3 Free Tools for Your SEO Strategy

Many people feel lost when it comes to SEO. Some understand the goal: to appear on the first page of search engines (especially Google) to generate traffic and sales. 

But few know how to get there or whether it’s a good strategy for their business and how much that’s going to cost… Well no surprise here, it’s expensive, especially with SEO tools like Semrush or Ahrefs (starting around 130 USD per month). 

So I’ll share 3 simple and free techniques to evaluate your SEO and website capabilities before getting started: 

To make things clearer, let’s take the example of a yoga studio based in Hong Kong targeting a local clientele.

1. Define Keywords Related to Your Business

This is the foundation of any SEO strategy. You need to find keywords relevant to your business that aren’t too competitive. For example, for a yoga studio, you might think of keywords like "yoga Hong Kong", "yoga studio", or "yoga classes". 

But before using them, you need to check their potential, are they gathering enough traffic? 

For this, use Google Keyword Planner, a free tool integrated into Google Ads. 

By entering your website’s address, you’ll see that keywords like "yoga" have good traffic and low competition, while "yoga Hong Kong" has more limited traffic and more competition.

To see how this plays out in practice, type these keywords into Google and analyse the first page. For example, for "yoga Hong Kong", you’ll see sponsored ads, a Google Maps section, and articles like "The 10 Best Yoga Studios in Hong Kong". This page is crowded and getting there is going to be tough and expensive. 

So, it’s better to focus on less competitive keywords that still generate significant traffic, like "yoga"

Once you’ve identified these keywords, strategically integrate them into your site:

• Title Tags: Include your primary keyword at the beginning of the title (under 60 characters).

• Meta Descriptions: Write a compelling description with your keyword (under 160 characters).

• Headings (H1, H2, H3): Use your keyword in the main title (H1) and naturally in subheadings titles (H2, H3).

But don’t overdo it by adding too many keywords everywhere on your website!

2. Analyze Your Competitors’ Backlinks

Backlinks are one of the most challenging aspects of SEO because that doesn’t depend on you. A backlink is when another website mentions your URL, for example, a blog about wellness or yoga. The more backlinks you have, the more Google considers your site popular and ranks it higher.

To get started, identify your 3 main competitors, grab their website URLs, and use a free tool like Ahrefs Backlink Checker to see their backlinks. Then, reach out to the sites that mention your competitors to try and get a similar backlink. Sometimes you’ll need to pay, but some media outlets accept a free article in exchange for a link.

3. Check Your Website’s Performance

Use Google Lighthouse to analyse your site based on 5 criteria: performance, accessibility, best practices, SEO, and user experience. You’ll get a score for both mobile and desktop versions. This tool provides concrete recommendations to improve your site, such as optimising images or reducing loading time.

BONUS: Use the link feature on Google My Business to create a review link. Share this link with your clients so they can easily leave a review on your Google My Business profile. This is excellent for SEO, as businesses with the most positive reviews often rank higher in Google Maps. To make it even easier for your clients, prepare 2-3 review templates they can customise by changing a few words. This simplifies the process and encourages more reviews!

So let’s recap, how to use these 3 free tools for your own SEO comprehension:

1. Identify the Right Keywords with Google Keyword Planner

   
   

   Use Google Keyword Planner to find the best keywords for your business and avoid overly competitive ones. For example, if you discover that a keyword like "yoga" has good potential, strategically incorporate it into a few pages on your site to boost your chances of ranking for it (Plus try to create a blog post about it). You can also start a Google Ads campaign if you have marketing budget.

1. Find Backlink Opportunities with Ahrefs

   
   

   Ahrefs can help you uncover free opportunities to build backlinks for your website. Analyse where your competitors are getting their backlinks and reach out to those platforms. If you have a marketing budget, consider targeting the same paid platforms your competitors are using to strengthen your backlink profile.

1. Evaluate Your Website’s Performance with Google Lighthouse

   
   

   Start by checking how well your website is performing using Google Lighthouse. If there are issues, Lighthouse will provide a detailed report highlighting problems such as heavy images, missing metadata, or slow loading times. Use this feedback to improve your site.

By using these free tools, you can gain a deeper understanding of SEO and take actionable steps to improve your website’s search engine performance.

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