Start with What Google Cares About
Google's goal is simple: serve the best answer to the searcher's question. Your job is equally simple: create content that genuinely answers what people are searching for, and make it easy for Google to understand and serve that content.
Everything else (meta tags, schema markup, internal linking) just supports that core principle.
Get Your WordPress Settings Right
Before writing a single word of content, check these WordPress settings:
- Settings, Reading: Make sure "Discourage search engines from indexing this site" is UNCHECKED. You'd be surprised how often this gets left on after launching from staging.
- Settings, Permalinks: Use "Post name" structure (
/%postname%/). Clean URLs matter for both users and search engines. - SSL certificate: HTTPS isn't optional anymore. Most hosts offer free SSL through Let's Encrypt.
Titles and Meta Descriptions
Your title tag is the single most important on-page SEO element. It shows up in search results and browser tabs. Write titles that are:
- Under 60 characters (so they don't get cut off)
- Descriptive of the page content
- Unique across your entire site
- Written for humans first, search engines second
Meta descriptions don't directly affect rankings, but they influence click-through rates. Think of them as ad copy for your search result. Keep them under 155 characters, include your target keyword naturally, and give people a reason to click.
Install Yoast SEO or Rank Math to manage titles and meta descriptions without touching code.
Content Structure That Works
Well-structured content helps both readers and search engines. A few rules of thumb:
- One H1 per page: This is your main heading. In WordPress, it's usually the post title.
- Use H2s for main sections: Think of them as chapter titles
- Use H3s and H4s for subsections: Don't skip heading levels
- Short paragraphs: 2-4 sentences max. Big walls of text drive people away.
- Lists and bullet points: Scannable content performs better
Speed Matters More Than You Think
Page speed is a confirmed ranking factor, and it's also a user experience factor. A site that loads in 5 seconds instead of 2 loses visitors before they even see your content. For WordPress specifically:
- Choose decent hosting: Cheap shared hosting is the #1 speed killer. You don't need a dedicated server, but avoid overcrowded shared plans.
- Use a caching plugin: WP Rocket, W3 Total Cache, or LiteSpeed Cache (if your host supports it)
- Optimize images: Use WebP format, compress before uploading, and add lazy loading
- Minimize plugins: Each plugin adds overhead. Audit your list and remove what you don't use.
- Use a CDN: Cloudflare's free plan is a solid starting point
Test your speed with Google PageSpeed Insights and focus on the Core Web Vitals: LCP, INP, and CLS.
Internal Linking
Internal links help Google discover pages and understand your site's structure. They also keep visitors on your site longer. When writing a new post, link to 3-5 related articles naturally within the content. Go back to older posts and add links to your new content.
Your most important pages should have the most internal links pointing to them. Think of internal links as votes. The more votes a page gets, the more important Google considers it.
XML Sitemaps and Robots.txt
An XML sitemap tells Google which pages exist on your site. Yoast SEO and Rank Math generate these automatically. Submit your sitemap to Google Search Console, which is free and gives you valuable data about how Google sees your site.
Your robots.txt file controls what search engines can crawl. For most WordPress sites, the default is fine. Just make sure you're not accidentally blocking important content.
What NOT to Waste Time On
SEO advice is full of outdated tips. Skip these:
- Meta keywords: Google has ignored these since 2009
- Keyword density percentages: Write naturally, don't count keywords
- Submitting to hundreds of directories: Low-quality links hurt more than they help
- Buying backlinks: It's against Google's guidelines and rarely worth the risk
- Obsessing over word count: Quality beats quantity. A 500-word post that perfectly answers the query beats a 3000-word post padded with fluff.
Focus on creating genuinely useful content, keeping your site fast, and making it easy for Google to crawl. Those fundamentals haven't changed in 20 years, and they still work.