The post 8 Essential SEO Tips for Bloggers first appeared on ProBlogger.
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What are the first steps to optimizing my blog for search? - Question submitted by @moneddays on Twitter with the hashtag #pbquestions.
Much has been written on the topic of SEO for bloggers, but let me give you some basic basic steps.
1. Content is king.
The most important factor in blogging search engine optimization is the quality of the posts you write. I doubt others would argue, but given the success of my blog's search engine, I'd say it was the number one factor.
Quality content often helps people get readers to share what you've written. Of course, they do this by redirecting a link to your post, and they often do so in a way that helps put you in the search (like their blog).
2. Tell people what they want in advance
Every time you write a post, you should automatically think of the words people might type into search engines to find this type of information. Once you know the keywords you are using, you will be in a much better position to rank for this search.
3. Heading titles
When it comes to the name, there are several points to consider. Google pays special attention to headlines, so make sure you understand them correctly.
- First, make sure you put your post title in the “Title Tags” at the end of your blog in the blog creation form. This is really important.
- If you are only looking from an SEO perspective, don't include your blog name in the title tags of individual posts. This weakens your keywords. Of course, if you are more interested in branding, it can be beneficial to include your blog title in your title tags.
- Next, include the keywords you mentioned in #2 in your post title
- Also remember that the words you use at the beginning of the title carry more weight than the words you use in the title.
4. Keywords in other parts of your post
Also use the keywords mentioned in #2 in your post. If you want to google a word or phrase, you must use that word or phrase. Translate your post (use h tags where possible), use them in the content itself, use keywords in image alt tags, and more. Don't go off topic, but use words wherever you can. Of course in the post.
5. Link to private posts
Don't go too far, but if links from other sites are a great way to improve your blog's rankings, then these are links to your blog. Create a link to your posts to share places where readers can find more information about your topic (if needed), but consider linking to your main blog posts from other places on the blog (sidebar, front page, etc).
6. Links outside your blog
Backlinks from other sites to your site are key to SEO, but they can be deceiving. Start linking to your blog from other sites you own or are active on. Some (like Twitter) don't count as much because they don't have followers, but they all get people to your site and some SEO help.
Don't worry about getting links. Instead, focus on writing great content and the links will usually come through over time. However, if you've written a great post that you think will benefit another blog, don't be afraid to tell that blogger or site owner, you can just call.
Also pay attention to the type of posts you write to help other sites link to you. By doing this, you can learn a lot about creating relevant content and developing a style that works over and over again.
7. Plugins
I don't try to do much on my blog to change things like meta tags, but if you're on WordPress, there are some great plugins that can do that and more. preference. . Check out 9 SEO Plugins for Every WordPress Blog for tips on this topic.
8. Readers generate readers
This is not an SEO method, but it does play a role. The more readers you have, the more likely other readers will find your blog. Over time, a kind of "snowball" occurs on the site. As you gain more readers, the momentum increases when those readers recommend your site to others on the network. They will connect with you, bookmark your tweet, friends through your email, through your blog, recommend your site in referral systems….
Not all of them are important to SEO, but some are, and aggregating them over time can help increase organic traffic and search. I guess what I'm saying is: Connect with your readers in any way you can. Don't just focus on "Search Engine Optimization". Everything is important.
My research with SEO
Before I share my thoughts...I'm not much of an expert and I can say this could be completely wrong....but this is a warning I received a while ago.
I've been blogging for 7 years now, and from what I've seen, it seems that the changes most bloggers make to their blogs have less and less of an impact on blogs' rankings. Don't get me wrong. I totally agree with the advice above and follow it at least with some measure of common sense, but from where I'm sitting it looks like Google is trying to get the best information out for its users. They don't always do it right, but I think they do a pretty good job.
As a blogger, your job should be to provide the best information possible.
I'm surprised Google is trying to figure out if your information is good. Not only what keywords do you have and how many links you have, but now they have Feedburner (to see how many people follow your blog and what links people are clicking on), they have Google Reader (again, it offers the best opportunities). data), Gmail, Google Analytics, YouTube, etc.
Now they can use all the data to rank their sites or not, but you can definitely learn a lot about your blog and the posts you write. Over the past six months, there has been more talk about how it will be easier for search engines to generate information about content shared on social networks and bookmarking sites.
My point is that many traditional SEO techniques are less important (even if they aren't) and that other factors become more important over time. I'm sure some will come up with ways to use it (SEO 2.0?), but the way to rank highly in Google is to keep creating good content over and over and make sure it shows up in your network.
Help the process by giving readers the opportunity to share your content (and share it on social media) and subscribe.
This article was first published on July 2, 2009 and updated on September 1, 2022.
The post 8 Essential SEO Tips for Bloggers first appeared on ProBlogger.