Search engine optimisation is key for any business wanting to boost their presence online, especially onto page one. A key way of improving your visibility online is through blogs. Filling in knowledge gaps online and providing meaningful content is a great way to start ranking better. Looking to understand how to optimise your blogs to make the biggest difference? Look no further.
Keyword Research: The Foundation of SEO
The first stage of writing any blog is choosing your focus. Picking the right keywords is key to building the rest of your blog. Make sure you focus on one main keyword, ideally in an area you want to boost. You can also include some additional long-tail keywords for extra impact.
You can find these keywords through a variety of means, from Google Keyword Tool to Spyfu or Semrush. Try to focus on only one at a time for maximum results. Make sure there is significant search volume behind the keyword, ideally over 100 a month. Make sure that your blog is interesting and fits in with your keyword. Not sure where to start? Take a look at a few blog ideas that might help.
Having a combination of long tail keywords and short tail keywords is ideal. Long tail versions are good for a secondary keyword, but you need to make sure these organically fit into the text and aren’t disjointed.
On-Page SEO: Optimising Your Blog Content
SEO-friendly titles and meta descriptions are an area to focus on to ensure SEO best practices. Make sure to keep these within the set character limits and include the keyword you want to focus on.
Ensure heading structures are implemented correctly, with your title in Title Case and each header underneath using the relevant H1, H2, etc. Adding internal links to the rest of your website is also key. This improves navigation on your site and adds trust to your blog.
A featured image can be added to your blog to provide further interest. Adding alt text to these can also help Google better understand your blog content. Make sure the images are compressed to a smaller size so that your page speed isn’t affected by large file sizes.
Make sure your blog is interesting! No one wants to spend hours reading something dull. Try to pick a topic that interests your audience, and don’t write endlessly. Keep it short, sweet, and to the point.
Technical SEO: Making Your Blog Search-Friendly
Making a blog appealing to a search engine has a few factors including website speed and mobile optimisation. A slow loading blog is both visually unappealing to your audience and a red flag to search engines. We now live in a mobile first world, making sure your website is optimised to be seen via mobile devices is a great step to creating an ideal blog.
Tracking and Improving Your SEO Performance
Seeing how your blog is performing can provide valuable data, which can be considered when deciding which blog to focus on next. Google Analytics can be used to track how users reach your blog, whether they immediately bounce, or if they stay – and for how long.
Monitoring keyword rankings for the terms you have used is integral to blog writing. This allows you to measure the impact of your blog on rankings and the amount of organic traffic visiting your site.
Having this data to hand enables data-driven improvements over time. You can test how many keywords to use and determine which blog types interest your audience the most. Continual improvements can be made to boost website traffic and engagement over time.
Conclusion
Making your blog tailored to an SEO approach without becoming boring is easier than you might think. Applying some simple tweaks can have a big impact on your rankings and website traffic. Not sure where to start? Take a look at how we can help.
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