How to do the most advanced SEO Checklist?
Table of contents
Introduction
How to use this SEO checklist
SEO Basics Checklist
Keyword Research Checklist
On-Page SEO Checklist
Technical SEO Checklist
Content Checklist
Link Building Checklist
Tips & Techniques for Advanced SEO
Conclusion
SEO is a complex and ever-evolving field. It can feel like you're constantly playing catch-up, trying to stay ahead of the curve. But even with all the changes, some basic tenets remain the same. We'll walk you through our comprehensive, advanced SEO checklist in this article, outlining the actions you must take to make sure your website is as search-engine-friendly as possible. Let's get started!
How to use this SEO checklist
The majority of SEO checklists fail to mention that SEO is a never-ending process. Instead, they provide a list of irrelevant activities and imply that SEO is finished once you cross them off.
Since that is not the case, we have assigned one of these tags to each item on our checklist:
- Do it once
- Do it consistently
- Do that each time a new page is published
Thanks to its structure, you don't have to complete everything on this checklist today. Instead, prioritize the one-time tasks, then the periodic tasks, and finish the ongoing tasks each time a new page is published.
Let's start now.
SEO Basics Checklist
Let's start by discussing the principles of SEO. You can learn more about the plugins and tools you'll need to rank in search engines here.
- The Google Search Console set up
The Google Search Console is a FREE SEO tool that is VERY effective.
You may use Search Console to monitor your website's performance in Google searches.
It, therefore, has a ton of helpful features, including:
- Examine the terms that send you the most visitors
- Send your sitemap in
- Resolve website issues
- View the scores for your page experience
In other words, setting up the Google Search Console is an essential first step if you're serious about SEO.
- Install Bing Webmaster Tools
Then, set up Bing Webmaster Tools.
Is Bing as well-known as Google? Unfortunately, no. However, Bing has roughly 1 billion visitors each month. So it's worthwhile to optimize for.
A built-in keyword research tool is only one of the cool features of Bing Webmaster Tools.
- Setup Google Analytics
The BEST way to find out how visitors find (and utilize) your website is by using Google Analytics.
Among its numerous beneficial attributes are the following:
- Learn which of your website's pages are the most visited.
- Verify whether your traffic is increasing
- Determine which other websites and search engines send people to you.
- Your average duration on the site, number of page views, and bounce rate
Advice: Integrate Google Analytics and Google Search Console. You'll see valuable SEO data from your Google Analytics account as soon as you do.
- For WordPress Users, Install Yoast SEO
Making your WordPress site search engine friendly is incredibly simple using Yoast.
Additionally, it assists you with technical SEO issues like sitemaps and robots.txt.
Keyword Research Checklist
Keyword research serves as the bedrock of SEO. And I'll show you how to swiftly locate keywords that your clients search for in this checklist.
- With "Google Suggest," find long-tail keywords
This is one of the best methods for locating long-tail keywords.
This is how it goes:
Enter a keyword into Google first.
Do not enter or hit the "Google Search" key. Check out the terms that Google suggests instead:
These keywords are referred to as "Google Suggest."
Due to the fact that these keywords originate from Google, you can be certain that people are looking for them. Therefore, they create excellent keywords for your site to be optimized.
Advice: Consider using Keywordtool.io. This approach is significantly simpler to scale because this tool collects Google Suggest keywords.
- Utilize Google Keyword Planner to find reliable keywords
The Google Keyword Planner is the company's official tool for finding relevant keywords..
Technically, it was created for Google Ads. Despite this, it is still VERY helpful for researching SEO keywords. After all, Google provided the information directly. So you're aware that it's quite accurate.
- Take Advantage of online communities
Excellent resources for finding keywords include Reddit, Quora, forums, and other internet communities.
These platforms are full of engaged users who are talking about the topics and issues that matter to them. By listening in on these conversations, you can get a sense of the language people use to describe their interests and needs.
This can be a valuable source of insights for your keyword research. In addition, online communities can be a great way to stay updated on industry trends and developments. Following relevant threads on these platforms ensures that your keywords are always aligned with the latest trends.
- Use KWFinder to Discover Low Competition Keywords
A freemium tool for keyword research is KWFinder. What makes KWFinder unique is the plethora of information it gives you for each keyword.
As you can see, KWFinder provides information on the following when you enter a keyword:
- Search activity
- Term complexity
- CPC
- Trends
- Predicted visits
You can then select keywords with less competition that are simple to rank for.
- With Answer The Public, discover "Question Keywords"
The best keywords for blogs and articles are questions. Answer The Public makes it simple to discover them as well. With the help of this free tool, you can see queries that people are looking up online.
In this manner, you can respond to these inquiries with your content.
On-Page SEO Checklist
It's time to improve your content by utilizing a few tried-and-true on-page SEO strategies.
- Add Your Keyword To The URL
Google can better grasp the purpose of your page thanks to your URL. A URL with lots of keywords might also increase your organic CTR.
You should therefore include your keyword in your URL. For example, if you're targeting the keyword "dog beds," a URL like www.example.com/dog-beds would be more effective than www.example.com/products/1234.
- Use Short URLs
You should make your URLs as brief as you can.
Why?
Short URLs rank best on Google, according to recent research of 11.8 million search results from Google.
- Put your keyword front and center in the title tag
It goes without saying that your title tag should contain your keyword. However, fewer people are aware that the location of your keyword matters. Therefore, when possible, you should place your keyword in the head of your title tag. Doing this becomes one of the first things users see when seeing your result and helps them get a sense of what your page is all about. Of course, there are situations when it isn't possible to start the title tag with your keyword, but as long as it appears somewhere in there, you'll be fine.
- Incorporate Title Tag Modifiers
There are words and phrases you can use to modify your title tag. If you do, your page may gain rankings for a variety of long-tail keywords. For example, if you sell women's products, you could use the modifier "for women" in your title tag. This would help your page rank for various long-tail keywords related to women's clothing, such as "Women bags" or "Women Beauty."
- Utilize Your Keyword Once Within The First 150 Words
Google gives the first 100–150 words of your page higher importance. Therefore, be sure to include your keyword here once. However, be sure to use it naturally. Stuffing your keyword excessively will turn off readers and result in a lower ranking.
- In H1, H2 or H3 tags, use your keyword
Ensure your keyword is in the H1, H2, or H3 tags. This helps to send a signal to search engines that your content is relevant to the keyword.
- Image optimization
Your choice of images reveals a lot about your content. Sadly, Google still lacks the ability to "see" photos like a human. You should therefore optimize your picture alt tags and filenames to make it easier for people to interpret your images.
This is how:
Use a filename that succinctly describes the image when you first save it.
For instance, the spinach omelette you just snapped with your iPhone. You should give that picture a name like:
spinach omelette.png
Give the image a clear alt tag after you've added it to your page.
- Use LSI keywords and synonyms
Back then, "keyword stuffing" your page made sense. But not now. Google is smart today. Use synonyms and LSI keywords instead of repeating the same phrase a thousand times.
Consider wanting to rank for the phrase "how to start a blog."
You should use synonyms like: and the precise term a couple of times on your page.
- Ways to start a quality blog
- Launching a blog
- Ways to start a blog
- How to set up a WordPress blog
You see what I mean.
Add some LSI keywords after that. The Keywords that relate to your primary keyword are known as LSI Keywords. These may all be found using LSIGraph.com.
Then, just sprinkle a handful of these LSI terms across your page. You're all set now.
- Use External Links
Make sure your content has links to 5-8 authoritative websites. Those links demonstrate to Google that your content is credible and well-referenced.
- Use Internal Links
Link to two to five additional pages on your website whenever you publish a new piece of content. They help search engines index your site and understand the relationships between your pages. Additionally, they make it simple for people to navigate your website.
Technical SEO Checklist
Your rankings could be made or broken by technical SEO. Thankfully, resolving technical SEO issues isn't that difficult, especially if you stick to the guidelines on this checklist.
- Recognize crawl errors
When Google encounters a "Crawl Error," it can't properly examine a page on your website. And your page won't rank for anything if they can't view it.
Crawl errors are simple to locate in the "Coverage" report of the Google Search Console:
You should immediately address any issues if you find Google is having problems accessing one of your key websites.
- Learn how Google views your page
Users usually have access to all of your page's content, but Google does not. So once more, your page won't rank if Google can't completely access it.
I advise using the "Inspect URL" function of the Google Search Console. Simply enter a page from your website at the GSC's top.
When you do, Google's perspective of your page will appear to you:
- Verify That Your Website Is Mobile-Friendly
Recently, Google introduced a brand-new "Mobile-First Index." This implies that your website won't rank well if it isn't mobile-friendly. Fortunately, Google's Mobile-Friendly Test makes it simple to determine how mobile-friendly your site is. Simply insert a page from your website to receive a definite "yes" or "no" response.
- Restore Broken Links
Broken links might seriously harm your SEO. Therefore, you should look for and fix any broken links.
The simplest approach to accomplish it is DrLinkCheck.com. A free tool that checks your website to see if broken links are available:
- Protect Your Website Using HTTPS
Google has acknowledged HTTPS as a ranking signal. Implementing HTTPS can be a bit technical, but plenty of resources are available to help you get started. Taking these measures will help create a more secure experience for both you and your visitors.
- Check the Speed of Your Website
Does your website load quickly? If not, your website's ranking will suffer.
For this reason, you should visit PageSpeed Insights. This free tool informs you of the loading times for desktop and mobile users of your website:
Even more, it informs you of your options for accelerating the process.
Content Checklist
Nobody disputes the fact that if you want to rank in Google, you must publish quality content. Because of this, content is becoming a HUGE component of any SEO strategy used today. And in this section, I'll discuss the precise procedures you need to take to produce content that will rank in 2022 and beyond.
- Making Use of "The Skyscraper Technique"
The Skyscraper Technique is an effective method for releasing outstanding content.
- First, find a piece of content that's already doing well. This will be your baseline - the piece that you're going to try to improve upon. Once you've found it, look closely at what makes it so successful. What is it about this piece that resonates with readers?
- Next, create your own version of this piece that's even better than the original. Include all of the components that contributed to the success of the original work, along with a few additions to make your revision stand out.
- Then, reach out to the people who linked to the original piece and tell them about your superior version. They'll be happy to link to your new and improved article.
- Add a table of contents
Links to the page's various sections can be accessed via a table of contents. Although a table of contents can be added to any page, they work best for long content that might otherwise be challenging to navigate. You can gain site links in the SERPs by using a table of contents.
- Identify and resolve keyword cannibalization problems
When several pages on a single website rank for the same keywords and hence compete with one another, this is known as keyword cannibalization.
One of the SEO strategies that get the most misunderstood is keyword cannibalization. However, it isn't necessarily a major problem because pages frequently rank for numerous keywords.
Assume you have two pages shown in the search results for the term "SEO checklist": one new page with informative information and one forgotten, outdated one. Google may opt not to rank the newer, more useful page if it favors the older page. Therefore, combining the two pages, in this case, would prevent splitting the traffic.
- To improve readability, segment your content
Nobody enjoys reading lengthy passages of text:
Because of this, you should ALWAYS divide your information into manageable sections like this:
Segmenting your content makes it easier for readers to navigate and understand. Plus, shorter sections are less likely to overwhelm or bore your audience. There are a few different ways to segment your content. For example, you could use headings and subheadings to divide a text into different sections. Another option is to use bullet points or numbered lists. You could also include active sentences: start each section with a short, punchy sentence that grabs attention and provides an overview of what's to come.
- Deeply Examine the Topic on Your Page
One item jumped out when we examined over 11M Google Search Results. The best-performing content on Google typically goes in-depth on a single subject.
Content that explores a single topic in depth is more likely to perform well on Google than pieces that only scratch the surface. This is likely because in-depth content provides readers with a more comprehensive understanding of a subject, making them more likely to answer their specific questions.
- Use Schema Markup
Search engines can better understand your content with the help of schema markup. Nevertheless, Schema implementation can be challenging. Because of this, I suggest using Google's Structured Data Testing tool.
- Concentrate on Content Formats That Are Effective Now
BuzzSumo's staff recently went through 100 million articles.
What did they discover?
The bad news first:
"Most material receives 0 backlinks,"
And now for the good news:
They found that some content types perform more effectively than others.
The big winners are specifically "sites that have established a solid reputation for original, authoritative content."
What exactly do they mean by that?
- Contents that are written by professionals
- The Original study (like surveys and industry studies)
- content that isn't merely information that's been recycled
- Case studies and samples from real life
- Content that is always valuable and useful (Evergreen content)
Link Building Checklist
Building links is essential for SEO. In reality, Google has acknowledged that one of their "top 3" ranking factors is the number of backlinks. But, unfortunately, link-building is difficult. Hence it is left off of the majority of other SEO checklists. But links are essential if you want to rank in Google. And I'll demonstrate how to do it for you in this section.
- Create Strong Backlinks Through Guest Posting
A compelling link-building tactic is guest posting. But, unfortunately, there are appropriate and improper ways to guest post.
The proper strategy is to publish your guest post on reputable websites in your niche.
The incorrect approach is to post guest articles on any website with a "write for us" page.
Once you have found a few good guest posting opportunities, be sure to create high-quality content that will be of interest to the website's readers. If you can provide valuable insights and perspectives, you'll be more likely to land future guest posting opportunities.
- Reverse the backlinks of your rivals
Instead of creating something entirely new, replicate the link sources of your competitors.
You'll need a link analysis tool for this. You can use Semrush, or if money is tight, a freemium tool like Moz's Link Explorer will do.
The procedure is the same regardless of the tool you select:
- Grab the URL of your rival
- Put it into the tool
- Last but not least, collect as many of their links as you can
- Link Roundups Can Help You Create Contextual Backlinks
A link roundup is a collection of links to articles, blog posts, and other online content that are related to a certain topic. Typically, link roundups are published regularly, such as weekly or monthly.
You can get high-quality backlinks from authority websites by submitting your content to link roundups. Additionally, a large audience may be exposed to your content, which is another benefit.
When submitting your content to a link roundup, be sure to include a concise and attention-grabbing title. You should also provide a brief description of your article or post. In most circumstances, you can also link to your website or blog.
- Become a Guest on a Podcast
This is comparable to guest posting. But rather than writing an article, you appear as a guest on a podcast. When choosing a podcast to guest on, look for one that's relevant to your niche or industry. Ideally, you want to find a show with a large and engaged audience. Once you've found a few potential podcasts, reach out to the hosts and pitch yourself as a guest. Again, links to your website and social media accounts should be included so people may learn more about you.
- Mention Influential People in Your Blog posts
This procedure is quite uncomplicated. First, make mention of important bloggers in your content. After that, let them know you brought them up. In turn, they may link back to your site, which can help to increase your traffic and visibility. Additionally, doing so can help you develop connections with other bloggers in your niche, which is advantageous for networking and teamwork.
Tips & Techniques for Advanced SEO
Now that you understand the fundamentals allow me to walk you through a few advanced SEO strategies.
- Improve the Click-Through Rate on Your Website
The best place to start when wanting to boost your SEO game is by optimizing for click-through rate (CTR).
CTR is a measure of how often people who see your listing in the search results click on it. And while it's just one factor that determines your ranking, there's evidence that CTR can directly impact your position in the SERPs. To improve your listings' click-through rates, you can do several things, including:
- Verify the accuracy and descriptiveness of your titles and descriptions.
- Use rich snippets to highlight key information like reviews and ratings.
- Consider using A/B testing to experiment with a different title and description combinations until you find what works best for your business.
Taking these steps, you can encourage more people to click through to your site, which should help improve your SEO results.
- Minimizing website downtime
Users become irate if your website goes down. It turns out that Google also becomes irate.
Fortunately, you can simply track site downtime with a tool like Pingdom. In fact, they believe that unplanned site outages "may significantly influence a site's reputation."
That's from Google Representative (Gary Illyes).
- Increase the Dwell Time on Your Site
Another important Google ranking factor is Dwell Time.
Google wants to know if visitors to your site are engaging. For example, if visitors quickly leave your page in favor of another search result, Google will conclude that they dislike it."
However, visitors will remain on your page if they receive what they are looking for. And Google will pay attention.
Therefore, it is important to design your site in such a way as to encourage visitors to stick around. One way to do this is by providing compelling and original content that encourages readers to explore other parts of the site. You can also encourage Dwell Time by including interactive features such as polls and quizzes.
- Relaunch and update outdated content
Improve your SEO by regularly relaunching and updating your older content. Not only will this help to ensure that your content is up-to-date and relevant, but it will also help to boost your ranking in search engine results pages.
- Including fresh and relevant keywords in your article is one method to do this.
- Another way is to revise and expand upon existing content.
- To better break up the text and improve the visual attractiveness of your content, you may also use fresh images, videos, and infographics.
Conclusion
Since SEO is a continuous process, it would be hard to incorporate all crucial considerations into a single checklist. However, following the advice in the checklist and tips mentioned earlier, you'll be well on your way to higher ranks. You'll probably be far ahead of the competition as well. That is all that counts. If you need help growing your business, Winterplay Studios is here to help. Learn how we can assist you by contacting us right now.