After leading hundreds of successful SEO campaigns over the past decade, I’ve developed a systematic approach that consistently delivers results. Today, I want to share my process for building a 90-day SEO plan from scratch, using a real-life example to illustrate each step.
The foundation of any effective SEO campaign begins with understanding what you’re working with. This means extracting your existing keyword profile, organizing it strategically, and then using data to guide your decisions. This methodical approach has been the backbone of my success in the industry.
Starting With Keyword Extraction and Organization
The first step in my process involves extracting the existing keyword profile using tools like Semrush or Ahrefs. For this example, we’re dealing with about 7,000 keywords – a relatively small dataset that makes it easier to demonstrate the process.
After exporting the data, I organize keywords based on the opportunity they present rather than using the default categorization from SEO tools. This means filtering out keywords ranking in position one (since they’re already performing well) and focusing on those ranking from position two and beyond.
The next crucial step is identifying keywords that drive revenue. For my business, keywords related to “SEO training” are particularly valuable as they connect directly to my Gotch SEO Academy offering. I look for keywords that are a perfect fit for existing pages and designate them as primary keywords.
When selecting primary keywords, I focus on those closest to driving actual conversions. For instance, “best SEO training” is an excellent primary keyword for my SEO courses page because it perfectly matches the page’s intent and has commercial value.
A common question I get is how to choose between similar keyword variants. My approach is simple: while Google will likely help you rank for similar variants anyway, I typically select the variant with the highest search volume as my primary keyword.
Natural Keyword Implementation Is Critical
An important clarification: designating a primary keyword doesn’t mean using it unnaturally in your content. For example, if my primary keyword is “SEO training Denver,” I wouldn’t use that exact phrase awkwardly in my copy. Instead, I might write “Best SEO training in Denver” – which sounds natural while still targeting the core concept.
This natural approach extends to title tags and other on-page elements. The days of awkward keyword stuffing are long gone – Google understands context and related terms much better now.
I recommend selecting no more than 50-100 primary keywords for your campaign. Going beyond this typically means you don’t have the resources to properly execute. Being hyper-focused on a smaller set of keywords allows you to be more effective with your optimization efforts.
Identifying Secondary Keyword Opportunities
While reviewing your keyword data, you’ll likely discover secondary keyword opportunities. These are keywords that your existing pages aren’t performing well for because they aren’t relevant enough to rank for those terms.
For example, if “best local SEO software” is showing up for a page about “best SEO tools for agencies,” that’s a mismatch. The solution is to create a dedicated page for “best local SEO software” – what I call “splintering.”
This approach offers multiple benefits:
- You create more relevant pages that rank better for specific terms
- You build topic support around your primary pages
- You create opportunities for internal linking between related pages
- You establish greater topical authority in your niche
The goal at this stage isn’t to prioritize all these keywords but to identify both primary and secondary opportunities that you can later organize based on data-driven criteria.
Using Data to Prioritize Your Keywords
Once you’ve identified your primary and secondary keywords, it’s time to prioritize them using quantifiable data. I use several metrics to score each keyword:
- Search volume (higher volume = higher score)
- Keyword difficulty (lower KD = higher score)
- Cost per click (higher CPC = higher score, indicating commercial intent)
- Current position (better ranking = higher score, as it’s easier to improve)
- Intent (commercial intent gets a higher score than informational)
Beyond these basic metrics, I also consider relevance score – how relevant the keyword is to what you actually sell. This forces you to think about where each keyword sits in your sales funnel. I use ChatGPT to streamline this process, assigning a relevance score from 1-5 based on how closely the keyword aligns with my core offerings.
Two other crucial factors are word count requirements and competition level. Keywords requiring longer content will cost more to produce, while those dominated by high-authority sites will require more backlinks to compete. I use Ahrefs’ “lowest DR” filter to identify keywords where lower-authority sites are ranking in the top positions – these represent more accessible opportunities.
Conducting a Technical SEO Audit
With keywords organized and prioritized, the next step is a technical SEO audit to identify site-wide issues. Using Screaming Frog with API connections to Google Analytics, Search Console, PageSpeed Insights, and Ahrefs provides comprehensive data.
When reviewing the crawl data, I look for several key issues:
- 301 redirects that could be eliminated or updated
- 404 errors with traffic or backlinks that should be redirected
- Pages buried too deep in the site architecture (aim for no more than 3 clicks from home)
- Pages with insufficient internal links
- Pages with poor engagement rates compared to site average
- Pages with no traffic, no impressions, and no backlinks (candidates for deletion or upgrading)
This technical audit often reveals significant opportunities for improvement before you even touch your content strategy. Even on well-maintained sites like my own, I consistently find technical issues that need addressing.
Page-Level Ranking Diagnosis
The final step is conducting a detailed ranking diagnosis for your priority pages. This process examines over 40 factors that might be holding back your rankings, organized into categories like on-page SEO, technical factors, content quality, E-E-A-T signals, and backlink metrics.
This comprehensive analysis pinpoints exactly what’s preventing a page from ranking higher. For example, when analyzing one of my pages about content optimization tools, I discovered issues with content uniqueness, demonstration of firsthand experience, and insufficient backlinks compared to competitors.
By identifying these specific factors, I can create a targeted improvement plan rather than making random changes and hoping for the best. This methodical approach is what separates successful SEO campaigns from those that flounder.
The beauty of this ranking diagnosis process is that it reveals precisely what’s holding any page back, allowing you to focus your efforts where they’ll have the greatest impact.
This systematic approach to SEO has helped me deliver consistent results across hundreds of campaigns. By extracting your keyword profile, organizing and prioritizing opportunities, conducting a thorough technical audit, and diagnosing specific ranking issues, you can build a 90-day SEO plan that targets the exact areas needing improvement.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How many primary keywords should I target in a 90-day SEO plan?
I recommend focusing on no more than 50-100 primary keywords, with 50 being ideal for most businesses. Targeting too many keywords typically means you won’t have the resources to properly optimize for all of them. Being hyper-focused on a smaller set allows you to be more effective with your optimization efforts and achieve better results.
Q: What’s the difference between primary and secondary keywords in this SEO approach?
Primary keywords are terms that perfectly match existing pages on your site – they’re the main topic that page should rank for. Secondary keywords are opportunities where your current pages aren’t relevant enough to rank well, indicating you should create new, dedicated pages for these topics. This “splintering” approach creates more topical authority and internal linking opportunities.
Q: How do you determine which technical SEO issues to fix first?
I prioritize technical issues based on their potential impact on user experience and rankings. Start with fixing 404 errors that have traffic or backlinks, then address 301 redirects that could be eliminated, followed by improving site architecture to ensure important pages are no more than three clicks from the homepage. Pages with poor engagement metrics or insufficient internal links should also be early priorities.
Q: What factors are most important when diagnosing why a page isn’t ranking well?
The most common factors holding pages back include insufficient content quality (lack of uniqueness, firsthand experience, or expertise), technical issues affecting crawling or indexing, poor user experience metrics, and inadequate backlinks compared to competitors. The ranking diagnosis process helps identify which specific factors are most important for each individual page, allowing you to create targeted improvement plans rather than making random changes.
