7 Simple SEO Tips based on Google’s latest guide (2022)

Hi guys, if you’re not aware, writing is my passion, but I have another set of “skills” that may be unknown to many. Aside from being a mom, an influencer in the Philippines, and a journalist, I’m also an experienced on-page SEO consultant for more than 5 years now with SEO experience of more than 10 (wow resume? lol)

I usually keep things or myself, but when my boss asked me to write a short guide for the team on simple SEO tricks after Google’s latest update, I thought of sharing them with my readers here too! 🙂

just a reminder that the information below are tips, not rules. Just like how Google’s algorithm is flexible and can adapt to ensure the content is: relevant, useful, and quality for readers. 

7 Simple SEO Tips based on Google’s latest guide

#1 Keep an evergreen story fresh

An evergreen story does not rely on something that trends or is based on news. It is usually about answers that people usually ask or search for on the internet. 

Example: 8 Types of Sustainable Fabric

Based on Google’s latest SEO update, it would prioritize “fresher” stories over stale ones, aka those with the most recent “updated date”.

Tip: Keep a spreadsheet to record and keep track of all evergreen stories on the site. Update at least once a year with new information/updated information.

#3 Deduplication systems

Google shows only the most relevant results to avoid unhelpful duplication. Deduplication also happens with featured snippets. If a web page listing is elevated to a featured snippet, Google doesn’t repeat the listing later on the first page of results.

Tip: Instead of re-writing snippets link an anchor keyword to the page where the paragraph/snippet initially appears.

#4 The exact match domain system

Google’s ranking systems consider the words in domain names as one of many factors to determine if the content is relevant to a search. However, the Google match domain system ensures they don’t give too much credit for content hosted under similar domain names.

Tip: It just prioritises domain names that match their content. So if your content is about burgers, a domain with the word burger helps.

#5 Helpful content

Google’s helpful content system is designed to ensure better people see original, helpful content written by people, for people, in search results rather than content made primarily to gain search engine traffic.

Tip: This is Google’s answer to avoid “keyword stuffing” used by blackhats to lead the search results. Here are a few questions to ask yourself when writing content.

1. Does it answer the user’s question (query) in Google?
2. Is your information accurate, and quote verified sources?
3. Is your story original and not plagiarised?

Link analysis systems and PageRank

Google has various systems that understand how pages link to each other to determine what pages are about and which might be most helpful in response to a query.

Tips: Link to a relevant internal page (in-site) and a relevant external page (another website/optional). Google will also rank your page higher if your site is linked by other sites with high domain or page authority. 

#6 Original content systems

Google has systems in place to ensure that original content, including original reporting, appears prominently in search results ahead of those who cite it.

Tip: If writing from a release, ensure it is re-written and checked with an anti-plagiarism tool. However, original news sources are also prioritized in ranking over those who cite, quote, and re-write the story. 

#7 Demotions 

Google will score your page lower in ranks if it has the following: 

1. If the page is slow (loading time exceeds 2 seconds)
2. If the website is not secure and does not have https (secure certificate)
3. If the website is not mobile-friendly