Everyone today is mulling over how to create an SEO strategy.
Why?
The online competition is getting stiffer, and businesses want to rank higher on Google and make it easy for prospects to find them.
They also want qualified leads, to increase traffic, increase brand awareness, and or improve the overall business branding.
But they know this cannot happen without a sound SEO strategy.
And that's where most businesses hit a wall.
How do you create an SEO strategy when you don't know where to start? How do you optimize your website and content to rank on Google’s first page?
Don't worry, we got you covered.
We've created a comprehensive guide that will show you how to create an SEO strategy step by step.
But first, let's look at what an SEO strategy is and how it can help your business.
An SEO strategy is a plan of action that businesses use to improve their organic search rankings and visibility on search engines.
An SEO strategy serves many purposes, and among them is increasing traffic to your website. It does this by improving your site's ranking on search engine results pages (SERPs).
Ranking higher on search engines increases your chances of converting visitors into customers. In fact, according to a FirstPageSage study, ranking #1 on Google awards you a 39.8% click-through rate (CTR), as shown below:
Image via FirstPageSage
Now, a good CTR means that your offering matches a customer’s needs, which also means more visitors to your website. And with a high number of visitors, you can easily:
Lucky for you, all these can be achieved through an effective SEO strategy. But where do you begin?
Well, to create an effective SEO strategy, you need to understand how search engines work and what factors influence your ranking on SERPs.
You also need to know what SEO techniques you can use to improve your ranking.
While we cannot list all the factors that influence your ranking on SERPs, here are the most important ones to remember.
Why is this SEO strategy important? A recent report indicates that 91% of surveyed consumers utilize internet resources, such as online reviews, to evaluate local businesses. Here’s an example of a local SEO search:
Image via Google
Now that you know what an SEO strategy is and how it can help your business, let's take a look at how to create an SEO strategy.
Learning how to create an SEO strategy can seem like a daunting task. There are so many factors to consider, and knowing where to start is difficult.
However, by following a few simple tips, you can create an SEO strategy that’ll enhance your visibility online and drive revenue.
Here are 15 practical tips on how to create an SEO strategy:
The first thing in learning how to create an SEO strategy is by assessing your current performance.
Analyze your site’s organic visibility, keyword ranking, and traffic. This will help you determine where to focus your efforts and put together a successful SEO plan that will drive results.
You can easily use the Semrush Organic Research Tool, shown below, to assess your website’s SEO performance:
Image via Semrush
You can use the tool to conduct organic research, and see how your keywords, backlinks, and more are performing.
For instance, if you need to check your organic keywords and traffic when navigating how to create an SEO strategy, all you need to do is:
1. Visit the Semrush platform (using the above link)
2. Log in or create an account
3. Click on Organic Research from the dashboard (shown in the image below)
Image via Semrush
4. Next, enter your domain in the search bar and specify the location. For example, google.com as shown:
Image via Semrush
5. Click Search. Your result will be as shown below:
Image via Semrush
From the dashboard, you can check how your keywords are performing, and how much organic traffic you’re getting over time. You can similarly analyze your pages, subdomains, and your competitors.
These insights will give you a clear understanding of your SEO strategy in terms of the website’s visibility, how it’s currently performing, and how it has changed over time.
Along with other website analytics, you can then identify areas you need to improve for a more successful SEO strategy.
Understanding your competition is a key step in learning how to create an SEO strategy that works. If you don’t know how they are faring, you can’t know how to beat them.
Fortunately, this is where a little competitive analysis comes in handy.
Competitive analysis is the process of researching, identifying, and understanding your competitors’ marketing strategies.
By doing this, you gain valuable insights into their SEO strategies. This gives you a clearer picture of how to create an SEO strategy that ranks higher in SERPs. You can then identify gaps in your own approach and uncover new opportunities for growth.
Here are a few ways you can go about your competitive analysis:
Identifying your direct competitors is very important when learning how to create an SEO strategy. You can do this by searching for keywords related to your business. For example, if you’re a web design company, you can search for “web design” or “web design services.”
From the Semrush tool we shared earlier for analyzing your SEO performance, you can assess your competitors as well.
After entering your domain for Organic Research and clicking enter, click on competitors as shown below:
Image via Semrush
Scroll down to check the list of your organic competitors as shown below:
Image via Semrush
Once you’ve identified your competitors, the next step in knowing how to create an SEO strategy is evaluating their SEO efforts. Visit their website and check their content. Is it well-written? Does it provide value to its audience?
You can take this SEO strategy further and check if the content is keyword-rich and whether it includes the right mix of text and visuals.
Also, check their website’s title and meta tags. Are they using the right keywords and are they effective?
What about their backlink profile? Are they getting links from quality websites? Which anchor texts are they using?
Gathering this data is crucial in figuring out how to create an SEO strategy that beats the competition. It helps you understand what’s working in your niche and where you can outperform them.
You can also use tools like Ahrefs to evaluate your competitor’s SEO analysis.
Once you’ve analyzed your competitor’s strategies, you can capitalize on their weaknesses or replicate their successful strategies.
Researching the audience is a crucial step that most businesses often skip while designing a winning SEO strategy. This could explain why they’re not getting the results they desire.
One thing to keep in mind when learning how to create an SEO strategy that works is that having a powerful SEO strategy isn’t dependent on buyer personas only. It should be tailored toward how users interact online, and how they search for content. That way, you can create content and use keywords that match a search query or a user’s intent.
To get an in-depth insight into your audience, you can begin by answering essential questions such as:
So, where exactly can you source this information as you figure out how to create an SEO strategy?
Start by exploring social media platforms for queries related to your offering. You can also post online surveys or look at online communities such as this one:
Image via Warrior Forum
When learning how to create an SEO strategy, forums can be a goldmine for discovering what your audience is searching for. By looking at the questions, such as the ones shown in the image above, you’ll know exactly what type of SEO content to create.
Apart from online forums, you can also ask the members of your sales team for information about what customers want.
While researching your audience, it’s crucial to be clear about elements such as age, gender, location, and pain points, among others. These elements are essential in mastering how to create an SEO strategy that targets the right prospects.
Ultimately, understanding your audience forms the basis of creating a winning SEO strategy and helps you put them first.
The next step on how to create an SEO strategy is to define your SEO goals and set measurable KPIs.
This will help you determine the approaches you’ll take to ensure the success of your SEO strategies.
For example, if you want to increase your website’s visibility in search results, you need to focus on improving your ranking for relevant keywords.
There are other SEO strategy goals you could set, including:
Figuring out how to create an SEO strategy that’s effective requires you to set clear, measurable goals. Vague targets won’t help you track progress, so avoid arbitrary SEO goals that just sound good.
Don’t say, “we want to triple our organic traffic” or “we want to increase sales by 200%. You will fail. Instead, analyze your current SEO performance and from the data, you can set predictive outcomes that are achievable.
And how do you know your SEO strategy is achieving your goals? You use KPIs, or Key Performance Indicators, to measure their progress and performance.
If your goal is to get more website traffic, be specific about the number of unique visitors you want. If it’s lead generation, how many do you want in a month and how will you measure conversions?
You can also measure the ROI, percentage increase in sales, average visits to the page, impressions, reach, engagement, and more.
Of course, every business is different. So, it is important to tailor these KPIs to your specific goals to increase the chances of your SEO strategy working.
If you want your SEO strategy to be effective, you need to find the right keywords. This is important as it will help you produce content matching a customer’s search query.
The easiest way you can do this and aid your quest of knowing how to create an SEO strategy that works is by using Google Suggest. Simply type the keywords you want to rank for, and Google will populate it with more suggestions:
Image via Google
Why these Google suggestions? Well, they come straight from the popular queries on the search platform. This means that people are searching for them.
While Google makes it easy to find keywords you can use in your content, it doesn’t show you the search volume or keyword difficulty.
For this SEO strategy to be effective, you can use Semrush, Ahrefs, and Ubersuggest, among others. Using these tools, you can simply search for the keyword you want and check its volume and difficulty. Here’s what it’d look like on Ubersuggest:
Image via Ubersuggest
From the above screenshot, you can determine the keyword difficulty, which will help you gauge the competitiveness of your keywords on SERPs.
You can also check the keyword search volume, to determine whether your keyword will generate meaningful traffic.
Meanwhile, another SEO strategy is aiming for long-tail keywords – keywords containing four words or more.
Why?
Because they demonstrate a strong buyer intent. Consider these two examples:
“Nike sneakers” and “Nike Men Air Force sneakers”
The first keyword is not specific, and it could range from running shoes to casual sneakers. The second long-tail keyword, however, shows that the person is specific about what they want.
See the difference?
That’s why you should use a mix of both short- and long-tail keywords while creating your SEO strategy. Once you’ve built a list of the necessary keywords, you can integrate them into your content and website. Ensure that you fit them naturally without overusing them.
The next step in learning how to create an SEO strategy is optimizing your website for on-page SEO. On-page SEO encompasses everything you can do on your web pages to improve their ranking.
It could mean tweaking your website’s design and code to make it more search engine friendly.
There are several on-page SEO techniques you can use, but if you truly want to master how to create an SEO strategy, these are the most important ones:
Optimizing your title and meta tags is a crucial step when learning how to create an SEO strategy.
Title and meta tags are among the first things Google sees when it crawls your website. That’s why you should make sure your SEO strategy integrates your target keywords in these tags.
Titles include those that carry the H1, H2, and H3…tags. Meta tags, on the other hand, are snippets of text describing the web page’s content. They don’t appear on the page but in their source code.
That said, your title tag (H1) should be no longer than 60 characters and it should accurately describe the page’s content. Meanwhile, your meta tags should give a summary of your page’s content.
Getting these elements right is a foundational part of how to create an SEO strategy.
Here’s an image showing what this section means:
Image via Avengering
Optimizing your images and videos by including target keywords in their file names and tags is another SEO strategy worth trying. This will help Google index them properly. Here’s an image showing where to add your target keyword or alt tags while publishing content on WordPress:
Image via Yoast
If you want your on-page SEO to be effective, you need to create content that’s both unique and compelling. Your content should also be relevant to your target keywords, as we’ll discuss below.
Internal linking is another important SEO strategy that helps Google understand your website’s structure. It also helps reduce your website’s bounce rate.
An internal link is any hyperlink that redirects users to another web page on your website.
Google is now using mobile-first indexing, which means that it’s now using the mobile version of your website for indexing and ranking.
This is why you need to make sure that your website is responsive and mobile-friendly. You can use Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test tool to see if your website is up to par.
Image via Google
The next step in enhancing your knowledge on how to create an SEO strategy is reviewing existing content.
The first thing you should do is identify web pages that aren’t performing well and either redirect, optimize, or remove them. This step is particularly since the pages are not bringing any value.
One of the tools you can use to find low-quality content on your website is Google Analytics. Here’s how:
Navigate to “Site Content” then “Landing Pages”
Image via Ahrefs
Under the “sessions” column, you can sort them from the least performing (one with the lowest number of sessions).
From here, you can identify the landing pages with the lowest number of visitors and:
The decision you make based on this SEO strategy depends on the content on your website.
After 5 years, content can lose relevancy. You might want to delete such posts. But if it provides meaningful information but lacks depth, you can combine it with other related content.
While optimizing your existing content, you can:
Updating your old content is an SEO strategy that will not only help your posts remain relevant but will also attract more traffic. Just try as much to bring to life the low-performing content, one at a time, and be sure to use both internal and external links.
Building backlinks is highly essential for creating a winning SEO strategy. It helps with off-page SEO, and it serves to attract links from other websites to your domain.
This will help your content rank higher on search engines. But does this SEO strategy work?
Yes. It does.
The 2025 Backlinko study we mentioned earlier established that web pages with lots of backlinks rank higher on Google than others. In fact, the #1 search result on Google has 3.8-times more backlinks than those in positions #2 to #10:
Image via Backlinko
This sounds great, but how do you go about building backlinks?
There are various ways you can do this, the easiest way when you are just starting is through link exchange. That is, you can ask other local businesses to link to your website while you link to theirs.
Another SEO strategy for building backlinks is by writing quality blog posts and sharing them on social media. Readers and other content creators can stumble upon your piece, use it, and link to your website.
However, you must ensure that your content quality is top-notch, sounds authoritative, and is about current events or news. This increases the chances of other industry experts linking to your article.
Another SEO strategy involves approaching other websites for guest-blogging opportunities. This way, you can effectively link back to your website.
It’ll take a while before you realize the full benefits of your link-building efforts. Approximately, it takes between 1 and 3 months to see the impact of your link-building strategies.
Image via Authority Hacker
Nevertheless, if you’re unsure of how to go about it, our link building services can come in handy. We’ll help you optimize your SEO strategies and fire up your link-building efforts to dominate the internet ranking.
Another effective SEO strategy involves creating high-quality content. This means that your content should be well-researched, well-written, and informative.
It should also be worth noting that Google now favors content that’s more comprehensive and in-depth.
A study by Backlinko conducted in 2025 showed that the average word count of a Google first page result is 1,447 words.
The easiest way to frame your content for SEO is by using content clusters. This involves grouping content under a similar theme. The content, however, should be related to the keywords you researched in Step 4 above.
So, after settling on a specific topic, and the right keywords, you can create pillar content and other small pieces linking to it.
If you are writing about “lead generation strategies”, for instance, you can surround it with other content such as:
When you link such content to your pillar content, you are showing search engines that you’re authoritative. As a result, your content will be pushed to the top because of its relevancy. These clusters also make it easy for search engines to crawl your site and find quality solutions to a specific search.
As such, you can easily produce and publish content that matches search intent. That is, content that doesn’t only impress Google, but the needs of your target audience.
Nevertheless, as you learn how to create an SEO strategy, it is important not to over-optimize your content with keywords. Maintain a keyword density of between 1 and 2%. Doing so improves the overall readability and user experience.
You might have great content on your website, but if it takes ages to load, a user will leave. This is why prioritizing user experience (UX) is vital for your SEO strategy.
A highly responsive website creates a positive experience, and people will spend more time on it. This tells search engines that your site and web pages are relevant and will significantly rank it higher.
So, what SEO strategy do you use to make your website user-friendly?
You optimize your content for on-page SEO. This is the best way to ensure your website is user-friendly. From making it responsive on mobile to adding tags and more, these steps will improve the overall experience.
However, there are other strategies you can implement such as:
Image via HubSpot
Congratulations on making it this far on how to create an SEO strategy.
But you’re not done yet.
After you’ve followed all the above steps and implemented your SEO strategy, it’s essential to keep track of its progress.
Monitoring your progress will let you determine the success of your SEO efforts and whether you need to make any adjustments.
You can monitor your specific KPIs such as organic traffic using any of the SEO audit tools we’ve mentioned – Google Analytics, Semrush, Ahrefs, and Ubersuggest.
Similarly, you should track your indexed pages to determine whether the updated content is now performing. Other metrics to assess include conversions, ROI, your ranking on SERPs, and how you compare with the competition.
Measuring these metrics is one way to create an SEO strategy to help you recognize areas you’re strong in and the opportunities for improvement.
Remember, it takes time, effort, and resources to excel at creating a winning SEO strategy. Even if you are a pro, it often follows that as you rank higher for one keyword, your other keyword ranking might drop.
And this is why you should have a cyclical SEO strategy. You have to constantly review your content and update non-performing content.
There’s always room for improvement and ways to drive more growth. As a recommendation, therefore, monitor your SEO progress at least every month to see if you are meeting your goals.
Due to the constant shift in consumer behavior, technology, and new trends, the world of SEO will continue evolving. Keeping up with the trends, therefore, is crucial to understanding what’s changing and how you can respond with the right SEO strategy.
Google’s search algorithm is always changing. If you’re serious about learning how to create an SEO strategy that keeps your site ranking, you’ve got to stay updated.
For example, Google rolled out updates like the Helpful Content Update (2022), which focused on ranking original, useful content higher. The Spam Update (2024) cracked down on bad SEO practices, like buying backlinks or stuffing irrelevant keywords.
An earlier November Core Update rollout in 2021 affected some website rankings and traffic. This was evidenced by the chatter across forums such as BlackHatWorld and WebMasterWorld, among others.
Here’s what Google says about the December 2024 core update:
Image via Search Engine Land
For every other update, Google has always recommended that you focus your SEO strategy on providing the best content. That’s what algorithms seek to reward.
Apart from algorithms, you should also keep up with other market trends such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) programs.
Platforms such as Jasper, Surfer SEO, and MarketMuse are a few examples. They have made content generation, search engine optimization, and keyword targeting relatively easy.
So, which resources will help you stay on top of SEO trends?
Glad you asked. Here are a few online platforms to regularly check what’s trending in the SEO world:
In summary, these trends are continuously forcing website owners to rethink how to create an SEO strategy that works long-term. Those who don’t adapt risk falling behind in search rankings.
You can skip all these steps and have an expert help you create effective SEO content strategies that rank.
Of course, a basic SEO strategy is easy to hack. This is something you and your team can brainstorm and pull off. However, to truly optimize your website and rank on the first page of Google, it’s wise to hire an SEO expert.
By hiring a professional, you can get a full suite of SEO services such as:
Through these services, the company you outsource your SEO services will help you save time and drive results.
Whether you are looking to rank your business locally or to target a customer’s search query, they’ll help get there. That’s because an SEO service company knows how to help search engines understand your offering and how to match it with audience needs.
When figuring out how to create an SEO strategy that works, consider incorporating voice search optimization.
Voice search on Google is supported in 74 languages and this presents a very good opportunity for SEO. If your content isn’t voice-friendly, you’re missing out.
Image via Backlinko
Voice search is an SEO strategy that can boost SEO in many ways. It helps websites rank higher in featured snippets. It also drives more traffic by answering long-tail queries people actually ask.
If you’re thinking about how to create an SEO strategy, focus on conversational content. Write in a way that sounds like real speech. This helps build a stronger connection with your audience and keeps them on your page longer.
Securing a website with HTTPS is one of the most crucial steps when learning how to create an SEO strategy.
HTTPS stands for HyperText Transfer Protocol Secure. It encrypts data between a website and its visitors. This protects sensitive information, such as passwords and payment details.
Here’s how a lack of HTTPS can hurt your SEO strategy:
Therefore, it’s crucial to start by securing your website with HTTPS when learning how to create an SEO strategy. This not only builds trust with users but also signals credibility to search engines.
After creating an effective SEO strategy and seeing it win you some rankings, it’s easy to get complacent. But this is where most businesses make a mistake.
Just because you have achieved some SEO success, it doesn’t mean that your work is done. If anything, it’s just the beginning.
To maintain SEO momentum, you need to keep track of your progress and make sure that your SEO efforts are sustainable.
Here are a few things you can do to ensure you get the results you need as you navigate how to create an SEO strategy:
That said, creating SEO content that ranks is a perpetual process. A little complacency may lead to a drop in traffic and in turn, your sales and revenue.
Q1. What is SEO strategy?
A. An SEO strategy refers to a plan of action businesses implement to improve a website’s ranking on search engines.
Q2. What is an SEO checklist?
A. An SEO checklist is a list of items that you need to check or do to ensure that your website is optimized for search engines.
Q3. How do you create an effective SEO strategy?
A. You can create an effective SEO strategy by:
Q4. What are the 3 important components in SEO strategy?
A. The three important components of an SEO strategy are website optimization, publishing regular and quality content, and link building.
Q5. What are the 4 main components of SEO?
A. The 4 main components of an SEO strategy include:
Q6. How do I start my own SEO?
A. Start by setting your goals. Then research keywords, publish quality and optimized content, then analyze your backlinks and explore your website’s technical issues. Monitor the progress of your SEO strategy and stay informed of any SEO trends.
Learning how to create an SEO strategy isn’t very complicated. While SEO is constantly evolving, if you have a sound SEO strategy in place and are willing to put in the effort, you can maintain your website’s momentum.
So, why not get started with the above tips?
It’s by no means an exhaustive list, but it should give you a head start. And don’t forget, if you ever get stuck or need help, our search engine optimization services will help.
Reach out, and we can help you create content that ranks higher and faster on Google while you focus on what you do best.
Thanks for reading!
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