How I Ranked for 140 Keywords in 1 Month

By Ari Nakos • 2025-04-18

Achieving SEO success doesn't always require years of effort. In this post, I'll share how I managed to rank for 140 keywords in just one month with my language learning application, building on the programmatic SEO strategy I outlined in my previous article.

The Project

I build language learning applications because I love learning languages. My latest project is Grake, a game inspired by the classic Snake, but with an educational twist. Instead of just eating random objects, you grow your snake by capturing words in the correct order. This creates a playful way to learn grammar, vocabulary, and syntax in foreign languages.

While the game itself is engaging, I needed a strategy to drive traffic to it. That's where programmatic SEO came into play.

How I Did It

1. Strategic Keyword Research with Ahrefs

I started by using Ahrefs to find common expressions that language learners search for. Focusing on phrases like "how to say [word/phrase] in Spanish," I discovered 33,691 potential keywords in the USA alone.

So there's significant search volume for language translation queries, providing an opportunity for my language learning application to gain visibility.

2. Filtering for Low-Hanging Fruit

With thousands of potential keywords, I needed to prioritize. I filtered the results for:

  • Low Keyword Difficulty (KD) - easier to rank for. Specifically less then 20.
  • High Search Volume (SV) - more potential traffic. Specifically more than 100 per month.

This approach allowed me to identify keywords where I could achieve rankings quickly while still reaching a meaningful audience.

3. Creating Targeted Content Pages

For each selected keyword, I created dedicated pages that:

  • Demonstrated the word or phrase in context within Grake
  • Included the keyword in the page title, meta description, and content
  • Provided value to language learners by showing the word in action

This programmatic approach allowed me to scale content creation efficiently while maintaining relevance for each keyword.

The Results

After just one month, the results exceeded my expectations:

  • Successfully ranked for 140 keywords
  • One keyword reached the top 10 results
  • Established initial organic traffic to my application

While only one keyword has reached the top 10 so far, I'm optimistic about my strategy. The initial rankings provide validation that the approach works, and I expect more keywords to climb higher as the pages age and gain authority.

Graph showing keyword ranking growth over one month

What's Next

This is month 1 of my SEO journey with Grake. My plan for month 2:

  1. Expanding content to cover more common phrases
  2. Improving on-page optimization for existing pages by adding suggested phrases
  3. Building backlinks to boost domain authority -- this is tedious and requires research and outreach
  4. Monitoring rankings and adjusting strategy based on performance -- this ongoing

Key Takeaways

If you're looking to implement a similar strategy for your project, here are the key lessons from my experience:

  1. Find a keyword pattern: Look for repeatable search patterns in your niche
  2. Focus on low competition: Start with keywords you can realistically rank for (KD of less than 20)
  3. Create valuable content: Each page should genuinely help the searcher
  4. Be patient: While some results come quickly, SEO is still a long-term game