How to Write SEO Friendly Blog Posts for Beginners: Craft Content That Ranks!
Creating SEO-friendly blog posts is one of the most impactful ways to drive organic traffic to your website and bring your target audience to you. For beginners, SEO blog writing can feel overwhelming. Thankfully, with a little understanding and the right techniques, anyone can craft content that ranks.
Here's everything you need to know about how to write SEO-friendly blog posts for beginners. Let's get you some SEO success!!
How Can SEO Content Writing Help Your Small Business?
It's one thing to write a blog post. Anyone can sit down and knock out a few hundred rambling words. Writing and SEO optimized blog post, on the other hand, an entirely different process. I'll be honest, it will take more time to write your SEO blog post initially. However, getting a post toward the top of the search engine results page will keep bringing you traffic long after you click publish. Learning how to write SEO blog posts well is a valuable tool for any small business owner.
SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, means that you are writing blog posts with the structure and content that search engines, and real people, are looking for.
Harnessing the power of SEO can be a game-changer for business owners and content creators. SEO friendly content helps increase your website’s visibility, brings you organic traffic, and positions your brand as an authority in your niche.
Yes, you can achieve all that without the high cost of running ads or wasting hours on the never-ending social media content creation wheel. Whether you're promoting a product or sharing your expertise, SEO writing helps get your message in front of the the people who are searching for it (i.e. your ideal customer).
The Basics of SEO Friendly Blog Posts
Before we get into the "how," let's break down the key elements that every SEO blog post needs:
Keywords: These are the words or phrases your target audience is searching for. Your goal is to write the best answer, or create the best resource, on the internet around that phrase. Picking the right keyword phrase and then using it strategically is essential to writing content that ranks well in search results.
Meta Descriptions: These are a brief summary of what your blog post is about. It is displayed in search results, right underneath your post's title. Your click-worthy title and compelling meta description determine how many people actually click through to read your post.
Headings: Structured headings (H1, H2, H3) break up your content, making your blog post easier for people (and search engines) to skim. No one really reads full blog posts anymore. However, compelling headlines might be able to talk them into slowing down and reading some of it.
These elements are truly the foundation of SEO content writing. Everything else is icing on the cake.
A Simple 4 Step Process for Writing SEO Friendly Blog Posts
Especially at the beginning, SEO sounds like a mysterious code for the elite few. In reality, it is a simple process anyone can follow to help their blog posts have a better chance of making it up the ranks of search results.
Step 1: Research and Choose the Right Keywords
One of the first things you’ll do when writing an SEO-friendly blog post is keyword research. Keywords are the phrases people will type into a search engine to find your post.
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5 Tips for Effective SEO Keyword Research
Understand Search Intent
Think about why users are searching for a keyword—are they looking for information, comparing options, or making a purchase? Match your content to their intent. Give your ideal blog post reader the information they want to find.
If you already have a keyword phrase in mind, do a quick search to see what comes up. If the results don't match what you had planned to write about, your intent might be off. Keep doing your research until you find a phrase that fits your content and what people are looking for.
Use Tools to Find Quality Keyword Ideas
Tools like Ubersuggest, Semrush, and *Surfer SEO can help you identify good target keywords relevant to your niche.
I use the free versions of Ubersuggest and SEMrush to help me narrow down my keyword and find one that I have the potential to rank for (more on that below).
*Surfer SEO is the tool I rely on to refine my post, find the best related keywords and include everything search engines (and people) want in a post about my chosen topic.
You can find a step-by-step walk through of how I use these tools to do keyword research and write SEO friendly blog posts quickly and efficiently in my Super Simple SEO course bundle.
Target Long-Tail Keywords
This one is SO, SO important. You could write the best SEO friendly content in the world and never get found it you are consistently targeting super broad topics.
For example, this post is about SEO. But if I make my target keyword "SEO", I am competing against 1,510,000,000 search results through the Google search console alone (as of January 2025).
I could narrow it down to "SEO optimized blog posts" but I am still up against 10,700,000 search results. However, when I narrow it down to "SEO friendly blog posts for beginners" my chances get a lot better.
To figure out which words are best, I look for keywords in the green range of Ubersuggest. Some websites with a high domain authority could target the orange or even red zone. Most small business owners, however, will want to stick with the green range to give their blog posts at chance at ranking in search results.
Zero Traffic Target Keywords
This advice might be controversial but I've seen it work for me and my clients for years. Let's say the Ubersuggest results show that the keyword says it gets 0 average traffic per month. You'd think that means no one is searching for that phrase and you need to target something else.
Yes and no. Since not many people are going to write about that target keyword, your chances of making it the top of search engine rankings eventually are decent.
Even though, on average, those phrases get "zero" searches per month, they still probably get some throughout the year. If you are near the top of search results, that traffic will likely come to you.
As search engines understand what your content is about, they will also rank you for related keywords. So, that means even if you target lower traffic keywords, you could end up ranking for higher traffic keywords over time.
On the other hand, if you choose a focus keyword that gets 1,600 searches a month and you end up on page 10 of those search results, no one will ever find you.
Your goal is to write high quality content that provides the best possible resource about your keyword phrase on the internet and then let search engines discover it and promote it to the right people.
Play the Long Game With Your SEO Efforts
SEO is a lot like building a house. With each piece of valuable content, you are showing search engine algorithms that you write relevant content that they want to promote in their search queries. If you start showing up in search engine results for the lower traffic keywords, eventually you will gain authority to rank for the bigger keywords. Look for low competition keywords now so you can get results and target the big keywords later.
Step 2: Writing Engaging SEO-Optimized Content
An SEO friendly blog post isn't just about making the search engines happy. You also want to help your target audience! Great content that keeps readers engaged is actually more likely to show up in search engine results than a boring, rambling, unhelpful blog post.
So, here are a few tips for writing SEO friendly blog posts that people actually enjoy reading:
Tip 1: Hook Readers Immediately
I already alluded to this above but it is worth repeating. Use titles and headline that grab your reader's attention. If I am really stuck, I will ask AI to write me a list of ideas and then choose, combine or refine those ideas until I've got a some good hooks.
I also like to use Co-Schedule's Headline Analyzer to help me refine my titles. Remember, titles and headlines determine how much of your post people read. Spend time on them. Make them amazing. They are a truly vital part of the SEO friendly blog post success formula.
In the introductory paragraph, make sure you explain what the reader will get from reading your SEO friendly article. If they know what is in it for them, they will be more likely to stick around and keep reading.
Tip 2: Use Your Keywords Naturally
You want to use your keyword strategically in your post in places like the:
Title
First 100 words
Meta description
Image alt tags
Beyond that, use your main keyword and related keywords naturally throughout the post. Avoid keyword stuffing! Your post should be interesting and easy to read---not sound like a an old record stuck on your long tail keywords.
If you aren't sure what keyword stuffing is, here is a quick explanation.
Essentially, make sure your post is about your main keyword. Use the exact phrase in the 4 places mentioned above and then don't stress about it. If your target keyword fits in again naturally, great. Use it again. If not, no big deal.
There aren't specific requirements anymore about how many times you need to use your target keyword in a post. Write something people will enjoy reading and get value from. When that is your main focus, the rest will come naturally.
Provide Value
What a lovely segue to my next point---your SEO friendly blog posts have to provide value!!
Your content strategy should be to create the best answer out there to your audience’s questions. Solve their problems, deliver actionable insights, make them laugh, etc. Showcase whatever it is that you do best.
Step 3: Follow Best Practices for Structuring and Formatting Your SEO Blog Post
Search engines and readers love organized, easy to skim content. To help with that, make your blog post visually appealing.
Use Headings
I view the headings kind of like file folders. H1 is for the main title---your big old hanging folder in the file box. H2 is for major sections, you know the manila folders you put within those hanging folders. H3 is for subsections. Hopefully I am not the only one who puts paper clips on groups of papers within the manila folders? Anyway, those are your H3 headings and beyond.
Break Up Blocks Of Text
Keep your paragraphs short. Ideally just a few sentences.
If a section is over 300 words add an additional heading to break it up even more.
You can also use bullet points, numbered lists, bold text, and even images to make your blog writing easier to read.
Engaging Titles
I know, it is the 3rd time I've mentioned this one. It is truly that important!!!
Make sure your blog title and your headings spark curiosity.
For your blog title, keep it between 55–70 characters. You want to incorporate your keyword toward the beginning of the title while making your new blog post sound like an amazing read at the same time.
Step 4: Add Images, Links and Other Media to Enhance Your New Blog Post
Now that you're done with content creation piece, let's make your blog post look pretty. Images and multimedia don’t just make your post visually engaging—they’re also great for SEO!
Add Relevant Images
Images are a great way to break up text and make your post more visually interesting. I often repurpose any Instagram, Pinterest or video content I have related to the post within my blog post. It makes it more helpful for readers and more fun to read.
(PS- If you join my Super Simple SEO bundle, you'll see some of these images again.)
When you are uploading images, use descriptive file names and add alt text with relevant keywords.
The alt text should be a description of what the image is about so that a text reader could tell a visually impaired person what is on the screen using your description. Make it helpful without keyword stuffing.
Include Videos and Infographics
Additional visuals like infographics explaining your topic or even short videos will help keep readers engaged and improve the amount of time they spend reading your post.
Believe it or not, that matters to search engines. The more time people spend on your page the more confident they can be that your content is worth reading.
Add Internal and External Links
Internal and external links are also an important part of your SEO friendly blog posts and content strategy.
Internal links are links to other pages on your own website. This guides your readers to additional relevant content on your website, keeping them engaged longer and improving the overall user experience.
External links show that you've done your research and can direct readers to authoritative sources, adding credibility and context to your writing.
You want to include a few of both internal links and external links to enhance SEO and provide a rich, interconnected content experience.
When you add links, be sure to set them up to open in a new tab. (You will have to look up the best way to do that in your blog platform.) That way, anyone who clicks on a link won't lose the incredibly helpful SEO friendly blog post you created for them.
Frequently Asked Questions About How to Write SEO Friendly Blog Posts
How Long Should a Blog Post Be for SEO?
Great question! There’s no one-size-fits-all answer anymore. A general guideline is to aim for 1,000-1,500 words.
Longer posts usually perform better than shorter blog posts because they provide more in-depth information. Ultimately, quality always trumps quantity. If you are providing the best possible answer to the question, it doesn't have to be an exact length.
Side note: I love that *SurferSEO tells me the ideal length for the long tail keywords I want to rank for. It makes writing SEO content so much easier.
For example, this blog post already has more than 2,600 words but it is telling me that posts about this topic should have more than 4,000. (Goodness, what else are you people talking about in these other blog posts?!?!)
How many times should I use my target keyword?
There is no magic number. Use your main keyword naturally throughout the post but avoid keyword stuffing.
Where is the best place to do keyword research?
There are so many great options! I like to use:
Pinterest Trends (or even the regular search bar)
Google Search Console (a little confusing for research in my opinion but great for data)
Play around with a few tools and find which ones work best for you. I find that Ubersuggest's color ranking system is the best for beginners wanting to write SEO friendly blog posts.
How can I possibly remember how to write SEO blog posts?
SEO blog post writing and SEO guidelines feel like a lot in the beginning. That is why I made this simple checklist for you. Print it out to help you make sure you've checked all the boxes and completed all the steps.
Where can I learn more about writing SEO friendly content?
If you are ready to amp up your SEO efforts but want a resource that doesn't bore you to death, my Super Simple SEO bundle is for you.
It comes with my Crazy Fast Content Planning Course so that you can create a killer content strategy and easy to implement content plan in just a few hours. Then, you'll learn how to write great SEO friendly blog posts that have potential to rank and get my plug and play tracking sheets to make sure it is working.
In the course, you'll find in-depth video explanations that lead you through the entire process step by step.
Having a clear plan will help you create content quickly. SEO skills will help you get your content in front of more people. The tracking sheet will help you adjust your strategy regularly to get REAL results.
Are you ready to start finding more clients with less work so you can build the kind of business you've always dreamed of? Trust me, You + the Super Simple SEO Bundle = the Unstoppable Business Owner you've always wanted to be.
Start the course today to turn your online presence into a business powerhouse that works for you.
