Why quality content remains king

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is one of these things that so many know about but aren’t sure exactly how it works. 

While there is much you can do to your website to help search engine crawlers, quality content is what will build your brand and promote engagement. Why? Because you’re talking to people, not machines.  

You can’t fake quality

People find your site or page because they’re looking for answers, i.e., quality information that is presented in readily-digestible format. Google and other search engines are wise to tricks and shortcuts that people use to optimise their pages. Quality content, however, is always given the green light and, most importantly, appreciated by visitors.

If you provide original and interesting content, easily absorbed and understood, visitors will stick around. They may even come back for more and tell their friends. Why? Because you’ve delivered content they value.

SEO checklist

  1. Good content is easy to read and understand. Write for the average person – no-one cares about how smart you think you are.
  2. Deliver content to help people achieve a goal or solve a problem.
  3. Make sure grammar and spelling is good to go. This is where professional SEO writers make all the difference. We’ll create an article that is easy to read, interesting and presents your company in the best light.
  4. Ensure you have the right amount of key words that blend in beautifully.
  5. Use short paragraphs (1 to 4 sentences) and sub-headers – avoid big blocks of text.
  6. Let your headings tell a story. People scan a body of copy before they read it. So make sure they get the gist of the story through the headlines.
  7. Use pattern interrupts – tools that keep your readers engaged, i.e., short videos, numbered lists, bullet points, etc.
  8. High-quality content is king! It doesn’t matter how much you optimise your page if the content is low quality.

Optimising a page – key tips

  1. Key word placement – your key word should be in the URL, title, first sentence and sprinkled a few times throughout the content but not ‘stuffed’ to the extent that it makes the content poorer for it.
  2. Key word variations – use Google’s suggested results to find key word variations to place within your content and headings
  3. Page-loading – make sure your pages load quickly and easily and are optimised for mobile phones.
  4. Link out to trustworthy sources.
  5. Hire a professional writer! A real professional will deliver a well-researched, beautifully crafted piece of content that will draw the visits you desire.

If you need quality content for your blogs, newsletters, social media or website, I’d love to assist. Contact me on croziermark@gmail.com.




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

GIVE A LITTLE, GET A LOT

I came across an article in the New York Times recently about a new cosmetics brand called Thrive Causemetics.  Started by a young woman, Thrive is giving some heavyweight brands in this heavily-contested category a run for their money. What's their differentiator? Well, they're not only vegan and cruelty-free but they donate heavily to causes they care about, hence the  Causemetics  part.  It's a big part of why they've quickly become wildly popular among millennials (Thrive has 830,000 Instagram followers, as opposed to just over 150,000 for L'Oreal USA). Buckets of dough We're not talking about pennies either, but serious buckets of dough. The owner -- 34-year-old Karissa Bodnar -- says her goal is to donate $1 billion. OK, so far she's only managed a mere $125 million, but still, give her time -- she's only 34! The causes they favour are listed on their website and include things like cancer, homelessness & poverty, under-resourced youth, veteran...
Read more

Consumption confessions

I'm not sure exactly when I realised that so much in life revolves around consuming, but since this realisation occurred to me, its a dilemma I simply cannot resolve. As someone who worries a great deal about the future of the planet, I know that much of the trouble we find ourselves in has to do with our relentless consumption of goods. Producing anything requires precious resources. Like many, I was horrified to discover that creating a single pair of jeans uses thousands of litres of water. I have bought more pairs of jeans in my lifetime than I care to admit. It gets worse because I make my living through marketing. Which means I spend a lot of time crafting communication for the purpose of selling things to people , either a product or a service. And with the money I earn -- I consume more. I confess: I'm someone who enjoys a bit of 'retail therapy' as a leisure activity. New clothes, shoes, DVDs, books, etc etc. Big stuff too; I dream about buying cars all the t...
Read more