I learned some powerful SEO tips for bloggers at the beginning of my journey. When I started my first blog, Courage. Hope. Love., most of my traffic came from Pinterest.
I didn’t see anything wrong with this at first, my page views were growing exponentially and my engagement was rising. Everything you wanted as a new blogger was lining up. I was happy and so I continued working on growing this platform.
But then Pinterest changed their algorithm and my traffic took a nosedive. I was at the mercy of this change and I realized that my blog depended on something that I didn’t own or have any control over.

From within the minor panic that threatened to take over all the hard work I’d done to grow my blog, I realized that I needed to make a change.
That was when I learned of the utmost importance of SEO for bloggers.
SEO allows your site to rank higher on Google and brings traffic to your site through organic searches like Google. When your blog or website is optimized for SEO, you will see an increase in traffic from search engines.
Currently, my largest traffic source is from search engines. This was a major feat because it gives me the comfort that I am in control of the traffic coming to my blog.
Although Pinterest is a close follower in referring traffic, I know that no matter what algorithm changes that platform makes, my traffic can remain steady and growing.
SEO allows you greater control over your incoming traffic. It allows you the constant and reliable traffic from sources like Google and it brings high-quality and converting readers.
So let’s dive into the best SEO tips for bloggers that I’ve used over the past few years to explode my Google traffic.
Disclaimer: Before you do any of these to your blog post, be sure that it does not subtract value from your post. You want these additions to be seamless and unnoticed by your readers. I like to go by the standard that if my readers can tell I’m trying to up the SEO by throwing in this keyword, I shouldn’t place it there. Don’t let SEO distract your readers or take away value.
1. Internal Links & External Links Will Boost Your SEO
Links are a powerful way to boost your SEO.
Internal links are links that go to another post or page on your site. These links help your readers find their way to related topics and they also help to boost your search engine ranking.
I try to include at least 1-2 internal links in every single post.
External links are the links that go to other blogs or websites. These also are important in boosting your search engine ranking. You can link to other blog posts that are related or to another website that you feel fits your topic.
It is really important to include the link within the text or keyword. Don’t put the link on text such as “click here” because Google won’t understand what you’re linking to.
If you’re linking to a post, highlight the keyword and link to the post through that word.
Links are important and as you create each blog post, you can add these naturally and boost your SEO.
2. Keywords are Essential to Boost SEO for Bloggers
Speaking of keywords, your keywords can sometimes make or break your SEO for a post. If you spend a lot of time focusing on finding the right keyword, you can really rank high in search engines like Google.
The easiest way to find keywords is to start typing in the Pinterest search bar and see what comes up.
The easiest example would be to type in chocolate chip cookies. Labels such as gluten-free or paleo or easy will auto-fill and give you ideas on more specific or long-tail keywords.
There are a few important places to put these keywords.
- In the Yoast plugin, fill out your keyword in the Focus Keyword section and try to include it in the meta description.
- Try to fit the keyword into the title
- If you can without subtracting value, add the keyword into the first sentence of your post and bold it.
- Sprinkle your keyword throughout your post and include it in headings where possible.
- Put the keyword in the image text (more on this later)
Find keywords that are specific enough that you’re not competing with every blog post out there and this will really boost your SEO.
3.Guest Post! Guest Post! Guest Post!
When you guest post for other bloggers you have an amazing opportunity to do these things:
- Be seen by another dedicated audience
- Include backlinks from your site to theirs and theirs to yours increases your authority on Google
- You may have the opportunity to promote a free resource or opt-in to a new audience
- You build connections with other bloggers and network
Guest posting is a great way to collaborate and it can be refreshing to switch up your normal topics. I love to find others who are in a similar but not exactly the same niche as mine.
I even suggest doing a guest post swap and if the opportunity arises, ask them to write a post for you as well.
4. Include Related Posts in These Places
Including space where your readers can easily find and click to another similar post is extremely important.
This will not only increase engagement and encourage readers to stick around, but it is a great place to include more links on your page and in some cases, more images.
This means more opportunities for keywords too!
5. What Your Images Need for Better SEO
Finally, the last and most easily forgotten place for keywords is within your images.
There are a few important places for keywords in your images.
The first is in the image file before you upload it. This will translate to the URL that goes to the image. Sometimes I will add a number after it so that my post URL can include the keyword without interfering.
Post:
nicolekauffman.com/gluten-free-cookies
Image:
nicolekauffman.com/gluten-free-cookies-1
When you upload your image, you will have a few options on the right-hand side (if using WordPress).
Here you will change both the Title and the Alt Text to include your keyword or multiple keywords.
A lot of people forget this step and when their image is pinned or saved, it saves with basic text that includes no keywords at all!
Remember to make the changes to your uploaded image because this will definitely help boost your SEO.
These 5 tips are some of the best SEO tips for bloggers that I’ve found over the past few years. They’ve helped to explode my search engine traffic and I’m confident they will help you too.
Just remember, when you update your SEO it will take a few weeks to take effect. You won’t notice much of a change at all in the beginning, but after some time you will start to see your referring traffic from search engines growing!
The advice you gave is fabulous! I am guilty of paying someone to review and correct my SEO when necessary. However, all the things you mentioned are what I have to do on my own and then they just “teak” it!!!! Bravo to you, I will be sharing this!
These are all great tips. I’m definitely trying to focus on SEO a lot more. It’s not necessarily for every single post, but for ones that I think people would actually search for, I do what I can with the images and keywords.
-Lauren
This post was a great reminder to me to do the best I can with SEO. I love your honesty and transparency about Pinterest and not putting your eggs all in one basket. GREAT post! 🙂
I can vouche for every single one of these tips! It’s crazy how much the internet has changed but because its exchanging much more info than before, it means upping the game to be seen! I host blog parties every season and try to find ones to be part of at least once a season as well. Both have worked wonders!!
Good tips! I’m going back on old posts to work on SEO. I wish I would have had your advice when I first started 2 years ago;-)
I really need to get better at including alt text in my photos and including internal links throughout my posts! Thanks so sharing these helpful tips 🙂
These are such great tips!!! I am constantly going back and adding, changing, perfecting my past posts. I will have to keep all of this in mind. I usually have internal links, but rarely include external links. I will have to start doing this.
I definitely need to learn more about SEO! This was super helpful, thank you!
These are such great tips! I definitely need to start paying more attention to keywords!
Great advice! I didn’t know about the internal and external links until a few months ago and I make a huge difference!!
I am a little unclear about why you add a number to the image. Does the image title interfere when Google does a search for the keyword? I have never heard of this. I am so glad to read this post.
Thank you, I needed to read this! The last Pinterest algorithm sent me into a tailspin, too!
Great tips! Picking the right keywords is so so important! I am guilty of neglecting internal links and I need to get on that : ) Thanks for the reminder!
I had no idea that building up backlinks was so helpful! These are amazing tips. You’ve given me a lot to implement. So to clarify, you’re putting the keywords in the image file itself, not in the alt text?
Great tips! I’ve been working on building my SEO and didn’t know guest posts were so helpful. I’ve been planning on adding some and now I can’t wait to do it!
This was very helpful. I had a similar experience when Pinterest changed their algorithm. I need to remember to use more keywords in my image files.