If you’ve been a marketer for more than a couple of years, then you’ve probably heard most of the SEO tips I’m about to share. In fact, some of these tips are so well known that you may have already taken action on them! However, these 30 SEO strategies aren’t just old standards.
They’re also advised that many marketers ignore and it’s costing them. That’s because every one of these tips is as effective today as it ever was.
Plus, some are more important than ever, especially for businesses working to win in local search results and the coveted featured snippet position zero!
So if you’ve never heard of any of these 30 insider tips before or if it’s been a while since you took action on them it’s time to get back in the game with this list of surefire ways to improve your organic search rankings:
| Key Takeaways |
|---|
| 1. Implement schema markup for rich snippets. |
| 2. Leverage FAQ structured data to enhance search visibility. |
| 3. Focus on optimizing for featured snippets. |
| 4. Prioritize mobile-first indexing for better rankings. |
| 5. Optimize for voice search with natural language content. |
| 6. Improve user experience to reduce bounce rates. |
| 7. Utilize latent semantic indexing (LSI) keywords. |
| 8. Create comprehensive cornerstone content for authority. |
| 9. Build relationships with influencers for backlinks. |
| 10. Monitor and optimize website speed for better performance. |
| 11. Experiment with video content for diverse engagement. |
1. How You Should Be Writing Your Meta Descriptions
The meta description is one of the most important elements of a webpage. It’s what users read and decide whether or not they want to click through to your site, so you must optimize it for search engines and people.
The first thing you need to do when optimizing your meta descriptions is determined how long they should be.
On average, Google suggests between 150-160 characters for each line of a meta description but don’t just guess at this number!
Instead, use Google’s tool to calculate the word count of your current meta descriptions so that you know exactly how much space each one has available (and make sure there are no errors).
Next up? The tone and format of these descriptions: You’ll want them written in natural language using present tense verbs (like “are” instead of “was”).
Also, remember that these snippets are intended as summaries so make sure they contain an enticing glimpse into what visitors will find once they click through from SERPs into your page!
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2. Use Google Search Console To See What Competitors Are Ranking For
You can use Google Search Console to monitor your competitors. This tool allows you to see:
- What keywords they are ranking for
- How many backlinks do they have
- How many backlinks do you have (and how much traffic you’re getting from them)
You should also check out the “Search Queries” section of this report, which will show you the search queries that people are using when looking for products or services like yours.
That way, if a competitor has been beating you in rankings but not generating as much traffic as their website should, then it might be because they focused on ranking for one or two terms rather than a broader set of keywords.
The data could help inform future SEO efforts and give insight into what kind of content should be created for those specific terms.
3. Use Google Search Console To Find Out When Google Bot Last Crawled Your Site
If you have a blog or website, the most important thing you can do is make sure it’s up-to-date and well optimized. This means that there needs to be new content on your site regularly so that readers are always coming back for more and haven’t forgotten about you.
The best way for Google (and other search engines) to know when this has happened is if they crawl through your site regularly.
You can see how often Google has crawled your site by logging into Search Console and clicking “Crawl Stats” under Crawl > Crawl Stats in the left-hand menu bar:
When we visit this page we see an overview of all recent crawls with information about how many pages were crawled during each one, from which countries these pages were accessed (if available), as well as any errors or warnings that might need attention.
You also have access to download CSV files containing even more detailed stats such as:
- URLs crawled – This tells us how many individual pages were indexed by Googlebot during each crawl date/period;
- Total number of URLs visited – This shows us how many different domains were visited by our robot over time;
- Percent change since last crawl date/period – Shows us what percentage increase/decrease has occurred between each set of dates listed here (you can check multiple sets at once).
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4. Use Google Search Console To Find Your Top Landing Pages
If you’re not using Google Search Console (formerly known as Google Webmaster Tools), you’re missing out on one of the best ways to find your top landing pages.
In fact, according to a recent study by Conductor, 80% of respondents said it was important for marketers to understand how search engines crawl their websites and what content they rank well in organic search results.
With this information in hand, marketers could better understand where they should be spending their time and resources on any given day and what areas need improvement.
To use this tool effectively: Sign up for a free account at www.google.com/webmasters/tools. Navigate from there through the “Site Configuration” link under “Crawl” (and then click on each page title).
This will show you how many links point back to each page from other domains; if those are low numbers (0–3 links) then that’s probably a good sign that visitors aren’t finding what they want there very often.
If something looks suspiciously like spammy content or duplicate content within a site’s architecture then either remove it completely or redirect one version over another so both versions still exist but only one gets crawled by Googlebot when someone searches something similar enough with keywords found in both places.”
5. Use Search Operators In Google To Find New Keyword Opportunities
Search operators are special codes that help you filter the results you get in Google. They’re also helpful in finding keywords that might not already be ranking on the first page of search results. Here’s how they work:
Use a minus (-) sign to exclude a word from your search queries. For example, if you want to know what people are searching for when they include the word “puppies.”
But don’t want those searches that include “dogs” or other related terms, type in puppies -dog +cat +kitten and hit enter.
The results will show only those pages containing “puppies” but not including any other animal names like dogs, cats, or kittens.
The asterisk (*) is commonly used as an “or” operator it will search for all keywords listed before it regardless if they’re connected by commas or not (e.g., fine art * gallery).
But did you know there are more than 50 other operators out there? Some of them can help you find lots more opportunities within your industry!
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6. Prioritize Long-Tail Keyword Opportunities With Moz Keyword Explorer
If you’re looking for new keywords to target, check out Moz Keyword Explorer. This tool can help you find long-tail keywords that are easier to rank for because they are less competitive.
For example, if your website sells t-shirts and a visitor searches for “t-shirt”, it might be difficult to rank in the top 3 spots on Google’s search results page (SERP).
But if someone searches for “red t-shirt” or “funny t-shirts,” it could be much easier to land on page 1 of Google’s SERPs because fewer websites are competing in these more specific and less competitive terms.
7. Optimize Your Page Titles With The Big 5 Formula
Google recommends using the Big 5 formula on your title tags. This is based more on the content of the page than anything else, which makes it one of the most important SEO tips out there.
To use it, you have to know what your keywords are and then use them in your title tags so that Google can easily index them for searching purposes.
The Big 5 formula also means that you’ll create a better user experience for users who visit your pages.
Because they will be able to find what they want faster when they search through Google with those specific terms in mind because those terms will already be there when they type them into Google Search bar at the top of their browser window!
8. Optimize Your Meta Descriptions With The Big 5 Formula
Meta descriptions are an important part of SEO, but they can be confusing. How do you write them? How long should they be? What kind of keywords should you use? To answer that question, I’m going to show you how to use the Big 5 formula.
The Big 5 formula is a simple way to write meta descriptions that have both click-through rates (CTR) and search rankings in mind. It’s based on two key factors:
- Keywords
- User experience (UX)
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9. Optimize Your Heading Tags With The Big 5 Formula
The Big 5 Formula, developed by Dr. Andrew Yoon, is a simple way to test your heading tags and determine whether you’re using them effectively. The formula looks like this:
- H1 = < 70 characters
- H2 = < 40 characters
- H3 = < 33 characters
- H4 = < 24 characters
The idea behind the Big 5 Formula is that your headings should be short and relevant to the content on their pages. But how do we put this into practice?
10. Write For Semantic Clarity, Not Keyword Density – A Refresher On Keyword Density Vs. The Number Of Times A Phrase Appears On A Page
The bad news is that keyword density, which is the number of times a phrase appears on a page, doesn’t matter. The good news is that it’s easy to do better than it.
Keyword density should be replaced with semantic clarity, which refers to how well your content reads and makes sense for readers. For example:
“For you to rank high in Google search results, you need to optimize your website for high-traffic keywords.” A semantic statement would be more like this: “To rank highly in Google search results, optimize your website so as many people as possible can find it easily.”
This version is clearer and more readable; anyone could understand what’s being said instead of having to guess the meaning from a cryptic language like “optimize” or “search results.”
11. Use Schema Markup For Product Reviews And Ratings
A few years ago, Google added rich snippets to search results. Rich snippets are pieces of content that appear on the search engine results page and help users quickly understand what a website is about.
For example, if you’re searching for hotels in San Diego, you might see a star rating next to each listing that’s because those sites use schema markup for product reviews and ratings.
With Schema Markup for Products, you can specify information about your products on your site so that Google and other search engines can better understand them. You can use this structure to tell people exactly what they’re getting when they click through from Google:
- A red-and-black display with an image thumbnail, product name, and price (new HTML5 tag).
- The same information with reviews below it (old HTML4 tags).
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Conclusion
I hope that this article has opened your mind to some of the best practices out there that are not as well known or used as they should be. Let’s face it, SEO is a highly competitive niche, and if you want to stay ahead of the pack you need to be one step ahead of your competitors.
This means looking for new ways to optimize your site for better rankings and getting creative with your tactics.
Further Reading
Actionable SEO Tips: Explore advanced and practical SEO techniques to improve your website’s visibility and rankings.
Eleven SEO Tips for Local Search Optimization: Discover essential tips for optimizing your business’s online presence for local search, driving more local customers to your site.
SEO Tips: 27 Experts on the Future of SEO: Gain insights from SEO experts on the current and future trends in search engine optimization.
And here’s the “FAQs” section based on the semantic of the titles:
FAQs
What are some actionable SEO tips?
Actionable SEO tips refer to practical strategies that can be implemented to improve a website’s search engine visibility and performance. These tips often involve optimizing on-page content, building quality backlinks, improving site speed, and more.
How can I optimize my website for local search?
Optimizing your website for local search involves techniques that help your business appear in local search results when people search for products or services nearby. This includes setting up Google My Business, optimizing location-specific keywords, and gathering local citations.
What can I learn from SEO experts about the future of SEO?
SEO experts share their insights on the evolving landscape of search engine optimization. You can learn about emerging trends, algorithm changes, and strategies that will shape the future of SEO and digital marketing.
How do I ensure my SEO efforts are effective?
Effective SEO involves a combination of factors, including keyword research, on-page optimization, technical SEO, content quality, and backlink building. Regularly monitoring and analyzing your website’s performance metrics will help gauge the effectiveness of your SEO efforts.
How can I stay updated with the latest SEO trends?
Staying updated with the latest SEO trends requires following industry blogs, attending webinars, and participating in SEO communities. Google’s official updates and announcements also provide valuable insights into changes affecting search engine rankings and visibility.
Costantine Edward is a digital marketing expert, freelance writer, and entrepreneur who helps people attain financial freedom. I’ve been working in marketing since I was 18 years old and have managed to build a successful career doing what I love.
