How a few quiet SEO shifts can fix your traffic leaks & build habits

Update:

Starting from this edition, I will be making changes to the structure of my newsletter. I will share 3 mini SEO case studies of sites killing it on Google search, 2 SEO tips that you can implement right away, and 1 valuable resource/lesson/post you might have missed this week. Because I know you’re busy and I don’t want to throw spaghetti at you and expect you to catch it all.

More upfront value in less time. That’s the goal.

That’s 3-2-1. Let’s Go!

Three Mini SEO Case Studies

1/ Img2go.com's backlinks dropped 30% but referring domains rose 6%, and traffic still climbed 15%. This hints at removing low-quality links to boost authority - like weeding a garden so the good stuff thrives. For you, it would mean auditing links to ditch the junk, strengthening your site's trust signal without chasing more.

Framework: Run a quarterly link detox. Sort backlinks by domain authority, keep those over 40, and disavow the rest with Google’s disavow tool. Measure impact on rankings after 30 days.

Action steps: Get a backlink audit using Semrush, and list your top 50 links today. Disavow 10 weak ones this week, then track if your organic traffic ticks up.

Food for thought: What if fewer, stronger connections make you unshakeable? The eureka hits when you see traffic grow not from volume, but from curating quality - turning your site into a fortified hub that search engines reward long-term.

2/ Reduceimages.com pulls 1.5M of 1.8M in organic traffic from India, ranking #1 for massive local searches like resize image, yet dominates globally without paid ads. This screams hyper-local optimization - tailoring content to one market's pain points while scaling globally. For you, it means picking a core region and owning it first, then expanding.

Framework: Nail regional dominance. Find top queries in your biggest market via Semrush, tweak pages with local slang or examples, then measure traffic share growth every 3 months.

Action steps: Identify your top country from analytics today. Rewrite 3 pages with region-specific tips this week. Track if that market's visits rise 10% next month - if yes, double down.

Food for thought: What if global reach starts in your backyard? You can dominate one pond, after it builds momentum, jump to bigger waters, letting organic growth snowball without spreading thin.

3/ Resizepixel.com gets ~50% direct traffic despite a 16% organic drop, with users hitting 10+ pages and staying 7+ minutes.

This flags a shift to retention over acquisition - their tool are so handy, folks bypass search and come straight back, helping against ranking dips.

Framework: Build return magnets. Craft features that solve recurring needs, like batch processing, then nudge saves or shortcuts to make direct visits a habit. Track via repeat visitor metrics quarterly.

Action steps: Check your direct traffic share in analytics now. This week, add a save to homescreen prompt on your main tool page. Link to 3 related functions at the bottom to bump pages per visit.

Food for thought: Ever think search dependency is a bottleneck? Keep in mind that cultivating habits creates a moat - users stick even if algorithms shift, giving you a steady flow without endless keyword chases.

Two SEO Tips

1/ Tweak internal links on your pages to point users to related fixes or features, using clear anchor text like resize options instead of boring click here. This guides crawlers better and keeps folks exploring, fighting against traffic dips. Find the top three pages on your website today and add 2-3 targeted links each.

2/ Run a Core Web Vitals check to fix load speed under 3 seconds, like compressing images or cutting scripts. It lifts rankings and cuts bounces, helping hold users in any market or after link cleanups. Use Google's free tool now and patch one issue per page this week.

One Userful Resource

1. Answer Engine Optimization playbook from Profound - an AI optimization platform backed by Sequoia Capital.

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