SEO for New Websites

Launching a new WordPress site soon? Read this first. Before you push it live, make sure your SEO house is in order. A relaunch without a solid SEO game plan can tank your traffic faster than you can say "broken redirect." Here’s a pre-launch checklist to help you keep your rankings intact and avoid last-minute surprises: ✅ Crawl the existing site using a tool like ScreamingFrog to capture all current URLs, metadata, headers, and canonical tags. ✅ Assess current keyword rankings and SERP features using a tool like Semrush. ✅ Export a complete list of URLs from the current site for reference in redirects and SEO analysis. ✅ Create a URL mapping/301 redirect document to track old-to-new URL relationships, especially if the URL structure is changing. ✅ Audit and preserve or rewrite on-page SEO elements: title tags, meta descriptions, header tags, and image alt attributes. ✅ Ensure internal links are maintained and not disrupted during the migration or redesign. ✅ Audit and preserve or update canonical tags to avoid duplicate content issues and clarify preferred URLs. ✅ Optimize site performance by enabling caching, compressing media files, and meeting Core Web Vitals standards. ✅ Install and configure an SEO plugin like Yoast or RankMath. ✅ Configure basic schema markup using the SEO plugin. ✅ Use backlink tools (e.g., Ahrefs, Semrush) to ensure your top-linked URLs aren’t broken. This list focuses on the key technical stuff to keep your SEO intact. Every site has its quirks, so tweak as needed depending on your setup, goals, and tech stack. P.S. A post-launch checklist is coming soon... stay tuned! 🤓

Are you planning to launch a new website in 2025? If so, make sure you have an SEO team included in the website rebuild from the beginning. A lot of things can go wrong when you launch a new site, but most people still seem to bring SEO in at the last minute (or not at all). Here are just a few issues we tend to see with site rebuilds: 🚫 Changes in URL structures 🚫 Key content removed 🚫 Key content demoted 🚫 Broken links 🚫 Improper schema 🚫 Improper configuration of robots.txt 🚫 No XML sitemaps 🚫 No redirects in place 🚫 Only redirecting some pages 🚫 Broken images 🚫 Major changes to content without a plan 🚫 Launching the new site with a noindex tag 🚫 Indexing the dev site Any new website requires a full SEO migration plan to make sure you'll at the very least maintain what you've already built. And don't just trust the designer or developer who says they know SEO. You need a dedicated SEO resource to make sure you don't lose everything you've built. Trust me. I've seen it happen. I've seen well-known brands lose over 50% of their organic traffic because of a botched website rebuild. Don't let your business be a casualty of a bad website plan.

We launched a new website for a client. AIO visibility has gone through the roof since site launch at the end of September. Two months ago, they had 1,118 Google page one keywords triggering an AIO, and were present in 160 of them (14.3% visibility). Today, they have 1,580 Google page one keywords triggering an AIO, and are present in 723 of them (45.8% visibility). In other words, there are now 4.5X more keywords ranking on Google page one that trigger an AI Overview featuring our client. The number of non-branded keywords ranking in Google positions 1-3 has increased by 49.7% since site launch. LLM-sourced traffic (mostly ChatGPT & Perplexity) increased by 21.9% in the first month after new site launch. And organic form submissions in the website are up 171.7% YoY. The key to results like these with a new website? ✅ Build GEO & SEO into the DNA of Your New Site from Day One Too many companies think that you should design a new site and only then review it from a GEO and SEO perspective. But that forces you to retrofit GEO/SEO after the fact, and that’s simply more difficult, time-consuming, and problematic. Think GEO and SEO from day one of site planning. ✅ Prune Extraneous Pages Prior to Redesign We removed more than 30,000 extraneous pages from the site in order to achieve much higher Google crawl efficiency. Plus, it improved the user experience. ✅ Think Holistically When building a new website, make sure that you’re always thinking about brand impact, aesthetics, differentiation, messaging, user experience… AND GEO, SEO, and CRO. They all matter, all the time. ✅ Focus on Content Quality It’s not about volume. It’s more about the quality of the content your website offers, with strong themes, messaging, and copy. Make sure that your content delivers overwhelming value to site visitors and that you’re not just simply checking boxes for content quotas. ✅ Get Higher Engagement with CTAs Everywhere Make sure that everything in the site has a purpose. Align your CTAs with user intent. Make it easy for your site visitors to get to information that piques their interest with CONTEXTUALLY RELEVANT CTAs on every page. Let’s Destroy Mediocre Marketing!

Here’s the step-by-step SEO checklist I use to take sites from zero to page 1 in search results (updated for 2025): 1) Setup Checklist • SEO Plugin: Install Rank Math or Yoast. It handles titles, descriptions, and schema markup. • Sitemap: Check yours at yourdomain(.)com/sitemap.xml. Helps Google crawl efficiently. • Robots.txt: Ensure Google isn’t blocked from indexing important pages. Find yours at yourdomain(.)com/robots.txt. • Google Search Console: Set up GSC to track rankings, indexing issues, and penalties. • Google Analytics: Monitor traffic sources, conversions, and user behavior. 2) On-Page SEO • Title tags: Under 60 chars, main keyword upfront. • H1: One per page. 40-65 chars. Keyword included. • H2-H6: Use subheadings to structure content and support keywords. • Meta descriptions: 50-160 chars, make it compelling. • URLs: Short, clean, hyphenated. Remove stop words ("and," "the," etc.). • Image alt text: Descriptive. Keep it natural. • Breadcrumb navigation: Helps with UX and reinforces internal linking. • Schema markup: Use FAQ, How-To, and Product schema to improve CTRs. 3) Content that ranks • Search intent comes first. Match the format of top-ranking pages (listicle, how-to, case study). • Answer the main query FAST. People bounce when you waste time. • Go deep. Cover semantically related topics, not just the primary keyword. • Embed related media. Use videos, images, and infographics to boost retention. • Format for readability. Use short paragraphs, bullet points, and bolded key terms. 4) Internal Link Structure • No orphan pages. Every page on your site should be linked. • Most important pages = most internal links. • Descriptive anchor text. None of that “click here” garbage. • Fix broken links. Redirects should be used sparingly. Address the root issue. • Use contextual internal links. Embed links naturally within content (not just in nav menus). • Improve footer structure. Link to high-priority pages while keeping it clean. 5) Backlink Profile • Quality over quantity. 10 solid links > 100 spammy ones. • Diversify anchor text (branded, naked URLs, partial match). • Focus on relevant sites in your niche. • Build links consistently, not in spikes. • Diversify your link profile. Guest posts, digital PR, and citations all play a role. 6) Technical Foundation • Site loads in under 3 seconds with mobile-first indexing. • No duplicate content. Canonicals should be used where necessary. • Logical site architecture. Google needs to understand your site. • Enable browser caching. Reduces load time for repeat visitors. • Check GSC regularly to fix sitemap and coverage issues. 7) Advanced SEO (2025 Updates) • Prune outdated content. Google rewards freshness. Remove or update old pages. • Engagement signals matter. Google prioritizes sites that drive interactions (email signups, click rates, video watch time). • Diversify traffic sources. Build authority via YouTube, social media, and email.

SEO plan 2025 A – Audit Your Website: Begin with a comprehensive SEO audit. Use tools like Screaming Frog or Ahrefs to identify broken links, duplicate content, and technical errors. B – Build Backlinks: Quality backlinks remain crucial. Focus on guest posting, digital PR, and creating link-worthy content. C – Core Web Vitals: Optimize for Google’s Core Web Vitals (LCP, FID, CLS) to enhance user experience and improve rankings. D – Data-Driven Decisions: Use Google Analytics and Search Console to track performance and guide your SEO strategies. E – E-A-T Compliance: Establish Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness in your niche, especially for YMYL (Your Money Your Life) websites. F – Fresh Content: Regularly update or add new content. Google rewards websites that stay current and relevant. G – Google Business Profile: For local SEO, optimize and maintain an accurate Google Business Profile listing. H – Headings Optimization: Use H1, H2, H3 tags properly to structure content for both users and search engines. I – Internal Linking: Build a logical internal link structure to guide users and distribute link equity. J – JavaScript SEO: Ensure content rendered via JavaScript is crawlable and indexable by search engines. K – Keyword Research: Use modern tools like Semrush or Ubersuggest to identify long-tail and intent-driven keywords. L – Link Structure: Maintain clean and SEO-friendly URLs with proper slugs and no unnecessary parameters. M – Mobile Optimization: Ensure your website is mobile-responsive, as mobile-first indexing is now the standard. N – Niche Authority: Focus on creating depth in your content to become an authority in your niche. O – On-Page SEO: Optimize titles, meta descriptions, images (alt tags), and content around target keywords. P – Page Speed: Use tools like Google PageSpeed Insights to identify and fix slow-loading pages. Q – Quality Content: Always prioritize content that provides real value to users over keyword-stuffed articles. R – Responsive Design: Adapt your site design for all screen sizes and devices. S – Schema Markup: Implement structured data to enhance search listings with rich snippets. T – Technical SEO: Fix crawl errors, sitemaps, robots.txt, canonical tags, and other backend elements. U – User Experience (UX): A seamless UX improves dwell time, reduces bounce rate, and supports SEO. V – Voice Search Optimization: Target conversational queries and FAQs for better visibility in voice results. W – Web Security (HTTPS): Secure your site with SSL – it's a ranking factor and builds trust. X – XML Sitemap: Keep your XML sitemap updated and submit it to Google Search Console. Y – YouTube SEO: If you use videos, optimize titles, descriptions, and tags for better visibility on YouTube and Google. Z – Zero-Click Searches: Optimize for featured snippets, People Also Ask, and knowledge panels. #seoexpert #seo #topratedseoexpert #seotips #expartagency

SEO TIPS! 1. Ensure Google/Bing/LLMs can see your content output ➡️Open DevTools (F12 or Ctrl+Shift+I), go to Network tab. ➡️Refresh the page (Ctrl+R) with DevTools open. ➡️Click the top-level document request (should be the first one). ➡️Go to the Response tab, this shows the raw HTML returned by the server. LLMS do not render JS or execute scripts responsible for content injection. Sites with CSR need pre-render. 2. Prioritise Indexing Cleanups ➡️Crawled Currently Not Indexed Export URLS, run HTTP status check and filter out any non HTTP 200 URLS, HTTP 200 URLS look at internal link counts (minimum 5), look at word counts (thin pages?), is content aged? decayed? non value? part of a template architecture? Review internal link counts and improve, check content viability, depth & age, check content value proposition. Non value = HTTP 410 them Value = improve value, refresh, request indexing ➡️Discovered Currently Not Indexed Same as above, except "discovered" means the URLS were not found via crawl, increasing chance of page being close to orphan (low internal link counts). Follow same advice. ➡️Not Found 404 Export, batch check for external links in AHREFS using batch analysis, look for internal link counts to broken URLS, update links. URLS with no external links traffic or prospects of being restored should be HTTP 410, anything with links or referral traffic 301 accordingly ➡️Alternative Page with Proper Canonical More complex, general rules: Avoid canonical child URLS where possible Minimise internal links to canonical child Ensure alternative page are not unhandled inconsistent URLS i.e. trailing vs non trailing slash For parameter driven URLS (avoid internally linked UTMS), check parameter paths for overall click contribution, if none and no external links consider blocking parameter via robots.txt For pages that are very similar, consolidate if no genuine reason for seperation. If both are required i.e. one for PPC landing page, consider changing the URL of the page that should not be indexed and making the origin URL a HTTP 410 ➡️Excluded by noindex tag Review and verify URL paths blocked by noindex tag Check for backlinks to noindex URLS using "path" match in AHREFS when checking a URL path Export the URLS and then use VLOOKUP against exported GSC data to see if any URLS were blocked that were generating traffic or if URLs noindex are being served ➡️Server Error 5xx Export URLS and HTTP status check - many times server errors were an at the time issue and will likely not be Check for any malformed URLS that may be linked internally or unhandled dynamic URL generation i.e. PDP filters ➡️Duplicate without user-selected canonical Export URLS, http status check and filter down to HTTP 200 Sample the URLS and compare content (you can use Siteliner to crawl and identify similar content) Rule out canonicalised URLS incorrectly reported (or legacy) Ensure dynamic versions of a static URL are correctly configured

Most websites underperform because basics remain unchecked. Real SEO starts with clear, structured evaluation. You begin with focused keyword research clarity. You analyze on-page elements to strengthen search visibility. You check content quality to improve user engagement. You review URL structure for clean site navigation. You test mobile performance across multiple device types. You measure page speed to reduce user frustration. You inspect backlinks to confirm credible authority signals. You evaluate internal links for smoother crawling paths. You add schema markup to enhance search understanding. You update sitemaps to maintain accurate index coverage. You review robots.txt for proper crawling access. You check core web vitals for stable performance. You monitor crawlability to catch hidden technical issues. You study competitors to identify strategic opportunities. You refine local SEO to support nearby customers. Every step reveals problems limiting your growth. These checks protect rankings from silent deterioration. Most websites fail from forgotten fundamentals, not competition. Strength comes from structured analysis, repeated consistently. Fixing the foundation creates real and lasting progress. SEO grows when every element works together properly.

I was talking with one of our SEO clients recently and he said to me, “Roman, I’ve got so many calls coming in for our business; I’m missing half of them!” Highlight of my day! 😄 These kinds of results are what we’re aiming for at Summit Digital Marketing: A total influx of leads and sales for our clients. Want to improve your company’s SEO? Here are two areas your team should be focusing on: 1. ON-PAGE SEO: Optimize new and existing content around non-brand keywords. The goal here is to create unique and useful content that prospects engage with, and that search engines understand and reward. On-page SEO helps search engines understand your content, so be intentional with your keyword research and placement of the target non-brand keywords in your pages: - Headlines - Copy - Keyword density - Page titles - Meta descriptions - URL architecture - Internal linking (and anchor texts) - Images and other media The goal here is to rank for words and phrases (keywords) your ideal customer is searching for. Incorporate both (a) high volume top of funnel keywords, as well as (b) intent-rich specific queries. 2. LINK BUILDING: Build links to your website from other websites. It is well known in the SEO-world that links are a huge SEO ranking factor. (Google leaders have publicly acknowledged this, as well 😉) Your website needs other websites linking to it. Here are five practical ways any business can begin building backlinks to their website: (a) Partners: trade shows, events, associations, service directories, certifications, hiring websites. If your business participates in any of these, there is usually an opportunity for a backlink. (b) CREATE useful and relevant free content: Encourage organic backlinks with content that people find useful and worth sharing. Sounds simple (because it is), but so many businesses don’t do this to their peril. (c) PROMOTE that content on organic social media: The previous bullet is about content CREATION. This is about content PROMOTION. Both are important in link building. Not only are social signals a ranking factor (especially for Microsoft Bing), but as you share more and more on social media, your content will get picked up and linked to by other companies, journalists, bloggers, etc. (d) Digital PR: Work with journalists, influencers, bloggers, and podcasters. (e) Social media profiles and articles + review site profiles: Review sites like TrustPilot allow your business to share it’s website URL in its profile. Social media sites like LinkedIn and X have features where you can publish articles and link back to supporting content on your website. This is not an exhaustive link building playbook by any means; it is a starting point for any business looking to get more serious about their search engine optimization (SEO). With link building, prioritize quality over quantity. Hope that helps!

If you're new SEO, it may seem a bit overwhelming. Let me simplify it. Understanding the three pillars of SEO, Site Structure, Content, and External Credibility, will give you a strong foundation: 1 - Site Structure How good or bad your website is built plays a big part in how search engines understand if your site is legit or not. Focus on the basics: 👉 Mobile-Friendly 2016 is when traffic tipped from being mostly computers to mobile. A reaaally simple way to think about SEO is "Who makes Google look good?" If your website isn't mobile friendly or loads slow (more on that next), that's a bad user experience, so Google is less likely to recommend it. 👉 Page Speed Everyone is in a hurry, including your customers. The faster your site loads the better experience. Most websites I see load in 4-10 seconds. That's rough. My baseline is 3 sec., with a home run at 2 seconds and a grand slam at 1 or less. My favorite go-to speed tool? GTmetrix 👉 Audit Everything You now see how important user experience is, so if your website is loaded with broken images and dead links you're going to have a bad day. Tools like Website Auditor will audit your site and tell you exactly what's missing, broken, or unoptimized. 2 - Content is King Content isn't just king; it's the entire royal family. It’s how you’re going to get users—and search engines—interested in what you have to say (and sell). 👉 Educate and Elevate Don't just write for the sake of writing. Research unique topics, deliver unique content. People don't buy things, they buy solutions. Speak clearly about how your product or service solves your customer's pain points or needs. Why should anyone care about you or your product? If you don’t know, they won’t either. Be the trusted resource that shares generic AI-written content, and tells them more than just "thanks for stopping by." 3 - External Credibility When another website links to you or talks about your brand it counts as a vote in the search engine popularity contest. Here is how to score some digital high-fives. 👉 Backlinks When other websites in your industry link to you it's like them nodding to Google that you're the one. However, just like you don't write for the sake of writing, you don't get links from anywhere. Focus on links from sites in complimentary industries. Quality over quantity is the game here. 👉 Mentions and Engagement Get involved in online discussions, share your expertise in writing blogs for others or joining their podcasts, and make some genuine connections. The more Google sees your omnipresence and expertise, the more it will position you as the expert in your industry. Lastly, your secret weapon? Realistic expectations. SEO is a marathon, not a sprint. The win doesn't go to the fastest off the line, but to you for being consistent over the long run. Put in the effort, stay consistent, and you'll see the rewards.

SEO tips learned by clients the hard way when launching a new site: -Check to make sure URLs are all individually directing to the new destination, not just going to the home page. Your hosting provider will dictate whether this is possible, muy importante for retaining page authority. -Make sure those URLs have some keywords for locations + services in them -Only get rid of content that is driving little to no traffic in Search Console, keep the rest for at least 90 days while website gets indexed -Your location pages are most important for driving patient leads, add at least 200 words to them to show Google they are more valuable. DON'T reduce content on these pages. -Your service/condition/treatment pages can be consolidated but keep any independent that were driving solid traffic until the website stablizies -Check every single internal link, if one breask the spiders get peeved -Make sure appt schedulign system work -Check backlink portfolio to make sure key backlinks all pointing to LIVE pages, not redirects -Check GMB listings to make sure those URLs are still live and not redirected -Run site speed tests, doesn't need to be faster just can't be slower than last website. We've seen multiple clients who had engaged with firms specializing in Creative Direction or UX Design, followed their recommendations for innovative design concepts that disrupted the usual healthcare UX, and then noticed a drop in SEO that took months or even years to come back from. Luckily, with this recent client we caught it early. They had brought on a new VP of Marketing, and 3 weeks later, launched a brand new website. But when they looked at their reports, they noticed an immediate loss of rankings on local nonbrand terms. They hired us for a cleanup effort which has been underway for 2 months now involving development of new pages, IA, etc., to get their SEO back up. And results have been good, we're definitely seeing those keyword numbers climbing back up. But you know what would have been even better? Not causing a huge drop to their SEO in the first place by launching a new website that wasn't designed with SEO as a top priority. Or at least UX for f's sake. #healthcaremarketing #healthcareSEO