SEO Metadata

SEO & Metadata Optimization for Portfolio Sites

Core Philosophy

SEO for portfolios isn't about ranking #1 for "web developer"—it's about discoverability when someone Googles your name, sharing beautiful previews on social media, and ensuring your projects appear professionally in search results.

Next.js Metadata API

1. Root Metadata (Global Defaults)

// app/layout.tsx
import type { Metadata, Viewport } from "next";

export const viewport: Viewport = {
  themeColor: [
    { media: "(prefers-color-scheme: light)", color: "#ffffff" },
    { media: "(prefers-color-scheme: dark)", color: "#0a0a0a" },
  ],
  width: "device-width",
  initialScale: 1,
  maximumScale: 5,
};

export const metadata: Metadata = {
  metadataBase: new URL("https://yourportfolio.com"),

  title: {
    default: "John Doe | Full-Stack Developer",
    template: "%s | John Doe", // For child pages: "Projects | John Doe"
  },

  description:
    "Full-stack developer specializing in React, Next.js, and TypeScript. Building beautiful, performant web experiences.",

  keywords: [
    "John Doe",
    "Web Developer",
    "Full-Stack Developer",
    "React Developer",
    "Next.js",
    "TypeScript",
    "Frontend Developer",
    "Portfolio",
  ],

  authors: [{ name: "John Doe", url: "https://yourportfolio.com" }],
  creator: "John Doe",
  publisher: "John Doe",

  robots: {
    index: true,
    follow: true,
    googleBot: {
      index: true,
      follow: true,
      "max-video-preview": -1,
      "max-image-preview": "large",
      "max-snippet": -1,
    },
  },

  // Open Graph (Facebook, LinkedIn, Discord)
  openGraph: {
    type: "website",
    locale: "en_US",
    url: "https://yourportfolio.com",
    siteName: "John Doe Portfolio",
    title: "John Doe | Full-Stack Developer",
    description:
      "Full-stack developer specializing in React, Next.js, and TypeScript.",
    images: [
      {
        url: "/og-image.png",
        width: 1200,
        height: 630,
        alt: "John Doe - Full-Stack Developer",
      },
    ],
  },

  // Twitter Card
  twitter: {
    card: "summary_large_image",
    site: "@johndoe",
    creator: "@johndoe",
    title: "John Doe | Full-Stack Developer",
    description:
      "Full-stack developer specializing in React, Next.js, and TypeScript.",
    images: ["/og-image.png"],
  },

  // Verification
  verification: {
    google: "your-google-verification-code",
    yandex: "your-yandex-verification-code",
  },

  // Alternate languages (if applicable)
  alternates: {
    canonical: "https://yourportfolio.com",
    languages: {
      "en-US": "https://yourportfolio.com",
      "es-ES": "https://yourportfolio.com/es",
    },
  },

  // App links
  other: {
    "msapplication-TileColor": "#0a0a0a",
  },
};

2. Page-Specific Metadata

// app/projects/page.tsx
import type { Metadata } from "next";

export const metadata: Metadata = {
  title: "Projects", // Becomes "Projects | John Doe" via template
  description:
    "Explore my portfolio of web applications, open source projects, and client work.",
  openGraph: {
    title: "Projects | John Doe",
    description: "Explore my portfolio of web applications and client work.",
    images: ["/og-projects.png"],
  },
};

export default function ProjectsPage() {
  return <main>...</main>;
}

3. Dynamic Metadata (Project Pages)

// app/projects/[slug]/page.tsx
import type { Metadata, ResolvingMetadata } from "next";
import { getProjectBySlug, getAllProjects } from "@/lib/projects";
import { notFound } from "next/navigation";

interface Props {
  params: Promise<{ slug: string }>;
}

export async function generateMetadata(
  { params }: Props,
  parent: ResolvingMetadata,
): Promise<Metadata> {
  const { slug } = await params;
  const project = await getProjectBySlug(slug);

  if (!project) {
    return { title: "Project Not Found" };
  }

  // Optionally access parent metadata
  const previousImages = (await parent).openGraph?.images || [];

  return {
    title: project.title,
    description: project.description,

    openGraph: {
      title: `${project.title} | John Doe`,
      description: project.description,
      type: "article",
      publishedTime: project.date,
      authors: ["John Doe"],
      images: [
        {
          url: project.ogImage || project.image,
          width: 1200,
          height: 630,
          alt: project.title,
        },
        ...previousImages,
      ],
    },

    twitter: {
      card: "summary_large_image",
      title: project.title,
      description: project.description,
      images: [project.ogImage || project.image],
    },
  };
}

// Generate static paths for all projects
export async function generateStaticParams() {
  const projects = await getAllProjects();
  return projects.map((project) => ({
    slug: project.slug,
  }));
}

export default async function ProjectPage({ params }: Props) {
  const { slug } = await params;
  const project = await getProjectBySlug(slug);

  if (!project) notFound();

  return <article>...</article>;
}

4. Blog Post Metadata

// app/blog/[slug]/page.tsx
export async function generateMetadata({ params }: Props): Promise<Metadata> {
  const { slug } = await params;
  const post = await getPostBySlug(slug);

  if (!post) return { title: "Post Not Found" };

  return {
    title: post.title,
    description: post.excerpt,

    openGraph: {
      title: post.title,
      description: post.excerpt,
      type: "article",
      publishedTime: post.publishedAt,
      modifiedTime: post.updatedAt,
      authors: [post.author.name],
      tags: post.tags,
      images: [
        {
          url: post.coverImage,
          width: 1200,
          height: 630,
          alt: post.title,
        },
      ],
    },

    // Article-specific
    other: {
      "article:published_time": post.publishedAt,
      "article:author": post.author.name,
      "article:section": post.category,
      "article:tag": post.tags.join(", "),
    },
  };
}

Structured Data (JSON-LD)

1. Person Schema (About Page)

// app/about/page.tsx
import Script from "next/script";

const personJsonLd = {
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "Person",
  name: "John Doe",
  url: "https://yourportfolio.com",
  image: "https://yourportfolio.com/john-doe.jpg",
  sameAs: [
    "https://twitter.com/johndoe",
    "https://linkedin.com/in/johndoe",
    "https://github.com/johndoe",
  ],
  jobTitle: "Full-Stack Developer",
  worksFor: {
    "@type": "Organization",
    name: "Freelance",
  },
  knowsAbout: ["React", "Next.js", "TypeScript", "Node.js", "PostgreSQL"],
};

export default function AboutPage() {
  return (
    <>
      <Script
        id="person-schema"
        type="application/ld+json"
        dangerouslySetInnerHTML={{ __html: JSON.stringify(personJsonLd) }}
      />
      <main>...</main>
    </>
  );
}

2. Website Schema (Global)

// app/layout.tsx
import Script from "next/script";

const websiteJsonLd = {
  "@context": "https://schema.org",
  "@type": "WebSite",
  name: "John Doe Portfolio",
  url: "https://yourportfolio.com",
  description:
    "Full-stack developer portfolio showcasing web applications and projects.",
  author: {
    "@type": "Person",
    name: "John Doe",
  },
  potentialAction: {
    "@type": "SearchAction",
    target: "https://yourportfolio.com/search?q={search_term_string}",
    "query-input": "required name=search_term_string",
  },
};

export default function RootLayout({
  children,
}: {
  children: React.ReactNode;
}) {
  return (
    <html lang="en">
      <body>
        <Script
          id="website-schema"
          type="application/ld+json"
          dangerouslySetInnerHTML={{ __html: JSON.stringify(websiteJsonLd) }}
        />
        {children}
      </body>
    </html>
  );
}

3. Project/Creative Work Schema

// components/project-schema.tsx
import Script from "next/script";

interface ProjectSchemaProps {
  project: {
    title: string;
    description: string;
    image: string;
    url: string;
    dateCreated: string;
    technologies: string[];
  };
}

export function ProjectSchema({ project }: ProjectSchemaProps) {
  const jsonLd = {
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@type": "CreativeWork",
    name: project.title,
    description: project.description,
    image: project.image,
    url: project.url,
    dateCreated: project.dateCreated,
    author: {
      "@type": "Person",
      name: "John Doe",
      url: "https://yourportfolio.com",
    },
    keywords: project.technologies.join(", "),
  };

  return (
    <Script
      id={`project-schema-${project.title}`}
      type="application/ld+json"
      dangerouslySetInnerHTML={{ __html: JSON.stringify(jsonLd) }}
    />
  );
}

4. Blog Article Schema

// components/article-schema.tsx
export function ArticleSchema({ post }: { post: BlogPost }) {
  const jsonLd = {
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@type": "Article",
    headline: post.title,
    description: post.excerpt,
    image: post.coverImage,
    datePublished: post.publishedAt,
    dateModified: post.updatedAt || post.publishedAt,
    author: {
      "@type": "Person",
      name: post.author.name,
      url: "https://yourportfolio.com",
    },
    publisher: {
      "@type": "Person",
      name: "John Doe",
      logo: {
        "@type": "ImageObject",
        url: "https://yourportfolio.com/logo.png",
      },
    },
    mainEntityOfPage: {
      "@type": "WebPage",
      "@id": `https://yourportfolio.com/blog/${post.slug}`,
    },
  };

  return (
    <Script
      id={`article-schema-${post.slug}`}
      type="application/ld+json"
      dangerouslySetInnerHTML={{ __html: JSON.stringify(jsonLd) }}
    />
  );
}

5. Breadcrumb Schema

// components/breadcrumb-schema.tsx
interface BreadcrumbItem {
  name: string;
  url: string;
}

export function BreadcrumbSchema({ items }: { items: BreadcrumbItem[] }) {
  const jsonLd = {
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
    itemListElement: items.map((item, index) => ({
      "@type": "ListItem",
      position: index + 1,
      name: item.name,
      item: item.url,
    })),
  };

  return (
    <Script
      id="breadcrumb-schema"
      type="application/ld+json"
      dangerouslySetInnerHTML={{ __html: JSON.stringify(jsonLd) }}
    />
  );
}

// Usage
<BreadcrumbSchema
  items={[
    { name: "Home", url: "https://yourportfolio.com" },
    { name: "Projects", url: "https://yourportfolio.com/projects" },
    {
      name: project.title,
      url: `https://yourportfolio.com/projects/${project.slug}`,
    },
  ]}
/>;

OG Image Generation

Static OG Images

Place in /public/og-image.png (1200x630px)

Dynamic OG Images with ImageResponse

// app/api/og/route.tsx
import { ImageResponse } from "next/og";
import { NextRequest } from "next/server";

export const runtime = "edge";

export async function GET(request: NextRequest) {
  const { searchParams } = new URL(request.url);
  const title = searchParams.get("title") || "John Doe";
  const description = searchParams.get("description") || "Full-Stack Developer";

  return new ImageResponse(
    <div
      style={{
        height: "100%",
        width: "100%",
        display: "flex",
        flexDirection: "column",
        alignItems: "center",
        justifyContent: "center",
        backgroundColor: "#0a0a0a",
        backgroundImage:
          "radial-gradient(circle at 25% 25%, #1a1a2e 0%, transparent 50%)",
      }}
    >
      <div
        style={{
          display: "flex",
          flexDirection: "column",
          alignItems: "center",
          justifyContent: "center",
          textAlign: "center",
          padding: "40px 80px",
        }}
      >
        <h1
          style={{
            fontSize: 72,
            fontWeight: "bold",
            color: "white",
            lineHeight: 1.1,
            marginBottom: 20,
          }}
        >
          {title}
        </h1>
        <p
          style={{
            fontSize: 32,
            color: "#a1a1aa",
            marginTop: 0,
          }}
        >
          {description}
        </p>
      </div>

      {/* Footer branding */}
      <div
        style={{
          position: "absolute",
          bottom: 40,
          display: "flex",
          alignItems: "center",
          gap: 12,
        }}
      >
        <span style={{ fontSize: 24, color: "#71717a" }}>
          yourportfolio.com
        </span>
      </div>
    </div>,
    {
      width: 1200,
      height: 630,
    },
  );
}

Using Dynamic OG in Metadata

// app/projects/[slug]/page.tsx
export async function generateMetadata({ params }: Props): Promise<Metadata> {
  const { slug } = await params;
  const project = await getProjectBySlug(slug);

  if (!project) return { title: "Not Found" };

  const ogUrl = new URL("/api/og", "https://yourportfolio.com");
  ogUrl.searchParams.set("title", project.title);
  ogUrl.searchParams.set("description", project.description);

  return {
    title: project.title,
    description: project.description,
    openGraph: {
      images: [
        {
          url: ogUrl.toString(),
          width: 1200,
          height: 630,
          alt: project.title,
        },
      ],
    },
  };
}

Sitemap Generation

// app/sitemap.ts
import { MetadataRoute } from "next";
import { getAllProjects } from "@/lib/projects";
import { getAllPosts } from "@/lib/blog";

export default async function sitemap(): Promise<MetadataRoute.Sitemap> {
  const baseUrl = "https://yourportfolio.com";

  // Static pages
  const staticPages: MetadataRoute.Sitemap = [
    {
      url: baseUrl,
      lastModified: new Date(),
      changeFrequency: "monthly",
      priority: 1,
    },
    {
      url: `${baseUrl}/about`,
      lastModified: new Date(),
      changeFrequency: "monthly",
      priority: 0.8,
    },
    {
      url: `${baseUrl}/projects`,
      lastModified: new Date(),
      changeFrequency: "weekly",
      priority: 0.9,
    },
    {
      url: `${baseUrl}/blog`,
      lastModified: new Date(),
      changeFrequency: "weekly",
      priority: 0.8,
    },
    {
      url: `${baseUrl}/contact`,
      lastModified: new Date(),
      changeFrequency: "yearly",
      priority: 0.5,
    },
  ];

  // Dynamic project pages
  const projects = await getAllProjects();
  const projectPages: MetadataRoute.Sitemap = projects.map((project) => ({
    url: `${baseUrl}/projects/${project.slug}`,
    lastModified: new Date(project.updatedAt || project.date),
    changeFrequency: "monthly" as const,
    priority: 0.7,
  }));

  // Dynamic blog pages
  const posts = await getAllPosts();
  const blogPages: MetadataRoute.Sitemap = posts.map((post) => ({
    url: `${baseUrl}/blog/${post.slug}`,
    lastModified: new Date(post.updatedAt || post.publishedAt),
    changeFrequency: "weekly" as const,
    priority: 0.6,
  }));

  return [...staticPages, ...projectPages, ...blogPages];
}

Robots.txt

// app/robots.ts
import { MetadataRoute } from "next";

export default function robots(): MetadataRoute.Robots {
  return {
    rules: [
      {
        userAgent: "*",
        allow: "/",
        disallow: ["/api/", "/admin/"],
      },
    ],
    sitemap: "https://yourportfolio.com/sitemap.xml",
  };
}

Favicon & App Icons

// app/manifest.ts
import { MetadataRoute } from "next";

export default function manifest(): MetadataRoute.Manifest {
  return {
    name: "John Doe Portfolio",
    short_name: "John Doe",
    description: "Full-Stack Developer Portfolio",
    start_url: "/",
    display: "standalone",
    background_color: "#0a0a0a",
    theme_color: "#8b5cf6",
    icons: [
      {
        src: "/icon-192.png",
        sizes: "192x192",
        type: "image/png",
      },
      {
        src: "/icon-512.png",
        sizes: "512x512",
        type: "image/png",
      },
      {
        src: "/icon-512.png",
        sizes: "512x512",
        type: "image/png",
        purpose: "maskable",
      },
    ],
  };
}

Icon Files Structure

app/
├── favicon.ico          # 32x32 favicon
├── icon.png            # App icon (auto-detected)
├── apple-icon.png      # Apple touch icon
├── opengraph-image.png # Default OG image
└── twitter-image.png   # Default Twitter image

Performance SEO

Core Web Vitals Optimization

// next.config.js
/** @type {import('next').NextConfig} */
const nextConfig = {
  experimental: {
    optimizeCss: true, // CSS optimization
  },
  images: {
    formats: ["image/avif", "image/webp"],
    deviceSizes: [640, 750, 828, 1080, 1200, 1920, 2048],
    imageSizes: [16, 32, 48, 64, 96, 128, 256, 384],
  },
  // Compress responses
  compress: true,
};

Preload Critical Resources

// app/layout.tsx
export default function RootLayout({
  children,
}: {
  children: React.ReactNode;
}) {
  return (
    <html lang="en">
      <head>
        {/* Preload fonts */}
        <link
          rel="preload"
          href="/fonts/CalSans-SemiBold.woff2"
          as="font"
          type="font/woff2"
          crossOrigin="anonymous"
        />

        {/* Preconnect to external domains */}
        <link rel="preconnect" href="https://fonts.googleapis.com" />
        <link
          rel="preconnect"
          href="https://fonts.gstatic.com"
          crossOrigin="anonymous"
        />

        {/* DNS prefetch for analytics */}
        <link rel="dns-prefetch" href="https://www.googletagmanager.com" />
      </head>
      <body>{children}</body>
    </html>
  );
}

SEO Checklist for Portfolio

Technical SEO

• Unique title for every page
• Meta descriptions (150-160 chars)
• Canonical URLs set
• Sitemap.xml generated
• Robots.txt configured
• Mobile-friendly (responsive)
• HTTPS enabled
• Fast loading (<3s)

Content SEO

• H1 on every page
• Semantic HTML structure
• Alt text on all images
• Internal linking between pages
• Clear URL structure

Social SEO

• Open Graph tags
• Twitter Card tags
• OG images (1200x630)
• Social profile links

Structured Data

• Person schema
• Website schema
• Article schema (blog)
• CreativeWork schema (projects)
• BreadcrumbList schema

Testing Tools

1. Google Search Console - Monitor indexing
2. Rich Results Test - Validate structured data
3. PageSpeed Insights - Performance metrics
4. Open Graph Debugger - Facebook/LinkedIn previews
5. Twitter Card Validator - Twitter previews
6. Schema Markup Validator - JSON-LD validation