Learn SEO like a PRO
Whether you’ve been blogging for 3 weeks or 3+ years, you’re never too late (or early) to learn how to SEO like a pro! There are two types of website traffic: paid (PPC) and organic (“free”). I am going to tell you a little secret. Organic traffic is not free. Gaining steady, organic traffic by implementing SEO best practices takes time and effort on your part (both of which are valuable!).
But here is the catch. Learning how to find your own keywords can be daunting at first. If you struggle to find keywords that other bigger bloggers don’t already cover, you’re not alone. I have an easy 5-step method that can help you find long-tail keywords that have never been properly covered in an online publication. That means you can easily sweep up organic traffic from these keywords, as long as you write great content that covers the subject well. If you want to know how it’s possible to find keywords that even brand new blogs can rank for, give us a call
What is SEO (Search Engine Optimization)?
To SEO like a professional, you need to understand what search engine optimization is. SEO is the method used to optimize your content so that search engines can categorize and show your blog posts to those who are searching for your topic online.
All too often bloggers forget to follow even the most basic SEO steps. This is a huge problem! Unless you’re relying entirely on social media sharing, then it’s important to set up your blog’s content the right way from the start. SEO, in a nutshell, is all about making your site visitor’s experience better. When your visitors are reading more content (staying on your pages longer) and visiting more pages (lowering your bounce rate), they are telling Google that your site is worth visiting! So always keep user experience in mind when SEO optimizing your blog posts and pages.
Organic Traffic Organic traffic is composed of the visitors that click over to your website using a free method. You can get organic traffic from search engines like Google, Bing, Pinterest, and even social media sites like Facebook and Twitter. Organic in this context simply means “unpaid.”SEO and organic traffic go hand-in-hand. If you follow the easy SEO steps that I am about to explain, then you will be well on your way to building your blog’s organic traffic.
Our SEO checklist breaks down these broad steps:
Choose and maintain blog categories (structure your website)
Choose a topic that falls into one of your categories
Choose a blog title that is clickworthy, clear, concise and answers a question
Draft your content
Publish your content
After publishing
My checklist covers the most important steps to take when creating new blog posts, web pages, or fixing old pages.
What Are Long Tail Keywords?
Long-tail keywords are longer, detailed phrases that drive more specific organic traffic. The visitor that finds your site by typing a long tail keyword is much more likely to signup for your newsletter (sales funnel), click on your affiliate links, or buy your products/services because it is more specific to the reader’s original question.
Long Tail Keyword Examples
Back to our Disney example. If someone searches the ambiguous term “Disney” on Google, we have no idea what they really expect to find. Do they want more information about Disneyland? How to plan for a trip? Directions to Disneyland? Or are they searching for Disney characters? Paraphernalia? Movies? Or the original Walt Disney himself?
Trying to rank for a generic keyword is like trying to guess what your significant other is thinking as he/she stares off into the abyss. In other words, it’s nearly impossible.
Phrases like, “best Disney quotes about friendship” or “best Disney quotes about family” are examples of long-tail keywords. The more specific your long-tail keywords, the more likely your organic traffic will be exactly the right audience that will convert.