WordPress SEO: The Complete Beginner’s Guide for 2025

To attract real customers, generate stable traffic, and rank high on Google, a WordPress website must be properly optimised. This content management system offers many built-in tools that will help with On-site SEO, but improved performance will require the installation of additional plugins. The best solution is a comprehensive approach that includes on-site, off-site, local, and technical SEO. That’s exactly what our VOLL studio has been doing for over 14 years, and we’re ready to share the basic life hacks with you.

SEO setup is the optimisation of a website, which includes improving technical indicators, quality of texts, structure, adding keywords, and so on for proper indexing of the platform and increasing its search engine ranking. Optimisation usually includes implementation of the following SEO Services:

• On-site: work directly with the site. The main steps: creating a semantic core, writing concise texts with keywords and LSI, creating a clear structure, adding important sections (Contacts, About Us, FAQ), and so on. All parameters important for search engines are taken into account, while many optimisation actions are aimed at improving both visitor and user convenience;
• Off-site SEO: improving brand reputation online. This includes registration in directories, working with reviews and comments, setting up backlinks;
• Local SEO. This stage is aimed at attracting users from your region to the site. It includes both on-site and off-site methods;
• Technical SEO. Improvement of such important indicators as page loading speed, absence of bugs, image loading time, etc.

Optimisation is a necessary step if you want your website to passively attract visitors and customers. The type of platform doesn’t matter: you may have a blog, an online store, an informational website, or another type of online resource. What specific benefits will give you SEO customisation:

• Attracting the target audience and, as a result, increasing conversion rates. After optimisation, the site will be more understandable for search engines and they will be able to index it correctly. Therefore, your platform will be shown exactly to interested visitors;
• Improved brand reputation. Your site will secure top positions in search engines. Also, such platforms cause more trust among visitors;
• Increase customer loyalty. Optimisation will make the site more structured, and visitors will be able to find all the information they need.

WordPress has many built-in tools that can be used to improve a website’s performance for search engines. SEO specialists of our VOLL studio, which deals with both optimisation and offers WordPress Website Development Services, will tell you about the main points of setting up the platform.

Check Your WordPress Visibility Settings

A website running on WordPress may be invisible to search engines by default. It is important to change this in the settings, otherwise SEO optimisation on WordPress will not make sense. How to check the status of a website:

1. Open the admin panel on WordPress. You can use either the full-featured or mobile version.
2. Go to “Settings” and then open the “Reading” tab.
3. In the list of options, find the one that prohibits search engines from indexing the site. Uncheck the box if it is selected.
4. Save the changes you have made.

After that, you need to make sure that the site is indexed. To do this, open Google Search Console and log in (use your Google account). Your site should be added to the GSC – do this if this is your first time using the Console. Then do an indexing status check: paste the URL into the special field. You should get confirmation that Google can see your site.

Set Up SEO-Friendly Permalinks

URLs on your site should be seo-optimised: that means concise + with a clear hierarchy + keywords. By default, WordPress will use simple URLs, often containing IDs. To change the structure, you need to:

1. Open the WordPress admin panel.
2. Go to the settings section, and then to the “Permalinks” tab.
3. Select the “Title” option and make the changes. We recommend making short titles (50-60 characters) + include keywords.
4. Always save your changes after customisation.

Choose the Best WordPress SEO Plugin

WordPress offers additional modules (plugins) that will allow you to extend the functionality. In particular, some options allow you to easily optimise meta descriptions/H1/H2/H3/improve linking/analyse content for keywords and LSI. What you need to do to install the plugin:

1. Open the “Plugins” tab in the menu.
2. Select the option to add a new one and click on the name of the recommended plugin.
3. Start the installation.
4. Activate the plugin and make the parameter settings.

Use XML Sitemaps

SiteMaps is a special file designed to contain all important information about your site. It will help with correct indexing, show the hierarchy of pages by importance, and reduce the risk of errors. The most standard/simple map is generated automatically in WordPress, but the amount of information in it is limited. You can check whether you have a map by entering the site address + wp-sitemap.xml in the search bar. But the best option is to create an advanced SiteMap using plugins like Yoast SEO. Then add a link in Google Search Console.

Plan Your Site Structure

Clearly structured sites, where pages have a well-defined hierarchy and sections, are ranked higher by Google, Bing, and other search engines. The main page must be linked to other tabs of the site + all content should be divided into categories and subcategories. Pages should also be interlinked, as this will improve navigation and keep visitors on the site longer. Creating a navigation menu is also an important step.

Enable Breadcrumbs

The navigation chain, which reflects the hierarchy of sections that the user has navigated through to the final page, is another important element of the site that needs to be optimised. A correct chain affects:

• Indexing correctness;
• CTR;
• Convenience for visitors;
• Bounce rate (it decreases, positively affecting ranking).

To customise breadcrumbs, you need to add BreadcrumbList to the page code + add clickable links to each element of the chain. The breadcrumbs itself is traditionally placed at the top of the page.

Write Optimised Meta Tags

To help search engines understand the content of your website pages, you need to add meta tags (these are HTML elements). The most important tags are:

• The title tag should be concise, informative, and contain keywords, recommended length – 55-70 characters;
• Description: it is a brief description of the content of the page, recommended length – 150-160 characters. In it, we recommend adding a call to action;
• Meta Robots: it is important for indexing.

Meta tags should be unique for each page. It is also important to include keywords. Proper setup will help to increase traffic and improve positions in search engine results.

Do Keyword Research

Keywords are phrases by which users will find your site + they will help search engines understand the content of pages. You can search for relevant phrases using Google Keyword Planner, Ubersuggest, Semrush, and others. Look for different types of keywords:

• With different frequencies: High-volume, Medium-volume, Low-volume;
• Different lengths: Long-tail, mid-tail, short-tail;
• Different user intent: informational, navigational, commercial, and so on.

Make sure that the phrases look natural in the text. It is also important not to insert such words too often otherwise search engines will fix overspam and lower the site in the ranking.

Create High-Quality SEO Content

Text content is one of the key indicators in ranking and directly affects conversion rates. What texts will be highly ranked:

• Unique: it is important to check with the help of anti-plagiarism services before publishing;
• Expert: in 2025 Google values articles written by professionals using industry-specific terminology, statistics, and references to authoritative sources;
• Natural: texts should be written for real people, not for search algorithms;
• Without using AI when writing: you can check this with AI scanners.

Internally Link Your Site

You can improve navigation, increase the time a visitor spends on the site, and, as a result, boost the chances of purchase with the help of internal links. Linking should be created between all sections, but special emphasis should be placed on the most important pages. They will have a higher PageRank. However, do not add too many links on 1 page, it will cause “overload”.

Optimise Your Website for Local SEO

Local optimisation is a set of methods aimed at attracting the target audience from your region. It includes both on-site and off-site methods:

• Finding and adding local keywords to your text content;
• Setting up backlinks with local sites of similar topics;
• Registering the site and creating threads on local forums/Facebook groups;
• Adding the site to your city/district directories.

Optimise Your Images

Visual content is an important part of a website that also directly affects ranking. Crucial parameters that are taken into account by search engines are: the time of loading images on pages, the time the user is on the site, and page load time. In addition, the quality of images affects the user’s perception of the platform. The main recommendations on images from the SEO point of view:

• Choose the right format: a combination of quality + low weight is important. The best solution is WebP. For vector images, SVG will do;
• Use compression. Recommended weight – up to 100 kilobytes, for banners – up to 300 kilobytes;
• Adapt images to the screen. It must be correctly displayed from both PC and mobile;
• Add alt-tags. They will help search engines understand the content of pictures and properly index the page.

Speed Up Your Website

One important metric is page load speed. The higher it is, the better. The low speed will lower your site in the ranking. Recommended values:

• Main content loading time – up to 2.5 seconds;
• Response time to the first action of the visitor – up to 100 milliseconds;
• Server response time – up to 200 milliseconds.

To improve loading speed, choose a good hosting, enable caching (you can use LiteSpeed Cache plugins, WP Rocket, and others), choose lighter themes, and optimise all images. We also recommend enabling a Content Delivery Network and disabling unnecessary plugins.

Mark Up Your Pages with Schema

Micro markup will help search engines understand what your page is about and index it correctly. You can add it manually by adjusting the code. But a more convenient way is to select key elements and create markup using plugins. Popular options are:

• Schema Pro;
• Rank Math;
• Yoast SEO.

Get an SSL & Use HTTPS

Search engines favor sites that guarantee a secure connection. In addition, such platforms are more trusted by visitors. SSL protocol can be paid or free. Large and especially commercial sites should choose the first option, as it is more reliable. After purchasing a certificate, you also need to make changes on your website:

• Enable the HTTPS option in the general settings on WordPress;
• Conduct internal link updates using plugins. For example, you can use Better Search Replace;
• Make changes to Google Search Console/Google Analytics.

Choose WWW or non-WWW

You can choose between two versions of your site: with ‘www’ or without it. Both options are acceptable from an SEO for WP perspective, but it’s important that all pages use the same version. This will avoid the creation of duplicates. What are the advantages of each option:

• Better cached + optimal at high load sites — “www”;
• More stylish and modern is considered an option without “www”. If you have a small site, this is a more convenient choice.

Manage Your Security

SSL protocols aren’t the only way to protect your WordPress site from attacks, data breaches, and bots. What other methods do we recommend:

• Set up two-factor authentication for users;
• Update themes/plugins regularly;
• Set a limit on the number of login attempts;
• Scan the site for viruses. You can use WordPress plugins for this purpose;
• Create backups.

Monitor and Improve Your WordPress SEO Performance

Optimisation is an ongoing process. You need to perform regular SEO audit and constantly monitor changes, analyse user behavior, watch for traffic spikes, and so on, and then make timely changes. What tools and plugins can help with this:

• Google Analytics: to analyse pages/traffic sources/visitor behavior;
• PageSpeed Insights: to track technical metrics;
• Google Search Console: to analyse ranking positions, identify errors, and track whether your pages are being indexed;
• Yoast SEO, All in One SEO, Rank Math: plugins for content optimisation.

Our Digital Marketing Agency VOLL has been developing, optimising, and promoting websites for over 14 years. One of our core services is to increase traffic and conversion to WordPress sites using SEO methods. We practice a comprehensive and individualized approach, staying in touch with our customers at each stage and showing them real statistics and the results of our work. Want to know more about our services and rates? Then write to us! Fill out a simple feedback form and our managers will promptly contact you during business hours.