How can you create human-friendly content that ranks well on search engines?

You can write the most compelling content in the world, but if it's not landing on the ears (or eyes) of your intended audience, it's pretty pointless. Knowing your audience should be the first and possibly most important part of the content development process. Talk to your customers! Find out what their pain points are. Consider the simplicity of an online poll. Integrating these insights not only appeals to human readers but, when done correctly, can enhance SEO. Additionally, look at what your competitors are writing about - their content can provide valuable SEO insights and give you ideas for topics, allowing you to write content that stands out both in terms of human engagement and search engine rankings.

Let's get to how you can know your audience: ??understand where they "hang out" online (the web, socials, LinkedIn, etc.) ??simply use the Google search but focus on the PPA section ??use platforms like Quora to see the most discussed topics ??see what your competitors have already done and do it at least 2x better.

Leverage real-time analytics and behavioral data to continuously refine your understanding of your audience.Utilize tools that provide insights into evolving preferences, emerging trends, and shifting behaviors.

Before you start, you must understand who you are creating content for. Get clear on your target demographic: - What is their age? - Where are they based? - What are their interests? To truly understand their viewpoint and how you can help, get more and more specific: - What keeps them up at night? - What problems are they trying to solve? - What emotions and values resonate? You can find answers online, in forums and communities and through social listening. Then, create key personas that inform your content approach. Doing this exercise upfront results in more relevance and stronger relationships with your audience.

Huge first step before even going into the drawing board. Obsess in learning about your users and their journey. This sets you up for writing not only about the topics they care about but most importantly HOW they want the topics to be delivered. Youll graduate from generic SEO writing to SEO Content Design Extraordinaire.

Go beyond keyword analysis and focus on understanding the intent behind your audience's search queries. Map your content to align with various stages of the customer journey and the diverse intents users may have.

It's proven that over-optimizing your content for specific keywords might give you an edge in ranking at low competition levels. However, for more competitive queries, the absolute best strategy is to go above and beyond in terms of quality. Do the extra thing your competition is too lazy to do. Ask an expert, get quotes on the phone, create custom graphics, provide examples or free tools. As competition increases the real difference is made by off-page signals such as backlinks, and the best way to attract them (apart from outreach) is creating content that is worth linking.

When choosing keywords, you want to pick terms that authentically match your content while carrying decent search volume and competition. Take a deep breath, we're gonna need balance! Here are some practical tips: - Choose words your audience naturally uses, especially for online search - Include keywords everywhere in the copy: titles, headers, body text, URLs, meta descriptions etc. - Watch trends using keyword tracking tools (I'm a fan of SEMRush, but Google's related terms and searches give good insights too) - Optimise keyword density through strategic repetition - it must feel natural!

Too often, I see SEO professionals optimize for long-tail keywords that are impossible to incorporate into your copy naturally. Trust me - your reader will notice when you write "If you're wondering [long-tail question keyword], then..." for the fifth time. The result? An article that makes your reader immediately cringe, bounce, and never come back to your site. When you choose your keywords, don't just pick ones that have high traffic and low competition. Pick ones that make for a good article. Getting traffic to your site is the easy part. Getting them to consider you an authoritative source, regularly return, and convert is the hard part.

The tools that will help you to find keywords: -Ahrefs -Semrush -Google keyword planner -Competitor analysis Tips to choose your keywords: -Keyword metrics (KD and Global volume) -importance of each keyword you found -relevance of keywords -keyword placement in headings That's it! There's no long story when it comes to choosing the right keywords.

Our brains crave content that’s easy to digest. So, unleash your inner Hemingway. Use short sentences, punchy paragraphs, and headers that pop. Play with formatting – bullet points and lists are your BFFs. Remember, a wall of text feels like homework, and who needs more of that? Make your content the breezy, enjoyable read that keeps eyes gliding across the screen.

Reducing cognitive load not only enhances comprehension but also fosters a positive user experience. By making information more accessible, you empower your audience to engage more deeply with your content, fostering a stronger connection and reinforcing your expertise.

When it comes to blogs, don't just write for readability. Write for scannability. Bots love that, and it makes content easier to read on phones. Scannable blogs look "well outlines" with lots of sections headlines and sub-headlines that follow a logical flow (i.e., the flow of the headlines make sense even without the body text).

Search engines love tidiness. Make sure your content is well formatted - optimize your title, use headings (H1, H2, H3), add alt texts to your images, keep paragraphs short, include keywords in your meta description, link to high authority websites etc. But don't be a slave to SEO. Write for humans, not search bots. Adding customer success stories (with links to their websites) is a super way to bolster your credibility, showcase real-world applications of your product or service, and provide tangible evidence of your value proposition to potential clients... all while helping with your SEO.

Always write as you talk. Search engines focus on pieces that feel inherently human and deliver maximum value. In recent documentation, Google specified that it veers towards 'People-first content.' This essentially boils down to writing in a way meant to benefit people in the easiest way possible. The same idea applies to all your summaries, outlines, body, and conclusions.

Providing true value requires going beyond the surface. Research, interviews, and testing help to really cover a topic with nuance. Try these: - Create new connections between ideas - Leverage different formats - videos, podcasts, interactive brochures, checklists... - Make complex concepts simple, in a way that no one has done before (competitor analysis is key here!) - Show that you understand your customers by addressing their objections - Include actionable takeaways that empower your reader to use your advice immediately Remember that a big part of making content valuable is thinking of the user experience. A clever title, great visuals, and clear structure go a long way.

Regardless of how you did the research for writing content, it needs to bring some value to the reader. This could be: -a unique experience you've had -a recent case study -some new way you get things done -a success/failure story -a visual like video or infographic -some other information you didn't find during research. When it comes to our blog articles, we make sure to share our team's experience rather than copy and paste any information that exists on Google. So, good luck with it!

There's one type of content that everyone is drawn to: stories. The more compelling your story, the stronger the connection with your audience. Example: One of my companies used publicly available data to estimate a person's propensity to donate to a university. We sold this data to universities. Sounds boring? Change the context to a story. We found one university client who noticed a $100 annual gift from a student's grandfather. Using our data, they saw grandpa had the potential to donate over $1M. So, the university invited him to learn more about their initiatives. Within a couple of months, grandpa sent them a check for $5M! Boring data just became "I'd like that to be my story."

It's easy to prioritize SEO when creating content. But the core purpose is value for readers. The mindset to have is content first, SEO second. Focus on insightful, engaging information that helps people. That's how to create human-friendly content. Optimize for search secondarily. Put people first, and the SEO will follow. -Focus on answering questions and providing value for readers. Search engines want to surface content that satisfies search intent. -Do keyword research to understand what terms and phrases people are searching for related to your topics. Incorporate these organically into content.

Even in the world of SEO and keyword optimization, remember that it's humans who'll be reading your content. While having an SEO-friendly structure is essential, the real game-changer is the value you offer. A click-worthy headline followed by a value-lacking article only leads to reader frustration. So, before you hit that publish button, make sure to give your content the 'value grade' your audience deserves.

Your meta tags are critical first impressions, and making them work requires creativity and strategic optimisation. Headlines must be compelling yet concise, grabbing interest while highlighting the focus of your content. Write meta descriptions that summarise key points and immediately add value. Add keywords naturally throughout the copy. And pay attention to URL structure - include keywords but balance them with brevity.

Der erste Kontaktpunkt sind die Meta-Daten. Begrü?t du den Leser falsch, liest er nicht weiter. Deshalb ist es enorm wichtig die Meta-Daten zu optimieren.

Incorporate words that evoke emotions into your meta tags. This can make your listing more appealing and encourage users to click on it. Tell users what you want them to do after reading your content. This could be signing up for a newsletter, downloading a whitepaper, or making a purchase. Don't be afraid to experiment with different meta tags and see what works best. Use A/B testing to compare different versions and optimize your click-through rate (CTR).

Stale content frustrates readers and fades in rankings, so regularly refresh your material. Here are some ways to do that: - Add or update statistics, examples and references, at least once a year - Update images and visuals to keep things looking fresh - Adjust length and structure based on new insights, performance data and trends - Repurpose! Top-performing content can become new content in video, podcasts, guides... - Refresh keywords and re-optimise your content based on search trends Treat your content as a living document, that evolves over time to stay relevant. Don't be afraid to update it!

I will always be amazed on how a simple content refresh can boost your content and rank it better. This could include adding more keywords, updating the headings, adding a new section (like an FAQ section), and more! However, you need to make the right changes. By simply stuffing old content with new keywords, you won't get anywhere.

Content can get surprisingly old in only a year. Either because the information is out of date, or your understanding of the topic has gotten better. So be sure to revisit and refresh older content if you plan on keeping it around.

From my perspective, this step is important to ensure the research and data you cite within the content asset are reflective of the latest information available and adaptive to the changing expectations of your audience over time. An example I have encountered is listicles focusing on the latest trends in your respective industry -- for example, X Trends in [Industry] to Expect in 2023 (and similar variations). As we approach the new year, now is a good time to get ahead on ensuring your content is up to date for 2024! You can also analyze performance data (e.g., search rankings, blog traffic, leads generated, etc.) to strike the right balance between creating content that is written for humans and also findable on search engines.

Sind Daten nicht mehr aktuell, sind m?glicherweise Fehler enthalten. Auch gibt es evtl. neue Erkenntnisse die erw?hnenswert sind. Deshalb: Inhalte regelm??ig erneuern.

External Resources: Cite authoritative external sources when providing information or statistics. Back up your claims with reputable references to build trust. Social Sharing and Engagement: Encourage social sharing of your content through share buttons. Engage with readers through comments, forums, and social media to foster discussions around your content.

Good read on mastering the interplay between quality content and SEO. But GenAI can take it to the next level by generating deep audience insights, and creating personalized content that speaks directly to what readers care about. In addition, GenAI can automate long-form drafting which allows writers to focus on crafting truly engaging material that hooks readers rather than simply cramming in keywords. The result is authentic, compelling content that readers love, while still optimizing for SEO by targeting relevant topics and keywords

Ranking #1 on a search engine does not guarantee you the quality of leads. Nowadays consumers aren't necessarily looking for the first search on Google, they want to invest in brands that they trust and have value aligned with. So with that? I'd say it is key to write human-centred content that: - Answers your audience's questions. - Gives your audience the information they need to get to the next step. - Aligns with the "why" behind their search.

Ranking well on search requires a balance - technical SEO optimizations as well as engaging writing. The key is crafting content that appeals to both humans and bots. Optimize for keywords and semantics, but maintain clear, conversational voice. Weave in schema markup seamlessly. Layer in headings, lists, images, and multimedia for scanability. Link out to authority sources. Include unique insights, stories, and data points that provide value. Promote engagement with inclusive language and thoughtful messaging. Measure readability alongside metrics like clicks and dwell time. With strategic SEO combined with genuine usefulness, you can create content that connects with people while also pleasing the algorithms. It's a win-win!

Don't lose sight of the big picture: your content should serve your audience and establish your brand as a trusted authority. Stay true to your voice, focus on building loyal followers and stay away from vanity metrics. Always learn how to use new platforms, formats and technologies to reach your audience with fresh content, and engage with new audiences as well. Listen to feedback, analyse data, and be always open to change based on new learnings. And remember, great content marketing takes time and consistency - be patient with the process.