SEO for Blogs: The Ultimate Organic Search Optimization Guide to Rank High in Google
SEO for Blogs: The Ultimate Organic Search Optimization Guide to Rank High in Google
By following this SEO for Blogs guide, you'll learn all the best organic search optimization practices for your content to rank high in Google searches!
If you’re a solopreneur or small business owner, let me tell you, you’re very close to being a superhero! We know that having to manage every part of your small business is challenging, and requires an insane amount of commitment, resourcefulness, and energy management.
So when it comes to blogging, creating content and understanding SEO, you’re probably wondering, “how the heck would I have time for that!?” And we totally get it! But we’re here to help make marketing easier for business owners like you. This organic search optimization guide is going to break down the steps you need to take to create SEO rich blogs that rank high in Google searches, getting you in front of your dream clients.
Creating content is key for you to grow an online presence, drive traffic, get in-front of your ideal clients, build trust and create brand recognition. Optimizing your SEO for ranking in Google is the marketing strategy that will bring you leads with the least effort, since this works for you 24/7/365, without you needing to be clocked in!
Check our post Debunking 7 Local Seo Myths for Small Businesses to know more about how Local SEO can help you increase your exposure and grow your small business.
This is the problem we see with most entrepreneurs: you might be creating an exciting and engaging post, but you’re not showing up in search results. If that sounds like your problem, keep reading!
Here at Mudra Marketing, we want you to maximize your marketing efforts by creating an easy and do-able SEO content strategy that will guarantee you to write high- converting blog posts.
We’re here to help break down the SEO for blogs, and exactly the steps you need to take to optimize your blog content for ranking on Google!
The Optimization Guide
In this SEO optimization guide, we'll walk you through the basics of crafting an SEO-friendly blog post that adds value to your audience, while helping your website rank higher in searches, and get seen by your dream customers.
This guide breaks down the SEO for blogs, and exactly the steps you need to take to optimize your blog content for ranking on Google!
Ranking blog content takes a bit of know-how, and the secret ingredient is writing SEO-friendly blog posts. Our mission, as experts who have spent over a decade in the marketing trenches, is to make SEO simple, easy and digestible for solopreneurs that have no marketing know - how.
Whether you're a one-person show or steering a small ship through the startup waters, this guide is tailor-made to help you raise your small business above the competition. So let’s dive in, shall we?
Keyword Research
There’s no SEO without keyword research, which is the backbone of any search engine optimization (SEO) strategy.
SEO for Blogs: The Ultimate Organic Search Optimization Guide to Rank High in Google
Keywords are simply the words and phrases your potential customers use to search and find information online. They are the right breadcrumbs that lead to the treasured answer that solve their problem.
Types of keywords
Now let’s get some jargon in, shall we? There are two different types of keywords:
Short-Tail Keywords: These are brief and usually consist of just a word or a few words. They're like the headlines of the keyword world, offering a broad view of the topic. For example, "SEO" or "blogging."
Long-Tail Keywords: Long-tail keywords, on the other hand, are more specific and often take the form of phrases or questions. They dive deeper into a topic, providing context and catering to niche interests. For instance, "how to do SEO optimization" is a long-tail keyword. This is often a question that someone is looking for the answer to.
There are a lot of SEO tools out there that will help you identify relevant keywords (MOZ, Semrush, Ubersuggestt or our favorite, Google keyword planner.
The vast majority are pricey and as a small business, it’s not in the cards to spend such an amount of money on keyword research. If you’ve read our past blog, Debunking 7 Local Seo Myths for Small Businesses, you’ll know we find it totally unnecessary.
We prefer Google Keyword Planner simply because it’s free and straightforward, check this article on how to create a Google Ads account and how to use Google Keyword Planner. Doing keyword research helps you with two things:
It gives you ideas on topics to cover for new articles to create that will rank
It helps you craft your article into content people are searching for
It helps you find additional niches to target
The secret to effective, but easy keyword research
And now, let us unfold our secret to finding keywords that will help you rank your blog high on Google, and that nobody talks about.
The key to keyword research is finding keywords that have a good search volume, but low competition. We call them unicorns. There are keywords with 500-5,000 searches, and under 15 competitors on Google Keyword Planner.
Easy how-to guide on keyword research
I’d also recommend you to find niche keywords and phrases. The search volumes may be lower, but this is most likely finding your ideal client.
Just think, even if the search is 100-500, the chances of you being first page are high! Times that by 12 months, and you could see 1,200 - 6,000 impressions (views), without needing to fight for a top spot. This is a huge opportunity for you to find new customers and convert them.
You can also rank for multiple combinations of phrases and keywords, but you’ll want to stick with the exact writing of the unicorns. Google will do its own thing with matching you to other relevant phrases.
If I’m targeting a question, I stick with just the question. If I am covering a topic, I will use a combination of 2-3 short-tail phrases that are all “unicorns” to better my chances of ranking. With that said, you may have to run a few keyword searches to find keywords.
For example, I ran two searches for this article. One for the audience of “solopreneurs” and one for the SEO specific keywords.
Here’s an example of other easy keyword research tool and tip (that is FREE!) on the keyword: “SEO Guide for Solopreneurs to Ranking Blog Content” just using Google Search Engine.
Search for similar articles and see what suggestions Google offers.
2. See what images, videos and other content shows up, and how you can add more value.
Compare content that shows up on Google search.
3. Scroll to the middle and bottom of the page to see what other search suggestions Google offers
Middle page of Google search page suggestions.
Bottom of Google search page suggestions
If SEO still feels overwhelming and you need a more visual, guided approach, we’ve got the perfect solution. Our SEO Guide for Beginners & Small Businesses is a fluff-free, step-by-step strategy that’s easy to follow and proven to work. Plus, you’ll get access to worksheets and an organized framework that lets you adjust your SEO strategy as your business grows and evolves.
It’s designed to help you build a strong online presence—without the endless YouTube tutorials or blog posts. And best of all, it’s super affordable!
This guide is for you if:
You own a small business, service-based business or local retail business
Are struggling to understand the complexities of SEO
Looking to grow your online traffic without daily effort
Don’t have a huge budget to dedicate to marketing
Are looking for efforts that impact your business years down the road
Want to drive traffic and make sales, no matter what time of day or hour
What are you waiting for? Let’s get your site soaring past your competition on Google!
2. Crafting Top-Notch Content
Now that you've pinpointed your go-to keywords, it's time to whip up some exceptional content that speaks directly to your target audience's desires and questions.
This is more than just traffic bait; it's your pathway to being the go-to expert in your niche. Google loves content that's packed with value and knowledge.
Here are some simple steps to ensure your content stands out:
Be an Original: Steer clear of copycat content from other sources. Offer a fresh perspective or unique insights.
Speak Your Audience's Language: Get to know your target audience and tailor your content to their tastes and requirements.
Problem Solver Extraordinaire: Tackle common challenges or questions within your field. Dish out solutions and pearls of wisdom. Keep track of the frequent questions your customers have and address them!
Subheading Savvy: Break your content into easy-to-digest sections with clear subheadings. This makes it a breeze for readers to skim through and find the gems they're after.
Visual Storytelling: Spice things up with images, snazzy infographics, and captivating videos. They'll jazz up your content and keep readers glued. You can snag royalty-free images from Canva Pro, Unsplash or Pexels!
Polish and Shine: Don your editor's hat and proofread like a pro. There are tools that can help you with that like Grammarly, ProWritingAid or even Ai tools like ChatGPT. Tackle grammar gremlins, vanquish spelling slip-ups, and ensure your content flows like a quiet river.
Small Business Hack for AI writing: Ok, we LOVE ChatGPT, however, you don’t want to sound like a robot. The golden nugget here is to go through, edit, add and revise to make it sound like you, and offer the most value you can. It will significantly cut down your time to create articles! And I know as a small business owner, time is of the essence!
3. Optimize your blog for SEO
While crafting your blog post, here are some important on-page SEO strategies to keep in mind:
Title: Ensure your main keyword appears in the title. It should be compelling and indicative of what the content offers.
URL Structure: Create a clean, descriptive URL that includes your target keyword(s).
Heading Tags: Use H1, H2, and H3 tags to structure your content. The H1 tag should contain your main keyword. Each heading should also include relevant keywords, phrases and questions. It is great to use questions that show up in relevant searches within these headers!
H1 should be your title
H2 should be a main concept
H3 is points within a main concept.
How to optimize your blog post for SEO, example:
H1 “HEADER/TITLE” - A functional medicine approach to the hidden challenges of Hormonal, Thyroid, and Gut Health on women.
H2 - Functional medicine revolutionizing women’s health
H3 - The reasons / bullets on why they are revolutionizing women’s health
First paragraph should include the main keywords or phrases you want to rank for.
Add Google keywords and phrases into the H2 headers.
Optimizing Blog images for SEO is important because these can also help you rank in the Google image search. Make sure you have a keyword rich ALT tags describing the photo.
File Names: Name your image files with the chosen descriptive keywords, separated by hyphens.
Insert image Alt text for SEO: Add alt text to each image, describing its content. Alt text is important for accessibility and can be used as an SEO element.
Compress and optimize images: Compress your images to reduce load times and improve the user experience. We recommend being under 150kps and saving as a PNG.
Meta Description: Write a concise and engaging meta description that includes the keyword and phrases. This is the snippet that appears in search results and can influence click-through rates.
Internal and External Links: Include links to relevant pages on your website and credible external sources. This can boost your blog's credibility.
Mobile-Friendly Design: Ensure your blog post and website are responsive and user-friendly on mobile devices. Always check your blog on mobile after publishing!
Site Speed: Faster-loading pages tend to rank higher. Optimize your images and use a reliable hosting service.
Ask for Comments
If you allow comments on your blog, this is a great way to create a community, get more ideas for content, and grow your authority. Google can gather more context about your article, as well as pull keywords and phrases from comments. I have seen my clients articles rank simply because the exact phrase was found in comments!
This is also an amazing way to gain insights and knowledge on what your prospects and customers are interested in. Write additional blogs on what the comments are asking! Lastly, always reply to your comments!
Feeling overwhelmed by SEO for your blog posts? We’re here to help! Our SEO Guide for Beginners & Small Businesses offers a straightforward, step-by-step approach to optimize your content without the endless tutorials. With worksheets and an organized framework included, you can easily adjust your strategy as your blog grows. Best of all, it’s super affordable!
This guide is for you if:
You own a small business, service-based business or local retail business
Are struggling to understand the complexities of SEO
Looking to grow your online traffic without daily effort
Don’t have a huge budget to dedicate to marketing
Are looking for efforts that impact your business years down the road
Want to drive traffic and make sales, no matter what time of day or hour
What are you waiting for? Let’s get your site soaring past your competition on Google!
4. Promote and Share: Boosting Your Blog's Reach
Once your SEO optimized blog post has reached the digital world, it’s showtime! To maximize your blog post impact, you have to share it from the virtual rooftops! Share the love on your social media channels, in your email newsletters, and within communities or forums that match your vibe. And hey, don’t be shy! - nudge your readers to share the post as well. The more clicks and links, the higher your post will appear in the search engine ranking.
If you have any connections with a blog or website, you can ask them to post the link and a summary on their page! This gives you a valuable backlink (showing Google your authority) and can drive more traffic to your post.
Pro Tip: Don’t forget to sprinkle and add Call to Actions (CTAs) on your blog and at the bottom of every page! You can also add these within the article to drive people to stay on your page and explore more of your website.
I hope this SEO optimization guide helped you get a better understanding of SEO for blogs! If you follow these basic steps, I can assure you that you will start being seen on the search engines! As you dive into the world of keyword exploration and unleash your creativity on more articles, trust us, this process will become smooth as butter.
We recommend blocking out some time each week to create content. Consistency is key! I get it, the solopreneur hustle is real, but this right here could be the game-changer for your business, and if you’re still unsure on how to do this, you can contact us so we can give you the exact blueprint for creating content consistently.
SEO for Blogs: The Ultimate Organic Search Optimization Guide to Rank High in Google
By following this SEO for Blogs guide, you'll learn all the best organic search optimization practices for your content to rank high in Google searches!
Remember that SEO is a leaving and breathing ongoing process, so regularly monitor your blog's performance and make necessary adjustments to keep improving your online presence.
Have questions or comments? Let us know below or contact us for SEO help on your small business.
