Are you just starting your blog or website? Are you looking for search engine optimization (SEO) tips for beginning bloggers?
In 2018, I made it my goal to drive 10,000 monthly page views to Emma’s Edition. I hit that goal in 2019, I made it my goal to drive 40,000 monthly page views to my blog. I’m excited to share that I also hit that goal! In 2020, my goal is drive 100,000 monthly page views to my blog.
Currently, I’m driving 50,000 monthly page views. Most of my traffic either comes from Pinterest or from organic search results from Google. My blog DIDN’T start out with tons of page views. In 2014, I had no idea what I was doing. I didn’t decide to start taking my blog seriously until 2016. And in 2017, I made it my mission to learn as much as I can about SEO and how to drive traffic to my blog.
I recently got this specific question from @monique.mchugh on Instagram stories:
“Would love to know
how you do SEO, choose blog post titles, resharing old posts/schedule”
Her question inspired me to share how I approach SEO as a blogger and what tips I’ve learned over the last few years about SEO. While I’ve learned a few of these tips from my blogger friends, I also learned some of these tips during my graduate school program.
Here are 6 SEO tips for beginning bloggers:
SEO Tip #1: Install an SEO plugin to your blog
I decided to make the blog migration from Blogger to
Wordpress.org in 2017. I had no idea how to do this so I hired Pigdig to make
my the migration for me and also install a new layout to my blog.
My biggest motivation to switch platforms was for SEO
capability. Blogger didn’t have the Yoast
SEO plugin that WordPress.org offered. And I heard from bloggers over and
over again how important it was to have a Yoast plugin for your website.
What is Yoast?
Yoast is an SEO plugin that helps you rank in search engines. Yoast offers two versions: Yoast SEO Premium (this is $89 a year) and Yoast SEO free. I’ve only ever used the free version and it’s worked well for me.
When you download the Yoast plugin, your plugin will do a “SEO Analysis”. You’ll be able to set a “keyword” as well as see the number of times your key word appears in your blog. You’ll also be able to set the meta description of your blog. Personally, I spent about 30 min making sure my SEO analysis is green (good to go) before I publish a blog post.
SEO Tip #2: You have to see yourself/your blog/your website
as a resource
One of the biggest things I did for my SEO strategy was
shifting my mindset. I had to see myself as a resource so others would see my
blog as a resource.
If you want to drive traffic to your blog, your content has
to serve or help others. You have to be clear about:
- Who you are
- What your blog/website is about
- How you help or serve others
If you’re just getting started, I recommend picking a niche
you’re going to write and create content about. I also recommend writing a
mission statement for your blog and brand. If you aren’t sure how to pick a
niche, I recommend reading: 4
Ways to Find Your Niche Blogging.
By defining how you’re going to help or serve other people, you’ll define what topics you could write about and share. Your purpose will give your blog direction.
SEO Tip #3: Publish content frequently
When I tell people I publish two blog posts a week, some people think I’m crazy. But a big reason why produce two blog posts a week is for SEO purposes. I learned in my Master of Digital Media program that websites that publish content more frequently often rank higher than those who don’t.
Google values fresh, new content. The more you update
your blog or website, the more frequently Google will crawl and visit your
website.
Besides publishing frequently, I recommend also publishing
consistently. I’ve been publishing content at least once a week since 2017. I
know that consistency has helped my blog increase page views every year.
SEO Tip #4: Link to other trustworthy websites
If you’re writing and researching a source like Business Insider or the New York Times, I highly recommend linking to those websites. By linking to establish websites when relevant and related to your topic, Google sees you as a helpful resource.
By crediting appropriate resources, your website or blog could have its authority and perceived relevance increased on the Google Search engine.
SEO Tip #5: Create longer blog posts
Personally, my goal is to write one long form blog post around
1,000 words and short blog posts around 300-500 words each week. Sometimes I
end up writing two blog posts both around 1,000 words each week.
One reason why I choose to write longer blog posts is
because you can ensure your blog posts includes more keywords. Longer blog
posts also help visitors increase their time on your site before they go back
to the Google Search engine results page.
SEO Tip #6: Make sure your website is mobile-friendly and
responsive
While I was taking my UX classes last year, I learned that
designing a mobile-friendly and responsive website is critical for a successful
SEO strategy. Google started penalizing websites that weren’t mobile-friendly
back in 2015.
Having a mobile-friendly website is important for a positive user-friendly experience. A majority of users today rely on their phones to browse the internet, shop, book flights, and more.
If you aren’t sure if your website is mobile friendly, use your phone and search your website. If your page isn’t fitting into one screen/can’t be seen by an up or down scroll, your website isn’t mobile friendly.
If you’re looking to update your wordpress or blogger layout, I highly recommend using Pigdig (this is not sponsored FYI – I’ve personally used Pigdig in the past and really enjoyed how easy it was to work with them). Pigdig creates both off the shelf layouts/themes that you can purchase between $59-$69. You can also reach out to get a custom website designed through them.
There you have it friends! 6 SEO tips for beginning bloggers!
What other SEO tips do you have?
For more SEO tips, I also recommend checking out:
Moz: The Beginner’s Guide to SEO – Moz has a graphic of Hierarchy of SEO Needs that’s really helpful! They also go in depth about keywords, what makes a great user experience, and more.
For more blogging tips, you can also check out:
How do I stay organized with my blog, podcast, and life?
How much time do I spend on my blog and Instagram?
How to overcome the fear of asking to be paid as a blogger
Content Creatives Podcast: How to Balance a Full-Time Job with Creating Content for Your Passion
Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed the 6 SEO tips for beginning bloggers.
Love,
Emma
Photos: @madcrayy
These are great tips! I have been blogging for quite a few years, but I still struggle with SEO and getting my posts seen. I will be bookmarking this post to try to work on some of the these things the next couple of weeks. Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for the valuable tips Emma! I’m just starting to test my feet in blogging! Yur content inspires me a lot! Bookmarked this!
I really wish I had had these tips a year ago when I started blogging! I just started figuring out SEO a couple months ago and I wish I had done my research sooner. You are such an amazing resource!
Jill
https://jilliancecilia.com/
Such great tips ! I have always had a hard time with SEO but this helped to simplify it for me and I will definitely try tip number one !
http://www.shyyshianne.com |shyy
LOVED this post! I’ve been pretty consistent with my blog posting schedule until the past few weeks, due to traveling, but I’m going to use this week to catch up & get back to my posting schedule! You definitely motivated me!
-Madi xo | http://www.everydaywithmadirae.com
Hi Emma,
Thanks for sharing the SEO tips. I’m a new blogger and really excited to learn SEO to bring more views to ‘A Desi Girl in US’
Thank you so much for these tips. I’ve been blogging since last year June & SEO has been my biggest struggle. Definitely bookmarking this.
Katt xo |
Awesome tips, and happy to know I’m mostly already doing all of this! Which means growth is inevitable. Thanks for always being transparent about your journey.
xx,
Leslie / @hautemommie / http://www.thehautemommie.com
SEO can be tricky and I, myself, am learning about it. I love that WordPress has the Yoast SEO plugin. It’s really a helpful tool to have and their articles are great aids too.
Maureen | http://www.littlemisscasual.com
Hi!
Bloggers fail to realize how important a sitemap is, this article should be of great help to beginners.
SEO can be tricky and I, myself, am learning about it. I love that WordPress has the Yoast SEO plugin. It’s really a helpful tool to have and their articles are great aids too.
This post is super useful! I didn’t realize SEO was so important and impacts my blog this much. Thank you so much!
Hello there! I love reading your blog. Thank you for giving such a wonderful blog. Being a blogger, it is very helpful for me to grow my blog. Thanks a lot my dear and Keep blogging.
Hi Emma,
Thanks for sharing these tips! This is the first post of yours I’ve read (recommended by a friend) and I found it super helpful! I also migrated from Squarespace to WordPress using pipdig and was so happy with the service! And Yoast has been a great tool as well but I think my site is still too small and hasn’t gained much traction. I’m interested in learning more about using Pinterest to drive traffic so I’m going to search your site for some more tips related to Pinterest or instagram! I just had my first baby 3 months ago so I haven’t been posting as much as I should. I’m trying my best though!
Ooops forgot to mention, my site is motheroffawn.com! 💕
Hi Emma 🙂 I’m starting up blogging again this week and felt overwhelmed. Very grateful to stumble upon your post and helps make this comeback feel more easeful. Thank you for sharing these helpful tips.
Gratefully,
Phuong Thao MacLeod
http://www.theuncagedpath.com
I just came across your blog post and must say that it’s a great piece of information that you have shared. I’m happy to convey that I have discovered exactly what I needed.
Emma, love your blogging tips and always find them so helpful! Came back to this one this morning as it’s been a great resource for me!
Sending my best!
xo, Madison
Style + Lifestyle | Musings by Madison
http://www.musingsbymadison.com
Thanks for the amazing piece. Top-notch content like this is rare to find online, l’m motivated how you invest your time in crafting your blog posts
Shareable it is! what a nice thought!
So, if you are new to blogging, fear not! This article is specially created for you. The best way to conquer anything at all involves strategy. When it comes to blogging, the place that we need to focus all of our strategies on is ‘keywords’. Keywords are the ‘key’ to take your blog to the next level.
Amazing post! I read a similar topic on how to make content seo friendly at the content development pros blog and it is highly informative.
Thank you for this, I just started blogging and I have no idea how to go about my SEO
Thank you for all of the information. It seems like there is so much to learn! I will surely use this as my guide as I am planning to write my first content about uae delivery services. Thank you for sharing these tips.
Hi Emma,
You are so great for giving us such information. Thank you and Stay Safe.
probably one of the most concise blogs I was looking for to get accurate and relevant knowledge.
Hey, I loved reading this post! I used to post blogs once a week. I will try to publish more content on my website to acquire higher traffic and link to more trustworthy websites. Keep up sharing such useful blogs.
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