8 Suggestions from Editor to Write Perfect SEO Content
Whether you are selling some product online or want to share your talent with the world, you have to focus on SEO to get noticed. An SEO strategy consists of proven practices that help you meet the criteria set by search engines to claim the top rankings on their result pages.
One of the most important parts of any SEO strategy is writing SEO content.
Without proper content that is relevant to your audience, you will fail to get the results you expect from your SEO campaign. But, remember that writing SEO content is different from writing a college essay or writing for your “Dear Diary.”
If you are new to the concept of SEO writing, keep reading this article to learn everything there is to know.
1. Picking the Keywords
Gone are the days when SEO content was all about stuffing keywords. In this day and age, you have to understand the search intent behind the keyword and create high-quality and relevant content around them for better rankings on search engines.
It’s also important that you choose the right tool for keyword research as it’s crucial for proper on-page SEO. You can follow Matthew Woodward on page SEO checklist for proper optimization without missing anything important.
2. Start with a Draft
Most people think that they can start writing without giving it much thought. The problem with this approach is that you end up writing gibberish that doesn’t make any sense. Remember that you have to write content that’s relevant and exciting for your readers.
Starting with a proper draft helps ensure the quality of your content. Without a draft, it becomes difficult to stay relevant and maintain a proper transition from one paragraph to another. Create a draft that includes headings, subheadings, and instructions before you start writing.
3. Value Your Audience
The content you write should be valuable for your audience. Gone are the days when the content was meant for search engine bots and was filled with keywords. Today, the content is meant for the readers and readers only.
You should try to create detailed audience personas to understand their needs and expectations better.
Skipping the basics and not prioritizing your audience would compromise the results of the entire campaign. Instead of writing an academic paper meant for the pros, write something relevant for both the rookies and the skilled professionals. Furthermore, make sure that the content is actionable and engaging.
4. Don’t Skip the Details
Writing basic content is another common mistake.
Don’t forget that SEO has evolved from keyword stuffing to writing something actionable. NLP and other technologies allow search engines to understand which content is better.
If you are writing an article about keeping the house clean and write the first tip to clean the house regularly, it wouldn’t be very helpful. It’s too basic and everyone knows that.
To provide value, you should discuss things that most people wouldn’t know. Do proper research and look for tips from pros, and add your experience if you have any, and share it on your blog. Pay attention to every little detail and cut out the portions that don’t provide any value.
5. Focus on Proper Structure
No one would want to read your content if you present your ideas in a disarranged manner – even if you are sharing the most valuable advice. To keep the readers hooked, define and follow a proper structure. Furthermore, it helps:
- You to show what is discussed in your content.
- Readers to scan the page.
- Visitors to stay engaged on the page, reducing the bounce rate of your web pages.
You will see the option of ‘Styles’ in the ‘Home’ tab of Microsoft Word.
Use that formatting to make your structure readable for search engines. Each style has HTML tags behind it, which is pasted with the text on the Content Management System.
Your title should be ‘Heading 1’, main headlines should be ‘Heading 2’, and apply ‘Heading 3’ on their subheadings.
6. Authority Links are Important
What if your content shows that you know everything and you are the only authority for what you do? Such arrogance and carelessness to details will never make your content exciting for you. You cannot just share anything you want in your blogs.
Unless you are a thought leader in your industry, you have to back up your content with facts.
The only way you can increase the authority of your content is by providing sources to your claims.
Adding high DA links is an easy way of adding references to your content. Readers will know that you are not bluffing and have done your research.
7. Add Informative Images
There is no point in filling the page with content without providing any value. It has to be engaging and actionable.
You can make it convincing by adding relevant images. You can pick free images from websites like unsplash.com, but they are mostly decorative. If possible, take time to create infographics that can become linkable assets for your business.
8. The Editing Session
Do not publish articles right after writing. After you’re done writing, allocate some time to look for mistakes in an editing session. Read the content with the eyes of your readers and make sure the article has a good flow and nothing other than useful information. Be prepared to even add or remove entire paragraphs.
