How to Install and Setup Yoast SEO Plugin in WordPress

What Is Yoast SEO and Why Use It?

• Choose and optimize page titles, meta descriptions, and focus keywords
• Improve readability with content analysis
• Build internal linking structure
• Generate XML sitemaps and control canonical URLs

Integrate with Google Search Console

For anyone serious about improving their WordPress site’s search rankings and traffic, Yoast SEO is a must-have tool. With regular use, it can have a significant impact on your search engine optimization and help establish your site as an authority in your niche. The time you invest in optimization will pay off through increased visibility and new visitors.

How to Install Yoast SEO Plugin in WordPress

To properly install and setup the Yoast SEO plugin in your WordPress site, follow these steps: Download the Plugin

First, log in to your WordPress admin dashboard. Then, go to Plugins Add New. In the search box, type “Yoast SEO” and press Enter. Find the plugin titled “Yoast SEO – The #1 WordPress SEO Plugin” by Team Yoast. Click Install Now, then Activate.

Complete the Setup Wizard

Once installed, the Yoast SEO setup wizard will automatically open. This will guide you through the initial configuration of the plugin. We recommend completing the entire wizard. It will help you properly setup important features like:

• Yoast SEO Analysis – Checks your content for optimization and provides feedback. • XML Sitemaps – Helps search engines index your site.

• Social Previews – Allows you to customize how your pages are displayed on social networks.

• Search Appearance Settings – Controls elements like page titles, meta descriptions, and more.
Adjust the Plugin Settings

After finishing the setup wizard, open the Yoast SEO menu to adjust the general plugin preferences and settings. You can configure options for:

• Search Appearance – Includes page titles, meta descriptions, and page URLs.

• Content Settings for title rewrites, cornerstone content, and more.

• XML Sitemaps – Options for sitemap generation and submission.

• Advanced Miscellaneous settings including image SEO, breadcrumbs, and redirect management.

Be sure to explore each section thoroughly to optimize Yoast SEO for your specific needs and goals. With the proper configuration, this plugin will help boost your WordPress site’s search rankings and traffic.

Configuring General Settings in Yoast SEO

Once Yoast SEO is installed, you’ll want to configure the general settings to optimize your site. In the WordPress admin sidebar, go to SEO → General Settings.

Choose whether you want to have the plugin save data in one place or in multiple locations based on post type. For most sites, saving everything in one place works well. Select whether you want to track the reading time of posts and show an estimated reading time in search results. Seeing a post’s reading time can help visitors determine if they have enough time to read the content.

SEO for Categories and Tags

Decide if you want to use the default WordPress category and tag descriptions or have Yoast SEO generate descriptions automatically. Using autogenerated descriptions can help provide more coherent descriptions across your site. However, you may want to manually set descriptions for your most important categories and tags.

Breadcrumbs

Breadcrumbs, the chain of links showing a page’s location in the site hierarchy, are an important on-page SEO element. Yoast SEO can automatically generate breadcrumbs for your WordPress posts and pages. Select the separator, prefix, and whether you want to show the blog page in the breadcrumbs.

Choose whether you want to automatically generate a meta description for date-based archives like those found at domain.com/2019/01/. Adding a meta description helps search engines understand the content in these archive pages.

Force rewrites controls whether Yoast SEO will redirect to the canonical URL when a non- canonical URL is accessed. It is best to leave this enabled to avoid duplicate content issues.

Configuring these general settings will provide a solid SEO foundation for your WordPress site. Be sure to revisit the settings if you make major changes to your site’s structure or content. Optimizing for SEO is an ongoing process.

Optimizing Titles and Meta Descriptions

1. Navigate to SEO → Titles & Meta in the WordPress admin.

2. Enter your target keyword for the page in the “Focus Keyword” field. This will provide suggestions for the page title and meta description. You can choose a suggestion or write your own.

3. Edit the page title by clicking in the “Yoast SEO” box. The title should include your target keyword for that page.

4. Edit the meta description by clicking in the box below the title. The description should be a concise summary of the page content.

5. Click “Save Changes” to save the title and meta description.

6. Repeat the same steps for the meta titles and descriptions of all pages on your site.
Optimizing your WordPress page titles and meta descriptions with the Yoast SEO plugin is key to improving search engine rankings and driving more organic traffic to your website. With some time and patience, you’ll have all your important pages optimized in no time. Let me know if you have any other questions!

Focus Keywords in Yoast SEO

Once the Yoast SEO plugin is installed and activated in your WordPress site, you can  begin optimizing your content for search engines. A key part of this optimization is using focus keywords, which are the main keywords and phrases you want to rank for in search results.

Choosing Good Focus Keywords

Select keywords that are relevant to your content and that real people would use when searching for information on your topic. These should be 2-5 words in length, with 3 words being ideal. Avoid using broad, generic terms. Conduct keyword research to find high-volume, low-competition terms.
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Adding Focus Keywords in Yoast SEO
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When creating or editing a post or page in WordPress, you will see the Yoast SEO meta box. This is where you enter your focus keyword(s) for that piece of content. Yoast will then analyze how well you’ve optimized the content for that keyword.
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Aim for using your focus keyword in the following areas:
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• Page title: Place your focus keyword close to the beginning of the page title. The page title displays in search results, so including your keyword here is important. • Page URL: If possible, incorporate your keyword into the page URL. For example, if your keyword is “WordPress tutorial”, use “wordpress-tutorial” in the URL.
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• Header tags: Use your focus keyword in an H2 or H3 header tag within the content. This signals to search engines the topic of that content section.

• Content: Include your focus keyword naturally in the content 3-5 times, with the first mention in the first paragraph. Use synonyms and related terms as well to improve keyword density.

• Image alt text: If using images in the content, be sure to add alt text that includes your keyword. The alt text is read by search engines.

• Meta description: Craft a compelling meta description of 150-160 characters that includes your keyword and appears in search results. The meta description should encourage clicks. By properly implementing focus keywords in these areas of your content, you can optimize that page for your target keyword and improve search engine ranking. Repeat this process for all of the pages and posts on your site.

Setting Up XML Sitemaps in Yoast
To properly set up XML sitemaps in Yoast SEO, follow these steps:

Install the Yoast SEO Plugin

The first step is to install and activate the Yoast SEO plugin in your WordPress admin. This
can be done by searching for “Yoast SEO” in the plugin directory and installing it on your
site.

Access the XML Sitemaps Settings

Once Yoast SEO is installed, go to SEO XML Sitemaps. This page allows you to configure sitemap settings to best suit your needs.

Choose Which Post Types to Include

By default, posts and pages are included in the XML sitemap. You can also choose to  include custom post types. Select any additional post types you want to be included in the sitemap. This helps search engines discover all content on your site.

Set the Sitemap Update Frequency

The update frequency determines how often your sitemap is refreshed. For most sites, a daily update is suitable. If you publish content very frequently, you can select a higher update frequency. If your content is relatively static, a lower frequency like weekly or monthly is fine.

Add Additional Sitemap URLs (Optional)

If you have a large site, your sitemap may become too big. In this case, you can split it into multiple sitemaps. You can also add URLS to sitemaps that point to other locations, such as video sitemaps or RSS feeds.
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Submit Your Sitemaps to Search Engines

Once your sitemaps are configured, you need to submit them to search engines like Google and Bing so they can discover all of your content. In the XML Sitemaps settings,

click the link to submit your sitemap to Google. Then go to Bing Webmaster Tools and submit your sitemap URL there as well.

Following these steps will ensure your XML sitemaps in Yoast SEO are properly set up and configured. Be sure to check back on the XML Sitemaps settings page periodically to make any needed changes to your configuration. Consistently optimizing your XML sitemaps will help search engines discover and index all of your important content.

Managing Social Media With Yoast

Managing your social media profiles directly within Yoast SEO allows you to easily keep an eye on how your content is performing across networks and make adjustments to your
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Utilizing the social media tools in Yoast SEO is an easy way to save time while still maintaining an active presence on networks that drive traffic to your website. By connecting accounts, automating shares and monitoring performance, you can develop a data-driven social strategy to increase discoverability and build your audience.

Additional Features and Tools in Yoast SEO

Yoast SEO offers several features beyond basic SEO optimization to help improve your
site.

• Robots.txt Editor: This tool allows you to edit your robots.txt file, which tells search engines which pages they can and can’t access on your site. You can use it to block spam bots and protect private pages.

• XML Sitemaps: Yoast SEO automatically generates XML sitemaps for your site to help search engines discover all your pages. You can configure options like the post
types and taxonomies to include.

• Redirects: This feature allows you to set up 301 redirects, which pass on the link authority from an old URL to a new one. This is important for maintaining rankings after restructuring your site or changing page URLs.

• File Editor: The file editor enables you to edit .htaccess, robots.txt, and .htpasswd files. You can add code to these files to enable password protection, caching, and other functions.

• Search Console: Connect your site to Google Search Console to see how Google views and indexes your site. You’ll get reports on indexed pages, errors, and more to
help optimize your SEO.

• MyYoast: MyYoast provides an overview of your key metrics like traffic, rankings, and backlinks. You can also compare multiple sites to see how they stack up and get customized recommendations for improvement.

• Link Building Assistant: This tool provides a list of authoritative sites where you might get backlinks. The list indicates which link building tactics may be effective for each site. You can filter by topic and domain authority to find the most useful
targets.

By taking advantage of these additional tools, you can gain valuable insights into your site’s SEO and make improvements that go beyond basic optimizations. Yoast SEO aims to provide all the features you need to strengthen your search rankings and boost organic
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Yoast SEO FAQS: Common Questions Answered

Yoast SEO is the most popular WordPress SEO plugin, used on over 8 million websites. However, with its many features and options, you likely have some questions about properly setting it up and using it. Here are answers to some of the most frequently asked