SEO has come a long way since the early days of simple keyword stuffing and link-building sprees. Now, in 2025, search algorithms have become more sophisticated—they factor in user behavior, artificial intelligence, voice search, and a variety of other signals to determine which content deserves the top spots on search engine results pages (SERPs).
If you want to outperform your competition, you need a comprehensive SEO strategy addressing each optimization aspect, from keyword research to backlink building.
That’s where Semrush comes into play. In this Semrush tutorial, we’ll walk you through how to master SEO with Semrush in 2025 so you can improve your on-page SEO, strengthen your backlink profile, and climb to the top of Google’s rankings.
Whether you’re a digital agency, business owner, or in-house marketer, these steps will help you use Semrush to rank higher and boost your organic traffic.
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Why SEO Still Matters in 2025
Search engine optimization has evolved dramatically over the years. Today, Google’s algorithms focus on delivering the best user experience, measuring factors like page speed, content quality, mobile-friendliness, and even user engagement metrics like time on site and bounce rate.
Meanwhile, artificial intelligence and machine learning help search engines become better at matching user intent with relevant pages.
- Voice search: As more people use smart speakers and mobile voice assistants, long-tail, conversational keywords are growing in importance.
- User experience (UX): Modern SEO goes beyond keywords to ensure that users have a flawless experience—from fast page loads to accessible design.
- Authority and trust: Search engines increasingly reward sites that demonstrate expertise, authority, and trustworthiness (E-A-T).
In 2025, the competition is fiercer than ever. Businesses of all sizes are vying for those coveted top positions. The key to outsmarting your competitors lies in using the right tools for research, analysis, and optimization.
This is exactly why Semrush is considered one of the best SEO tools in 2025. It provides a holistic SEO solution, allowing you to handle your keyword research, on-page optimization, and backlink building all in one place.
Step 1: Conducting Keyword Research with Semrush
When you’re planning a content strategy or revamping your existing SEO approach, keyword research is the first essential step. Semrush has a dedicated feature called the Keyword Magic Tool, which helps you discover thousands of keyword variations, questions, and related terms to fuel your SEO strategy.
Using the Keyword Magic Tool
Access Keyword Magic Tool
Log in to your Semrush dashboard. Under the “SEO” menu, look for the Keyword Magic Tool. Once you open it, you’ll see a search bar where you can enter your seed keyword.
Refine Your Search
Type in a broad keyword (e.g., “digital marketing” or “organic skincare”). Select your target country and language to get more localized results.
Conduct a keyword research with Semrush
Filter and Sort Keywords
Semrush will list keywords along with metrics like search volume, keyword difficulty, and more. Filter these results by using the KD% (keyword difficulty) or Volume sliders to focus on opportunities that match your goals.
Pro Tip: Aim for keywords with a moderate difficulty (KD%) and decent search volume to get the best mix of traffic potential and ranking feasibility.
Finding Low-Competition, High-Volume Keywords
In an ideal scenario, you want to target keywords that have high search volume but low competition. This is the SEO sweet spot -ranking for these keywords can deliver significant traffic without an uphill battle.
- Sort by KD%: Lower KD% means lower competition, but always check the search volume.
- Focus on Search Intent: If the volume is high but the user intent isn’t relevant to your business, you could end up with traffic that doesn’t convert.
Understanding Keyword Intent for Better Engagement
Today’s algorithms prioritize user intent—the reason behind a user’s search query. Semrush helps by categorizing search terms into informational, navigational, transactional, or commercial keywords. Matching your content to the right intent can:
- Increase click-through rates (CTR).
- Improve user engagement and time on page.
- Lead to higher conversions if you correctly identify transactional or commercial keywords.
Step 2: Optimizing On-Page SEO with Semrush
Once you have your target keywords, you need to ensure your website content and structure are fully optimized. Semrush offers a suite of tools—Site Audit, SEO Content Template, and On-Page SEO Checker—to help you fix technical issues and refine your content.
Run a Site Audit to Uncover Technical Issues
A technical SEO foundation is crucial for ranking well. Semrush’s Site Audit tool scans your website for issues like broken links, missing meta tags, duplicate content, slow page speeds, and more.
Audit your site with the help of Semrush
Set Up Your Project
- Click on “Projects” in your Semrush dashboard and set up a new project for your domain.
- Configure Crawl Settings
- Choose how many pages to crawl and set specific parameters if needed (like ignoring certain URLs).
Review the Audit Report
Once the crawl is complete, Semrush will score your site’s health and highlight errors, warnings, and notices. Errors tend to be the most critical (like missing title tags), so fix those first.
Creating High-Quality Content with the SEO Content Template
Even the best technical foundation won’t save you if your content is sub-par. Semrush’s SEO Content Template helps you create search-engine-friendly content by analyzing the top 10 ranking pages for your target keyword. Here’s how it works:
Enter Your Target Keyword
Under “SEO Content Template,” type your main keyword (e.g., “best vegan desserts”). Semrush will display recommended word count, semantically related keywords, and backlink suggestions based on the competition.
Craft SEO-Optimized Copy
Use these insights to structure your article, include related keywords naturally, and aim for the ideal word count.
Tip: Always keep your user in mind—great content is a balance between SEO best practices and reader engagement.
Track On-Page Improvements with the On-Page SEO Checker
After publishing or updating your content, use the On-Page SEO Checker to see if you’ve met best practices. This tool offers actionable suggestions for keyword placement, meta descriptions, and even user experience factors.
- Recommendations: It might suggest adding your keyword to subheadings or increasing the word count based on competitor analysis.
- Semantic Ideas: It will also propose LSI (Latent Semantic Indexing) keywords for a more comprehensive coverage of a topic.
By systematically applying these suggestions, you can be confident you’re following best SEO practices in 2025 and staying ahead of algorithm changes.
Step 3: Enhancing Off-Page SEO with Semrush
While on-page optimization lays the groundwork, off-page SEO determines how authoritative and trustworthy your site is in the eyes of search engines. Backlinks are still a major ranking factor, and Semrush offers robust tools for link building—Backlink Audit and Backlink Analytics—to manage your link profile effectively.
Spotting Toxic Links with the Backlink Audit
Not all backlinks are created equal. Some links might come from spammy or irrelevant domains, which can harm your SEO. Semrush’s Backlink Audit tool helps you identify these toxic links so you can disavow them before they impact your rankings.
Set Up Backlink Audit
In your project dashboard, select “Backlink Audit.” Semrush will scan your entire backlink profile.
Toxic Score
Links are rated with a toxic score, showing you which ones are most likely to hurt your site.
If you find harmful links, you can create a disavow file directly from Semrush and submit it to Google. Alternatively, reach out to the site owners to request link removal.
Building Quality Backlinks with Backlink Analytics
Once you clean up toxic links, you’ll want to acquire quality backlinks that can propel your site’s rankings:
- Finding Opportunities: Use Backlink Analytics to research potential partner sites, influencers, or industry publications.
- Competitive Insights: Study where your competitors are getting their best links. If they have mentions on high-authority blogs, consider pitching your content to those outlets.
- Link-Building Workflow: Semrush even has a Link Building Tool that organizes your outreach campaigns.
Semrush is particularly powerful for link building, which is often the most challenging aspect of SEO to scale.
Improve your link building now
Analyzing Competitor Backlinks for Growth Opportunities
Backlink building with Semrush isn’t just about your site’s links. You can also analyze competitor backlinks to discover:
- Common Referring Domains: Where do multiple competitors get links from? Those sites could be valuable targets for your outreach.
- New vs. Lost Backlinks: Keep track of newly gained backlinks by your competitors. This might signal new blog mentions or resource pages that you could tap into.
- Anchor Text Trends: See which anchor text your competitors use most frequently. This can give you ideas for more optimized link-building campaigns.
Step 4: Monitoring and Adjusting Your SEO Strategy
Improving your SEO is not a “set it and forget it” game. With algorithm changes and competitor movements, you need to stay agile. Semrush’s Position Tracking and various reporting features let you track real-time changes in your keyword rankings, giving you the insights needed to refine your approach.
Position Tracking for Real-Time Insights
Position Tracking in Semrush gives you an up-to-date view of how your keywords rank in Google’s SERPs:
Add Target Keywords
Select the keywords you want to monitor—preferably the ones you identified in the Keyword Magic Tool.
Location & Device Type
Customize your tracking to see rankings for specific locations or device types (mobile vs. desktop).
Daily Updates
Semrush updates your keyword positions daily, so you can spot trends quickly and adjust your strategy if you see significant rank fluctuations.
Fine-Tuning Your Strategy Using Semrush Reports
With your positions tracked, it’s time to decide what to do next. Semrush generates detailed reports highlighting:
- Keyword Gains & Drops: Which keywords are moving up or down in the rankings.
- SERP Features: If your page appears in featured snippets, “People Also Ask,” or other SERP features.
- Competitor Benchmarking: Track up to several competitors to see how their positions stack up against yours.
Use these insights to refine your content strategy -if you see a competitor outranking you with a more comprehensive guide, update your post to better address user needs. If a competitor gains links from authoritative sites, consider doing outreach to that same site or a similar publication.
Semrush’s Position Tracking ensures you’re always aware of changes, so you can adapt your SEO tactics as soon as possible.
Take Action with Semrush Today
In 2025, succeeding in SEO demands a holistic and data-driven approach—and Semrush provides all the tools you need in one unified platform. By following these four steps, you’ll be well on your way to dominating search rankings:
- Keyword Research: Use the Keyword Magic Tool to find low-competition, high-volume keywords and align them with user intent.
- On-Page Optimization: Run the Site Audit, create content with the SEO Content Template, and fine-tune pages using the On-Page SEO Checker.
- Off-Page Enhancement: Clean up your link profile with the Backlink Audit and build strong, authoritative backlinks using the Backlink Analytics tool.
- Monitoring & Adjustment: Keep a close eye on your keyword rankings through Position Tracking and adjust your strategies based on Semrush’s reports.
It’s about making Semrush a central part of your SEO workflow, from planning and creating content to analyzing your results and refining your methods. The platform’s comprehensive nature ensures you’ll have all the data and insights you need to stay ahead in today’s ultra-competitive SEO landscape.
Next Steps
Why not see for yourself what a difference Semrush can make? Sign up for Semrush’s 14-day free trial and start implementing these strategies on your own website. By taking action now, you’ll gain a competitive advantage, ensuring that when 2025’s algorithm shifts arrive, your site will remain at the top of the SERPs.
Remember, SEO success is a marathon, not a sprint. With the right tools and consistent effort, you’ll be in prime position to dominate search rankings in 2025 and beyond.
