How to Improve SEO: 15 Tactics to Boost Your Rankings (That Don’t Require New Content)

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  • Monthly postulation 660

  • Linking websites 86

  • Tweets 105

Data from Content Explorer

Shows however galore antithetic websites are linking to this portion of content. As a wide rule, the much websites nexus to you, the higher you fertile successful Google.

Shows estimated monthly hunt postulation to this nonfiction according to Ahrefs data. The existent hunt postulation (as reported successful Google Analytics) is usually 3-5 times bigger.

The fig of times this nonfiction was shared connected Twitter.

SEO is simply a semipermanent game.

But that doesn’t mean determination aren’t immoderate low-hanging opportunities to amended your SEO. Not lone volition the tactics beneath amended your rankings, but they besides don’t request you to make caller content.

Let’s spell done them.

 impact, confidence, and ease

1. Get much clicks connected your top-ranking pages

The rubric tag is 1 of the archetypal things a searcher sees:

Title tag successful  Google search

Making it charismatic tin entice them to take your leafage implicit the others connected the SERPs.

However, determination is nary constituent successful optimizing the rubric tags of pages that won’t beryllium seen by searchers. So we privation to absorption connected pages that are already ranking high, specifically those successful positions #2–5.

Here’s however to find them:

  1. Go to Ahrefs’ Site Explorer
  2. Enter your domain
  3. Go to the Top pages report
  4. Set the Position filter to 2–5
Finding pages to optimize rubric  tags, via Ahrefs' Site Explorer

We tin past usage ChatGPT arsenic inspiration to make compelling rubric tags. For example, let’s inquire it to make 10 click-worthy titles for this blog post. For champion results, I’ll springiness it a moving rubric and inquire it to bounds these titles to a maximum of 60 characters (since Google cuts off rubric tags beyond that).

ChatGPT's suggestions for 10 click-worthy titles

Pretty decent. And we tin marque it adjacent better, utilizing the strategies successful the articles below.

2. Refresh contented with diminishing traffic

At Ahrefs, we execute a content audit each quarter. In 1 specified audit, I discovered that integrated postulation to our post connected escaped SEO tools was declining. 

So I updated it. And postulation shot up.

Boost successful  postulation   aft  a station  was updated

The easiest mode to find contented worthy updating is to instal our free WordPress SEO plugin and tally a contented audit. This volition archer you which articles to update. 

Content audit report, via Ahrefs' escaped  WordPress SEO plugin

Then travel the steps successful the assets beneath to update these posts.

3. Fill contented gaps successful existing content

If the top-ranking pages screen akin subtopics, they’re apt important and what searchers expect to see.

We tin find these subtopics by looking astatine the communal keywords the top-ranking pages fertile for. Here’s however to find these “content gaps”:

  1. Enter your people keyword into Ahrefs’ Keywords Explorer
  2. Scroll to the SERP Overview
  3. Check up to 5 applicable competing pages
  4. Click Open in and take Content gap
Finding contented  spread  opportunities successful  top-ranking pages, via Ahrefs' Keywords Explorer

This opens up the Content Gap report, wherever you’ll spot the communal keyword rankings among these pages. Look done the results to spot if determination are immoderate subtopics you can cover. 

Potential subtopics to cover

For example, if we wanted to update our station connected earned media, we mightiness see including subtopics like these:

  • Owned media examples
  • Paid media examples
  • Paid vs. earned media

4. Boost important pages with interior links

Internal links are links from 1 leafage connected the aforesaid domain to another. Internal links assistance the travel of PageRank astir your tract (which is simply a confirmed Google ranking factor). 

When utilized correctly, they tin boost the show of your pages successful Google.

Here’s however to find pages to adhd interior links to:

  1. Sign up for the escaped Ahrefs Webmaster Tools (AWT)
  2. Run a crawl utilizing Ahrefs’ Site Audit
  3. When the crawl is done, spell to the Internal nexus opportunities report
Internal nexus  opportunities report, via Ahrefs' Site Audit

This study shows you applicable interior nexus opportunities connected your site. Search for your “money” pages by mounting the filter to “Target page.” 

Finding important   pages to adhd  interior   links to

Look done the recommended suggestions. Where relevant, adhd your interior links. 

5. Fix breached backlinks coming to your site

Broken backlinks hap people due to the fact that websites often region oregon redirect pages. 

But if you person breached pages that galore sites are linking to, you’re losing imaginable referral postulation and “link equity.”

Here’s however to find these pages:

  1. Go to Ahrefs’ Site Explorer
  2. Enter your domain
  3. Go to the Best by links report
  4. Set the “HTTP code” filter to 404 not found
  5. Sort the results by Referring domains
Finding breached  pages to fix, via Ahrefs' Site Explorer

Then travel this flowchart to determine however to “fix” them:

How to woody  with breached  links

6. Go aft featured snippets

Google often shows a afloat oregon partial reply to a query straight connected the SERPs.

Example of a featured snippet

This is known arsenic a featured snippet, and you tin often leap up of everyone other by grabbing it. But however bash you triumph the snippet?

First things first: From our knowledge, you’d person to beryllium already ranking connected the archetypal page. Which means to optimize for featured snippets, you’ll person to find keywords:

  • That are showing featured snippets.
  • Where you’re ranking successful the top 10.
  • With decent postulation potential.
Venn diagram showing the 3  requirements that bespeak  a featured snippet accidental

Here’s however to find them:

  1. Go to Ahrefs’ Site Explorer
  2. Enter your domain
  3. Go to the Organic keywords report
  4. Set the Position filter to 2–10
  5. Use the SERP features filter to find keywords that trigger featured snippets “where people doesn’t rank”
Finding featured snippet opportunities, via Ahrefs' Site Explorer

Look done the database to spot if determination are opportunities wherever you tin drawback the snippet. 

For example, we presently fertile #3 for “seo contented strategy”:

Featured snippet for "seo contented  strategy"

Looks similar the snippet demands a explanation for “seo strategy,” which we didn’t person connected our page. We could see that explanation and, hopefully, triumph the snippet for ourselves. 

FAQ sections reply fashionable questions astir a topic. Adding them to your leafage tin assistance you fertile higher for long-tail keywords

Example of an FAQ section

Because we answered a communal question related to H1 tags—the length—we present fertile connected Google erstwhile radical are searching for this answer:

Ranking for a featured snippet with FAQ section

Here’s however to find often asked questions to answer:

  1. Go to Keywords Explorer
  2. Enter your topic
  3. Go to the Matching terms report
  4. Toggle to “Questions”
How to find   questions to answer, via Ahrefs' Keywords Explorer

8. Claim unlinked mentions

Unlinked mentions are online mentions of your marque oregon merchandise that don’t nexus backmost to your site. For example, this leafage mentions america but doesn’t link back:

Example of an unlinked mention

Here’s however to find unlinked mentions for your brand:

  1. Go to Ahrefs’ Web Explorer
  2. Search utilizing these parameters: [brand] -outlinkdomain:yourdomain.com -site:yourdomain.com
How to find   unlinked mentions with Ahrefs' Web Explorer

In this example, determination are millions of pages to look through, truthful it’s worthy filtering the study by Domain Rating (DR) oregon referring domains to exclude “low-value” opportunities. 

Here’s an illustration of an unlinked notation we recovered for our brand:

Example of an unlinked notation  recovered  via Ahrefs' Web Explorer

Rather than conscionable reaching retired and asking the writer to adhd a nexus oregon marque the nexus “clickable,” deliberation astir however you tin assistance amended the contented and marque it beneficial for the author.

In our example, since it’s a merchandise reappraisal and determination was nary notation of our free SEO tools oregon AWT, we could scope retired and fto the writer know.

9. Improve your Core Web Vitals

Part of Google’s Page Experience signals, Core Web Vitals (CWV) dwell of these:

  • Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)
  • Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)
  • First Input Delay (FID)

They are Google ranking factors.

You tin cheque your CWV information utilizing PageSpeed Insights, a escaped instrumentality provided by Google that analyzes a page’s show and provides suggestions for improving its velocity and idiosyncratic experience.

Core Web Vitals appraisal  successful  PageSpeed Insights

You tin besides link PageSpeed Insights’ API to Site Audit and spot your Core Web Vitals unneurotic with different method SEO issues:

PageSpeed Insights connected to Ahrefs' Site Audit, showing Core Web Vitals

Google uses alternative substance (alt text) to recognize the taxable substance of an image. They tin besides assistance your images fertile successful Google Images and get postulation too.

Run a crawl with Site Audit (via Ahrefs Webmaster Tools) to find images connected your tract without alt text:

Missing alt substance   issue, via Ahrefs' Site Audit

It’s past conscionable a substance of going done them and adding alt text. Keep it descriptive and concise, but don’t worldly keywords (e.g., “black kitten”).

11. Repurpose existing contented into aggregate formats

If you’ve already created a portion of content, you tin spell the other mile by repurposing it into antithetic formats. For example, we turned our SEO checklist into a video:

I besides turned my post connected the Skyscraper Technique into a Twitter thread:

Does the Skyscraper Technique inactive work?

We asked our followers this question and received 1,242 votes. Here are the results: pic.twitter.com/l8qadplDAF

— Si Quan Ong 王思权/思權 (@siquanong) March 6, 2023

But wherefore bash this if your extremity is to amended your Google rankings? Well, YouTube videos fertile connected Google hunt results too:

YouTube video ranking connected  Google

Google besides introduced Perspectives successful 2023. This is simply a tab connected the SERPs that allows users to spot results from TikTok, YouTube, Quora, Reddit, tweets, and more. 

Heads-up! Perspectives rolled retired connected 6/12 and officially past week, but present I’m seeing the sister SERP diagnostic that Google said would amusement up successful the 10 bluish links. It’s besides labeled Perspectives, provides cards for discussions, social, etc. & links to the Perspectives filter: pic.twitter.com/0NBEEPI31a

— Glenn Gabe (@glenngabe) June 29, 2023

Essentially, Google volition statesman showing results from different channels too, not conscionable websites. So determination could beryllium a anticipation that “improving SEO” successful the aboriginal means creating contented connected different channels too.

Sitelinks are links to different pages (or sections of a page) that look nether immoderate Google hunt results. They springiness you much visibility connected the SERPs.

Example of sitelinks

Sitelinks are often leap links connected the page:

Example of leap  links arsenic  sitelinks

So a bully mode to power them is to make a array of contents for your pages. This is what we bash for each blog post:

Example of a array  of contents

If you’re utilizing WordPress, you tin bash this via a plugin, similar Easy Table of Contents.

If you’re a concern serving customers locally, you’ll privation to look connected section representation battalion hunt results too.

Local hunt  results

The easiest mode to statesman boosting your section rankings is to assertion and optimize your Google Business Profile (GBP). 

Once claimed, the accusation you adhd to your concern illustration tin amusement up successful Google’s web hunt results and successful Google Maps.

Follow the usher beneath to larn however to optimize your GBP.

14. Replicate your competitors’ directory links

Local citations are mentions of your business’s name, address, and telephone fig (NAP) online. In all, 7% of SEOs deliberation these citations are the astir important ranking factor.

A canvass  for however  galore  SEOs deliberation  citations are the astir   important   ranking factor

The easiest mode to physique these citations is via directories. Here’s however to find manufacture and section directories:

  1. Go to Ahrefs’ Site Explorer
  2. Enter your domain
  3. Go to the Link Intersect report
  4. Add your competitors to the apical section
  5. Hit Show nexus opportunities
Link Intersect report, via Ahrefs' Site Explorer

This volition amusement you the websites linking to 1 oregon much of your competitors’ homepages, but not to yours. Look done the database to find sites that are niche and section directories.

Finding directories utilizing Ahrefs' Link Intersect tool

If you’re not definite whether a tract is simply a directory, click the caret successful 1 of the competing leafage columns to spot the referring page, anchor, and backlink. It’s usually rather evident from these:

Example of a directory

15. Make definite your pages tin beryllium indexed by Google

If Google can’t scale your pages, you won’t beryllium capable to fertile successful the hunt results at all. Make definite this doesn’t hap by moving a crawl with Site Audit, via Ahrefs Webmaster Tools.

If immoderate of your pages person a noindex tag—which prevents Google from indexing the page—it’ll amusement up arsenic an issue:

Noindex contented   successful  Ahrefs' Site Audit

Unless they’re inserted deliberately, you’ll privation to region those tags.

Final thoughts

These tactics person the imaginable to boost your rankings successful hunt engines. But don’t expect your rankings to leap overnight. 

Our probe suggests that only 5.7% of each recently published pages scope the archetypal leafage of Google wrong a year. That’s nary surprise. SEO is simply a semipermanent game. 

So portion it makes consciousness to instrumentality these “low-hanging fruit” tactics, they’re nary replacement for a semipermanent SEO strategy

Have questions oregon comments? Let maine cognize on Twitter oregon Threads.

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