What is SEO and 19 Practical Steps to Make it Work for Your Blog

In the past you could write a content, fill it with a bunch of keywords and get to the top of Google search results. This was really easy.

It’s very different now. SEO game rules have changed seriously.

In order to appear now in top search results on Google you need to use the right SEO approach.

But what is right SEO approach? What is SEO? What can be done to get to top search results?

SEO is a search engine optimization of content. Optimization can be sometimes very tricky.

You do the work, create unique content and then notice that it’s not ranked well though other useless content on other blogs is ranked in top search results.

This question is sometimes hard to answer. There is no specific list of steps to follow that will guarantee your rankings in search engines.

But still there are a few things that can be done for improving SEO of your website.

1. Write a perfect title for your blog post. The title must catch your reader’s attention giving them a hint that your content is helpful and thorough. It’s going to not only answer their questions but provide a kind of step-by-step guide. Especially such a type of title can help your post climb the search results and get higher CTR ( click through rate). Thanks to this, Google will give your higher rankings in search results which means more visitors to your website.

2. Make your post title as a statement rather than a question. This helps get higher rankings in search engines and clicks as a result. Because when you make your post title as a question you most likely get ranked under exactly that question phrase. When you write a title with definitive statement like “7 tips or hacks on…” you can cover wider range of questions and as a result get rankings under various search terms. This will bring more traffic to your website.

3. When you start a blog you need to gain credibility with Google. This can be done by writing short response posts answering specific questions within your niche. These response posts are easy to rank on Google and they can bring you a considerable traffic to your blog.

4. Make your blog post as thorough as possible provided you keep it within 3.000 – 4.000 words. The thorough is post the more chances to get higher rankings. The blog post must be interesting and engaging to keep readers attention so they stay longer on your page. Staying longer can lead to clicking on other links within the post which is another positive signal for your blog. This is known as user experience. It’s far from being perfect but still we have to pay attention to that.

5. Don’t do unethical link building for your blog. Every year Google’s ranking algorithm gets improved and if Google detects shady backlinks pointing to your blog it can be penalized. Instead, create quality content and over time you will get good links from authority blogs naturally, organically. This will serve as a signal to Google that your blog is rankworthy, your blog is worth linking to.

6. Don’t focus too much on keywords when creating content. Focus on content instead. Use different combinations of the same keyword if required so to make your content thorough and to cover as many aspects of the same topic as possible. This will allow your blog post to rank under different variations and will bring more traffic to your blog.

7. We can’t ignore youtube platform because it becomes more and more popular. Adding a video to a blog post is a good chance to get into top search results. Plus, ranking videos is easier than ranking blog posts. Videos very often bring way more traffic than blog posts. When you combine blog post along with content it will give you the upper hand over other blogs.

8. Page load speed is extremely important nowadays like never before. Because more and more people start using mobile devices, like smartphones, tablets when surfing internet. Your website must be mobile friendly and have good page load time. You can check your website using this tool by Google. Choose wp themes that are well optimized because it’s important for your website rankings.

9. Use outbound links to authority sites to prove to Google that you not only provide an accurate info but to back up your claims you link to other legit sites. This is also one of important rankings factors.

10. If you have malware on your website you should clean your site immediately. Because Google will not send visitors to your website.

11. Always check your website for broken links. Having few of them will not hurt your site rankings. If you have too many broken links it will definitely hold your site from high rankings.

12. Always do internal linking to other related posts on your blog. This will inevitably increase the time your visitors spend on your blog and prove to Google that you have rich content on your blog.

13. When you write content for your blog always think of users, real people coming to your website. Whenever you create content put your readers first and think how you can help them in the best way possible. If you do so and act accordingly by doing an in-depth research your content will always be thorough and informative. This will lead for the best SEO results and practices.

14. When you create content for your blog you need to first do an in-depth research of the topic you are planning to write about. Cover as many aspects of the topic as possible. If other blogs cover 10 aspects you cover 20 aspects or even more if you can. This will definitely increase your chances for better rankings.

15. Write captivating headlines for your posts. This will lead to higher CTR (click through rate) which means higher rankings in search results. But writing a captivating headline doesn’t mean telling lie to your readers. Because you can lose your credibility and trust.

16. If you use images on your blog make sure you optimize them before uploading them to your blog. There are many plugins for that or you can use online sites, such as https://tinypng.com/

17. If you can add comparison tables to your blog post that would be a great addition to your content. This needs some serious research but very effective in terms of SEO of your blog.

18. Show expertise in what you write about on your blog. This is really important and Google will know it and recognize your authority once it has been recognized by people. Try to be real and share your real experience with your readers in the topic of your interest and people will appreciate it. Your reputation will grow and rankings accordingly.

19. Your website needs to be completely secure which means you need to switch it to SSL mode (https). It will cost you some money but it’s extremely important for your blog rankings. In fact, it’s already a ranking factor.

There are way more other practical steps to apply to your blog for the best SEO results. But these are the most important ones you need to follow.

Other things are not so important and probably will not hold your blog from rankings.

Though they can be additional ranking factors for your blog.

We must keep in mind that the main purpose of SEO efforts is to provide the most helpful info and answer to searcher’s query.

If you do it diligently you SEO efforts will be rewarded.

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About the Author: Adam

My name is Adam. I'm the founder of Your Income Advisor. My goal is to help others succeed online, by exposing scams and reviewing top rated products. I can help you start your own business online