SEO Content Writing BasicsSEO Content Writing BasicsSEO Content Writing BasicsSEO Content Writing Basics

Content Writing is as much of an art Content Writing is as much of an art form as it is a skill!form as it is a skill!

Know Me, Like Me, Trust Me

Now that is smart promoting. People prefer to get things from folks they know, like and trust. Custom SEO articles enable them get to know you, like and trust you. But it doesn't take place overnight. You'll need to offer typical posts as a way to gain a following and supply enough exceptional SEO to keep your search engine ratings high, attract new viewers and convince them that you're the professional inside your field.

Audience Profile

• Impatient (read hyper-text)

• Generally scans the page… for key info!

• Slow readability

• Suffers from excess of info… looks for interesting content!

Plan the content

• Food for spiders vs. food for humans?… make it same! Avoid garbage

• What topic to target? … keyword research … purchase decision cycle …

• Style? Funny / serious / info?

• Content layout (and order) – planning helps!

Researching the topic!

• Research well… article sites, social media, wiki, etc. (Ezinearticles.com)

• Get ideas, topics – but do not copy! … and think about adding value. (This can be done by always referring to Google News, Blogs….)

• Always know your audience i.e. are you writing for US audience or UK audience?

• Use synonyms (Refer Thesaurus)

While you write

• We can start with a catchy intro…

• Use simple words - Avoid abbreviations, geeky words!

• Creative? Not really - Avoid unnecessary adjectives and adverbs. Avoid superlatives

• Small sentences (~16 words), Keep the flow, divide in paragraphs, arrange the paragraphs, Keep article short and useful.

Meta titles6 biggest mistakes you can make when creating a meta title:•Not creating any page title at all.•Making titles too long. Limit your title to 75.•Naming your page name the same name as your website.•Naming all your pages the same name.•Naming the page without connecting it to your content.•Repeating keywords in titles.Examples of "Good" Meta Titles:Tips on Growing Flowers, How to Grow Flowers (flowers)Tax Advice, Tips on How to Pay Less Taxes (E-Z Tax Tips)These tags accomplish 3 things:1.They help robots understand what is imp. about the content on the page by repeating part of the keyword phrases that would be found in the article titles.2.They make sense to the readers.3.By using synonyms without actually repeating them, it allows for greater possibilities for appearing in searches for the same info on different items.

Meta descriptionsThink back to the last time you picked up a book at a bookstore. Chances are, you took a moment to flip it over and read the back cover. Meta descriptions are essentially the 'back cover' of a web page. They give search engines and visitors a concise explanation of the content on the site.

Tips for writing:•Don't overlook them. They are neither difficult nor time consuming.•Make them compelling, concise and informative. It should grab searcher's attention, spark interest and encourage him to find out more by clicking on the site.•Create unique descriptions. You should go for unique descriptions for every page. If you've got similar pages (like separate page for each product you sell) then create a formula to systematically craft unique descriptions based on product name, brand or colour.•Keep them 150 & 160 characters.•Utilize relevant keywords.

SEO Content Writing TipsIf you're a blogger or Internet marketer, having a taste of what the search engines offer is paramount. You need traffic and when it's handful, it's the sweetest thing since the Internet was invented. However, you need potential traffic.

• Write effective headlines. The headlines you write are crucial. You've got only 10 seconds to attract the user's attention. Headline is 90% of the reason anyone will read your ad copy.

•We can go for keyword phrases instead. Savvy SEO experts don't write articles based only on the keywords; they channel all their strength and skill in a different angle. We should also focus on key phrases. E.g. stay away from single-double terms like “lose weight, make money.” Research key phrases with the aim of solving one particular problem. E.g. weight loss diet for elite etc.

•Target Geo-Specific key phrases. Since online markets are getting crowded, if you do not specialize in the forthcoming years, you may run into mud waters in your online content marketing quest.

Continuation…

• Clear and simple approach: The sole purpose of content writing is to attract maximum no. of clients. Audience wants simple, crisp and comprehensive content that helps them to understand the objectives of your business quickly. Flowery language does not attract the target audience anymore, besides it gives a non-professional look to your website.

• Use simple vocabulary instead of using difficult words. Use of difficult words add clutter to your write up and often tend to distract the reader. Avoid passive voice.

• Write User-Friendly Content: Structuring web content by using headlines, subheadings, bullets etc. will make your web content not only impressive but will also make it easy for the target audience to understand and comprehend quickly and easily.

• Quality is the cornerstone of professional web content and must not be compromised. Your write up should always be free from grammatical, spelling, punctuation and other Basic English errors.

Continuation…

• Keywords play an important role in the SEO of your site… proper keyword density is helpful. Don't cram your article with too many keywords. Try using semantically related keywords. These allow us to find keyword phrases that often appear along-with the base keyword you typed in. For e.g. if you type in "lenses", you'll find Keyword Strategy Studio suggesting semantic keywords like..

xxxx Camera CCTV Security Optical

• You should know your limitations. In order to meet the requirements set out by an editor, it's always better to go through published articles.

• Do not self-advertise your expertise. Let your work speak for itself.

• A framework is important for your article. The intro part entails giving an overview of what you're going to talk about. The middle body entails the actual content and the end is a conclusive paragraph summing it all up.

Inverted Pyramid Style of Writing

In this style of writing, we put our most important info first when writing for the web. This style of writing has got many benefits:

•Readers can quickly assess whether they want to read your entire article.•Readers can stop reading at any point and still come away with the main point of your article.•By starting with your conclusion, the first few sentences on your web page will contain most of your relevant keywords, boosting your SEO.•By front-loading each paragraph, you allow your readers to skim through the first sentences of every paragraph to get a quick overview of your entire article.

The 70/20/10 Model for Content ExcellenceUsually the SEO content writers focus on delivering content that works, rather creating content that users want. The writers should beyond the data and should rather adopt a different yet effective modus operandi. We can go for this 70/20/10 model. Many popular brands are now seeing using this model, as it really works! It goes a little something like this:

•70% of content should be low-risk•20% should innovate off of what works•10% should be high-risk experimentations

Competition is too high. It's time to go to the mattresses. We should now adopt a powerful content strategy so as to deploy a SEO-heavy editorial calendar. Here goes:

•70% of content should be link bait•20% should be optimized and opportunistic•10% should be proactive and reactive experimentation

Continuation…

70% of Link Bait-70% of Link Bait-

•(It is any content or feature within a website, designed specifically to grab attention or encourage others to link to the website) Matt Cutt defines this terminology as anything "interesting enough to catch people's attention.“

•While “link baitlink bait” often has negative implications, we should simply understand it as content with a purpose: enough to build real traction on the web.

•It should educate audience, filter out complex ideas and distinguish your expertise from your competitors.

•The bottom-line is you should not simply deliver comprehensive and informative content, rather should be a bit tricky in making your content stand out from others.

Continuation…

20%: Optimize and Sharpen- 20%: Optimize and Sharpen-

•Once your content is published, it's time to keep an eye on the impact of the articles. Which one is getting the most attention? Who's talking about your work, and what do they have to say about it?

•By considering the part of your content that's working, you can use those topics in future texts. "Push the envelope" (to extend the current limits of performance). Always stay updated with the changes in the industry. Part of 20% should be spent educating yourself, go outside your comfort zone and aim at rendering newfound info to your audience.

continuation…

10% of Proactive and Reactive Experimentation-10% of Proactive and Reactive Experimentation-

•This is where your content is going to get wildly far-fetched.

•The reactive approach hinges on really understanding your industry, and being passionate when writing about trends or forecasting changes.

•Showcase your intelligences but do so in absurd and stimulating ways: think info graphics, opinion pieces, or videos.

•Understand your audience and go out on a thin branch to impress them. Use the 10% in experimenting with content that seems uncertain, incomplete and perhaps instinctive.

•Do not hesitate to add humour or excitement in your content.

Conclusion• Read your content … correct the flow

• Reduce it by at least 30%

• Re-read it .. Look for punctuations, readability, ease of accessing info, formatting

• Last but not the least – spell check ;)

Questions

Recall "If it doesn’t spread, it’s dead.” Don’t waste your resources rehashing content that’s out there already. Make something new, and by god, make it yours.