Why SEO is All About Content

Search engine optimization (or SEO) is a constantly changing field. With Google continuously making updates their algorithm and new technologies unlocking powerful search marketing capabilities, SEO today is a lot different than it was just 5 years ago. But throughout all these changes one thing has remained constant, and that’s the importance of content to SEO.

 

Content and SEO go hand-in-hand. People use search engines to find answers or solutions to their questions and search engines serve up the most relevant content they can find. While the top search result might be a blog post, a YouTube video or product description – it’s all content.

 

There is a deep relationship between content and SEO, and it can be difficult to understand the nuances of they relate. This guide explores that relationship and provides actionable insights for how businesses can use content to support their SEO efforts.

 

This article covers:

• On-Page Content Optimization
• Link Optimization
• Topical Optimization
• A Simple but Effective SEO Checklist

 

The Relationship of SEO and Content

 

Simply put, great content is the basis for SEO success.

 

High quality, original content is the foundation for all your other SEO efforts. That’s exactly why the Periodic Table of SEO Success starts with the content “elements”, with content quality as the leading element.

On-Page Content Optimization

 

Good content and SEO work hand in hand. Without one, you won’t have much success with the other – if you don’t have the high-quality content that search engines want, your SEO rankings and readership are likely to be low. At the same time, even the best content doesn’t do you much good if your target shoppers aren’t able to find it when they’re searching.

 

That’s why it’s important to be able to consistently write SEO-friendly content that people enjoy reading. With that in mind, here are a few tips and best practices to get great content and SEO.

 

Focus on Keywords– But Not Too Much

 

Keyword stuffing is a bad idea that’s likely to earn you a Google penalty. However, keywords still have a place in your SEO strategy. Just be sure to use them thoughtfully and organically in your content while trying to use keyword phrases in addition to individual keywords. Using a keyword phrase in your title might not make for the most exciting or witty headline, but it will make your article more likely to be viewed by your target audience.

 

Use Headings Properly

 

Headings are an important, but often overlooked, aspect of good SEO. Header tags are the HTML tags that range from H1 to H6 and are used to create an outline and add structure to an article or blog post. Using headings wisely can help Google parse the main topic of longer articles.

 

For example, it’s important to include an H1 tag on each page, but only use one. Multiple H1 tags can confuse search engines by implying that the content is about several main topics. Also, don’t use the same text in the header for every page.

Optimize the Length of Your Posts

 

Google tends to prefer longer articles. In fact, one study shows that the average length of a first-page search result on Google is 2000 words. While it’s not necessary to churn out a post of that length each time you update your blog, you’ll probably have better luck if you tend to create longer posts in general. Breaking up your lengthy posts into manageable chunks for your readers (using bullet points, subheadings and lists) can help prevent the dreaded “wall of text”.

 

Use Location-Specific Phrases

 

When people perform online searches, they’re frequently looking for local businesses. This is especially true when they’re searching from their mobile devices. If you have a local business, make sure to include geo-specific terms in your keyword phrases to ensure that your content shows up prominently in those searches. Use these location-specific keyword phrases in your titles and within your H1 tags, and you’ll see your local SEO improve rapidly. Check out this post to learn more about how to localize your content.

 

Be Natural

 

There’s no doubt that SEO is key to reaching your content marketing goals. After all, research shows that 75% of users don’t bother browsing past the first page of search results. This means that your content can’t sound like a keyword-driven mess. Instead, take the time to create quality content that remains natural and engaging. And then, you’ll get better results from search engines.

 

Link Optimization

 

Quality links are one of the most important ingredients of a healthy SEO strategy. They help Google and other search engines measure the relevance of websites and return better results to searchers. Basically, if you want to improve your search engine rankings, you need quality links. But developing a strong link profile is not all that simple; first, you need to understand what makes a good link, what makes a bad link, and what you can do to optimize your website for better results.

 

Linkbuilding: The Basics

 

The PageRank algorithm was developed by Google to rank websites in their search engine results pages. Essentially, it works by measuring the importance of a website by counting the number and quality of links to its pages. Any link from one page to another passes some of its PageRank (or link juice) to the page it’s linking to, giving that page a PageRank boost. But with inbound links, outbound links, internal links, and more, the connection between links and SEO can get very confusing. To help, we’ve broken down the process into 8 steps for effective internal linking.

 

The Different Link Types

 

Every web page should have internal links (pointing to the same page or another page on the same domain) and outbound links (pointing to external web domains). They help users navigate a site and find useful information, and help search engines understand and index a site. But they are all formed differently.

 

• Anchor texts. These are often highlighted, clickable links that can help increase search rankings for specific keywords. However, Google punishes repetitive anchor texts, so use a mixture of non-repetitive branded and keyword-rich phrases.
• Naked URLs. This is when the full URL is displayed in the link. Generally, they’re not as powerful as anchor texts for SEO.
• Brand citations. Instead of showing the full URL of a company website, the link is simply the name of the company.
• An image link can be a good navigational tool, but only when it’s clearly a link. (The alt attribute tag for the image acts like anchor text.)
• Reciprocal links. These happen when two webmasters agree to provide a hyperlink to each other’s website. If they both share the same target market or offer complimentary services or products, the link can be seen as relevant. If not, reciprocal links can harm PageRank.

 

There are also variations in the way each link operates. For example, do follow links are standard links that search engines can follow and count toward PageRank. No follow links have extra markup in the code that tells Google crawlers to ignore the link so it doesn’t count toward PageRank. Google advises using the no follow tag for paid links or for links to websites you don’t really trust. Many sites use the no follow tag for the comments section to avoid spam links.

 

How to Analyze Links

 

What makes one link more valuable than another? There are a few factors you need to consider.

 

• Authority. You can measure website authority in a variety of ways. There’s the Google PageRank toolbar (not available on some browsers) that displays the PageRank of a website, but it’s not updated that often so the information can be misleading. Then there’s the SEO toolbar from Moz, including MozRank and other metrics. The Alexa toolbar is another respected SEO tool that is more focused on web traffic. If you can get links from sites with more authority, you have the potential to outrank your competitors in search engine results pages (SERPs).
• Relevance. Relevant links are more valuable. It’s better to get a link from a website that is related to your industry or field of expertise. Outbound links should also be relevant to the context of your content. Internal links will have more value if they help users and search engines navigate your site more easily.
• Location. There are no guarantees when it comes to how Google and other search engines rank links based on their location within a page. However, most SEO experts agree that links within content are more valuable than navigational links or links in the page footer.

These factors, taken together with the link type, all contribute to link value. Considering all these details, we can summarize what makes some links better than others.

 

Good links include:

• Backlinks from websites with more authority.
• Backlinks from websites that are relevant to your business and content.
• Backlinks from websites that already rank high in SERPs for certain keyword phrases that relate to your website.
• Anchor text links that are relevant to the content they are a part of and link to.

 

Bad links include:

• Links to websites or link directories with little useful content.
• Links to websites that are not related to the content of your website.
• Links to poor-quality websites.
• Broken links.
• Repetitive keywords or exact-match keyword phrases in internal links.
• Purchased links without the no follow tag.

 

As long as you try to create SEO content naturally and avoid stuffing your web pages with over-optimized links, you don’t need to be obsessed with building links for SEO. Just focus on delivering quality content to your readers and help them find the information they are looking for. This should result in a balanced link profile that includes a variety of natural links that are more useful and credible to humans and search engines.

 

Topical Optimization

 

How to group and structure your content will also have an impact on SEO. Enter topical optimization.

 

With topical optimization, businesses have moved away from optimizing for single keywords, and instead optimize for larger topics and key-phrases (also known as long-tail keywords). No more singular, competitive keywords – we’re talking strings of them. And it makes sense to use this approach, considering that roughly 70% of page views are a direct result of long-tail keywords.

 

Think Like a Customer

 

Think about how you personally search for something on the web. To get more specific results, you tend to enter more words. For example, a consumer might be looking for someone to repair a specific brand of air conditioner, do-it-yourself repair tips, troubleshooting advice, pricing information for various repairs, etc. Ideally, a particular heating, ventilation and air conditioning company would optimize pages for each of the keywords associated with the topic of air conditioner repair.

 

With topical optimization, you don’t just hope to rank for certain keywords; you build out your content to dominate an entire topic. Instead of focusing on a single competitive keyword, business marketers can create more substantial, natural and helpful content to consumers. This SEO concept will only become increasingly important, as Google and other search engines implement more sophisticated semantic indexing.

Keyword research is critical but be sure to think about intent as well. Some users are seeking general information, some might be looking for a particular product and others might be comparing different products. In our previous example, there were a number of different intents for the simple keyword phrase ‘air conditioner repair’ – that’s why it was essential to optimize for all the various keywords associated with that topic.

 

Why It’s Good for Business

 

So, how does topical optimization help your SEO ranking?

1. Long-tail keywords or phrases generally have less competition, placing you on the first page of search results, with a higher likelihood of ‘winning the click.’

2. The majority of people search long-tail keywords, so by answering questions or providing information more naturally, you can do a better job of matching the searcher’s intent.

3. Longer keywords tend to be easier to rank for than more specific single or double keyword phrases. Therefore, search engines will rate sites that employ this tactic higher.

4. The more specific the search is, the more it reflects the searcher’s interest level. This equals more sales conversions.

5. By showing thoughtfulness and insight, you can build up your authority and provide a superior user experience to potential customers.

 

It’s All About the People

 

As the SEO landscape is always changing, you need to continually adapt your content and your optimization techniques to work well with Google’s latest algorithms. Not only is topical optimization an effective way to rank higher in search results; it’s also a smart content marketing strategy. After all, it’s actual people who search for stuff, not search engine bots!

 

So, is keyword research dead? No way. Topical optimization isn’t a complete departure from keywords; it’s just a different way of using them. And, when you create content that delivers what searchers are actually looking for, everybody wins.

 

SEO Content Checklist

 

There is a lot to think about when it comes to creating SEO content. Use this check list when publishing your next piece of content to make sure you’ve got the most important elements of SEO covered.

1. Research optimal keywords

 

Use Google Adwords Keyword Planner to discover how various terms and phrases perform in search results and try to use more detailed long-tail key phrases that fit your specific product or service. If the page is not immediately relevant to a human user for their search query intent, they’re unlikely to stick around.

2. Use keywords naturally and strategically

 

Don’t repeat a keyword too often just because it’s the highest ranking for your audience. You will end up sounding insincere and robotic, but Google will punish that page by pushing lower down the search results. Instead try to mix in synonyms and syntactically related phrase to your keywords.

3. Optimize title tags

 

Your title tags are the first thing people will see when viewing your organic result after a search. Ensure they speak to the topical relevance of the page, use your brand name if possible, and bear in mind that visible character count generally hovers between 45 and 55 characters.

4. Include relevant keywords in the URL

We’ve covered how to structure URLs to maximize the SEO value.

By including keywords and other descriptive wording in your URLs, you will be confirming the association between what the viewer is searching for and how your website can help them. From a backlink acquisition point of view, many links to your site will simply have anchor text that is the URL itself, in which case, those keyword rich file names can help to boost your rankings. Moz suggests using the following format for your URLs:

 

https://www.example.com/category-keyword/subcategory-keyword/primary-keyword.html.

5. Optimize your images

 

The faster a site loads, the less likely human users are to bounce. Load time consequently is an algorithmic factor and affects your website’s standing in the search engine results. In many cases, the largest contributor to page load times are images, so having compressed image file sizes is beneficial.

6. Write compelling meta descriptions

 

Visible meta descriptions are 148-155 character snippets used to summarize a webpage’s content and are included with the title tags in the search engine results. It is therefore, extremely important to optimize these descriptions in order to effectively describe your site to viewers and capture their interest. While these do not directly impact your rankings, they do have an indirect effect based on human user behavior.

7. Link to related, authority websites

 

Use authoritative websites as references, and including hyperlinks within the text. This helps Google determine the relevancy and accuracy of your content. You can use nofollow tags if you choose.

8. Internal linking – link to your own content

 

When possible, reference and link to previous relevant blog posts or site pages using descriptive anchor text. This helps drive new interest to these older files and can contribute to a boost in their rankings. Don’t think of your content as one-time use. Rather, try to leverage it as much as possible.

 

9. Make it easy to share

 

According to an article from the Social Times, research is starting to prove that people like to share content that they relate to or that makes them feel connected to others with similar interests.

 

Even though people do in fact like to share content, they wont do it if it requires too much effort. If you work on creating a streamlined sharing process for your content, you will be in a better position to have that content shared which, in turn, may garner a boost in backlinks with equity.

10. Optimize for mobile

 

As of April 21, 2015, Google now penalizes sites that are not optimized for mobile. Instead of creating a mobile site from scratch, consider adapting a responsive design instead. To check if your site is compliant, click here.

11. Continually work to garner quality backlinks

 

Guest blogging is not dead, nor is asking for links despite what you may have heard. Infographics are also a great way to gain traction, as is getting active on social. All these and more are covered comprehensively in this article on https://searchengineland.com.

 

12. Analyze and track your data

 

Install Google Analytics or another tracking software to track your visitors and analyze visitor entry sources and points, exit sources and points and behavior while on your site. By keeping track of your metrics you will be able to devise a gap analysis and make data driven decisions on what is working and what’s not on your site to enable strategic and tactical refinements to your SEO and content strategy. While Google Analytics comes with a handful of pre-built reports, using secondary dimensions is a great way to gain even deeper insights about your website.