Ever wondered why only a few websites out of thousands appear on the first page when you search for something on the internet? If yes, you are in the right place because we will decode the entire process. There is no doubt that it is highly competitive out there.
To stand apart and bring organic traffic to your website, you must give exactly what your audience wants. The tricky part is, that the audience will constantly change what they are looking for.
Once you can figure that out, consider that the ball is in your court. Because it only gets straightforward from there! Following is a guide for WordPress SEO and how to skyrocket traffic to your website and increase engagement.
Understanding the basics: What is WordPress SEO?
SEO or Search Engine Optimisation is a tool for referencing on the internet that strategically aims to improve the traffic and visibility of a website. It facilitates people or businesses that are trying to get more people to engage with them. Getting a ranking on the first page of a web search engine is not unattainable.
However, it can become unattainable if the content on your website is not SEO-friendly. Local SEO differs from traditional SEO in one way. Searches contain “near me”, or when the audience is looking for something in a specific city, the web pages that appear are through Local SEO.
For instance, if you look up “Search Engine Optimisation” on Google, which is a search engine, you will find at least ten websites on the first page. These are the websites that are the most relevant to your search. There are several other websites on several pages but the ones you see on the first page are the ones that matter.
98% of the people who use search engines do not go past the first page of their search. That means if your website is landing on the second or third page, you might be losing out on business. That also means you need to go through this guide for WordPress SEO to change that immediately.
WordPress SEO 101: Best local SEO practices for your website
Enhance your WordPress website’s local SEO with expert strategies. Utilize the power of an SEO extension to optimize on-page elements, create quality local content, and boost online visibility, ensuring your site ranks higher and attracts targeted local audiences.
1. Content, Content, And Content
You must have heard this many times by now but it is true. Amongst other things, the ranking of your website depends on the quality of the content on your website. Through your content, you are also providing your audience value.
That is why it is crucial to create unique and high-quality content for your website. You can write valuable content when you know your audience’s problems and how your business solves them. Put yourself in your customer’s shoes and think about what they would look up to.
2. Genuine And Reliable Reviews
Think about it, have you ever bought a service, or product, or been somewhere without reading and comparing their reviews?
This makes it essential that your customers leave reviews for your business. Preferably good ones! These reviews matter a great deal for WordPress SEO because they help increase the website’s rank and visibility. So, create strategies to motivate and influence your customers to leave reviews for your business.
This will help people optimize and match their search and they will land on your website. Interacting with your customers on reviewing platforms will also be an efficient tool to increase visibility.
See Also: 30+ YouTube SEO Tools to Boost Your Video Rankings in 2024
3. Use WordPress SEO plugins.
Using WordPress will undoubtedly give you a head start because it is already structured in an SEO-friendly way. Yet, following other practices for Search Engine Optimisation is recommended. A plugin is primarily used to define meta descriptions and meta titles for your web pages.
It also helps to meet high industrial patterns. In addition, plugins make the website or blog SEO user-friendly. That is why adopting an SEO plugin might be of help.
There are several plugins for WordPress SEO to choose from but, all of them have different purposes. Some of the best WordPress SEO plugins are Yoast, All In One SEO (AIO SEO), WP Rocket, and Constant Contact.
4. Click-Through Rate
CTR or Click-Through Rate is the percentage of the number of people who click on your ad by the number of times the ad is shown. It simply means the click-through rate equals clicks divided by impressions.
Adding meta tags, choosing a good ad extension, using the primary keyword in ads, and adding CTA or Call To Action are some ways to increase the CTR.
5. Keywords
Research the keywords your audience might be looking up and create content around it. Keywords are still essential for WordPress SEO.
They help the user get the relevant information they are looking for and enhance the user’s experience. Various tools can find keywords about anything and create content that gives value and engages your audience.
6. Build A Sitemap
WordPress generates a Sitemap on its own but, if you want to improve WordPress SEO, you can customize a Sitemap according to your requirements. A Sitemap makes the website user-friendly by showcasing all the web pages (products, services, etc. ) your website contains.
However, a sitemap also tells search engines like Google to convey information to search engine bots called crawlers. If these bots do not ‘crawl’ through the web pages, it will negatively impact the SEO ranking of your website.
Read Also: Top Best Tools to Check Your Website Keyword Position
7. Website Speed
People want to get things done quickly, or they do not want it all.
How many times have you closed a tab because the website wouldn’t load? It is beyond frustrating. That is why the speed and the performance of the website are crucial for WordPress SEO. A website that performs well and has good speed automatically has a better chance at local search optimization.
One of the most common culprits behind the slow performance of WordPress sites is large image files. Websites that have larger pictures generally slow down the site. To avoid that, you can optimize the images.
8. Google My Business
GMB or Google My Business is vital for local SEO ranking. That is why you must claim your GMB page. Add all necessary information such as location, operational hours, how to get there, business description, etc.
Integrating your WordPress website helps your business show up at Local Finder, and Google Maps and increase visibility and ranking. You can facilitate this by consistently adding posts and pictures, engaging with your audience, and adding services and products to your GMB.
9. Internal And External Links
Internal linking helps the user to navigate through the same page or to another page on your website. Creating internal links will make your audience engage with your website more. Internal links are a superb tool to increase WordPress SEO. If the content on a single page is more than 2000 words, adding a minimum of 3 interlinks is essential.
External linking, on the other hand, helps the user to navigate to another website altogether. Linking 2 relevant and high-quality websites will increase user engagement and hence increase the ranking of your website. It will also give more value to your audience.
Adding a minimum of 2 external links will be sufficient. By adding external links, you can also network and establish a relationship with other companies.
It’s simple, what you see will sell. In today’s day and age, all businesses must function online to stay relevant. Therefore, having an online presence and increasing your WordPress SEO is a necessity. To be successful is to understand your customers, their needs, and their problems. If you have got that figured out, WordPress SEO is not difficult.
