How do you know what type of content is really going to attract the right searchers?
In this article I wanted to cover a few very basic tips that you can keep in mind when building
high-performance strategies. Remember that good search engine marketing is not about trying to
manipulate or "fool the search engines." Good SEO skills are more about creating genuine relevancy
for well-written content that deserves to be found because it is truly the most relevant and useful
to your audience of readers.
What students quickly discover in the 5-Day classes is that the optimization skills are not nearly
as hard as many people make them out to be (even for the most competitive phrases,) once you've been
trained and understand the full scope of influences that are at work. The biggest advantage that we
have had is all about the "accuracy of information."
1. Write content that your audience is already looking for within
the last 90 days.
True keyword research is not about 'guessing at keywords' but its all about researching actual data.
How are your SEO research skills using Wordtracker or Keyword Discovery? At the SEO Workshops we teach
much more than the traditional "keyword research" methods. We help students learn "Keyword Forensics"
and how to quickly tap into the hidden niche trends that 99% of most Webmasters never even notice.
2. Does your Web copy speak to the reader or does it speak about
yourself?
Remember that your Web site should be focused on your audience first and appeal specifically to a
niche interest. When writing your Web copy, you need to dialog in an appropriate tone and format for
the right audience. Some of the most interesting content will have more appeal if it speaks to your
audience in terms of "you." You can, you might, you will, yours, your and you're INSTEAD of we, ours,
we're, we will, we can, etc.
3. Focus on writing for the human audience first and search engines
second.
While search engine optimization is important to your visibility, try writing your content first. Most
people don't write their best when trying to optimize and create content at the same time. Focus on
creating highly useful content that is extremely focused on one topic per page. Once you have completed
your writing so that you are pleased with it, then go in to do a mild re-write for the search engines.
The SPN website has a new look and feel with social interaction features, keyword & category search, RSS
feeds and relevant blog posts by some of the Web's top writers.
4. Tips for triggering idea generation and giving your strategies a unique
twist.
While many people seem to spend time exploring their competitor's Web sites, we encourage you to lead the way
with new ideas. Try not to be obsessed with what the competition is doing, but be creative and start your own
new trends. Spend just a little more time working on your projects this week than you did last week. Setting
yourself apart from the competition is easier than you might think and gives you a huge advantage over others.
5. Creating your content so that it "speaks" to a specific audience of visitors.
Think of how your Web copy reads and ensure the dialog flows smoothly. Read your work out loud and see if you
can improve the tone of your message with natural expression. Keep your specific audience in mind. How you
write for senior citizens (in tone and in format) may differ considerably from writing for an audience of for
example "new parents." Always ask yourself "what is important to these readers?" Rely on researching accurate
data to eliminate guess work.
6. Remember strong calls to action
Without a firm call to action, don't expect the reader to naturally guess at what you want them to do next.
Plain ordinary dialog that asks the reader to take the next action will usually work best. Dialog that is
written for voice (similar to the way a broadcaster writes to project their personality.)
7. Build your search engine optimization skills in the beginning with the
"stress free" approach.
If you are new to SEO, you may want to focus on the long tailed niche phrases since most searchers are doing
fairly descriptive and intelligent searches these days. Ideally You want to attract those who already know
what they are looking for and just need to find your pages more easily. With practice and the right training
you can go after highly competitive phrases too but you'll find that the best conversions nearly always come
from the niches. Also remember that it is the basic SEO skills that carry you through and must come before
any of the advanced strategies. The result will be stable top rankings that stand the test of time with minimal
fuss.
8. Give your readers a non-threatening reason to respond right
now.
What is the objective for your page and does your Web copy work effectively at fulfilling that objective?
It may not always be about trying to sell a product or a service. It should not be about fulfilling your
needs first but it should be about meeting the needs of why that searcher first conducted a search. Meet
their needs and deliver up something that satisfies their search first and then give the visitor a
non-threatening reason why they might respond to you. Do you want their e-mail address? or do you just
want them to pick up the phone and call? Never lose sight of the fact that the Web is a marvelous two way
interactive experience, if you want it to be. Make your Web site a vehicle for relationship building and
remember that many readers may actually have the desire to interact and participate through Blogs or other
"User Generated activity." Give your visitors something that involves their participation.
9. Remember that your readers always want to feel like they are in
control of their Web experience.
People often use the Web for researching topics of interest or doing preliminary price comparisons or for
looking up information. While most people explore the Web for their own purposes, the more that you put
them in control of their experience the better. If appropriate, you may want to consider adding addition
tools or functionality to your Web site in order to enhance its usability for your specific audience.
10. Did you know that if you write your content so that it naturally
"reads very well."
You will naturally gain some bonus for having created content of quality. By this, I mean content...that
reads well to a human being. Don't stuff keywords all over the place. Instead, use moderation in everything
you do. One of the things you need to understand is that "theme based" search engines like Google, are
actually using a measure of artificial intelligence (AI) to measure how well your article "reads" based on
all of the overall context of your body text (other than the keywords) based on data that a search engine
has gathered concerning a specific topic. This is great news for writers because if you are making a transition
to writing for the web, you'll find some search engines are literally rewarding pages that are "well written."
About The Author
John Alexander has taught live SEO Workshops since 2002 at SearchEngineWorkshops.com
as well as Online Webinars at the SEO Workshop Resource Center.
