84 tips to get started with SEO

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Published On
September 1, 2023

1. Complete keyword research

Conduct thorough research to identify relevant and valuable keywords that will attract your target audience.

2. Develop long-form content

Create in-depth and comprehensive content that provides value to your readers and helps establish your authority in your industry.

3. Tell Google which pages not to crawl

Use the robots.txt file or meta robots tags to prevent search engines from crawling and indexing pages that you don’t want to appear in search results.

4. Create easily digestible content

Format your content in a way that is easy to read and understand, with clear headings, bullet points, and other formatting elements.

5. Create unique page titles

Craft compelling and descriptive titles for each of your pages that accurately reflect the content and help improve click-through rates.

6. Accurately describe page contents

Use clear and concise language to describe the content on each of your pages, both for users and search engines.

7. Use headings and formatting

Break up your content with headers, sub-headers, and other formatting elements to make it more readable and scannable.

8. Plan your homepage navigation and site hierarchy

Organize your site’s structure and navigation in a way that makes it easy for users and search engines to understand and navigate.

9. Provide readers with what they want

Create content that meets the needs and interests of your target audience and provides value to them.

10. Target relevant primary and secondary keywords

Use primary and secondary keywords that accurately reflect the content of your pages and match the search queries of your target audience.

11. Write quality original content

Produce high-quality, original content that provides value to your readers and helps establish your authority in your industry.

12. Format your content for search engines & target featured snippets

Optimize your content for search engines and target featured snippets by using clear formatting, answering common questions, and providing concise answers.

13. Optimize your page titles

Craft compelling and descriptive page titles that accurately reflect the content of your pages and help improve click-through rates.

14. Create informative and optimized meta descriptions

Use clear and concise language to describe the content of your pages in your meta descriptions, and include relevant keywords.

15. Use short, descriptive URLs

Create short, descriptive URLs that accurately reflect the content of your pages and make them easier to share and remember.

16. Generate backlinks from high-site authority websites

Build high-quality backlinks from authoritative websites to increase your site’s authority and improve your search rankings.

17. Remove anything that loads slowly

Eliminate any elements on your site that slow down the loading time, as this can negatively impact your search rankings and user experience.

18. Use a mix of internal and external links

Link to both internal and external pages to improve the user experience and help search engines understand the content and structure of your site.

19. Optimize your graphics

Optimize your images and other graphics to reduce their file size and improve your site’s loading time and overall performance.

20. Conduct regular site audits

Regularly review your site to identify and fix any technical issues or content gaps that could be impacting your search rankings.

21. Study your competitors

Analyze the strategies and tactics of your competitors to identify areas where you can improve and differentiate yourself in the market.

22. Choose core (and related) keywords for every page

Identify a core keyword and related keywords for each of your pages, and use them appropriately in your content and metadata.

23. Optimize your title tags — and make them spicy

Write compelling and descriptive title tags that accurately reflect the content of your pages and encourage users to click through to your site.

24. Use keywords in headings and paragraphs

Use keywords naturally and strategically in your headers and paragraphs to help search engines understand the content and relevance of your pages.

25. Optimize content for featured snippets

Optimizing content for featured snippets can help increase visibility in search results, as snippets appear above traditional search results and provide users with quick answers to their queries. To optimize for snippets, focus on concise, informative content and use header tags to highlight key points.

26. Develop longer content

Developing longer content can be beneficial for SEO, as longer articles tend to perform better in search rankings. However, it’s important to ensure that the content is high quality, informative, and relevant to your target audience.

27. Include keywords in URLs, but keep URLs short

Including relevant keywords in URLs can help improve search rankings, but it’s important to keep URLs short and easy to read. Avoid using long, complicated strings of characters or numbers, and instead focus on concise, descriptive URLs that accurately reflect the content of the page.

28. Update old pages

Updating old pages can help improve search rankings and ensure that content remains relevant and useful to readers. Look for outdated information, broken links, and other issues that may be negatively impacting the page’s performance, and make necessary updates to improve the user experience.

29. Optimize all your images with alt tags

Optimizing all your images with alt tags can help improve search rankings, as search engines use this information to better understand the content of the page. Alt tags should be descriptive, relevant, and accurately reflect the content of the image.

30. Avoid duplicate content

Avoiding duplicate content is crucial for SEO, as search engines may penalize sites that use duplicate content. Make sure that all content on your site is unique, relevant, and informative, and avoid copying content from other sources.

31. Stop keyword stuffing

Keyword stuffing, or the excessive use of keywords in an attempt to manipulate search rankings, can harm your site’s performance and result in penalties from search engines. Focus on creating high-quality content that uses relevant keywords in a natural, informative way.

32. Know your audience

Knowing your audience is key to creating content that resonates with readers and performs well in search rankings. Research your target audience’s needs, interests, and search habits, and use this information to guide your content creation efforts.

33. Determine the intent of your website

Determining the intent of your website is critical for creating effective SEO strategies. Whether you’re looking to educate, inform, or sell products or services, understanding the goals of your site can help you create content that resonates with your audience and improves search rankings.

34. Optimize for geographic regions & user locations

Optimizing for geographic regions and user locations can help improve local search rankings and attract local customers. Use location-specific keywords and create content that is relevant to your target audience’s location.

35. Optimize for multiple locations

Optimizing for multiple locations can help improve search rankings and attract customers from a broader range of geographic areas. Create location-specific landing pages, use location-specific keywords, and ensure that your site is optimized for local search.

36. Use regional pages

Using regional pages can help improve search rankings and attract customers from specific geographic areas. Create landing pages that are tailored to the needs and interests of customers in specific regions, and use location-specific keywords and content to improve local search rankings.

37. Optimize for “near me” searches

Optimizing for “near me” searches can help attract local customers and improve search rankings. Use location-specific keywords and create content that is relevant to users who are searching for businesses or services in their area.

38. Know the types of content that rank well

Knowing the types of content that rank well can help you create effective SEO strategies and improve search rankings. Focus on creating high-quality content that is informative, engaging, and relevant to your target audience.

39. Use Keywords In The Right Places

Using keywords in the right places can help improve search rankings and attract more organic traffic. Use keywords in header tags, meta descriptions, and throughout the body of your content, but avoid excessive or unnatural use of keywords.

40. Use keywords in the right places

Keeping users on your site longer can help improve search rankings and attract more organic traffic. Create engaging, informative content that is relevant to your target audience, and use internal links to guide users to other relevant content on your site.

41. Keep users on your site longer

Keeping users on your site longer can increase engagement, reduce bounce rates, and improve search rankings, so make sure to provide relevant and valuable content, improve website design and usability, and offer a clear call-to-action to encourage visitors to stay longer.

42. Find “suggest” keywords

Finding “suggest” keywords, or related search terms that Google suggests in the search bar, can provide insight into popular and relevant topics to include in your content, and help optimize your website for long-tail keywords and user intent.

43. Delete zombie pages

Deleting zombie pages, or outdated, irrelevant or low-performing pages, can improve website performance and SEO, streamline website navigation, and provide a better user experience.

44. Do an industry study

Doing an industry study, or researching and analyzing trends, competition, and best practices in your industry or niche, can help inform your content strategy, optimize your website for relevant keywords and topics, and stay ahead of the competition.

45. Add text to infographics, podcasts, and videos

Adding text to infographics, podcasts, and videos can provide valuable context, increase accessibility and readability, and improve search visibility, as search engines can crawl and index the text.

46. Speed up your website

Speeding up your website can improve user experience, reduce bounce rates, and boost search rankings, so make sure to optimize images, minify code, use caching and content delivery networks, and choose a fast and reliable hosting provider.

47. Use the Google Search Console

Using the Google Search Console can provide valuable data and insights on website performance, search rankings, and search traffic, and help identify and fix errors, improve website visibility, and track progress over time.

48. Create content around shoulder niches

Creating content around shoulder niches, or related and complementary topics to your main focus, can expand your audience, increase relevance and authority, and improve search rankings for long-tail keywords and user intent.

49. Get backlinks from your visual assets

Getting backlinks from your visual assets, such as infographics, images, and videos, can improve website authority and search rankings, and increase visibility and reach through social sharing and embedding.

50. Create branded keywords

Creating branded keywords, or unique and memorable terms or phrases associated with your brand, can increase brand recognition and loyalty, improve search rankings for branded searches, and provide a competitive advantage in search results.

51. Add “what is x” definitions to blog content

It can help answer users’ questions and improve the relevance of your content to search queries.

52. Rank in the featured snippets

Ranking in the featured snippets can provide valuable exposure and drive more traffic to your website, but it requires optimizing your content to match the requirements of the featured snippet format.

53. Improve your organic CTR using PPC testing

Using PPC testing to improve your organic click-through rate (CTR) can help you identify the most effective ad copy and meta descriptions for your target audience and improve your visibility in search results.

54. Find your competitors’ best performing pages

Finding your competitors’ best performing pages can help you identify gaps in your own content and develop a more effective SEO strategy to outrank your competition.

55. Use digital pr to earn authority backlinks

Using digital PR to earn authority backlinks can help improve your domain authority and increase the visibility of your website in search results.

56. Optimize for ‘people also ask’

Optimizing for “people also ask” can help you capture more organic search traffic by targeting related queries and providing relevant content that answers users’ questions.

57. Use your competitor’s broken backlinks

Using your competitor’s broken backlinks can help you identify opportunities to earn backlinks for your own website by reaching out to webmasters and offering your own relevant content as a replacement for the broken link.

58. Use supporting content to show topical expertise

Using supporting content to show topical expertise can help establish your website as a reliable source of information and improve your search visibility for relevant topics and keywords.

59. Use internal links to supercharge page 2 rankings

Using internal links to supercharge page 2 rankings can help improve the authority of your internal pages and increase their visibility in search results by directing more link equity to them.

60. Clean up toxic links

Cleaning up toxic links can help improve the quality of your backlink profile and avoid penalties or algorithmic filters that can negatively impact your search rankings.

61. Add missing subtopics

Adding missing subtopics can help improve the comprehensiveness and relevance of your content, which can lead to better search engine rankings and increased user engagement.

62. Create quality content on a consistent basis

Creating quality content on a consistent basis can help attract and retain readers, build your brand, and establish your expertise in your industry or niche.

63. Leverage CTAs as often as possible

Leveraging calls-to-action (CTAs) can help guide your readers toward a desired action, whether that be subscribing to your newsletter, making a purchase, or filling out a contact form.

64. Check, double-check and triple-check you data

Checking, double-checking, and triple-checking your data is essential for ensuring accuracy and avoiding errors, which can negatively impact your website’s credibility and reputation.

65. Focus on user intent

Focusing on user intent means understanding the motivations and goals of your audience and tailoring your content to meet their needs and preferences.

66. Make your content user-friendly

Making your content user-friendly involves creating content that is easy to read, navigate, and understand, and ensuring that it is accessible to all users, including those with disabilities.

67. Customer citations remain super popular

Customer citations, such as reviews and testimonials, can provide social proof and help establish trust and credibility with your audience, as well as potentially improve your search engine rankings.

68. Think beyond ‘exact match’ keywords

Thinking beyond ‘exact match’ keywords means focusing on related and semantically related keywords, as well as incorporating natural language and conversational phrases into your content.

69. You can have more than one sitemap

Having multiple sitemaps can help improve the organization and indexing of your website’s content, making it easier for search engines to crawl and understand your site structure.

70. Don’t build massive amounts of links on directories

Avoid building massive amounts of links on directories, as this can be seen as a spammy tactic and potentially harm your search engine rankings. Instead, focus on building high-quality, relevant links from reputable sources.

71. Don’t guest post for links

Focus on providing valuable content to the audience, rather than just trying to get a link. This will help establish authority and brand recognition, which can lead to more natural links in the long run.

72. Write about topics (not keywords)

Rather than targeting specific keywords, focus on creating comprehensive content around a particular topic. This approach can help you capture more long-tail keywords and provide more value to your audience.

73. Create FAQ pages

Frequently Asked Questions pages can help address common questions and concerns of your audience, and improve your chances of appearing in featured snippets for related queries.

74. Syndicate your content

Distributing your content across different platforms and channels can help increase visibility and reach, and potentially attract new audiences.

75. Repurpose your content

Repurposing existing content into different formats (e.g. turning a blog post into a video or podcast) can help you reach new audiences and provide more value to your current ones.

76. Write original product descriptions

Unique and informative product descriptions can help improve your chances of ranking for relevant queries and provide more value to potential customers.

77. Eliminate keyword cannibalization

Avoid targeting the same keywords on multiple pages or posts, as this can lead to keyword cannibalization and lower rankings.

78. Focus on facts & local guides

Creating local guides and fact-based content can help establish authority and provide value to your audience, which can improve your chances of appearing in featured snippets and local search results.

79. Create travel guides

Comprehensive and informative travel guides can help attract more traffic and provide value to your audience, potentially leading to more bookings or sales.

80. Use Google Local Inventory Ads

These ads can help promote your products to local audiences, and provide a way for users to easily find and purchase products in their area.

81. Collect more reviews

Positive reviews can help improve your online reputation and attract more customers, while negative reviews provide valuable feedback for improving your products or services.

82. Without insights, data is just numbers

Make sure to regularly analyze and interpret your data to gain insights and make informed decisions for your digital marketing strategy.

83. Optimize for voice search

Voice search is becoming increasingly popular, so optimizing for natural language and long-tail keywords can help you capture more voice search queries and provide more value to your audience.

84. Measure results constantly

Regularly monitoring and measuring your digital marketing efforts can help you identify areas for improvement, and make data-driven decisions to optimize your strategy.

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