How to Get Started with WordPress SEO

Understanding how to optimise your WordPress site for search engines can thought be an overwhelming task, especially for WordPress beginners. It goes beyond just setting up your website. You need to ensure that your site ranks well on search engine results, which can essentially increase organic traffic (https://research.hubspot.com/charts/uk-online-businesses-organic-search-outperforms-other-channels). This article will guide you through the steps to better understand WordPress SEO and how to implement it effectively.

Understanding WordPress SEO

SEO (Search Engine Optimisation) is structuring your website in a way that search engines will understand. It includes practices to improve the volume and quality of traffic to your website via organic search engine results. In the UK, there are around 6.5 billion searches made every month, with 75% of users never scrolling past the first page on search engines (https://www.smartinsights.com/search-engine-marketing/search-engine-statistics/). These statistics underline the necessity for everyone with an online presence, may it be a website or a blog, to ensure that they rank highly on search results.

Getting Started with WordPress SEO

Here is how you can get started with WordPress SEO.

1. Website Hosting and WordPress Setup

Choose reliable hosting for your WordPress site as it forms the foundation for good SEO. You also need to ensure that you’ve correctly set up WordPress. Ensure that you choose a reputable WordPress theme that has built-in SEO features.

2. Install an SEO Plugin

Install a WordPress SEO plugin. This plugin will help you handle all elements of SEO within your website, from meta tags to social media integration. Yoast SEO is an excellent option for a WordPress plugin. It also has a user-friendly interface that can help beginners move forward with an SEO strategy quickly.

3. Research Keywords

Keywords play a key role in SEO. Before writing content, research appropriate keywords or phrases related to your product or services. Google’s keyword planner and Ahrefs are some useful tools to find suitable keywords. Implement these keywords naturally into your content.

4. Optimise Page Titles and Meta Descriptions

Page titles and meta descriptions play a crucial role in SEO. Your page titles should ideally start with your keyword or phrase. Meta descriptions are also important as they appear in SERPs (Search Engine Result Pages). Always remember to include your targeted keyword in the meta description.

5. Optimise Your Images

Google’s algorithms for image search do not recognise the content of an image. This is where image alt text comes to play. Alt text is the written copy that appears in place of an image if it fails to load on your website. Image alt text should be descriptive and include your focused keyword when appropriate.

6. Use SEO Friendly URLs

Google has stated that the first 3-5 words in a URL are more weighted. (https://backlinko.com/hub/seo/url). Therefore, it is important to make your URLs short and include your target keyword when possible.

7. Create High Quality, Original Content

“Content is King.” High-quality, unique, and relevant content will attract more traffic to your website. Content also plays a vital role in keeping your audience engaged and returning to your website.

8. Internal Linking and Backlinks

Linking your pages internally could give you good SEO benefits. It keeps users navigating through your site, increasing the dwell time, which is a ranking factor. Backlinks, on the other hand, are created when one website links to another. It is one of the many tactics used in SEO as these links signal to search engines that your site is a quality resource worthy of citation.

9. Make Your Site Mobile-Friendly

In 2018, over 52.2 percent of all website traffic worldwide was generated through mobile phones (https://www.statista.com/statistics/277125/share-of-website-traffic-coming-from-mobile-devices/). With the increasing use of mobile devices for web browsing, it is necessary to ensure that your site is mobile-friendly.

10. Measure Your SEO Progress

Measure your SEO efforts using Google Analytics. This tool helps you understand what works and what doesn’t, making it one of the most powerful tools in your WordPress SEO toolbox.

Conclusion

Getting your SEO right can be instrumental in bringing organic traffic to your WordPress site. The key thing to remember is that SEO is a continuous process. It requires patience and constant work. A well-implemented SEO strategy can help ensure that your website gets the attention it deserves. Always keep yourself updated with the latest SEO techniques, and don’t be afraid to experiment as long as you track your results. With the step-by-step guide provided above, you’re well on your way to starting with WordPress SEO.