Conversations about search engine optimization can be confusing, but all the expert knowledge boils down to four fundamental necessities:

1. You need great content — useful, clear writing on subjects that actually interest readers.
2. You need to identify the words, phrases and questions that people use when searching for your content.
3. You need links from authoritative sites so the search engines recognize your site as a credible source.
4. You need a well-designed site that doesn’t interfere with the search engines’ technology.

That’s it. Really.

All the rest (and there’s a lot) is just trying to scrape the last bit of peanut butter from the bottom of the jar.

For example, How to Set Up Content For Search Optimization