Everything Bloggers Need to Know About SEO from a Pro – All of the best tips and tricks to master SEO as a new blogger. All of your SEO questions answered so that you can know everything about SEO for bloggers and become an SEO expert fast!
SEO… everyone is talking about it. How If you want to make it in blogging, you need to have a killer SEO strategy. We’ve all heard it… but what does it actually mean to have good SEO?
SEO – aka: search engine optimization – is, in short, how your posts and site rank on Google. That means not relying on social media or paid traffic to get eyes on your content.
(Side note: If you still haven’t started a blog but you want to, you need to actually START. You can do that for under $100 if you follow these steps HERE for my ultra special money-saving hack.)
Long story short, you WANT traffic from Google. Why? Because if Pinterest traffic goes to way of Facebook traffic, then what are you going to do? You’d have 2 options really: 1) give up because your traffic is dead and gone… or 2) find new ways to get traffic.
I want to introduce you to my friend, Debbie, aka – the SEO guru. If you have a question about SEO, Debbie has your answer. She’s incredibly knowledgeable and was kind enough to share her best tips and tricks with us here!
She’d the real deal, y’all. Without “blogging about blogging,” Debbie has turned what most people would consider a really tough niche to monetize into more than a full-time income.
Want more SEO knowledge without spending a TON of money? You can get Debbie’s books here for the best deals HERE:
Easy On-Page SEO and Easy Backlinks for SEO are out for sale! And if you can get them both for a special deal if you add one of the to your cart!
Everything Bloggers Need to Know About SEO from a Pro
Introduce yourself a little – your blog, why you’re an SEO expert…
My name is Debbie Gartner, and I’m known as “The Flooring Girl” – both online and offline. I’ve been blogging since 2010 originally for my local flooring business. My goal was to find local customers for my shop at home flooring business.
The best way to do this was to learn SEO. I’m self-taught and read virtually almost every article on the subject I could find. (Back then there weren’t courses and Pinterest wasn’t even public and Facebook groups barely existed). SEO traffic was highly targeted, so that’s where I focused.
By learning SEO, I was able to get 5-6 flooring appointments per week, and these customers were incremental to my other marketing activities…and they were much better customers who were ready to buy. Later (end of 2016), I started to monetize my blog (a new learning curve) and I’ve used SEO to drive well over 500,000 pageviews per month and propel my blog income to $20,000/month (in less than 2.5 years).
In addition to working on my own blog, I have done ghostwriting and SEO for clients for 2 years as well as coached 70+ bloggers how to do SEO. (I used to do phone consultations, but I barely have time for that any more).
Can you give a SUPER intro level description of SEO?
SEO stands for Search Engine Optimization. Basically, it’s the idea of being “found” when someone searches for something on Google or the other search engines. You want to be found…on Page 1…and ideally in the top 3 slots. (SEO traffic is often called organic traffic).
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Why is SEO so important to bloggers?
First, SEO traffic is much higher quality traffic compared to Pinterest or other Social Media. Consumers that find you this way are actively searching for something, and are therefore more like to convert (buy, join your email list, read other pages, become return visitors). On social media, customers just stumble on things and read them because it may be interesting, but on the search engines, customers are on a quest – they want to know something, buy something, solve a problem, etc.
Based on my own traffic and analysis, I’ve estimated that every pageview from SEO is worth 3 times as much as every pageview I get from Pinterest. (and I do very well on Pinterest, too). SEO is the easiest way to earn money on Amazon Associates (I am on track to make over $7,000 from Amazon alone this month…and almost all of it from organic traffic) as well as most affiliate programs.
Second, SEO traffic is much more consistent. While it takes a while to build SEO traffic, one you have it, it can last for years and years. And, it builds on itself as you write more article and improve your existing posts. I have many articles I wrote in 2011-2013 that continue to drive thousands of pageviews every month and every year.
And, I keep writing more articles every week (or month) to create more layers of traffic. Unlike Pinterest which fluctuates all the time, I find that SEO traffic is consistent throughout most of the year. For me, I do have a dip during the holidays (11/15-12/25 every year…and on 12/26 it seems to recover..and every year has been higher in January (vs October).
Third, SEO traffic, once you have it is VERY passive. It just keep feeding traffic to you blog very little (if any) additional work.
Fourth, I think it’s super important to diversify your traffic (as well as income streams). It’s just like the stock market. To grow and reduce risk, you diversify. And, this way, you don’t worry as much about algo changes in social media or if one of them goes down for the day (or worse…shuts down your account). I look at Pinterest traffic as the icing on the cake…not the cake itself. So when it increases I’m thrilled; but if it tanks, it doesn’t phase me so much because my income is not dependent on it.
Related post: 15+ Incredible FREE Blogging Resources
Can Pinterest help with SEO?
Yes! I have found that these to traffic sources can be synergistic. I have found that when I have viral pin..or even just a good pin..that it can cut the time it takes me to get to Page 1 on the search engines by 2 to 4 months. So by all means, do both.
When should bloggers start to focus on SEO?
I would recommend that you start SEO by month 3, assuming that you have an interest in monetizing your blog. Use the first 3 months to familiarize yourself with the basics of blogging and learning about your audience (and refining the specific topics you enjoy blogging about). Then start SEO. Month 3 is the perfect time.
SEO can take around 6 months before you start to see results, so this time frame is perfect. The sooner you start, the sooner you see results and the less rework you’ll have (and yes, you will have rework).
I can’t even tell you how many people have said to me that they wish they started SEO 3 months sooner…or 6 months..or a year or two years earlier…or even 8 years earlier.
Related post: How Many Pageviews Do You Need to Make a Full-Time Income Blogging
How hard is SEO as a new blogger?
I think many bloggers (and even established bloggers) think that SEO is much harder than it really is. It’s really not that hard…as long as someone explains it (in simple English) and shows you how to do it.
After that, it’s fairly straight forward and becomes rinse and repeat once you get it.
For my Easy On-Page SEO ebook, I include a checklist for all the steps you should take on your blog post. And, then, I share another checklist on the 9 steps to do AFTER you launch your blog post to get it indexed faster.
What is the very first step for bloggers who want to focus on SEO?
For starters, you want to focus on what your target audience needs! What are their problems? Their challenges? Their questions? What are they searching for? Write articles that focus on these. Find solutions for them and write blog posts that address this.
And, if you’re new, focus on long-tail keywords. Said another way, focus on very specific questions or problems (rather than broader ones that have more competition). You will have a much better chance of ranking.
Are there any free ways to start researching keywords and SEO?
Yes. First, a great place to start is Keywords Everywhere and AnswerThePublic.com. And, the best one of all is Google Search Console (which has the most accurate data and is most targeted to your audience). Of course, if you’re not getting much search traffic yet, then this tool won’t be that useful until later.
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How do you know what posts to focus on for SEO?
In a general sense, it’s what your audience needs to know. So, the key here is REALLY know your target. This is marketing 101. Know your user. Get to know them. Know their questions.
I originally got my blog post ideas based on my real life customers. Whatever questions they asked me during an appointment, that was a blog post. Whatever they asked me in email, that was a blog post. And, later, whatever questions or comments they left on my blog, those became future topics. (Because I get a lot of traffic, I get a lot of questions).
You have gold all around you. You just have to find it. And, sometimes, these specific questions are way better than what you’ll find on keyword finders… you know the places where everyone can find the exact same info as you can. Go for the long tail!
How can a blogger check to see which posts are doing well for SEO?
The main ways that I do this are 1) through google search console (seriously, I love google search console) and 2) do an incognito search. On my browser, you can do that in the upper right hand corner where those 3 lines are.
What are some qualities of a really great post for SEO? (length of post, alt text, headers, keywords located where… etc.)
Generally, longer form content (i.e. 2,000-3,000) words do better. I explain why that is in the Easy On-Page ebook. But, you don’t just want to focus on # of words. Make the post appropriate for the topic. I have plenty of blog posts in the 1,000-2,000 range in the top 3 spots. I also have a few that are 3,000-6,000 words. It depend on the topic. And, formatting is key..it can’t feel long (I go over this in the book, too).
Titles and H2 headers are super important as are other headers, pictures and alt tags are also critical. There are other components and I go over these as well.
How specific should your keywords be? (some people go too broad, so clearing this up would help)
Very!!! Long tail searches are the key to SEO, especially among new bloggers.
Are backlinks important?
Yes, very important! This is the part that most bloggers miss (and it can account for 50% of your SEO success). Backlinks are a way to build trust with Google (and the other search engines). Having more high quality backlinks will help specific articles rank better, as well as help all of the articles you have and will write since your trust factor will be higher.
Is there anywhere that bloggers can find out more about SEO?
I have 2 ebooks to help help with this. The On-page ebook covers Phase 1 of SEO – How to write a well SEO optimized blog post. In it, how to create a strong blog post that can rank well. It comes with a 12 step checklist (and you’ll see that eventually this will become second nature). And, I have a 9 step checklist on the immediate steps to take after you publish your post so it indexes and ranks faster
My 2nd ebook (Easy Backlinks for SEO) shares how to build backlinks to your site to improve your domain authority and trust with Google, so your site and articles can rank better. This is the 2nd stage of SEO (on-page accounts for 50% of ranking and off-page/backlinks account for the 2nd 50%).
You need to do BOTH. Most bloggers who are learning about SEO know that backlinks are important, but they have no idea how or where to get them. And, they hate the idea of blogger outreach (and I hate it, too). So, I share 31+ places and ways to get high quality backlinks WITHOUT blogger outreach. I also included a section of 60+ Blogger websites (DA 20+) that accept guest posts.
Both of these ebooks have been incredibly successful. In fact, I’m blown away by the positive response I’ve gotten, including rave reviews from people that have already taken SEO courses.
Is there anything else that bloggers need to know about SEO from you?
Bloggers should know that it takes a while before you start seeing results. That’s just how Google works. You need to prove yourself to Google. SEO is a long term game. It doesn’t take that long to do SEO, but it takes a while to see the results of your actions. Once you have it working, it should continue to grow as you write more articles. Go in with right mindset.
Are you convinced that SEO is important? *yes* Are you still a little scared to get started and don’t know where to begin? *yes!*
Good news! Debbie has her 2 books for you, Easy On-Page SEO and Easy Backlinks for SEO, so that you can get the help you need to make a strategy that will make you an SEO pro.
Luciana says
Loved the content.