Here are some SEO tips for your WordPress blog:
1. Alter the Permalink structure
Set your permalinks optimally for SEO. The permalink of your WordPress blog, by default, looks like http://yourdomain.com/?p=N, where N is the Post ID number. While it works on all server environments, it is not SEO-optimal.
You can easily change your permalink structure by clicking on the “Settings” tab and then “Permalinks” menu on the dashboard of WordPress. You can choose from the “common” structures provided or you can enter your own in the “Custom Structure” field using the structure tags. Make sure your do not put your domain URL in the permalinks field. You must use structure tags.
Structure tags:
- %year% – displays the 4-digit post year in the link (ie. 2013)
- %monthnum% – displays the 2-digit post month in the link (ie. 05)
- %day% – displays the day of the post in the link
- %postname% – displays the post name in the link
- %category% – displays the category of the post in the link
- %author% – displays the author name in the link
For example, if you want to display the post’s category and the title in the permalink, you will need to enter the following in the Custom Structure field: /%category%/%postname%/
2. Add a comprehensive SEO Pack
You can install the All in One SEO Pack plug-in. The plug-in allows you to optimize meta tags, keyword tags, description and add a custom title for your blog.
3. Optimize the home page and site title of your blog site
Use a keyword research tool to find good keyword phrases for your home page. Include the keyword phrases in the meta description, title tags and the content of your home page.
Also, the title of your site is one of the single most important factors in terms ranking in the search results. This article provides useful tips on how to write a good title for your page and post. Check this out.
To change your WordPress blog title, go to Settings and click “General”. Quick and easy.
4. Optimize your blog’s images
You can optimize your images by using keywords in the “Alt” attribute and the names of the images. Also, include an image description in the image title tag.
Images with huge file sizes will cause slow load time. Please remember that load time is one of the factors that determine your search rank. Check out this article about the 10 tips to speed up your WordPress load time.
5. Freshness
Have you ever asked yourself this question: “Why do I need to spend so much effort on SEO?” Well, it’s a pretty obvious answer: To Get More Visitors! So, here comes the million-dollar question: What is THE MOST important factor that can attract more visitors to your website? A beautiful website layout? Photo albums with clear description and “alt tag”? Certainly, these are important, but definitely not THE MOST important reasons.
Content is the king.
Your website content is the most influential factor that drives traffic (and search engine robots) to visit your website. If you want your visitors to come to your website on a regular basis, you will have to provide content on a regular basis, too. But, quantity will only get you so far. You have to make sure that your content is in good quality (e.g. How reliable is your source of the content? Does your content provide a valid argument? etc.).
A website with high quality content that is updated regularly can create visitor loyalty. Returning visitors can then bring in more new visitors by sharing your blog post on their social media channels and their blogs. The more readers that post your website on their personal blogs, the more backlinks you will get, which as a result, can further enhance your SEO performance.
We hope these 5 useful tips can help you achieve better SEO performances. If you have any comments and thoughts on SEO techniques, please feel free to drop by the SEO section on our Forums and share your ideas there.
Posted in: About WordPress