13 Crucial SEO Steps to Better Google Rankings: An SEO Walkthrough for Beginners

BrightEdge 2023 research states that 68% of online experiences kick off with a search engine, so to bring your site to the top of the ladder, you have to focus on SEO strategies that others overlook.

Manipulating the search engine’s algorithm via search engine optimization might sound like a daydream, but trust me, with on-point SEO practices, you can make your site appear on top of the relevant search results.

Intrigued to know how!?

Follow along as I’ve curated full-fledged steps using my experience that will help you for better rankings in search engines and also give your site the missing push.

What is SEO and Why is it so Crucial?

What’s seo? The tactics for improving a site’s overall ranking in Search Engine Result Pages (SERPs) by increasing the inflow of organic traffic are called Search Engine Optimization, aka SEO. It aims to improve the page’s visibility by making it relevant to search queries via keyword research, on-page and off-page optimization, link building, etc.

Opting for good search engine optimization techniques is important due to the following reasons:

• Increased site visibility on the web.
• To attract more organic traffic.
• Gives you a competitive advantage.
• Signals to search engines that your content is valuable.
• Cost-effective way to attract more target audience.
• Makes your site reach the top in any relevant query.
• Helps you track the performance of your web page.

Well, if your aim is to get on top of the ranking, then SEO is something that you can definitely not bypass. That’s why in the subsequent section I’ve discussed in detail the best 13 steps to better rankings on the web, personally tried and tested by me and my team.

Steps to Better Rankings on Web 

As quoted in BrightEdge 2023 Report, 53% of website traffic is through organic search. Even HubSpot, in its 2024 report, has also accepted that SEO can help you yield three times more leads as compared to sponsored advertising, so there’s no escape from search engine optimization if you dream of getting your site on top.

Hence, to help you ace the search engine algorithm, I’ve compiled 13 steps to better rankings. It is a step-by-step SEO tutorial for beginners to crack the search engine optimization code.

On-Page optimization is the shortest path to the top ranking, as it only takes a couple of minutes and within a week you’ll start observing real-time changes. When I was a beginner, my biggest challenge with on-page optimization was the target keywords, as back then I used to find optimizing a site around keywords daunting.

If you feel the same, I’ve got your back!

Start by front-loading your keyword, i.e., place your target keyword in the beginning of the title tag, then focus on creating long-form content and naturally incorporate the keyword throughout the article with a few tweaks here and there.

Here you need to be cautious of keyword stuffing, as it can lead to penalties from search engines and compromise your site’s credibility.

Now you must be wondering what LSI keyword means.

Well, LSI keywords are called Latent Semantic Indexing keywords that focus on semantic relevance and aid search engines in understanding the purpose and intent of your content. For simpler understanding, you can consider them words and phrases that are related to your focus keyword and provide depth and context to your write-up.

To find the LSI keyword for your topic, type your primary keyword in the search engine and focus on the other related options or queries in bold below the search tab.

Furthermore, there are many free keyword-generating software and tools available on the web that can assist you in finding the LSI keyword; you can also take assistance from them.

Also Read: An All-Inclusive Guide to Keywords and its Types

Technical SEO is the first and most important pillar of search engine optimization, as it ensures that your web page is easily accessible on both mobile and desktop. If not done properly, it can seriously damage your site; that’s why I’ve placed it at the top in my steps to better rankings.

It will impact your online visibility and can also compromise the general performance in search results. While improving your technical SEO, target optimizing search engine crawling and indexing and analyze the website speed and performance on both desktop and mobile phones.

Aligning your content with search intent means that your write-up should fulfill the goal or reason a user is entering a query. If your content meets the intent of the search, your articles will automatically appear at the top of the search results.

Furthermore, to make sure your content is relevant and fulfills the searcher’s query in the long run, you need to keep updating your content according to the search trends.

Keywords are referred to as the words or phrases that people use to search a query. Using relevant keywords can make or break the ranking game on the web. That’s why keyword research is one of the most important steps to better rankings.

Always conduct in-depth keyword research; it will make your content easily searchable, thus helping you in ranking higher.

To optimize your site around several keywords, you can take assistance from different types of keyword research tools available on the internet. There are both free and paid tools; depending on your requirements, you can subscribe to any of them. However, if you’re a beginner, we suggest you opt for free tools and as you grow, you can switch to paid software.

The number and quality of links that your site has plays an important role in making your site searchable in the ocean of articles and blogs. Sourcing high-quality backlinks from other authoritative sites indicates to the search engine that your content is reliable and readers value it, thus ultimately ranking you higher in results.

To improve the quality of your links, you can use the ‘Broken Link Building’ strategy. It is an advanced link analysis method where you find the broken links on a site using any tool like Semrush, then request the page owner to link your relevant post/article.

Additionally, you can also opt for an internal linking tactic by linking an existing page that is performing well to a new page. Apart from link building, it also helps in establishing credibility and promoting other write-ups.

Also Read: Organic SEO Guide for Small Business Website 

Bounce rate is the percentage or ratio of visitors who navigate away from a site after reading only one section or page. Every time a searcher bounces back to the searched query after landing to your site indicates to the search engine that readers are not satisfied with your content, and it doesn’t align with the search intent.

That’s why improving the bounce rate is one of the most prominent steps to better rankings. It will not only retain the user for a long time but also increase the number of organic traffic to your web page.

To minimize your bounce rate, you can focus on the search intent of the content, place important queries at the top, prepare a table of contents to navigate the reader to different queries, and use visuals like infographics and images.

Overlooking the quality of content is one of the most common mistakes that the majority of people make. This is one of the potentially significant steps to better rankings because it will help you beat out the top results.

While creating high-quality articles, you should focus on long-format content, it will also increase the odds of getting links. Secondly, incorporate as much as infographics, visuals, and stats available. This will improve the bounce rate and also help you become a data source for other web pages.

Infographics boost comprehension and retention along with simplifying complex information; that’s why overlooking infographics or visuals is indeed a dumb move. In my early days of blogging, I often used to forget to incorporate images or casually place low-quality snapshots.

But after losing a significant amount of traffic, I can precisely state that infographics are non-negotiable if you want your site to rank. Adding visuals will help you ensure higher engagement and serve a better user experience.

Having a perfect WordPress site structure is of no use until you improve your page’s design and UX, as it influences user engagement, brand perception, conversions, and higher sales revenue. That’s why I personally consider it one of the most essential steps to better rankings that people frequently ignore.

You can optimize your page’s UX by neatly bifurcating your content into headings and subheadings and adding visuals along with statistics. Visuals and thoughtfully organized text make the article more appealing and easy to read.

Also Read: 25 Improvement of Web Page Visibility by Maximizing SEO Efforts 

With every passing day, new SEO and writing trends are emerging, and keeping up with them is important to improve your chances of better ranking. Furthermore, you need to keep re-optimizing your content by tweaking the information that is no longer relevant or by adding new graphics to stay relevant in the search results.

Catchy title tags will ensure a high click-through rate, which is again an indicator that readers find your articles valuable. To make your title tag impressive, I suggest you opt for an emotional tag that appeals to people. Secondly, I’ll recommend that you keep the URLs crisp and descriptive. Furthermore, always go for short and informative meta descriptions clearly indicating the intent of the content.

Well, this might sound a little lame to you, after all, why would anyone want to keep tracking the old stuff if they’re making profit out of it?

But let me be very clear: regardless of having the best SEO strategy, if you don’t keep track of your progress, you’ll end up losing all leads and sales. That’s why I consider it one of the most integral steps to better rankings.

Keeping your progress in check, firstly, it gives you a glimpse of how your marketing and SEO campaigns are performing. Secondly, they give you insights into what’s working for you and what might lead to loss.

There are a variety of tools available to keep an eye on your progress; my personal favorites are ‘Google Analytics and Organic Traffic’ and ‘Google Search Console Impressions and Clicks.’

Also Read: Check Out This SEO Audit Checklist to Find SEO Errors & Boost Your Google Rankings in 2025 

Wrapping Up

Deciphering the search engine’s algorithm sounds scary to many, but once you crack the code, getting your site on the top becomes child’s play. That’s why above I have provided you all the essential steps to better rankings.

Remember that at the end of the day, it is more about the quality of content rather than the SEO tactics, especially when it comes to engagement. So make sure to provide high-quality, fact-verified content to your audience and then see the magic unfold.

Frequently Asked Questions