Dominating Google: A Simple SEO Strategy
Believe it or not, this is going to take your website from being buried on page 10 (or worse) all the way to page one on Google. Sounds crazy, right? But stick with me, because today I'm going to show you one super simple SEO strategy that works so well, Google won't be able to take its eyes off your site. This is the SEO strategy I use for all my clients, and the best part? It's not complicated. You don't need a huge budget or even a marketing degree. You just need to know how to stack the right pieces together. In just under 15 minutes, I'll show you the one critical piece you need to fix to get Google to notice your website, and I'll keep it super simple. Next, we'll dive into how to find the best keywords for your site so you can climb the rankings and actually see results. And finally, I will reveal how to create content that Google loves so your site can rank higher and get more traffic over time. By the end of this, you'll know exactly what to do to move from page 10 to page one and stay there. All right, if you're ready to build your way to the top, let's get started.
Building a Strong Website Foundation
Imagine this: you've got a bunch of sugar cubes, and your job is to build the tallest structure that can handle rough weather. The problem? You only have a limited number of cubes. Now look at these two designs. Which one do you think would hold up better if they both used the same number of cubes? This one, of course! Why? Because it's built on a strong foundation with a solid structure that can handle anything—even bad weather. Your website needs to be built in the exact same way. It needs to include a strong structure with a solid foundation so it can handle the "bad weather," which, in this case, is Google's constant algorithm changes. But how does that work for a website? Let me show you.
To build a website that works like this, you need three types of pages:
-
Top-Level Pages: These are the main pages of your site that focus on your core services or products. I call them "money pages" because they're the ones that help bring in leads, sales, or revenue. If you're a plumber, for example, your top-level pages might include: Emergency Plumbing Services, Drain Cleaning, Water Heater Services, Bathroom Plumbing, and Pipe Repair and Replacement.
-
Supporting Pages: Supporting pages are extra pages that back up the top-level pages. Their main job is to give more details, extra information, or support the website's main purpose. This helps make the site more trustworthy, useful, and easier for visitors to use. For example, under "Emergency Plumbing Services," supporting pages could be: Burst Pipe Repairs, Emergency Leak Detection, and After-Hours Plumbing Services. And for "Drain Cleaning," you might include: Sewer Line Cleaning, Clogged Drain Solutions, and Hydro Jetting Services.
-
Resource Pages: Resource pages are web pages that offer helpful links, tools, or information about a specific topic, and will also back up your top-level pages. They often show up as blog posts, guides, or FAQs. These pages make a website more useful and reliable, and can even help it rank higher on search engines by attracting links from other websites. To support our "Emergency Plumbing Service" top page, for example, resource pages could include: "How to Shut Off Your Water Supply in an Emergency." And for "Drain Cleaning": "DIY Drain Cleaning Tips" and "When to Call a Plumber."
Follow this process for all top-level pages you have on your website. If building your website structure feels confusing, don't worry! I've got a simple tip to make it easier. But first, there's one more important concept you need to understand.
Understanding Website Siloing
Siloing is like organizing a bookshelf. Imagine each shelf is for a main topic, like fiction or history, and all the books on that shelf are related to that topic. For a website, siloing means connecting related pages under one main category to keep everything organized. To make this work, you need to link those pages together in a logical way. This helps both visitors and search engines understand your site better.
Let's return to our plumbing example and look at the "Drain Cleaning" silo, which now needs to be interconnected. All you need to do is connect your supporting and resource pages by linking them to each other, and make sure they also link back to your main top-level page. At the same time, the top-level page should link back to its supporting and resource pages. The most important part is to keep all the links within the same silo. Pages in one silo should not link to pages in another silo, just as if they were ring-fenced.
Here's how your links might look on a resource page in our "Drain Cleaning" silo, for example: "Check out our complete Drain Cleaning Services for all types of clogs. For tougher blockages, our Hydro Jetting Services are a powerful solution. If you have smaller clogs, try these DIY tips before calling a professional." This setup shows search engines that your site is a strong resource on the "drain" topic, which helps your pages rank higher in search results. Siloing isn't just about being organized. It's a smart way to make your website better for search engines and visitors. It will help you rank higher, get more traffic, and turn visitors into customers.
If you're not sure how to plan your website structure and define your silos, here's a simple hack: Go to ChatGPT and type the following prompt: "Using the silo structure method, can you create a website structure for a [your business type]? Please include top-level pages, supporting pages, and resource pages. Provide a detailed example." ChatGPT will give you a detailed structure you can use as a starting point. With this approach, you'll be able to create a website that's both user-friendly and great for SEO.
Here's a final tip: If you already have a website and want to check its current structure, try using a tool called Screaming Frog. Run your website through it, then go to the "Visualization" tab and select the "Crawl Tree Graph." This will give you a visual map of your website structure, which is super useful for spotting any gaps. The free version lets you crawl up to 500 pages for free, which should be plenty for most of you. I've put a link to it in the description below.
Understanding Domain Authority
Now that you know how to structure your website so it's search engine friendly, it's time to build the pages you need for it. But before I show you how to do that, there's an important concept you need to understand. Without this, your pages won't rank well on search engines. This concept is called Domain Authority. In the SEO world, Domain Authority is a score that predicts how well a new page on your website will rank on Google or other search engines. Think of it like your website's reputation. The higher the score, the more likely your pages will rank high. Domain Authority ranges from 0 to 100 and is based on three main factors: the number and quality of backlinks (links from other websites pointing to your site), how much visitors from search engines come to your site organically, and whether your site avoids spammy practices like trying to trick search engines.
Let me illustrate with two examples. The first one is forbes.com, which I'm sure you've all heard of. Using one of my SEO tools, SEMrush, I can see that forbes.com has a Domain Authority score of 100, which is huge! They have millions of high-quality backlinks and get tons of organic visitors. They also follow the rules and don't try to trick search engines. Because of this, when Forbes publishes a new article on their website, it usually ranks very high very quickly, even for very competitive keywords.
Now let's compare this to "New Tech Magazine," which is similar to Forbes, but nowhere near as popular. According to SEMrush, it has a Domain Authority score of 11 and gets no organic traffic. With such a low score, it's almost impossible for this site to rank for even mildly competitive keywords. This kind of problem is common for small business websites. Many owners build a basic site with just a few pages and no clear plan or structure. They try to rank for big, competitive keywords like "plumber" or "personal injury lawyer," but they don't have the authority to compete, so they can't rank for those keywords. If this sounds like your website, don't worry! I'm going to share a simple trick to help you understand your own website authority and how to use this information for your website to rank better.
Determining Your Website's Authority & Keyword Targeting
First, you'll need to use a free tool from Google called Google Search Console. Hopefully, you already have it set up on your website. If not, go ahead and install it; it's completely free. Google Search Console is designed to help website owners improve how their site shows up in Google search results and perform better
{# 
{#