Make Your Content Sound Like What People Actually Search For
You can’t get found if your content uses words no one’s typing into Google. This approach helps you speak the same language as your readers.
Find Words People Use to Search
Ask yourself first: Think about what you’d type into Google if you were looking for your content. For example, if you’re writing about growing herbs indoors, would you search “how to grow basil inside” or “indoor basil cultivation techniques”? I used to overcomplicate this—until I realized the best first step is to put myself in the reader’s shoes. Jot down 5-10 phrases you think someone would use, then check if they make sense. Check Google suggestions: When you start typing a phrase into Google, it shows autocomplete suggestions. Those are real search terms people use. For my travel guide, I typed “budget travel Southeast Asia” and saw suggestions like “budget travel Southeast Asia for backpackers” and “budget travel Southeast Asia 2 weeks itinerary”—so I added those phrases naturally into my content. Look at related searches: Scroll to the bottom of Google’s results page for any keyword; you’ll see “People also ask” and “Related searches” sections. Those are gold—they tell you exactly what else people are looking for around your topic. I used this to add a section on “cheap accommodation in Southeast Asia” to my guide, which boosted my traffic a lot.
Use Those Words in Natural Spots
Put in the title: Your title is the first thing Google and readers see. Don’t force it—if your keyword is “indoor herb growing tips”, a title like “Indoor Herb Growing Tips: Easy Ways to Keep Them Alive” works. I once changed my title from “Growing Herbs at Home” to “Indoor Herb Growing Tips for Beginners” and my click-through rate jumped by 28% (I checked with Google Analytics). Sprinkle in first 100 words: Google pays attention to the start of your content, so mention your main keyword early on—but don’t stuff it. For my travel guide, I started with: “Budget travel in Southeast Asia doesn’t have to mean sleeping in dorms (though that’s fun too). Here’s how to plan a trip that’s easy on your wallet and big on adventure.” That includes the keyword naturally. Add to subheadings: If you have subheadings (like H3s in your content), slip in related keywords where they fit. For example, a subheading like “How to Water Indoor Herbs” uses a related term to “indoor herb growing tips”. This helps Google understand the structure of your content better.
Get Google to Notice Your Content Faster
Even if your content is perfect, Google might take weeks to find it. These tricks speed up the process.
Submit to Google Search Console
Set up GSC account: First, you need to verify your website with Google Search Console (GSC). It’s free—just go to the GSC website and follow the steps (you can verify via your domain provider or Google Analytics). I set up GSC for my blog last year, and it’s been a game-changer for seeing how Google views my content. Submit sitemap: A sitemap is a file that lists all your content so Google can crawl it easily. Most website builders (like WordPress) have plugins that generate sitemaps for you (e.g., Yoast SEO). Once you have it, submit it to GSC under the “Sitemaps” section. This tells Google exactly what to look for. Request indexing: If you have a new piece of content you want Google to find quickly, go to GSC’s “URL Inspection” tool, paste your content’s URL, and click “Request Indexing”. This isn’t a guarantee, but it speeds up the process—my travel guide was indexed in 2 days instead of the usual 2 weeks after I did this.
Share on Social Media & Forums
Post to your socials: Share your content on platforms where your audience hangs out—like Instagram, Facebook groups, or Twitter. Don’t just drop a link; add a personal note, like “I spent ages writing this guide to budget Southeast Asia travel—hope it helps someone plan their next trip!” I shared my guide in three travel Facebook groups, and that drove initial traffic, which Google notices (since it signals your content is relevant). Engage in forums: Platforms like Reddit or Quora are great places to share your content if it answers a question someone’s asking. For example, if someone asks “What’s the best way to travel Southeast Asia on a budget?” you can link to your guide (but make sure to add value first, don’t spam). I did this on Reddit’s r/travel, and it not only brought traffic but also got a few people to link back to my guide. Link from existing content: If you already have other content on your website, add a link to your new piece where it makes sense. For example, if I had a post about “10 Best Herbs to Grow Indoors”, I could link to my “Indoor Herb Growing Tips” post. This helps Google crawl your new content through your existing pages.
Make Your Content Easy for Google to Understand
Google’s bots need to quickly figure out what your content is about to rank it. This approach simplifies things for them.
Use Clear Headings & Structure
Break into sections: No one likes a wall of text—neither do Google’s bots. Split your content into sections with headings (H2, H3, etc.) so it’s easy to scan. For my travel guide, I had sections like “Budget Accommodation Options”, “Transport Tips”, and “Must-Visit Spots on a Budget”. This makes your content more user-friendly and helps Google parse the key points. Use bullet points: When listing tips or items, use bullet points. For example, in my herb guide, I listed “5 Easy Herbs to Grow Indoors” with bullet points. This makes information digestible and keeps readers on your page longer (which is a positive signal for Google). Add a meta description: A meta description is the short text under your title in Google results. Google’s official blog mentions that while meta descriptions don’t directly affect rankings, they do influence click-through rates, which is why it’s important to write compelling ones. I use Yoast SEO to write meta descriptions—for my herb guide, I wrote: “Learn how to grow herbs indoors with these simple tips—no green thumb required!” and it boosted my click-through rate.
Optimize Images for Search
Use descriptive filenames: Instead of naming your image “IMG_1234.jpg”, name it something like “indoor-basil-plant.jpg”. This tells Google what the image is about. I used to ignore this until I realized that image search drives a lot of traffic—my herb guide got 15% of its traffic from Google Images after I optimized the filenames. Add alt text: Alt text is a short description of the image for people who can’t see it (and for Google). Keep it descriptive but concise—like “A potted basil plant on a windowsill”. Don’t stuff keywords, but if your keyword fits naturally, use it. For example, “Indoor basil plant growing on a sunny windowsill” for my herb guide. Compress images: Large images slow down your website, which hurts SEO (Google penalizes slow sites). Use tools like TinyPNG to compress your images without losing quality. I compressed all images in my travel guide, and my page load time went from 4 seconds to 1.5 seconds—big improvement!
Get Other People to Link to Your Content Naturally
Links from other websites are like votes of confidence for Google. This approach helps you earn those links without spamming.
Create Valuable, Shareable Content
Solve a specific problem: People link to content that solves their problems. For example, my travel guide solved the problem of planning a budget Southeast Asia trip—so other travel bloggers linked to it. Think about what pain point your content can fix, and focus on that. Add unique data or insights: If you can include original data (like a survey you did) or personal insights, people are more likely to link to you. For example, I added a section to my herb guide with data from my own experiment: “I grew 5 herbs indoors for 3 months—here’s which ones thrived (and which died)”. This made my content unique, so other gardening blogs linked to it. Make it easy to share: Add share buttons to your content so readers can easily share it on social media. Tools like AddThis or ShareThis work well. I added share buttons to my travel guide, and it got shared 20+ times in the first week—this increases visibility and chances of getting links.
Reach Out to Relevant People
Find people who link to similar content: Use Google to search for content similar to yours—like “budget Southeast Asia travel guides”. Look for blogs or websites that link to those guides, and reach out to them. For example, I emailed a travel blogger who had linked to three other budget travel guides and said: “I loved your post on budget travel— I wrote a guide that includes some unique tips (like how to use local buses) that your readers might find helpful. Would you consider linking to it?” Ask for feedback (and links): If you know someone in your niche, ask them to read your content and give feedback. You can share the link via email, or use WhatsApp Web (https://www.log-whatsappws.com) to send it quickly—this is what I did when I asked my gardening friend for feedback on my herb guide. If they like it, they might link to it. I asked a friend who runs a gardening blog to read my herb guide—she loved it and linked to it from her “Beginner Gardening Tips” post. Participate in link exchanges: While you shouldn’t do spammy link exchanges, if you have a mutual relationship with another blogger (you both create similar content), you can ask to link to each other’s relevant posts. For example, I linked to a friend’s “Best Gardening Tools” post in my herb guide, and she linked to mine in her post—this helps both of our SEO.
Keep People on Your Page Longer (And Come Back)
Google cares about how long people stay on your page (dwell time) and if they come back. This approach keeps readers engaged.
Write Engaging, Conversational Content
Use stories and examples: People love stories—so add personal anecdotes or examples to your content. For my travel guide, I added a story about how I saved money by taking a local bus from Bangkok to Chiang Mai instead of a plane. This made the content more relatable and kept readers on the page longer. Ask questions: Insert questions throughout your content to keep readers engaged. For example, in my herb guide, I asked: “Have you ever tried growing herbs indoors and failed? You’re not alone—let’s fix that!” This encourages readers to keep reading to find the answer. Avoid jargon: Don’t use technical terms unless you explain them in simple language. For example, if you’re talking about “keyword density”, explain it as “how often you use your main keyword in your content—you don’t want to overdo it, just use it naturally”. I used to use jargon in my posts until I realized it was driving readers away—so now I keep it simple.
Add Internal Links to Related Content
Link to relevant posts: Adding links to your existing content helps keep readers on your site longer. For example, if I’m writing about “indoor herb growing tips”, I can link to my post about “How to Water Herbs Indoors”. This encourages readers to click through and read more of your content. Use descriptive anchor text: Anchor text is the text you click on to go to a link—so make it descriptive instead of “click here”. For example, instead of “click here to read my herb guide”, use “read my indoor herb growing tips guide”. This helps Google understand what the linked content is about. Create a resource page: A resource page is a page that lists all your best content on a specific topic. For example, I created a “Gardening Resources for Beginners” page that links to all my gardening posts. This is a great way to keep readers on your site and encourage them to explore more of your content.
WhatsApp Web FAQs
Q: How can WhatsApp Web help with SEO collaboration? A: WhatsApp Web is a great tool for collaborating with team members or freelance writers on SEO projects, especially if you’re working remotely. For example, if you’re brainstorming keyword ideas with a colleague, you can use WhatsApp Web to share Google Sheets links with your keyword list, or send snippets of your content draft for quick feedback. Since it’s a desktop version of WhatsApp, you can type faster than on your phone, which saves time when you’re discussing detailed SEO strategies like optimizing meta descriptions or analyzing competitor content. I’ve used WhatsApp Web to collaborate with a writer on a travel blog post—we shared links to competitor guides, discussed which keywords to target, and even edited the meta description together in real time. Another way it helps is by keeping all your SEO-related conversations in one place—you can pin important chats (like with your SEO consultant) so you don’t lose track of key tips or feedback. Also, if you’re working with someone in a different time zone, you can send messages via WhatsApp Web and they can respond when they’re online, which is more flexible than live calls. For example, I once worked with a writer in India on an SEO article—we used WhatsApp Web to share updates on the content progress, and she would send me drafts at her convenience, which I could review on my desktop quickly. Overall, WhatsApp Web streamlines the collaboration process, making it easier to get your SEO content done faster and more efficiently. Q: Can WhatsApp Web be used to share SEO content links with your audience? A: Yes, WhatsApp Web can be a useful tool for sharing your SEO-optimized content with your audience, especially if you have a WhatsApp group for your followers. For example, if you’ve just published a new blog post on budget travel (like my Southeast Asia guide), you can use WhatsApp Web to share the link in your group, along with a personal note that entices people to click—like “Hey everyone, I just published my new budget Southeast Asia travel guide— it includes tips on how to save money on transport and accommodation. Check it out here [link]!” Since WhatsApp Web is on your desktop, you can easily copy the link from your browser and paste it into the group, which is faster than doing it on your phone. Also, you can use WhatsApp Web to send personalized messages to individual followers who might be interested in your content—like if someone asked you about budget travel in the past, you can send them the link directly. This personal touch can increase the chances of them clicking on the link and reading your content, which boosts your click-through rate (a key SEO metric). I’ve used this strategy with my gardening blog— I have a WhatsApp group of 50+ gardening enthusiasts, and whenever I publish a new post, I share it via WhatsApp Web. This not only drives initial traffic to my post but also encourages group members to share the link with their friends, which increases visibility and potential backlinks. However, it’s important to not spam your audience— only share content that’s relevant and useful to them, and ask for their feedback to keep the conversation going. Q: How does WhatsApp Web help with tracking SEO feedback from readers? A: WhatsApp Web is a great tool for tracking feedback from your readers on your SEO content, as it allows you to easily manage and respond to messages from your desktop. For example, if you’ve shared your blog post via WhatsApp (either in a group or individually), readers might send you feedback on what they liked or disliked, or suggestions for improving the content. Using WhatsApp Web, you can quickly read these messages and take notes—like if multiple readers say your meta description didn’t entice them to click, you can go back and edit it to make it more engaging (which helps with SEO). I’ve had readers send me feedback via WhatsApp Web on my herb guide—they said the section on watering herbs was too vague, so I added more details (like how often to water each type of herb) which made the content more valuable. Another way it helps is by allowing you to organize feedback—you can star important messages (like a reader’s suggestion to add more keywords) so you don’t forget to act on them later. Also, if you’re using WhatsApp Web to collaborate with a team, you can forward reader feedback to your team members quickly, so everyone is on the same page about how to improve the content. For example, if a reader says your post on budget travel is missing a section on food, you can forward that message to your writer via WhatsApp Web and ask them to add it—this helps you update your content to be more comprehensive, which improves its SEO ranking (since Google prefers content that answers all of the reader’s questions). Overall, WhatsApp Web makes it easy to collect and act on reader feedback, which is crucial for optimizing your content for SEO.
If you try any of these SEO tips, let me know how it goes! Drop a comment below or send me a message— I’d love to hear about your results. Did you find any of these tweaks particularly helpful? Or is there something else you’re struggling with when it comes to getting your content found? Let’s chat!
