How To Do SEO For Your Blog The Right Way

Why do people blog? To share their story with the world. But another important reason is to drive traffic and make money. However, if you’ve spent any time blogging, you know that building an audience is easier said than done.

It can be a real struggle especially when you’re new or have some catching up to do. That’s where search engine optimization (SEO) comes in! SEO is a strategic way of ensuring that your blog shows up higher in search results so more people find it and read your content.

The good news is that SEO isn’t as hard as it sounds and anyone can learn the basics of SEO even those who aren’t tech-savvy.

So how do you get started with improving your site’s overall SEO? While there are many factors involved in effectively optimizing your blog posts for search engines, I’m going to walk through four of the top considerations: title tags, headers, meta descriptions, and alt text for images.

These are all simple adjustments that will make a big impact on how visible your site is when someone searches for topics related to what you write about. And since this post isn’t about “doing” anything technical…I won’t get into any complicated code either! 🙂

How to Use SEO Writing for Blogs and Websites

Takeaways
1. Understand the importance of SEO for your blog’s visibility and success.
2. Focus on content optimization, using relevant keywords naturally throughout your articles.
3. Utilize on-page SEO techniques, including meta tags, headings, and internal links.
4. Build high-quality backlinks to enhance your blog’s authority and search engine rankings.
5. Stay updated on SEO trends and algorithm changes to adapt your strategy accordingly.

Table of Contents

Do Some Keyword Research

The first thing you need to do is take a look at what your competitors are doing and how they’re ranking. You can use tools like SEMRush, Moz, or Ahrefs to get an idea of what keywords your competitors have targeted.

Then, you’ll want to run some keyword research on Google Keyword Planner (or other similar tools). This will tell you what people are searching for about the topics that you cover on your blog.

If there’s no demand for a certain keyword phrase then it won’t be worth targeting it because no one will click through from the search results page into your blog!

Building a strong online presence through effective SEO strategies is essential for every blogger. If you’re just starting out, our article on SEO for Beginners: 10 Steps to Achieve Google Page 1 can provide you with valuable insights to get on the right track.

Find The Best Keywords For SEO

If you want to get the most out of your SEO efforts, you must use keywords that are highly relevant to your blog. You can start with Google’s Keyword Planner tool to get a list of potential keywords to target.

This will give you a good idea of which terms people are searching for when they’re looking for information about what your blog offers.

Focus On Long-Tail Keywords

Long-tail keywords are more specific and have a more specific search volume. As such, they are easier to rank than broad keywords.

Google is focused on providing the best user experience possible, so if your blog posts address a long-tail keyword that doesn’t get much traffic.

Google will probably show your post in the search results anyway because it knows that users who use those terms will be happy with what they find when they click on your link.

Long-tail keywords tend to be easier for humans too; you’ll know exactly what kind of person should be reading what you wrote about a particular topic.

Backlinks are like the backbone of SEO, contributing significantly to your website’s authority. If you’re interested in learning how to enhance your site’s credibility, dive into our comprehensive guide: The Definitive Guide to Building Backlinks.

Avoid Keyword Stuffing In Titles And Content

Don’t keyword stuff. Keyword stuffing is the practice of including a long list of keywords in an article that does not add value to the content or even making up words that don’t make sense.

Don’t use a keyword in your title if it doesn’t apply to your post. You want people who are looking for information on this topic to find it when they search online.

But if a reader sees the word “dog” in your title and then reads nothing about dogs in your blog post, they may not bother reading it at all and neither will Google (or any other search engine).

If you feel like something needs to go into your title as far as keywords go, try using synonyms instead. For example: “How To Make Homemade Dog Treats Without Wheat Flour And Eggs” would work better than simply “Homemade Dog Treats Without Wheat Flour Or Eggs.”

Create A Meta Description That Grabs Attention

A meta description is a short text that appears under your blog post title in search results. It’s not as important as a page’s title and URL, but it still has an impact on how many people click on your link.

A good meta description should be:

Short (under 150 characters). The ideal length for Google is between 50-60 characters, so keep it short so you get more space to write another keyword or two. Plus, we all want to read something interesting!

Compelling. If someone reads your meta description and isn’t compelled to click through immediately, then you’re doing something wrong! Make sure this text stands out from other search results by being unique, funny/entertaining/interesting/unusual, etc…

Optimized for keywords. You don’t have much room here so use each character wisely!

Write Killer Content That People Will Love To Read And Share

As a blogger, you’re probably already aware of the importance of creating high-quality content. But why is it so important? Because people don’t want to spend their time reading stuff that doesn’t interest them!

That being said, there’s no point in writing an amazing blog post if no one reads it or shares it with their friends. So how do you write blog posts that people will want to read and share?

It all starts with understanding what makes great content tick and we have just the thing for you: our free guide on How To Write Killer Blog Posts That Engage Your Audience.

Growing your blog’s organic traffic is a journey, and sometimes a few key insights can make all the difference. Explore the success story of How I Went from 0 to 1K Organic Visitors to My Blog in 15 Days for practical tips and inspiration.

Make Your Blog Easy To Navigate

If you don’t have a clear navigation system, people will get frustrated and leave. They won’t trust that they’ll find what they need on your site if there’s no clear way to get there!

So make sure you use breadcrumbs at the top of every page, clearly marked categories in their nav bar (or sidebar), and a sitemap on your site with links to every other page on it.

You could also include a blogroll a list of blogs related to yours and an index if your site has too many posts for readers to go through them all easily.

It’s also helpful if each post has its URL so readers can access it directly without having to scroll through all of them first. A search function would be good too!

Make Your Blog Fast And Mobile-Friendly

To rank well in Google, you’ll need a fast site. A slow site will hurt your search rankings and make users less likely to stick around.

Here’s what you can do:

Hosting

Choose a fast host with good support. I use Bluehost, but there are certainly other great WordPress hosts out there. Just Google around and find one that works for you!

Plugin

If you’re using Jetpack on your blog (which is great), be sure it’s updated frequently by clicking through the “Updates” section of Jetpack’s dashboard widget when logged into WordPress (this may require signing in to your admin area).

Theme

Most themes are very well coded these days, but if yours isn’t optimized for speed yet, consider switching to something faster like Genesis or Elegant Themes

Enhance User Experience On Your Website By Organizing Your Blog Content Better

When you organize your blog content, you’re making it easier for people to navigate your site. In addition to improving the user experience, this can also increase the overall number of viewers and readers who come across your blog.

There are various ways to organize your content. They include:

using a table of contents
using a sitemap
using a blog index or archive page (which is an alphabetized list of all posts)
creating categories for each type of content within your site, such as “general” or “food” blogs; this will help make it easier for users to find what they’re looking for on any given page that may not have been included in other methods

Crafting content that resonates with both readers and search engines is an art. Dive into our guide on Top 15 Tips for SEO Copywriting to learn how to strike the right balance between engaging copy and SEO optimization.

Optimize Images For SEO

Use alt tags. Alt tags are an important part of a website’s on-page SEO and help the search engines understand what an image is all about.

These tags should include the keywords you want to rank for, as well as some basic information about the image (e.g., “This is a picture of a cat.”). If you’re using WordPress, some plugins generate proper alt tags automatically (e.g., Yoast SEO).

Use captions under your images where appropriate this makes them more likely to attract clicks, and therefore visitors who will spend time on your site reading content or taking action through links within those captions!

You can add alt text to each image, but keep this brief; after all, it’s not meant to be read by humans 🙂

Link Internally To Other Pages On Your Website Using Keywords As Anchor Text

Use keywords in the link text: Pick a keyword or phrase that’s relevant to the page you’re linking to and use it in the anchor text of your links.

Use keywords in the link URL: The URL of your link should also contain relevant keywords, which will signal to search engines that this link is important and needs to be indexed.

Use keywords in the link title: Your links can also appear higher up in search results if they have descriptive titles, so use headlines that are keyword-rich when possible.

If a title isn’t available (e.g., if there’s no content on that page yet), then make sure you add one later! It’ll help with SEO big time!

Use keywords in the link description: The description field under each listing allows us writers an opportunity to expand upon what we’ve written about our blog posts;

This is especially useful for any external resources or tools mentioned within the content because people might want more details about them than there was room for within our body copy alone.”

Link Out To Relevant Websites, Linking Back Is Not Necessary Though

If you want to make sure that you are doing SEO right, then here are some tips for finding relevant websites to link out:

Look at the keywords in your post. What words do you use a lot? Can you find other websites that use those same words in their content? Use Google’s keyword search bar and type in one of the keywords from your post (your keyword should be surrounded by quotation marks).

You can also just google “[your post title] + [keyword]”, which will bring up all pages on the internet that contain your post title and keyword, and then go through their links until you find some good ones.

When deciding whether or not it would be appropriate for you to link back to a website when writing about something new, consider these questions:

Is this something I want people who read my blog post about [topic] (or who may see my tweet/post) to know about? If so, then maybe give them some extra information!

Does this website offer valuable resources related directly or indirectly connected with [topic] (or do they provide an excellent example)? If so, then why not let someone else know how much value they could gain by checking out this resource!

Image Credit At Http://www.rd.com/

When it comes to links, there are two types of links: internal and external. Internal links are links that link your website’s pages together, while external links are hyperlinks that point to a third-party site or resource.

You’ll want to use both types of hyperlinks throughout your article to keep readers on your page for as long as possible.

The first step is to figure out what kind of content you’ll use for each section. This will help determine how many images and videos you need for each section, along with any other supporting materials (such as infographics or charts).

Once you have this information, search for these pieces on Google Images or YouTube respectively before deciding if they’re relevant enough for inclusion in your piece.

Source: http://www.rd.com/advice/work-life/work-life-balance

Use Slugs (Words In The URL)

A slug is a word in the URL. If you’ve ever seen an article title in a link, like “How To Do SEO For Your Blog The Right Way,” then you know what I mean by slug. Slugs are also used in social media, email marketing and even building links back to your site!

Slugs are important for SEO because they help Google understand what content is being served on your site.

Having great slugs will also help with social media sharing (people will be more likely to share if it’s easy for them), which can lead back to your website again boosting its ranking.

SEO doesn’t have to be complex, especially when you’re just getting started. Our article on SEO Made Simple: 10 Tips for Beginners breaks down the basics and offers practical advice to help you navigate the world of search engine optimization.

Use Social Sharing Buttons So Readers Can Easily Share Your Posts

Once you’ve written a killer blog article, make it easy for readers to share your content. Social sharing buttons are the easiest way to do this and they come standard with every WordPress theme. You can also use plugins like AddThis or Jetpack for a more customized experience.

Here are some tips for choosing and placing social sharing buttons on your blog:

Use relevant buttons that will appeal to your audience, like [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com) if most of your followers are on Facebook, or [Twitter](https://twitter.com) if most of them follow you there.

Include several options so that every reader can choose their favorite method of sharing (like emailing an article directly to someone).

Adding a few different links might increase traffic from those sites because each user is more likely to share multiple times using different platforms rather than just one platform all the time!

In general, though, it’s best not too many options since this could confuse or overwhelm visitors who may not understand how exactly each one works or why they’re there in the first place.”

Conclusion

Following these tips will help give you a strong foundation for SEO on your blog and keep your content healthy and visible for years to come.

Remember that SEO is more than just keywords and links, though, so be sure you’re still writing great content that’s useful to readers. With these practices in place, you’ll be ready to start growing your blog and building an audience!

FAQs

What are the key components of blog SEO?

Blog SEO involves optimizing various elements, including high-quality content, relevant keywords, proper meta tags, internal and external links, and mobile responsiveness.

How does blog SEO differ from website SEO?

While both involve optimizing for search engines, blog SEO often focuses on regular content updates, engagement, and specific topics, whereas website SEO encompasses a broader site structure and architecture.

How can I find the right keywords for my blog posts?

Keyword research tools like SEMrush, Google Keyword Planner, and Ahrefs can help identify relevant keywords with search volume and competition data to guide your content strategy.

Is blog SEO a one-time effort?

No, blog SEO requires ongoing attention. Regularly updating content, optimizing for new keywords, and adapting to algorithm changes contribute to maintaining and improving search rankings.

What role do backlinks play in blog SEO?

Backlinks from authoritative and relevant sources signal to search engines that your content is valuable. Quality backlinks can improve your blog’s credibility and search engine rankings.

Costantine Edward

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.