What's your strategy for staying up to date on content marketing and SEO?

Stay Ahead in Content Marketing and SEO - Follow industry experts for insights. - Engage with online communities for knowledge sharing. - Attend events to learn and network. - Take online courses to deepen your expertise. - Track Google updates to adapt your strategies. - Experiment and measure results for continuous improvement.

Google casts one of the widest nets around (cough: the entire internet), but it values a slim scope of knowledge and expertise from its publishers or websites. I've been at publications whereby *deleting* content and cleaning up our libraries, we saw an increase in traffic from search. Why is this good news? It frees you from having to do it all. Figure out what you do, scope it in a way that makes sense for your biz and its resources, then do it really well.

1. Follow industry experts 2. Keep up with upcoming trends in innovation in that particular industry 3. Connect with newer and like minded people to get to know their perspective

For sure. But once someone does something, everyone takes heed. If you wonder why you receive a considerable amount of promotional email between 10 a.m. and 12 p.m. on a Tuesday, it’s because the first SERP result encourages you to. Trust your instinct as to why something may not be working the way you want it to be — and think about the creative ways to replicate what your competition is doing better.

We are in an era where there we this is a news article or that is a tagline, but the truth is almost everything falls under one umbrella - content. This essentially means you can find inspiration anywhere and everywhere, which in turn implies that there's never a switch off. Although, you can prioritize. Follow people from your industry but also from other related ones. Look at what they are sharing. Ponder on how you can bridge insights and integrate them for more effective and engaging content. In terms of SEO, keep an eye on the headlines, keywords and how they are best kept simple. Think like a consumer, what would grab your attention? Lastly, make sure you deliver upon a core insight rather than trying to achieve it all at once.

Oh yes! I have found this very valuable, especially if you are just starting out in your career. In communities and networks, you will easily get responses to your questions, access people (read as experts) and resources that may seem too far from your reach. I also always enjoy the impromptu interactions that always come up in such gatherings, from different people, of different levels and mindsets, and which are not typically packaged in the usual form of classes and courses.

Use tools like Google Analytics, Search Console, SEMrush, and Ahrefs for comprehensive SEO insights. Track website traffic, user behavior, keywords, and backlinks. Stay informed about industry trends with tools like BuzzSumo, while Yoast SEO (for WordPress) and Moz aid in optimizing on-page content. Manage social media efficiently using Hootsuite or Buffer, and enhance content quality with Grammarly. CoSchedule Headline Analyzer assists in crafting engaging headlines. Additionally, leverage Feedly to aggregate content from diverse sources. Regularly participate in webinars, forums, and industry blogs to stay abreast of the latest content marketing and SEO developments.

Remaining informed about news and algorithm changes is crucial, but the most effective method is continuous testing and iteration. Merely adhering to best practices and imitating others won't allow you to surpass competitors in SEO. Instead, carve out your unique path and develop strategies grounded in data and firsthand knowledge. Prioritize testing, measurement, and ongoing enhancement. Cultivate a blend of strategic and creative thinking for optimal results.

t;dr: You don't need to try everything. Focus on creating quality content. Skim reviews of new tools and try out the best. It's impossible to stay up to date on all the new tools. It's also unnecessary. Many replicate one another and/or many turn out to be duds. Rather than stress about the newest thing, focus on creating good content. As much as SEO and content marketing change, one thing seems to remain true: both people and search engines favor quality (i.e. articles that are readable, engaging, and reliable). To make sure you're benefitting from the latest tools, set aside an afternoon every couple of months to read reviews of what's out there. Try out 1-2 new products. If they seem useful, incorporate them into your work stream.