How to Start SEO for New Website: 14 Steps to Optimisation and Growth

Launching a new website is exciting, but to ensure people can find it online, you need to understand SEO for new websites. This process helps more people visit your site by making it easier to find on search engines like Google. By following a simple SEO for new website plan, you can boost your website’s visibility and reach the right audience. In this guide, we’ll walk you through 14 easy steps to help your website succeed. Let’s explore how these steps can open up new opportunities for your site!

Why SEO for New Websites Matters and How to Get It Right?

When launching a new website, SEO is key to building a strong online presence and achieving long-term success. Here’s why it matters:

1. Improves Visibility: SEO helps your website rank higher on search engines, making it easier for people to find your business.
2. Attracting Organic Traffic: By optimising your site for relevant keywords, you bring in visitors who are actively searching for your products or services, increasing the chance of conversions.
3. Building Credibility: Higher search rankings make your site appear more trustworthy, as users tend to see top results as credible and authoritative.
4. Staying Competitive: SEO for website is essential to staying ahead of competitors and capturing your target audience’s attention.

1. Select a Short and Impactful Domain Name

The first step in setting up your new website is selecting a domain name. it is your site’s online address—it’s what users will type into their browsers to find you. Choosing a clear and impactful domain name is crucial because it can attract more visitors and strengthen your brand identity. Consider these guidelines for selecting an effective domain name:

• Use terms related to your field or subject. For example, an SEO company might choose “SEOInsightsHub.com” or “SearchSavvy.com.”
• Keep it brief and straightforward, ideally under 15 characters and ensure it’s easy to say.
• Avoid numbers, hyphens or symbols that could confuse users or seem spammy.
• Aim for something distinctive and memorable, such as “backlinko.com,” which cleverly references a key SEO concept: backlinks.

Choosing the right domain name requires some careful consideration, but the benefits it brings make it a worthwhile endeavour.

2. Build Your Website

Starting your website journey? Begin by selecting the right platform that fits your skills and business goals. Many platforms offer drag-and-drop editors, making it easy to create and customise your site. Here are a few to look into:

• WordPress: Great for managing every aspect of your site, especially SEO.
• Squarespace: Perfect for showcasing portfolios and handling bookings.
• Shopify: Best for developing an e-commerce site with a variety of products, collections and checkout options.
• Wix: Ideal for building straightforward sites like portfolios, blogs or small business pages with limited e-commerce needs.

Choose a Design

Your website’s design sets the tone and feel for visitors. Choose a pre-made theme that fits your brand’s vibe and is mobile-friendly. Then, customise it to make it uniquely yours by adding. To ensure your brand is consistent and unforgettable, incorporate:

1. Your logo
2. Signature colours
3. Selected fonts
4. Images or graphics

Enhance Security

Building trust and improving SEO for new website starts with robust security measures. Google prioritises secure websites in its rankings, so installing an SSL certificate (HTTPS) is essential to protect both data and your visitors’ information.

SSL certificates show a security indicator on your site, reassuring users that their data is safe. Many hosting services offer free SSL certificates as part of their packages, making it easy to secure your site. Check if your hosting plan includes this feature; if not, consider using a plugin like Really Simple SSL for WordPress to add an extra layer of protection and boost your SEO.

3. Perform Initial Research

Mastering SEO for website starts with thorough research into your audience, competitors and key phrases. This will help you tailor your site to meet both search engines’ criteria and your target audience’s needs.

Investigate Your Audience

Knowing what your potential customers are searching for on the internet is crucial for devising a winning SEO plan. Start by stepping into your audience’s shoes to brainstorm the potential questions they might have regarding your offerings or industry. Take into account:

• Challenges: Identify the issues your customers encounter that your business can address. For instance, a client of a legal firm may need guidance on divorce proceedings in their region.
• Knowledge gaps: Determine what information they lack that you can provide. A salon visitor might search for local pricing details.
• Decision-making factors: Understand what influences their choice of a solution. A bakery customer might be curious about birthday cake delivery options.

Compile a list of inquiries customers frequently pose, whether during face-to-face interactions, via phone calls or through marketing channels like emails and social media.

Enhance your audience insights

• Exploring forums and social media platforms: Visit Facebook groups, Reddit, Quora and niche forums to see what people are asking about your industry.
• Using tools like Answer The Public: This tool helps you discover the most searched questions related to your product or service, giving you valuable insight into the keywords and topics that matter to your audience.

4. Do Keyword Analysis

To drive organic traffic to your site, understanding what your audience is searching for is key. Keyword research is the foundation of any successful SEO strategy for a website because it reveals the topics and phrases your potential visitors are actively looking for. By identifying what your target audience is looking for, such as “plumbing repair services,” a tradie-related keyword, you can tailor your content and improve its visibility in search engine results.

To conduct effective keyword research, utilising the right tools is essential. Free tools like Ahrefs’ Keyword Generator can be a valuable starting point, offering insights into seed keywords like “plumbing repair services” and generating a list of related ideas. For more in-depth analysis, professional tools such as Ahrefs and SEMrush provide a comprehensive view of potential topics. These tools help you to:

• Leverage the keyword metrics provided by these platforms to make informed decisions about your content strategy.
• Use search filters to narrow down to the most relevant and competitive keywords, optimising your efforts for better results.

5. Organise Your Website Layout

When designing your website’s structure, it’s important to use the questions and search terms you’ve gathered from your research to guide the layout and navigation. Website structure acts as a blueprint, laying out the hierarchy of your pages and how they interconnect. It might look something like this:

Key Considerations for Site Structure:

1. Essential Pages: Start by creating core pages like the homepage, “About Us,” “Contact,” and a dedicated page for your products or services. Make sure these are easily accessible from the main navigation menu. Tip: Keep your main navigation simple to enhance user experience.
2. Logical Organisation: Organise your site into clear categories and subcategories. This not only helps users but also improves search engine understanding of how your content is related. Tip: Think of your site like a tree—main categories are branches and subcategories are the smaller offshoots.
3. Competitor Analysis: A great way to refine your structure is by looking at competitors. Explore the pages and topics they cover to get inspiration for your site. Tip: Identify gaps in your competitor’s structure and capitalise on them with unique content.

6. Develop SEO-Friendly Content

To ensure your website is easy to navigate for both visitors and search engines, you need a well-organised content structure. A mind map can help you visualise and plan this structure logically.

Implement a Clear URL Structure

Choose URLs that are simple and descriptive. For instance, use a URL like `website.com/seo-for-new-website/`—it’s clear and informative.

Key Technical Considerations

A good user experience is important for both your visitors and your website’s performance on Google. Here are some critical technical aspects to address:

• Use HTTPS: Protecting personal data from hackers is vital. By encrypting your site with SSL/TLS, you ensure data security. Most reliable web hosts offer this feature and it can usually be enabled with a single click. Once activated, your URLs will display a padlock icon, indicating a secure connection.
• Ensure Mobile-Friendliness: Since the majority of searches now happen on mobile devices, your website must be responsive and function well on all screen sizes. You can test this easily using Google Chrome’s Developer Tools:
  1. Select the three vertical dots located in the upper right corner of your browser.
  2. Go to “More Tools” and select “Developer Tools.”
  3. Toggle the mobile view by clicking the mobile icon in the top left corner.
• Avoid Intrusive Interstitials: Full-screen ads that pop up before content loads are not only annoying to users but are also frowned upon by Google. Unless absolutely necessary, it’s best to avoid these pop-ups.
• Optimise Site Speed: Fast-loading pages is critical, as page speed is a ranking factor for Google. Spend time optimising your site’s load time. Tools like PageSpeed Insights can help you evaluate and improve your site’s performance.

7. Apply On-Page SEO Techniques

On-page SEO for new websites involves optimising individual pages on your website to improve their search engine rankings and attract more organic traffic. If you’re new to SEO, here are three fundamental on-page techniques that can significantly impact your site’s visibility.

1. Crafting the Perfect Title Tag

A title tag serves as the clickable headline that appears in search engine results. Every page on your site should have a distinct title tag that indicates what the page is about. For instance:

Title tags should be concise, ideally between 50 to 60 characters and should naturally include your target keyword.

2. Writing an Effective Meta Description

A meta description is a summary of the page’s content that appears under the title in search results. Here’s an example:

Keep it under 160 characters, include keywords and make it engaging to encourage clicks.

3. Utilising Internal Links

Internal links connect different pages on your website, helping search engines understand the relationship between them and providing users with additional content on related topics.

For example, if your article on SEO content mentions local SEO for the website and you have a detailed post on that topic, you should include an internal link to that resource.

Use Descriptive Anchor Text

The anchor text is the portion of a link that can be clicked on. It should give users an idea of what they’ll find on the linked page. In SEO, it also informs search engines about the linked page’s content. When writing anchor text, include relevant keywords and avoid generic phrases like “click here.”

Example: In this case, the anchor text “keyword research” is linked because it accurately describes the content of the linked page.

Link to Relevant Pages

Ensure that the pages you link to are relevant to the current content. For example, if you’re writing a blog post about the benefits of having a website for dentist relief, you might include links to other pages on your site about specific reasons or what should be done. This approach helps users find related content and signals to search engines that your pages are interconnected.

4. Optimising Images

Image SEO involves optimising your images to improve their chances of ranking higher in search results and on Google Images. For instance, if you’re creating a webpage on “plumber services,” you should name your images using relevant keywords:

Here’s how to optimise your images:

• Use Descriptive File Names: Avoid generic image names. Instead, use descriptive names that include relevant keywords. As an illustration, rather than naming a file “XYZ.jpg,” opt for something more descriptive like “commercial-air-conditioning.jpg.”
• Add Alt Text: Alt text is a textual description of an image, useful for users who are visually impaired or when the image fails to load. It also helps search engines understand the image’s content.
• Compress Image Sizes: Large images can slow down your website, harming user experience and SEO. Before uploading an image, use tools like Image Resizer to reduce its file size without compromising quality.

8. Ensure Mobile Compatibility

Google prioritises websites that are mobile-optimised and properly formatted for mobile use, especially as the majority of web traffic now comes from mobile devices rather than desktops.

What does this mean for you?

If your site isn’t mobile-friendly, you could be losing out on important traffic, potential leads and revenue. You can easily check your site’s mobile compatibility by using Google’s Mobile-Friendly Test. Just enter the URL of the page you want to assess, click “Test URL,” and you’ll get instant results.

For example, you might see a message like: “Page Fetch Successful”

To ensure your site performs well on mobile, keep these tips in mind:

• Implement a theme with a responsive design for your website.
• Adjust title tags and meta descriptions to suit mobile search character limits
• Steer clear of pop-ups that disrupt the user experience

9. Build Trust and Acquire Backlinks

Creating high-quality, search-engine-optimised content is essential for your website, but it’s only part of the equation. When your site is new, building credibility through backlinks is just as crucial.

A backlink is like one website endorsing another. It’s a way for Google to recognise your website as a trusted source of information.

Backlinks help signal that your business is legitimate and talked about. One effective method to get them is by engaging with your local community. For example, if you participate in a local event, the event website might feature your business logo and link back to your site, building credibility.

Here are some simple ways to build quality backlinks and establish trust:

• Create share-worthy resources: Publish helpful guides, infographics or tools that others will want to link to and share.
• Network with local businesses: Form partnerships with other businesses and offer to exchange blog mentions or guest posts with backlinks.
• Host community events: Organise events like workshops or fundraisers, which can lead to coverage and backlinks from local news sites.
• Offer expert opinions: Provide your expertise to local publications or blogs, which could result in mentions and links.
• Collaborate on local projects: Join in on community projects or collaborations and request a link on their websites in return.
• Submit press releases: Announce major milestones or product launches through press releases, which can be picked up by news sites, creating new backlinks.

10. Share Your Content Widely

Once your content is created and optimised, the next step is promoting it to reach a wider audience. This boosts your brand visibility, helps you gain authority and increases traffic to your site, which ultimately improves your SEO rankings.

Here’s how you can promote your content effectively:

1. Share on Social Media: Post your content on platforms like Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn and adjust the message to fit each site. Also, use the Facebook meta business step-by-step process to guide you through posting.
2. Send Email Updates: Keep your subscribers updated with regular emails sharing your latest blog posts or news.
3. Write for Other Websites: Contribute articles to popular websites in your field and link back to your site to reach more people.
4. Join Online Groups: Participate in relevant online forums and share helpful information that links back to your content.
5. Use Paid Ads: Invest in online ads to get your content in front of a bigger, targeted audience.

11. Identify and Resolve Site Problems

Every website can run into issues that affect performance, traffic and user experience. To keep your site running smoothly and ensure visitors have a great experience, it’s important to regularly identify and fix problems.

Here’s how you can spot and resolve common website problems:

• Broken Links
  Fix or remove broken links to prevent “404 error” pages and improve user experience.
• Slow Page Load SpeedUse tools to speed up your site by optimising images and reducing plugins.
• Mobile Unfriendliness
  Ensure your site adapts well to mobile devices by using a responsive design.
• Outdated Content
  Update old information and broken images to keep your site fresh and engaging.
• Security Issues
  Make sure your site has an SSL certificate and is protected from potential threats.

Tips for Maintaining a Healthy Website:

1. Regularly scan for errors using online tools to stay on top of potential problems.
2. Optimise images to reduce page load time and improve user experience.
3. Keep content updated to stay relevant and engage visitors.
4. Test on mobile devices to ensure a seamless experience for mobile users.

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12. Create a Google Business Listing

A Google Business Profile (GBP) acts as a digital storefront, allowing you to display key details about your business, such as your address and contact information.

It’s a free tool from Google that helps you manage your local business’s visibility on Google Search and Maps. Check for Existing Profiles: Search for your business on Google. If a profile already exists, claim it by verifying your ownership. If not, you can create a new profile by providing the necessary details.

Here are some important points to consider when setting up your Google Business Profile:

Select the Appropriate Category

Choosing the right primary category that accurately reflects your business. For example, if you run a family law mediation service, select “Mediation Service” to improve visibility for relevant searches.

Consider Seasonality

If your business experiences seasonal variations, adjust your primary category to match peak times. For example, an HVAC repair service might choose “Air conditioning repair service” as the main category during the summer and switch to “Heating contractor” in the winter.

Add Relevant Photos

Upload high-quality images that highlight your business, products or services. If applicable, include photos that reflect seasonal offerings, such as pictures of your team installing air conditioners in the summer or servicing heaters during the winter.

Maintain NAP Consistency

Ensure your business name, address and phone number (NAP) are consistent and accurate across all online platforms, including your website, social media accounts and online directories like Yelp.

Encourage and Manage Reviews

Positive reviews help build trust and can improve your local search rankings. Encourage satisfied customers to leave reviews and make sure to respond quickly to both positive and negative feedback.

13. Install Google Search Console and Analytics

To keep track of how your website’s performance and user interaction, it’s important to set up analytics tools like Google Search Console (GSC) and Google Analytics 4 (GA4).

Why Use Both?

• Google Search Console (GSC): Focuses specifically on how your website performs in Google search results.
• Google Analytics 4(GA4): Provides a comprehensive overview of your website traffic, including traffic from search engines, social media, referrals and other sources.

How to Set Up Each Tool

Google Search Console

1. Open Google Search Console and enter your domain, then click “Continue.”
2. To verify domain ownership, follow these steps:
3. Log in to your domain registrar (e.g., GoDaddy).
4. Go to the “DNS configuration” area for your domain.
5. Add the unique record provided by GSC to your domain’s DNS settings.
6. Click “Verify” to complete the process.

Google Analytics

1. Open Google Analytics, create a new account and set your data-sharing preferences.
2. Click “Next” to proceed.
3. Create a property for your account, which represents the website you want to analyse.
4. Name your property and select your preferred time zone and currency.
5. Click “Next” to move forward.
6. Enter your business details, such as industry, size and objectives (e.g., generating leads, selling products or services, increasing brand awareness).
7. Agree to the Google Analytics Terms of Service.
8. Choose the platform from which you want to collect data (e.g., website, Android app, iOS app).
9. For websites, select “Web.”
10. Enter your website URL and give a name to the stream (e.g., “My Website”). Then, click “Create stream.”
11. Follow the specific instructions for your website builder to start collecting data.

14. Track Performance and Refine SEO Tactics

Learning how to do SEO for new website is just the beginning. It’s important to regularly monitor your SEO performance to identify what’s working well and what could be improved, helping you maintain or boost your rankings.

Monitor Impressions

Impressions indicate how often your website shows up in search results, independent of user clicks. Seeing any impressions is a good sign because it shows that your site is indexed and visible in search engines.

• To check impressions in Google Search Console, go to the “Performance” section and click on “Search results,” then select “Total Impressions.”
  
  
• If you aren’t seeing impressions for the keywords you aim to rank for, it might mean that your content isn’t indexed or isn’t optimised effectively or that Google doesn’t view your site as relevant for those keywords.
• To address this, review your content and make necessary updates to improve its ranking potential and increase impressions. Use relevant keywords naturally throughout the content, including in headings, meta descriptions and image alt text.

Evaluate Clicks

Clicks indicate that a user saw your link in the search results and chose to visit your site. Clicks show that your rankings are effective enough to draw organic traffic. In Google Search Console, scroll down from the general performance results and click on the “Pages” tab to view which pages receive the most clicks. If your site getting impressions but few or no clicks, it could mean that users are seeing your page in search results but aren’t finding it compelling enough to visit.
This could be due to:

• Low Ranking: Your page may be appearing too far down in the search results. In this case, you should focus on improving your rankings through content optimisation, backlink building and increasing your website’s overall authority.
• Unappealing Title and Meta Description: If your title and meta description aren’t engaging or relevant, they may not be enticing enough for users to click. Revise these elements to make them more appealing and aligned with the search query.

Track Click-Through Rates (CTRs)

• Click-through rate (CTR) measures the percentage of impressions that result in a click.
• Monitoring CTRs for different search queries can help you determine which pages are performing well and which need further optimisation.
• To find out which keywords have the highest and lowest CTRs, go to the “Queries” tab in Google Search Console.

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To Sum Up

Mastering SEO for your new website is key to building a strong online presence and driving organic traffic. By following this comprehensive guide, you can effectively optimise your website for search engines, making it easier for potential customers to find your business. Keep in mind that SEO for a new website is a continuous effort that needs constant oversight and tweaks. Stay up-to-date with the latest SEO trends, continually refine your strategies, and always focus on providing valuable content to your audience. With dedication and persistence, your website can achieve higher rankings, improved visibility, and sustained success in the digital landscape.