Content Writing Advice for SEO
This guide is for those of you who are seeking content writing advice for SEO.
Although the subject matter will vary along with different writing
styles, the core principles of writing will always remain the same and
what has been drilled into all of us throughout middle school.
As painful as it may seem, try thinking back to when you wrote that
five page book report in English class. Flashback and can you remember
what the teacher wrote on the chalkboard about the proper way of organizing content? If you don't recall, this would be a good time to take notes. The structure of content
should always follow the same format of introduction, then arguments
for or against the given topic, reasons backing up your arguments (body
paragraphs) and finally closure that provides a summary covering the
main points of your arguments and position on the topic.
Content writing structure:
- Introduction
- Arguments for or against the topic being discussed
- Reasons backing up your arguments
- Summary
To recap, the content should contain the topic being discussed
(introduction), your opinion on the subject (arguments on the topic),
why you think your opinion is relevant (backup your claims) and finally
a summary highlighting the main points of your claims.
How many arguments should you have? Well, there really is no magic
number and completely up to you to decide (I should, however, state for
the record that in middle school the English teacher always wanted a
minimum of three arguments). Words of advice are to
keep it simple, don't add "filler" and "big" words and write how you
would normally talk in a conversation. The rule of thumb is as long as
you provide valid reason(s) for your arguments and your claims are
clear, concise and to the point you're on the right track. I should
also mention that it's good practice to provide facts, references and quotes from authoritative sources to strengthen your position on the topic.
When it comes to optimizing content for search engines such as Google, the most important question you need to be asking yourself: "is the information useful to the reader?" If the content is not relevant to the reader, it's not going to be relevant to search engines. In other words, write content with your readers in mind
and not search engines. What is the purpose of Google? Answering this
simple question reinforces what you should be asking yourself. The
purpose of Google is to search for and return with the most relevant
results for the topic a person is searching for. For example, if your
topic is about "content writing advice for SEO"
the written content should reflect these keywords and must to meet
three basic criteria in order to be considered in search engines.
- Does the content mention that exact phrase with simular variations?
- Does the content talk about the topic in detail?
- Is the content about the topic informative and relavant?
If the content meets the criteria above then it should organically rank in the search results for the keywords - in this example "content writing for SEO".
Keep in mind that it takes time in ranking / appearing in the search
results and may not appear on the first page because there are other
factors involved in search engine optimization, but if the general guidelines for writing content
are followed, you should naturally be included in the search results.
Its how search engines work, but by no means guaranteed because it's
ultimately up to the search engines' algorithm to decide if the content
is revenant to what the user is searching for.
Having the fundamental principles of content writing
in place with the understanding of the sole purpose of search engines
will give you a great starting point in writing content for SEO. Hope
the advice helps and happy writing.
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