Plugins

My DIY SEO Journey: Setting Up Rank Math [Part 2]

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Rank Math setup WordPress SEO plugin dashboard

My Rank Math setup journey continues! I’m Karmi, a solo blogger tackling SEO for Karmi’s Musings & Tech. In ‘From SEO Confusion to DIY SEO Optimization Success: My RankMath Journey [Part 1]‘, I asked Claude AI about those spammy “SEO” emails: Karmi: What’s SEO, Sidekick? Claude: It’s making your blog easier for Google to find. Let’s audit karmismusingstech.com. Claude’s audit flagged messy URLs and no meta descriptions, pointing me to Rank Math’s free SEO plugin.

I’ve optimized 15–20 posts, with my first new post hitting a 71/100 SEO score! Now, with my sidekick Claude, I’m installing Rank Math on my WordPress blog, using Multipurpose Blog Pro theme. Claude suggested skipping Google Services for now, which I’ll tackle soon. Follow my journey on my blog or X premium! #SEO #RankMath #WordPress

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From SEO Confusion to DIY SEO Optimization Success: My RankMath Journey [Part 1]

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Those emails keep coming. “Improve your SEO!” they promise. “Boost your rankings!” But what exactly is SEO, and can you actually do it yourself without paying hundreds to some agency?

I decided to find out. After receiving the occasional SEO service pitch for my tech and politics blog, I turned to Claude AI to see if we could accomplish the same DIY SEO optimization results those services were promising. The answer turned out to be a resounding yes—with proper guidance.

What I Discovered About SEO Services

Search Engine Optimization sounds complicated, but it breaks down to making your website more visible to search engines like Google. Those email offers typically include keyword research, technical improvements, content optimization, and link building strategies. All legitimate services, but with price tags that made me wonder if there was a DIY approach.

Most paid SEO services charge anywhere from $500 to $2,000 monthly for what turned out to be tasks I could handle myself with the right tools and guidance. The key was understanding that SEO isn’t magic—it’s a systematic process of optimization.

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Jetpack Stats & Independent Analytics

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I’ve been blogging since before Google bought Blogger, but am not even close to knowing all the ‘inside’ workings involved in a ‘web content management system’. 🤔

Right now, I’m starting the second year of a 4-year Hostinger WordPress plan – intro price was onetime price of $107.56, and the 4-year renewal price will be a onetime price of $335.52 (works out to about $83.88 a year). New subscriptions may be a tad higher. There is also a 1-year Domain renewal cost of $16.17 each year.

Not a big follower of my blog’s stats, but do check out some of them daily. Also, am not even close to being an expert on what stats are important to other basic bloggers like me. Most of my previous blogs just showed some kind of a chart, with maybe a dropdown type of menu, and as I recall it was usually provided by Jetpack.

Never purchased any kind of a Stat app or Analytical app until a couple of weeks ago. I had been using the free Independent Analytics plugin for about a year, and liked it so well that I purchased the Independent Analytics Pro Lifetime version.

Jetpack Stats and Independent Analytics both have advantages, but over the year of using the free Independent Analytics plugin I found their stats to be more concise & accurate.

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Classic Block ­– replicates old Classic Editor ‘while inside the WordPress block editor’

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The WordPress Gutenberg Block Editor drove humble me away from running my primary Blog at WordPress.com. ‘Following the launch of WordPress 5.0 in December 2018’, the WordPress Block Editor ‘was set as the default editor and replaced the classic editor’.

I started blogging on Blogger before Google purchased it in 2003. Heck, I even learned how to write my posts in HTML before leaving Blogger in May of 2004. Still, that Gutenberg Block Editor kicked my buttocks every time I tried it. Even setup a free WP blog site to just test the Block Editor.

Had even purchased a $300 WP Business plan to avoid using that durn Block Editor on my Linux Newbie – Since 1996 primary blog. Started looking for a Web Hosting service during that 1-year WP Business plan subscription—hey, I wasn’t about to pay $300 every year for a simple personal blog.

Jeez…what a pain that search was!!! Long story, but the short of it was I settled on a Hostinger 4-year Introductory plan for a onetime cost of $107.56 (about $2.25 a month). Renewal price will be a onetime cost of $335.52 – in 10/19/2026. Gotta check both the Introductory prices & the Renewal prices on any plan you check out!

4-years for the WP Business plan is $1,200. I’ll look for a coupon before renewing in late 2026 to see if that $335.52 can be lowered a tad, but that price breaks down to just $83.88 a year, which is still a bargain.

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