not validated
W3Cis a consortium that sets web standards.
Using valid markup that contains no errors is important because syntax errors can make your page difficult for search engines to index. Run the W3C validation service whenever changes are made to your website's code.
Using valid markup that contains no errors is important because syntax errors can make your page difficult for search engines to index. Run the W3C validation service whenever changes are made to your website's code.
Doc Type
Your Web Page doctype is HTML 5
The Doctype is used to instruct web browsers about the document type being used.
For example, what version of HTML the page is written in.
Declaring a doctype helps web browsers to render content correctly.
For example, what version of HTML the page is written in.
Declaring a doctype helps web browsers to render content correctly.
Encoding
Great, language/character encoding is specified: UTF-8
Specifying language/character encoding can prevent problems with the rendering of special characters.
Visitors
Link Analysis
In-Page Links
We found a total of 176 links including both internal & external links of your site
| Anchor | Type | Follow |
|---|---|---|
| Submit an Event | Internal Links | Dofollow |
| Newsletters | Internal Links | Dofollow |
| My Account | Internal Links | Dofollow |
| https://www.independent.com/ | Internal Links | Dofollow |
| Subscribe | Internal Links | Dofollow |
While there's no exact limit to the number of links you should include on a page, best practice is to avoid exceeding 200 links.
Links pass value from one page to another, but the amount of value that can be passed is split between all of the links on a page. This means that adding unnecessary links will dilute the potential value attributed to your other links.
Using the Nofollow attribute prevents value from being passed to the linking page, but it's worth noting that these links are still taken into account when calculating the value that is passed through each link, so Nofollow links can also dilute pagerank.
Links pass value from one page to another, but the amount of value that can be passed is split between all of the links on a page. This means that adding unnecessary links will dilute the potential value attributed to your other links.
Using the Nofollow attribute prevents value from being passed to the linking page, but it's worth noting that these links are still taken into account when calculating the value that is passed through each link, so Nofollow links can also dilute pagerank.
Broken Links
Broken links were found on this web page
| https://www.independent.com/manage-account/ |
Broken links send users to non-existing web pages. They are bad for your site's usability, reputation and SEO. If you find broken links in the future, take the time to replace or remove each one.
Social
Social Data
Cost and overhead previously rendered this semi-public form of communication unfeasible.
But advances in social networking technology from 2004-2010 has made broader concepts of sharing possible.