How to Organize a WordPress website (the Right Way) for Local Service SEO
If you’re starting a fresh WordPress site (lucky you!), getting the structure right from day one saves months of cleanup later. A well-organized site looks like a pyramid: homepage at the top, then key categories, then subcategories, then individual pages/posts. This layout helps users find things fast and helps search engines understand what’s most important. Yoast+1
Below I’ll show you the ideal structure, how to set up menus and breadcrumbs, and where categories vs. tags fit in—using Kingston & Richmond Removals as our running example.
1) The Site Pyramid (Local Services Version)
Think in clear “service buckets” first, then specific service areas. For Kingston & Richmond Removals, an effective top-down map could be:
Why this works
- Clear topical silos: Each parent category (e.g., House Move) becomes a strong hub. Child pages (e.g., Kingston House Move) inherit relevance and internal links. That’s textbook pyramid structure. Yoast
- Scales gracefully: Need Twickenham House Move or Surbiton Handyman later? Add as child pages without breaking the model.
- Matches search intent: People typically search by service + area (“house removals Kingston”), so this hierarchy mirrors what they expect.
Terminology tip: WordPress calls top-level categories “parent categories” and nested ones “child categories.” Use those for blogs; for service pages you’ll usually create pages arranged into this same hierarchy, then use category archives for your blog. Yoast
2) The Homepage: Your Navigation Hub
Your homepage should point visitors toward the money pages—your core services and priority locations. Don’t link to everything; curate. Too many links creates clutter and hides what matters. Use prominent sections like:
- “House Move” (+ quick links to Kingston/Richmond)
- “Handyman” (+ quick links to Kingston/Richmond)
- “Man and Van” • “Storage” • “Office Move”
This communicates importance to users and search engines. Yoast
3) Menus That Mirror Your Structure (Without Mess)
Your main menu should reflect the parent level (the 5 buckets). Add child items as dropdowns if you have just a few top locations (e.g., Kingston, Richmond). If your site grows and the dropdown gets crowded, consider a secondary menu (e.g., in the header top bar or footer) for utility links like “About,” “Contact,” “FAQs,” “Reviews,” or “Blog.” Keep the main menu focused on services. Yoast
WordPress supports multiple menus and, with block themes, you can even create separate nav blocks for different templates/areas. Themes or plugins can register additional menu locations if needed. WordPress.org+1
Recommended main menu (example):
Home • House Move • Handyman • Man and Van • Storage • Office Move • Blog • Contact
4) Breadcrumbs: Tiny Links, Big Wins
Breadcrumbs show users (and Google) where they are inside your pyramid:
Home > House Move > Kingston House Move
Benefits:
- Faster navigation on inner pages.
- Clear hierarchy for search engines; Google can show breadcrumbs in search results. Yoast+1
How to add breadcrumbs in WordPress (easy way):
Use Yoast SEO and enable breadcrumbs in the plugin’s settings. If your theme supports them, it’s a toggle. If not, Yoast provides a small code snippet or a shortcode/block to insert breadcrumbs into templates or specific pages. The plugin also outputs the structured data that Google likes. Yoast+1
5) Categories vs. Tags (for your Blog)
Even service sites should blog—moving tips, packing checklists, local guides, etc. Keep the blog tidy with categories (broad, hierarchical) and tags (specific, non-hierarchical):
- Categories: e.g., Moving Tips, Local Guides, Business Moves.
- Child Categories: e.g., under Local Guides → Kingston, Richmond.
- Tags: e.g., fragile items, parking suspension, checklist.
Categories group content and can have sub-levels; tags describe details. Don’t create dozens of near-empty categories—grow them as needed. Yoast+1
Yoast SEO tip: Decide if your category/tag pages should appear in search and set templates for their SEO titles/descriptions in Yoast → Settings → Categories & Tags. Yoast
6) Internal Linking: Glue the Pyramid Together
On House Move, link down to Kingston House Move and Richmond House Move. On each location page, link back up to House Move, and sideways to related services (“Need storage? See Storage”). This reinforces your structure and helps distribute link equity.
7) Quick Implementation Checklist
- Pages & hierarchy
- Build parent service pages: House Move, Handyman, Man and Van, Storage, Office Move.
- Create child location pages under the relevant parent (e.g., Kingston House Move).
- Homepage
- Feature service buckets with clear CTAs to the top locations.
- Menus
- Main menu = parent services. Child items as dropdowns for key areas.
- Add a compact secondary menu only if there’s a clear purpose (e.g., About/Contact/Reviews). Yoast
- Breadcrumbs
- Blog taxonomy
- Set 3–6 well-scoped categories; add child categories if volume grows. Use tags sparingly for specifics. Yoast
- Search appearance
- In Yoast, configure category/tag templates and preview snippets. Yoast
8) Why We Reference Yoast
The “pyramid” approach, clean menus, and breadcrumbs are longstanding best practices that Yoast documents thoroughly (and the plugin makes them dead simple to implement). For deeper dives, see:
- Site structure: the ultimate guide (pyramid model).
- Website menus for users & SEO (how to design menus that scale).
- Breadcrumbs feature & setup (what, why, and how).
- Categories vs. tags (how to use each well).
Example Breadcrumbs for Kingston & Richmond Removals
Home > House Move > Kingston House MoveHome > Handyman > Richmond HandymanHome > StorageHome > Office Move
That’s exactly the clarity users (and Google) love.
Final Thoughts
Start with a simple, scalable pyramid. Keep your main menu focused on core services. Enable breadcrumbs. Use categories (and only a few!) to organize the blog, with tags for finer details. Do this now and you’ll avoid months of reorganizing later—while giving your local SEO a serious lift.
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