How to Actually Rank for Competitive Keywords (a.k.a. The Old Words)
Published September 10, 2025
TL;DR Stop begging Google. Start showing up like a good neighbor.
The Ugly Truth
Everyone wants the shiny, high-volume keywords. You know—the ones your competitors have been sitting on since 2014 like a dragon hoarding gold.
And yeah, you can get there. But you don’t storm the castle. You… make friends with time.
Your Pitch to Google
Forget “hacks.” Ranking for competitive terms is basically one long, slow romance with a search engine. The pitch goes like this:
-
“I’m not a fling.”
This site is real. It’s not an affiliate spam farm. I’m building something that lasts. -
“I show up every week.”
At least one new high-quality page goes live. Consistency > random bursts of effort. -
“I bring friends.”
New backlinks trickling in, week after week. Doesn’t have to be viral, just steady. -
“I’m useful.”
My pages answer real questions. People stick around, get what they need, and maybe even smile. -
“I cover the weird corners too.”
Long-tail content (the oddly specific questions) helps me build topical authority for the big keywords. -
“I don’t ghost old stuff.”
I refresh existing pages. Update stats, add context, keep things alive.
Why This Works
Search engines don’t fall for flowers and chocolate. They want evidence. And every new page, backlink, update, or long-tail post is like you saying:
“Hey Google, still here. Still trying. Still worth trusting.”
Fast forward a few months (or honestly, years), and you’ve gone from nowhere → page 3 → page 2 → finally peeking into page 1. Once you’re there, you’re the dragon on the pile of gold.
Indie Hacker Action Plan
- Ship Weekly: one solid new page, no excuses.
- Backlink Drip: at least one new backlink per week (small wins compound).
- Long-Tail Net: blog posts covering specific, weird questions.
- Refresh Cadence: update 2–3 old posts per month.
Closing Thought
Ranking for competitive keywords isn’t about tricks—it’s about proving you’re the last one standing. The sites that look alive, stay alive.
👉 Want to stop reading about SEO theory and actually move the needle? That’s where Indie10k comes in. We turn vague goals like “rank for competitive keywords” into bite-sized, 30‑minute action cards you can actually do today. Ship a new page. Reach out for a backlink. Refresh an old post. Stack enough of these small sprints, and suddenly you’re not just playing the SEO game—you’re winning it.