You’ve got a beautiful website. A banging offer. Maybe even a blog or two.
But when it comes to actually getting found online?
Your brain short-circuits.
You know SEO matters. You’ve heard it’s how people get discovered on Google. But where the hell do you start? And how are you supposed to learn that on top of running a business, serving clients, and still remembering to eat?
You’re in luck! I’m giving you a clear, beginner-friendly step by step guide to kick start your SEO journey.
And it quite simply is 30 days of tiny SEO wins to help you get visible online, stay consistent with getting your site found, and stop staring at Google Search Console like it’s written in Latin.
HOW TO USE THIS GUIDE
- You don’t have to do this perfectly.
- You don’t even have to do it daily.
- But each step builds on the last, and I promise, you get actual progress.
By the end, you’ll have:
- A visible site (Google-indexed and trackable)
- One blog post that actually ranks
- And a repeatable process to keep growing
Sound good?
Let’s get into it.
WEEK 1: Get Set Up (Even If Tech Isn’t Your Thing)
👉Goal: Get your SEO foundations in place so you’re not guessing.
Day 1: Sign in to Google Search Console (I’ve linked to my step by step guide to how to do this if you haven’t done it before). Once you’ve verified your site, head to the “Performance” report, this is your traffic scoreboard. Note your top 5 queries and pages, these are your baseline.
Day 2: Install Google Analytics (it’s free). Connect it to Search Console (Admin → Property Settings) so data flows automatically. Bookmark your ‘Pages and Screens’ and ‘Acquisition Overview’ reports to check traffic.
Day 3: Claim and verify your site in Bing Webmaster Tools, broadening your reach beyond Google (DID YOU KNOW: ChatGPT draws most of its information from Bing, not Google…)
Day 4: Pretend you’re your dream client. Google your name, your brand, or what you sell. Are you showing up… or is it someone louder? Screenshot the results; this is your starting point. We’re building your visibility from here.
Day 5: Pick 2 direct competitors. Type into the Google search bar this:
site: www.theirwebsite.com (see screenshot for my results)
And check out their top-ranking content.
Look at: titles, structure, calls to action. What’s working? What are they ranking for that you’re not? Let what they’re doing guide your approach. If it’s working for them – it’ll likely work for you.
Day 6: Brainstorm three core questions your dream clients are typing into Google (e.g., “How do I price my coaching?”). Plug those questions into AnswerThePublic.com (free version) and capture any related queries you hadn’t thought of. You’re going to create content to answer these questions on your site either in FAQs or in a separate blog.
For more guidance on how to write SEO content, check out my Smart Girl’s Guide.
Day 7: Type your services, industry or niche into Google, the autosuggest results should become your SEO hit list. Pick the most relevant and naturally incorporate them into your home page. These are alternatives your audience use when they’re searching for what is you do. Don’t keyword stuff, the aim of this is to gently guide Google’s bots to PRECISELY what it is you do, so there’s no confusion.
WEEK 2: Map the Demand & Build Your Strategy
👉Goal: Figure out what your audience is really searching for, and how you can show up.
Day 8: Go to Google Search Console > Performance > Pages. Sort by clicks and check out what you’re already ranking for. What are people finding you for? Note 3 posts/pages pulling the most traffic. These are your “visibility anchors.” When you create new content, go back to these pages and add a link, where appropriate, to your new page. It’ll help it rank faster.
Day 9: Head to the Queries tab in GSC. Pick 3 high-impression keywords (basically anything that looks abnormally high in comparison to the rest of the query count numbers) and brainstorm what questions would someone be asking when they type that? Write down 5–10 real questions your content should answer, but isn’t. Add in an FAQ section at the bottom of the page and add these questions in.
Day 10: Search Google for one of your top keywords. What’s ranking on page 1? Open the top 3 pages and scan for: headline style, what questions they answer, and how their offer shows up. Make a note of at least 3 ideas you could cover better, or differently, in your page.
Not sure what keywords you should be using? Let me help you with my keyword research service.
Day 11: Now go to your blog. We’re going to conduct a quick ‘content gap’ ie what content is missing on your site that you ought to have. Do you have posts that connect directly to your most profitable services? Put yourself in your customer’s shoes – what questions do they have about you or your brand? Write down 3 questions they might ask. Then go into detail answering them in a new blog and link to your money pages ie your service or product pages.
Day 12: Identify your highest-traffic service page, jot down three questions visitors might ask there. These are three future blog posts.
Day 13: Go to Google and search one of your top keywords. Scroll to the “People Also Ask” (PAA) section. What questions are popping up? Pick 3 and write them down, they’re real questions your dream clients are asking. They make perfect headings for new blog posts (if you don’t already cover them on your site).
WEEK 3: On-Page Tweaks That Actually Matter
👉Goal: Make your current content work harder before you create more.
Day 15: Update your highest traffic service page’s title tag and meta description to include its primary keyword.
Day 16: Compress your two largest images using TinyPNG or Optimizilla to boost load speed. While you’re working on images, make sure you’ve set headings and alt text for images, as this helps both SEO and accessibility.
Day 17: Update your homepage with exact match keyword anchor text and link to your key service page; guide visitors where it matters.
Days 18: From each existing blog post, add 1–2 links back to your key service page using natural anchor text (like “SEO help” or “get found on Google”). Bonus: link between your blog posts if they’re relate, this helps Google crawl your site and keeps visitors clicking.
Day 19: Use Merkle’s Schema Generator to create simple “Article” schema for your blog post. If you use WordPress, install a plugin like RankMath or Yoast to add this automatically. It helps Google understand your post better and boosts chances of rich results.
NOTE: this is not essential for ranking, it’s more a best practice, if you’re keen to cross all the t’s and dot all the i’s.
Day 20: Test your site’s mobile speed using Google’s PageSpeed Insights. Note down your score and fix anything urgent (e.g., oversized images or slow-loading fonts).
Day 21: Every blog post needs to guide your reader somewhere next. Go through each blog and make sure each one has either: a “Want help with this?” CTA that links to your service page; a mention of your lead magnet or freebie; a link to your discovery call page. ONE, not all.
WEEK 4: Publish, Promote, Measure
👉Goal: Hit publish and track your impact, without spiralling into overwhelm.
Day 22: Publish your first blog post. Then in Search Console, go to URL Inspection → paste your post’s URL → Request Indexing—this tells Google to crawl it now.
Day 23: Share your blog post in one relevant Facebook group. Start with a personal story or useful tip. Ask them to read + share if helpful. DM the blog to 3 past clients or biz friends. Ask them for feedback or shares if they find it helpful.
Day 24: Post a short version of your blog on LinkedIn or Instagram. Include a link back to the full version.
Day 25: Reach out to a partner, client, or creator in your circle. Offer to write a blog post or be a guest on their podcast about your expertise. Backlinks build authority, and confidence.
Day 26: Sign up for a free trial of a keyword rank tracker like Mangools. Add your site and your top 5–7 target keywords. Do this and you’ll see when your content starts moving up, and tracking = motivation.
Day 27: Check Search Console for your first impressions and clicks, celebrate seeing that “1”!
Day 28: Type site:yourdomain.com/blog-title into Google. If it shows up, you’re officially in the index. If not, no stress, Google takes time. Re-index via Search Console just in case.
Day 29: Check for broken links and missing titles using a free tool like BrokenLinkCheck.com and SmallSeoTools.com’s Meta Tag Analyser. Fix anything obvious.
Note: Try and get into the habit of checking your links regularly, broken links (404 pages) are so easily avoidable.
Day 30: Check Google Analytics → Pages & Screens. What’s your top post? What’s your bounce rate? Set one goal for the next 30 days (e.g., publish weekly, pitch a guest post, improve load speed, etc).
By Day 30, you’ll have:
- A tracked, visible site with real data
- One live, keyword-targeted post bringing in your first organic visitors
- A repeatable process to keep growing
Just Start Your SEO. The Rest Will Follow.
I’ve designed these 30 days of simple, strategic actions to help your website do what it was built to do: get found.
Whether you take it one step at a time or batch a few in a focused sprint, the point isn’t to be perfect. It’s to keep showing up. Bit by bit, blog by blog, your visibility will start to grow, without the overwhelm.
And make a note now to check your progress. In GSC, navigate to performance – more (drop down menu – next to 3 months above the graph) – compare – compare last 3 months to previous period.
Now, marvel at how far you’ve gone, and how far you can go 🚀
Want to work with me?
I have a variety of ways we can work together:
- Done for you SEO – does what it says on the tin.
- Done with you SEO – we get you found with my 3 month SEO roadmap
- Do it yourself SEO – for the ones who like to go it alone
Check them out, and if you have an
If you need more support along the way, you can find Aly 🍑on Instagram @shesapeachseo.