What are your strategies for SEO?
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Most SEO advice starts with the same instruction: find a keyword, write 2,000 words, repeat. I tried that, and my posts looked like everyone else’s because I was feeding off the same data as everyone else.
What changed my results was a simple observation about how people actually use Google.
They rarely search once.
The Second Search Strategy
Think about the last time you had a problem. Your first search was probably vague: “why is my sourdough flat.” You clicked a result, skimmed it, and it didn’t quite fit. So you searched again, with more detail: “sourdough flat bottom dense crumb humid kitchen.”
That second search is where the real intent lives. It’s longer, more specific, and written by someone who is almost ready to act. And most blogs ignore it because the tools show them the first search, the one with the big volume number.
So here’s my core strategy: write for the search people make after the first answer disappoints them.
How I Find Second Searches
- Read the comment sections of popular posts in your niche. Comments are second searches in disguise: “this didn’t work for me because…” or “what if I have…?”
- Check forum threads where people describe their situation in full sentences. Their wording is your keyword list.
- Watch the “People also ask” chain. Click one question and watch new ones appear. Each new one is the next thing a confused reader wonders.
- Look at your own Search Console queries. The long, strange ones are gold. Real people typed those.
Strategy 2: Write the Ending First
Before I draft a post, I write the last sentence: “After reading this, the person can now ____.”
If I can’t fill the blank with something specific and concrete, I don’t have a post yet. Search engines reward pages that fully resolve a query, because readers who find their answer stop searching. That behavior is exactly what a good page produces.
Strategy 3: Give One Thing Nobody Else Has
Before publishing, I ask what this page contains that the top five results don’t. It can be:
- a mistake I made that others skipped over
- a small test I ran myself
- a photo, screenshot, or example from real life
- an honest “this part is overrated” opinion
If the answer is nothing, I either find an angle or I don’t publish. A page that repeats what already ranks has no reason to outrank it.
Strategy 4: Treat Old Posts Like Unfinished Work
I used to publish and move on. Now I treat every post as a draft that earns revisions. Once a month I check which pages get impressions but few clicks, then rewrite the title and opening lines to match what searchers seem to want. Small edits to a page that’s already close to ranking often beat writing something brand new.
Strategy 5: Make Linking Feel Like Hospitality
Internal links shouldn’t be a checklist item. I picture a reader finishing a section and wondering, “Okay, but what about…?” and I link to the post that answers it. Done this way, links guide people through your site instead of just pleasing a crawler.
What I Deliberately Don’t Do
- First, Idon’t stuff in a keyword every few sentences. Awkward wording costs readers.
- I don’t write to hit a word count. Length should match the question.
- I don’t copy the outline of whoever ranks first.
- Lastly, I don’t expect fast results. SEO is slow, and that’s the reason it’s less crowded than people think.
The Takeaway
Traditional SEO asks, “What are people searching for?” Mine asks, “What are they searching for next, after the first answer fails them?”
Answer that question better than anyone else, and you’re no longer competing on keywords. You’re competing on usefulness, which is much harder to fake.
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