You might be thinking that ranking on the first page of Google is difficult nowadays. Yes, it is true. But it’s not that much difficult.

Remember there’s still a space for you. One can rank on the 1st page if he is putting in the right effort.

If you are new to SEO, don’t worry. In this guide, we will be talking about step-wise methods to rank on the 1st page of Google.

1) Website Audit:

Website audit gives the information about SEO insights of your website. There are various tools are available in the market like Ubersuggest, Semrush, Ahrefs, SEOptimizer, etc..

Their free versions are also available. These tools give detailed information about the scope of site improvements. It can help you improve your search engine rankings & traffic.

Connecting the following tools with your sites is a must for better search engine ranking:

1. Google Search Console:

It’s a free tool provided by Google. It helps you to monitor your site’s presence and google search results.

2.  Bing Webmaster

This tool is similar to Google Search Console. It is for Microsoft’s Bing search engine. Bing is the second largest used search engine in the globe after google. Then why should you miss the traffic from it?

3. Google Analytics:

Google Analytics gives you a detailed overview of your audience. These analytics will show you about your users behavior.

2)  Keyword Research:

Keyword research is the most important aspect of SEO. The keyword is a search term used by the user to access information from the web.

To reach your buyers you need to select the right keywords. Keywords whose intent is to make a purchase.

Few terminologies you need to understand while doing keyword research.

• CPC: It is the cost per click. It is the bidding amount paid by the advertiser for a keyword to rank on the top. The higher the CPC higher are the chances that this keyword has commercial intent. You might get a good conversion ratio from that keyword.
• SD: It is SEO Difficulty. It is measured on a scale of 0 to 100. SD tells us how difficult is to rank for a keyword through SEO. The lower the SEO Difficulty the easier it would be to rank for a keyword.
• PD: It is paid difficulty. It is also measured on a scale of 0to 100. The higher the paid difficulty it means advertisers are bidding higher on that keyword.

It’s difficult to compete with such keywords which have higher paid difficulty.

Now how can you find the keywords based on these parameters? Use the Google Keyword Planner tool to find the keywords.

It gives you an idea about the search volume of a keyword and other information like CPC as well.

Also, you can use SEMrush, Ahrefs & Ubersuggest for your keyword research. Optimize your site for these keywords.

3) Competition Analysis:

If there is a competition it means there is an audience. Once you are done with keyword research, find the websites which are ranking for these keywords.

The website with a maximum number of coincident keywords is your competitor. Why? Because you want to rank for these keywords. Review the site audit of your competition.

Improve your site by considering your competitor’s site. Here I am not saying to copy your competition. You cant rank if you copy them.

Rather I am saying to understand what they are doing so that you could do the same in a more better and efficient way.

Find out the major points which your competition is missing. Keep improving on those points.

4)   Content Creation & Marketing:

Write information content for your audience. Before writing any content check the demand for the content. Content should be focused on one keyword.

It takes around 3 to 4 months to rank for the r keyword which has low search volume. Select the keywords which a search volume of around 1000. They are much easier to rank.

Use pointers, infographics & images in your content. Make it engaging & interactive. The more interactive it is the more the chances of ranking on SERP.

5)  On-Page SEO:

On-Page SEO refers to optimizing your website’s search engine ranking by optimizing content & tags. Here are the points you should consider while optimizing your site.

1. SEO Friendly URLs: Make your URLs easy to understand. Don’t keep them too short or too long. It should moderate.
2. Main Keyword: Include your main keyword in the first 100 words of your content.
3. Tags: Use a keyword in all the tags. Title Tag: This tag appears in blue on the SERP.Meta description: Meta description is a short description of your webpage. It appears below the title tag.H1: H1 tag is the title of the page. Use an attractive problem-solving title with some promise. It improves engagement.
4. Well formatted content: Apart from the H1 tag use other h tags as well for a better user experience.
5. Links: Add outbound links to seamless navigation. Make it easier for users to experience your site. Link to useful pages of other relevant domains as well.
6. Mobile Friendliness: Almost half of the searches are happening on mobile nowadays. Optimize your site for mobile users.

6)   Off-Page SEO:

Off-page SEO is about link building. What is link building? Link building is the process of making backlinks from the subject matter experts of your industry & from your competitors. Backlinks have 2 major benefits:

• Improves Domain Authority
• Increases traffic

The more backlinks you have the better it is for SEO. But don’t only focus on quantity.

Get backlinks from an authority website. Websites that are related to your niche. Link building is a more humanized process.

There are two major ways to get backlinks:

1. Great content: Create good content so that people could naturally link to your website
2. Outreach: Find out the content creators of your niche and ask them to link to your site.

 The first way is a better way to opt for but why miss the second one. Try both approaches.

7)   Audience Interaction:

Interact with your audience. Build your email list. Ask about the points of improvements in your site. Try to fix the issues addressed by your audience.

Google aims to give the best solution for its users. So first optimize your content for users and then optimize it for search engines. Because Google loves you when everyone else loves you.

8)  Learn SEO:

You might be wondering after watching this point. Why I am telling you to learn SEO? It’s because of the evolution of search engines. Search engines have become smarter and smarter over the period.

And google updates it so frequently so that no one could manipulate its algorithm. So it is a must for you to stay updated with it.

The only process of getting better at a skill is to learn the skill and implement it continuously.

There are good resources available on the internet on SEO. The more you learn the more you will grow. And growth is a never-ending process. It has no limits.

Conclusion:

1. Optimize your site first & then for users.
2. Avoid jargon in your content & make it super simple to understand.
3. Integrate analytics tools to review user behaviour.
4. Take actions based on your competition analysis.