“What is the use of writing great blog posts that won’t rank on the first page of Google’s SERPs and people won’t see?” – Ruth Adeyemi, founder of SARMLife.
Have you ever wondered how bloggers are now able to grow their blogs without investing in paid advertisements or how organic traffic seems to roll in after just a few posts? It’s all in SEO writing.
Beyond writing valuable content for my readers, I always ensure the content is fully optimized for search engines. To do this, I follow a strict SEO writing process that has never failed me.
Over the years, I’ve had to upgrade these processes to match Google’s algorithm updates and recent SEO changes. For example, long-form content is no longer as essential for SEO ranking as it was.
This post contains my thoroughly explained SEO writing process that will help you create fully optimized blog posts that can rank on the first page of Google.
What is a blog post?
A blog post is a single piece of published content on a blog site accessible via the World Wide Web. The content is majorly written content that may or may not be supported with images (images are a MUST for optimization, though)
For instance, what you are currently reading is referred to as a blog post.
What is SEO writing?
Simply put, SEO (search engine optimization) writing is creating and writing content optimized for search engines.
Blogspot defines SEO writing as writing content to rank on the first page of search engines such as Google.
Optimizing starts with the content creation process, from the topic ideas to the writing and the images; this content is deliberately created and organized to ensure it fits the baseline requirements of search engine optimization and even goes beyond it.
Features of an optimized blog post
The features of an SEO (search engine optimized) blog post are pretty direct but also easy to miss, especially when you are batch-creating content. We created an SEO checklist to ensure you don’t miss anything while creating optimized content for your website or clients.
For you to write what counts as an optimized blog post, it needs to have these features:
· A good, compelling headline
The headline is the title of your blog post; it is the first sentence any searcher will see. An important tip to note when creating your headlines is that they need to give your reader a brief overview of what your post is about.
Your headline should be compelling but straight to the point. Do not use sugar-coated words, as they send a red flag to the reader.
· A good introduction
Some blog writers are a little lax about what they put in their introductions. The introduction is the first impression your reader gets, and it also determines whether the reader will continue the blog post or leave. You want your introduction to explain to the reader exactly what value they will get from the post. It is similar to the abstract of a research paper (a concise summary of the main work).
Advisably, the words you use in your introduction should be simple, sincere, and straight.
There are different types of introductions you can use for your blog posts, as explained in one of our Instagram posts.
· An organized, paragraphed layout
Did you know that long paragraphs reduce readability and prevent your readers from scanning through the entire post? Research has discovered that most readers scan the whole post before deciding if it is read-worthy or not.
If your blog posts contain long paragraphs, more than half of your readers will bounce out and not likely return.
Break down your paragraphs into smaller, digestible chunks.
· A long-enough and valuable content
The content of your blog post has to answer the reader’s questions, and this is where good research comes in. You need to identify the pain points of your target audience and give them content that is beneficial to them. Your content should also contain verified facts and visual engagements.
All these features are determined during your research, i.e., the headline, the outline, and the content.
· Links to authority websites
You might think that having an external link in your blog post will make you lose originality, but this couldn’t be more wrong. Having external links to authority websites in your niche will make your content more credible to your readers. However, please do not make it excessive.
When you talk about verified facts and statistics, you want to ensure your readers know the source.
Plus, can I mention that it is good for your SEO?
SEO writing process
Many writers have been stuck with SEO writing, or as some people call it, SEO blog writing and the frustration can make you question your writing skills. Maybe you own a website, or you hope to take your SEO content writing game to the next level as a freelancer to land high-paying clients.
Whichever class you belong to, I’m here to guide you step by step and show you how to write a compelling, fully optimized blog post.
The SEO writing process can be tasking, but it is achievable when you follow a laid-down template.
The SEO writing process:
Identify your audience
Know your content bucket
Come up with topic ideas
Optimize the topic ideas
Research the topic ideas
Research keywords
Research content around the keywords
Create your headline
Create your SEO outline
Write your content
Insert visual content
Since SEO writing skills go beyond just blog writing, most of what makes your blog posts optimized is the research you put into it before typing away at your keypads, just like I’m doing right now.
If you check out our blog post on How to make money blogging in 2024 – the ultimate guide, I wrote there that one of the most significant milestones that any blogger can cross is the ability to recognize and know their target audience. Why is this important?
Your target audience is the one interested in your content and will want to click open that blog post because it addresses either their curiosity, fears, or pains. If you don’t know your target audience, you cannot create content relevant to a specific group of people.
You end up with no niche and no audience.
When you know your audience, you begin to find out about their pain points by doing surveys, checking out the posts of others in your niche, checking out commonly searched words, and direct interaction with people in that niche.
· Know your content bucket.
A content bucket is a segment of the entire content you want to relay to your audience. Each content bucket should address various aspects of your business while also reflecting your overall message as a brand/business.
Content buckets are vital because they help you narrow down your ideas and distribute content across your audience.
For example, if you are a fashion blogger, your content bucket might include accessories, dresses, color combinations, or even make-up.
When you want to write a blog post, you select the content bucket and find topic ideas around it. Check out Topic ideas for different nichesHERE
· Come up with topic ideas.
This particular process might not need you to go online because you can develop topic ideas based on your experience, expertise, and interactions with people. Otherwise, you can check other similar websites and get inspiration from their content; it is entirely legal.
I recently wrote some ideas for a friend in a different niche from mine. At first, I had no idea what topics were good and not-so-good, but I ended up checking other blogs in the same niche as hers. The summary is that the content was created while also maintaining originality.
If your content bucket of choice as a relationship expert is breakups, you might think of topic ideas like:
Why new couples breakup
How to avoid a breakup
How to maintain long-distance relationships
What ladies/men do after a terrible breakup
Mind you, these are JUST ideas and have not been verified yet.
· Optimize the topic ideas.
For search engine optimization, you want to ensure your topic ideas are relevant to people’s interests.
This site gives you a compilation of all the questions people are asking about a particular keyword.
Now that you have a topic idea, log on to the site, type in your keyword of choice (1-3 words), and watch the magic!
Take, for instance, that your keyword of choice is simply ‘breakup,’ you’ll see a screen similar to this:
Now, you have dozens of options, and all you have to do is pick one.
The above image is just a part of the result page. You don’t have to be worried about coming up with relevant topic ideas anymore. You have over a hundred ideas in a single content bucket. Imagine having up to five content buckets! Mind-blowing!
· Research the topic ideas.
You now have a verified idea you can use. The next step is to run that idea through Google.
From answerthepublic.com, your idea might be ‘how to break up with someone you love’ – this is what you type in Google search.
Why?
You want to compare them with existing blog posts, and you do this by checking the similar keywords used by the top-ranking websites. In addition to the keywords, you also check the headline structures and the meta description.
From the above example, you can see that ‘break up with someone’ is the keyword frequently used by most top-ranking websites.
Let me also share a tip with you.
One of the points in my SEO checklists is that your focus keyword should be part of your headline and URL. To fully confirm what focus keyword others use, you can check these two places and then research that keyword.
Any website with its focus keyword in both places is knowledgeable in SEO writing, and you should visit these websites for content inspiration.
Now, you have a keyword to verify.
· Research keyword(s).
This part is so exciting! Ubersuggest is the best keyword research website out there, in my opinion.
When you upload your keyword on ubersuggest, it analyzes that word. It gives you real-time data, including search volume, cost per click, SEO difficulty, other keyword ideas, and content ideas you can use along with the keyword you entered.
From the above example, you’ll notice the keyword overview, which consists of:
Search volume
SEO difficulty
Paid difficulty
Cost per click
Scrolling down, you see the keyword ideas, which give you statistics on other keywords you can use.
It shows the trend for each keyword and the top-ranking websites for it, alongside the keyword overview statistics for each keyword idea.
After this is the content ideas segment, where you see existing content with that keyword; in this case, the keyword is ‘break up with someone.’
The fantastic thing about this content idea segment is that it shows you the monthly estimated visits to that website and the keywords that bring this organic traffic. It also shows the number of backlinks, so you know if the website is really credible, and the number of social media links (Facebook).
You know what? You get this much information for free and even more information when you subscribe to the paid version.
The paid version, among other features, provides breakdown statistics on which device generates the highest search volume (mobile or desktop).
· Research content around the keywords.
This is the same step as researching the topic ideas from AnswerthePublic. The only difference is that you have specific keywords to type in Google search.
In this case, your focus keyword can be ‘when to break up with someone’ or ‘break up with him’ because the search volume is 1,900 and 1,600, respectively. Also, you can still go with the focus keyword ‘break up with someone,’ which has a search volume of 1,000.
Or you can use all these keywords while deciding on one focus keyword.
For example, ‘when to break up with someone’ can be my focus keyword, while the other two can be my other keywords.
Note: One of the best SEO writing tips to hold on to is using a medium tail keyword as your focus keyword and long tail keywords as your other keyword ideas. All your keywords should not be more than five (5) or less than three (3).
If your focus keyword is ‘when to break up with someone,’ you use Google search query to find content related to that query, noting the headline and content structures.
· Create your headline.
From the above SERP of the focus keyword ‘when to break up with someone,’ you can see several headline structures around the keyword.
As earlier stated, you need to have a compelling headline that will make the reader want to click on your page. Sharethrough Headline Analyzer is a good, free, and accessible platform for writing a compelling headline, and you can also use it to verify the viability of your headline.
The platform analyzes your headline’s engagement and impression scores and suggests ways you can make it better.
Before you write out a headline, note these points for SEO:
Your focus keyword must be in your headline with no added word(s) in between. Use any of the formats below:
Prefix, (focus keyword), suffix.
(Focus keyword), suffix.
Prefix, (focus keyword).
Your headline should not be too long to avoid being cut off like the ones below.
Use context words.
Use numbers, preferably odd numbers.
Run any headlines you come up with through the headline analyzer, follow these rules, and ensure your scores are above average.
· Create your SEO outline.
To create your outline, check out the top-ranking websites from the Google search query you carried out.
Compare at least five (5) different websites and note their content structure.
Afterward, create your outline and include a new point that is relevant to your content. OR
You can elaborate on a point mentioned briefly in other posts.
The endpoint is to ensure you give your readers added value; that will be the reason your post is preferred to others.
SAMPLE SEO-OPTIMIZED OUTLINE
· Write your content.
You have your keywords, outline, and content inspiration. All you have to do is write.
However, it is important to know that writing isn’t just writing. When it comes to an optimized post, you have to be intentional and a little bit technical, especially when it comes to the placement of your keywords, links, images, and even your subheadings.
Here are my favorite SEO content writing tips to keep in mind when writing your optimized blog posts:
Go straight to the point.
Use simple English (8th grade English).
Include your keywords in your sub-headings.
Allow sentence flow between paragraphs.
Build from the basics.
Include relevant internal and external links.
Use the right formatting style.
Use AI minimally.
Integrate keywords naturally.
· Insert visual content.
Your SEO blog post isn’t complete without visuals. Make sure your images’ sizes are small to reduce your site’s loading speed.
Also, add Alt texts to your images; this is very important for SEO.
If you follow these SEO writing processes, your blog posts will be sure to make the front pages.
If you need me to assist you with your SEO writing, or you need more detailed and vocal coaching, you can set up a meeting with me HERE or check out our SEO writing services.
Google’s search results have become more interesting and varied. Instead of just links, you now see different types of information, like quick answers, pictures, and more. These different results are SERP features, which make online searches more interesting.
Several Google SERP features include Featured Snippets, Knowledge Panels, Rich Snippets, and People Also Ask. Each Google SERP feature has its unique purpose and benefits.
In today’s digital world, where being seen online is important, knowing how to fit your content into these special search results can make a big difference. Whether you want your content to be in a quick answer, local search, or something else, this post will teach you how.
What are SERP features?
SERP refers to the Search Engine Results Page. It is Google’s response to a user’s search query.
SERP features, however, are Google’s responses to search queries that go past the traditional “blue links.” This includes featured snippets, a knowledge panel, image packs, map packs, and video carousels.
Common Google SERP features
January 2014 marked the first time Google introduced SERP features, with ‘Featured Snippets’ and ‘People Also Ask’ appearing on desktop search results. Since then, it has grown to introduce many more.
Here’s what you need to know about the most common ones:
Featured Snippets
Featured snippets are excerpts of a website’s content displayed at the top of the results page in an attempt by Google to provide direct answers to a user’s query.
Knowledge Panels
According to Google, “Knowledge panels are information boxes that appear on Google when you search for entities (people, places, organizations, things) that are in the knowledge graph.” Knowledge panels provide users with a brief overview of information on a particular topic to assist them in quickly grasping the key points.
Rich Snippets
Simply put, rich results are visually enhanced search results. They are a type of search result that presents additional information from the page rather than a basic snippet that only includes the title, description, and URL.
People Also Ask
People Also Ask is a SERP feature displayed by Google that presents a list of related questions users have searched for after their initial query. It appears below the search results and aims to further address the information the user needs and provide additional context.
Local Pack
A Local pack, or the Google Map Pack or Snack Pack, is a prominent section in Google search results that showcases the top-ranking local listings for your search query or current location. It appears at the top of the search engine results page (SERP) when a user searches with local intent, such as “restaurants near me” or “best mechanics in Lagos.”
Video and Image Carousels
Video and image carousels are another type of SERP feature that displays a series of videos or images related to the search query. Depending on the relevance and type of content available, they can appear at various positions on the search results page.
Optimizing for SERP features might seem like something you can overlook, but here are some of the benefits you would be missing out on:
a. Increased Visibility
Visibility is key in the world of SEO, and attaining it is the goal of all SEO efforts. The following is how SERP features boost your visibility to searchers:
Prominent placement: SERP features occupy prime real estate on the search results page, often above traditional organic listings. This increased visibility makes your website more likely to be seen by potential customers.
Eye-catching formats: Features like video carousels, rich snippets, and knowledge panels stand out visually from the text-heavy results page, grabbing user attention and driving clicks.
b. Improved Click-Through Rate (CTR)
Your Click-through rate is an essential metric in SEO that often significantly impacts your ranking on result pages. Here’s how SERP features help improve that:
Direct answers: Features like featured snippets and knowledge panels provide instant answers to user queries, reducing the need to click through to your website. However, this can still increase brand awareness and potential future visits.
Enhanced user experience: Features like interactive maps and carousels offer a richer and more engaging experience, making users more likely to click and explore your content further.
Increased trust and credibility: Appearing in prominent SERP features like knowledge panels and rich snippets signals to users that your website is a reliable source of information, boosting their confidence to click.
SERP features significantly raise your chances of ranking higher by:
Optimizing for features: Following best practices for structured data, content formatting, and relevance can increase your chances of triggering SERP features for relevant keywords, indirectly improving your organic ranking.
Enhanced user engagement: Features like People Also Ask and interactive elements can increase dwell time on your website, which is a ranking factor considered by search engines.
Authority and relevance: Appearing in various SERP features can showcase your website’s expertise and relevance to specific topics, potentially influencing ranking algorithms in your favor.
d. Attract More Qualified Leads
SERP features also help you attract the leads your website needs. Here is how:
Targeted audience: Features like local packs and People Also Ask highlight your website to users actively searching for your products or services, increasing the likelihood of qualified leads.
Detailed information: Features like rich snippets and knowledge panels offer users a concise overview of your offerings, helping them make informed decisions about contacting you.
Brand recognition: Consistent presence in SERP features builds brand awareness and trust, making users more likely to choose you over competitors.
e. Increased Credibility
Searchers are more likely to click links they trust to answer their search query needs, and SERP features greatly increase your credibility with the following:
Google’s endorsement: Appearing in SERP features, especially knowledge panels and rich snippets, signifies Google’s recognition of your website as a reliable source of information, enhancing your credibility.
Transparency and trust: Features like People Also Ask and interactive elements encourage user engagement and address potential concerns, building trust and transparency.
Competition edge: Standing out from competitors through SERP features demonstrates your commitment to user experience and content quality, cementing your position as a trustworthy authority.
Optimizing your content for different Google SERP features
Here’s a breakdown of how to optimize your content for each SERP feature you mentioned:
This feature is a great way to get instant answers to search queries. Featured snippets are the easiest SERP feature to rank for. Here’s how you can do it:
Conciseness is vital: Aim for clear, concise answers to specific questions users might ask, ideally under 280 characters.
Structure matters: Use bullet points, numbered lists, or tables to make information understandable.
Target relevant keywords: Research and include relevant keywords in your content, focusing on those with high search volume and low competition.
Optimize for voice search: Use natural language and conversational tone for potential voice search triggers.
2. Knowledge Panels
This feature gives users a snapshot of the information they seek. Below is a guide on how to rank for it.
Claim your entity on Google: Verify your business or organization on Google Search Console and Google My Business, now Google Business Profile, to ensure accurate information appears in the panel.
Provide comprehensive information: Include detailed descriptions, contact information, website links, and high-quality images or logos.
Structure your website: Use schema markup to help Google understand your website’s structure and highlight relevant information.
Build backlinks: Increase your website’s authority and relevance by earning backlinks from high-quality websites.
3. Rich Snippets
Like meta descriptions, rich snippets tell the searcher more about that webpage. Here are a few tips to optimize your website for it:
Implement schema markup: Use structured data to explicitly tell Google what information you provide, like recipes, events, or products.
Focus on specific information: Highlight relevant details like ratings, prices, availability, or event dates.
Use high-quality visuals: Include compelling images or videos that accurately represent your content.
Optimize for mobile: Ensure your rich snippets display correctly on mobile devices, where most users search.
4. People Also Ask
Searchers are interested in pages that can answer their questions, even if it’s not the one they typed in the search bar. Here’s how to always be available to answer them:
Analyze existing questions: Look at the ‘People Also Ask’ section for your target keywords and identify frequently asked questions.
Integrate questions and answers: Address these questions within your content, either directly or in dedicated FAQ sections.
Use natural language: Employ conversational language and answer questions in a helpful and informative way.
Link to relevant pages: If your website has dedicated pages addressing specific questions, link to them within your content.
5. Local Pack
Do you want people to come to you? Optimize your business to show up on local packs. Here’s how:
Claim your GBP listing: Optimize your Google Business Profile listing with accurate information, high-quality photos, and positive reviews.
Target local keywords: Ensure your content and website title include keywords relevant to your location and target audience.
Encourage user engagement: Respond to reviews, answer questions on your listing, and keep your information updated.
Build local backlinks: Get backlinks from local websites and directories to improve your local SEO.
6. Video and Image Carousels
Are you tired of scrolling through hundreds of articles? So are your readers. Change the game by ranking high with a different type of content. Below is how:
Create high-quality visuals: Use engaging images and videos relevant to your target keywords and search intent.
Optimize file names and descriptions: Include relevant keywords in your file names and image alt text for better searchability.
Leverage YouTube and Google Images: Optimize your videos and images for these platforms using relevant tags and descriptions.
Embed videos and images in your content: Use videos and images strategically within your content to break up text and enhance user experience.
Optimizing your content for SERP features can help improve your website’s visibility and reach a wider audience.
Each search result is unique, and understanding how search results work is vital. You must adapt your content to fit these special results to succeed online. This helps you get noticed, provide helpful info to your audience, and achieve your online goals.
Start optimizing your content for the specific Google search features that matter to you. Keep an eye on what’s new in SEO, and be ready to tweak your content strategy when needed.
How many SERP features do you optimize your content for?
Any business that wants to reach the right audience must have an effective content marketing strategy. When you create and distribute high-quality content, your business can attract potential customers, engage with them, build relationships, and drive sales.
However, creating an effective B2B (business-to-business) content marketing strategy can be challenging. There are several types of content businesses can create, and it can be challenging to know where to start.
Before we delve into creating an effective B2B content marketing strategy, I would like to take you through what a B2B business is, its key characteristics, and how it differs from B2C (business-to-consumer) businesses.
This is a crucial step to help you know if your business is a B2B business and if you need a B2C or a B2B content marketing strategy.
What are B2B businesses?
B2B, which means “business-to-business,” refers to companies/businesses that sell their goods or services to other businesses, not individual customers.
It implies that B2B businesses focus on meeting other companies’ specific needs and demands instead of targeting the general public.
Key characteristics of B2B businesses
Here are some characteristics of business-to-business:
Larger transaction sizes
B2B transactions involve more money than B2C transactions, as businesses often purchase goods in bulk or require complex services.
Longer sales cycles
B2B sales cycles can be much longer than B2C ones, as a more complex decision-making process is often involved. It may involve multiple stakeholders within the buying company, negotiations, and pilot projects.
Building solid relationships with potential and existing customers is crucial in B2B, as trust and reliability are critical factors in business partnerships.
Technical expertise
The complexity of B2B products and services is higher than that of B2C businesses, so salespeople and marketers need to have a strong understanding of the industry and the specific needs of their target customers.
Emphasis on ROI
B2B businesses often demonstrate their products or services’ return on investment (ROI) to potential customers. This means they must focus on the quantifiable benefits their offerings can provide other businesses.
With a B2B content marketing strategy, you can create blog posts, infographics, webinars, and more that directly address your audience’s pain points, educate them on industry trends, and showcase your knowledge.
This will attract qualified leads who are already interested in what you have to offer, making them more receptive to your future sales efforts.
b. To increase brand awareness
Think of content as a megaphone for your brand. You can spread brand awareness beyond your website by consistently creating high-quality and relevant content.
Your content also gets shared on several social media platforms. It is discoverable through search engines, making your brand visible to a broader audience and establishing you as an authority in your field.
c. To drive sales
Content marketing is more than just awareness; it’s about lead generation, nurturing leads, and guiding them through your sales funnel.
By crafting compelling content that addresses each stage of the buyer’s journey, you can educate potential customers about your product, showcase its benefits, and ultimately convince them why it’s the perfect solution for their needs.
d. To improve your search engine ranking
Search engines love fresh and relevant content. A consistent content marketing strategy ensures your website stays active and brimming with valuable information.
Potential clients will find you more quickly if you employ this tactic, increasing your search engine ranking and keeping visitors interested.
Content marketing isn’t just a one-way street. By producing interactive content, holding Q&A sessions, and participating in online communities, you can build a loyal fan base for your company.
This fosters a sense of belonging and trust, turning your customers into advocates who champion your brand and spread the word organically.
How to create an effective B2B content marketing strategy
I’ve seen people repeatedly get it wrong with their content marketing strategies.
One of the most important things to note when developing any content marketing strategy is that it should be tailored to your type of business. So, your B2B content marketing strategy will only be effective if your business is B2B.
And even at that, you also need to streamline your B2B content marketing strategy to suit your exact niche.
Here are some more detailed tips on creating an effective B2B content marketing strategy:
Before diving headfirst into content creation, take a moment to map out your aspirations. Having clear goals helps you tailor your content and measure success later on.
Once you have identified your objectives, you can create content to help you achieve them.
2. Identify your target audience.
Who are you creating content for?
Picture your ideal customer. Who are they? What are their challenges and pain points? What kind of information do they seek?
Understanding your target audience like this helps you create content that aligns with their needs and interests, ensuring it resonates and engages them effectively.
3. Choose the proper content formats.
You can create different types of content, including blog posts, infographics, ebooks, and case studies.
Variety is the spice of content! Don’t limit yourself to just blog posts. Explore different formats like white papers, infographics, webinars, podcasts, or short videos.
Choose the content formats that resonate with your target audience and the type of information you want to convey when selecting.
4. Create high-quality content.
Quality is king in the content kingdom. Your content’s quality, research, writing, and engagement should be high. It should also be optimized for search engines.
Rather than creating multiple pieces of content to put out to your audience, focus on offering value to them.
Be it data-driven insights, expert opinions, or practical tips, ensure your content is informative, actionable, and stands out from the crowd.
5. Promote your content.
Creating great content isn’t enough; you need to get it in front of the right eyeballs!
Once you have created high-quality content, you need to promote it so people can find it.
Utilize social media, email marketing, guest blogging, and industry forums to promote your content actively. Leverage search engine optimization (SEO) strategies to improve your website’s visibility and attract organic traffic.
6. Measure your results.
Data is your friend! It is crucial to track your results to see what is working and what is not.
Track key metrics like website traffic, engagement rates, lead generation, and conversions to understand your content marketing performance.
You can continuously enhance the effectiveness of your content strategy by using this data to fine-tune your approach and determine what works best.
Creating an effective B2B content marketing strategy takes time and effort but is worth it in the long run.
By consistently creating and distributing high-quality content, businesses can draw in potential customers, engage them, build relationships, and drive sales.
If you are serious about growing your B2B business, implement the tips outlined in this blog post today.
A content gap analysis is a valuable tool for SEO. It can help you identify new keywords to target and create content that is more likely to rank in search engine results pages (SERPs).
By conducting a content gap analysis, you can identify keywords and topics your target audience is searching for that you are not currently covering in your content.
Then, you can use this information to create new content that will be relevant to your target audience, and you can also use the information to update existing content to rank higher in SERPs.
In this blog post, we will discuss how to run an effective content gap analysis for SEO.
What Is a Content Gap Analysis?
A content gap analysis is a strategic process for evaluating the current content on your website or your marketing materials and identifying any missing pieces that could be valuable to your audience.
It’s like taking an inventory of your information offerings and pinpointing areas where you could fill the gaps to attract and engage your target audience better.
Why is Content Gap Analysis Important to SEO?
Content gap analysis is crucial for SEO for several key reasons:
a. Improves keyword research and targeting
By identifying missing content, you can discover new or under-utilized keywords with the potential for high search volume and low competition. This helps you target keywords relevant to your audience and improve your organic ranking for those terms.
b. Enhances topic research and generation
Analyzing competitor content and identifying gaps can give you ideas for fresh topics and content formats that address user’s needs your competitors haven’t covered. This strategy can help attract a wider audience and prevent your content from becoming repetitive or unoriginal.
c. Optimizes content format and structure
By understanding your audience’s preferences and content consumption habits, you can choose the proper format (e.g., blog post, video, infographic) for each topic and optimize its structure for clarity and searchability.
This improves user engagement and click-through rates, which are SEO ranking factors.
d. Increases content quality and value
Filling content gaps ensures you provide comprehensive information on relevant topics, address user questions and concerns, and offer more value than your competitors. It improves user satisfaction and can lead to increased dwell time, backlinks, and social shares, all of which are positive SEO signals.
e. Identifies opportunities for featured snippets and SERP features
By focusing on topics with high search volume and user interest, you increase the chances of your content appearing in featured snippets, knowledge panels, or other SERP features. This increases your website’s visibility and click-through rate, boosting your SEO performance.
Overall, content gap analysis provides valuable insights that can inform your SEO strategy in a data-driven way.
By understanding what your audience is looking for and what your competitors are missing, you can create content that fills the gaps, attracts more qualified traffic, and improves your website’s search engine ranking.
Ready to conquer content gaps and supercharge your website? Here’s how to dive deeper into each step you mentioned:
1. Identify your target keywords.
Keywords are the currency of SEO, and here is how to use them to run an efficient content gap analysis.
Uncover hidden gems: Use keyword research tools to find relevant keywords with high search volume and low competition. Think beyond the obvious!
Understand user intent: Go beyond just keywords. Analyze search queries and related topics to understand what users are seeking.
Keep it focused: Don’t spread yourself too thin. Prioritize a manageable set of target keywords based on their relevance and potential impact.
2. Analyze your existing content.
Don’t rest on your oars. SEO is a never-ending journey; always take a step back and look at your work occasionally. Follow these steps on how to analyze your existing content.
Content audit: Evaluate your existing content, its format, performance metrics, and topic coverage. Be honest about what’s working and what’s not.
Identify strengths and weaknesses: What topics are you already covering well? What are the gaps? Analyze user engagement and identify areas for improvement.
Keyword mapping:Map your existing content to your target keywords. This will help you identify gaps and optimize existing content for better visibility.
3. Carry out competitor research.
Competitors will always be a defining factor in your SEO journey, so remember to check what they do. Here’s how:
Spy on the best: Analyze the content strategies of your top competitors. What topics are they covering? What formats are they using? What gaps can you fill?
Learn from their successes: Identify their most successful content pieces and see what makes them tick. Adapt their strategies to your own brand and target audience.
Don’t just copy: While inspiration is vital, avoid plagiarism. Create unique content that adds value and differentiates you from the competition.
4. Identify content gaps.
Analyze the search results to see what content appears for your target keywords. Are there any missing topics or formats? Can you offer a fresh perspective? Here’s how to identify content gaps:
Look for unanswered questions: Use “People Also Ask” sections and forum discussions to identify your audience’s questions. Can you provide the answers they need?
Consider different content formats: Don’t limit yourself to just blog posts. Explore infographics, videos, podcasts, or interactive elements for a more engaging experience.
5. Prioritize your content gaps.
Work on your content gaps based on priority. Here are some ideas:
High impact, low effort: Focus on gaps you can fill with minimal resources and yet significantly impact your audience and SEO.
Quick wins: Prioritize gaps you can address quickly to maintain momentum and demonstrate the value of your content strategy.
Align with business goals: Prioritize gaps that contribute directly to your desired outcomes. Your content should support your overall business objectives.
6. Create a content plan.
Having a plan is essential when creating online content, and here’s how to create a plan:
Map out your content calendar: Schedule your content creation based on your priorities and resources. Be realistic and set achievable deadlines.
Assign roles and responsibilities: Delegate tasks based on expertise and workload. Collaboration is key!
Track your progress: Monitor your content creation process and adjust as needed. Stay flexible and adapt to new information and trends.
7. Monitor and adjust.
Always keep an eye out for any updates and constantly evaluate your content. Try these steps to monitor your content:
Analyze your content performance: Track metrics like traffic, engagement, and conversions to see what’s working and what’s not.
Stay up-to-date: Monitor industry trends, competitor activity, and user feedback to refine your content strategy constantly.
Embrace continuous improvement: Content gap analysis is an ongoing process. Regularly revisit your strategy, identify new gaps, and keep your content fresh and relevant.
Remember, this is just a roadmap. Be creative, experiment with different approaches, and, most importantly, have fun! By following these steps and adding your unique flair, you can conquer content gaps and build a website that attracts, engages, and converts.
Tips for Conducting an Effective Content Gap Analysis
Here are some additional tips to enhance your content gap analysis for maximum effectiveness:
Keyword research
Go beyond the basics: Don’t rely solely on high-volume keywords. Explore long-tail keywords and related searches that reveal deeper user intent and specific pain points you can address.
Consider local intent: If local SEO is important, include location-specific keywords and analyze search trends in your target area.
Content Analysis Tools
Embrace automation: Tools like Screaming Frog and SEO Site Checkup can crawl your website and identify missing meta descriptions, broken links, and other technical issues impacting content performance.
Analyze content depth: Tools like seoClarity and Copywritely can assess your existing content’s readability, engagement potential, and keyword optimization.
Track topic coverage: Tools like BuzzSumo and Semrush can help you identify your most successful content and analyze trending topics in your industry.
Competitive Analysis
Go beyond the obvious: Analyze your direct competitors and websites catering to similar user needs or offering complementary products/services. This strategy can reveal unexpected content gaps.
Look for format inspiration: Don’t just copy content topics; get inspired by how your competitors present information. Consider interactive elements, multimedia formats, and unique storytelling approaches.
Analyze backlinks and social shares: Tools like Ahrefs and Mention can show you which competitor content generates the most engagement and backlinks. This can help you prioritize topics with high potential for similar success.
Team Feedback
Gather diverse perspectives: Involve team members from different departments (marketing, sales, customer service) to get insights into user needs, industry trends, and potential content gaps.
Conduct surveys and interviews: Gather direct feedback from your target audience through surveys, user interviews, or focus groups to understand their pain points, information preferences, and content consumption habits.
Embrace brainstorming: Encourage open brainstorming sessions where team members can share ideas, identify new content opportunities, and refine existing content plans.
By incorporating these tips, you can conduct a comprehensive and data-driven content gap analysis that uncovers hidden opportunities, fuels your content creation, and ultimately drives successful SEO and audience engagement.
Remember, the key is to be creative and resourceful. You should also constantly adapt your strategy based on new data and insights.
Conclusion
An effective content gap analysis is essential to any SEO strategy. By identifying new keywords to target and creating content that is more likely to rank in SERPs, you can improve your website’s visibility and attract more visitors.
If you are serious about improving your SEO, I encourage you to run a content gap analysis today.
Following the steps outlined in this blog post can help you create content to reach your target audience and achieve your business goals.
How often do you conduct a content gap analysis for your website?
Imagine this: You’ve just typed a question into Google, and there, right at the top of the search results, is a concise, information-packed snippet that answers your query. It’s what you were looking for.
Now, consider this—what if that Google snippet featured your content?
Getting your website into that coveted featured snippet spot on Google is not just a dream; it’s a reality you can achieve.
In this post, I’ll show you how to get Google featured snippet using content tips I’ve tried with exceptional results.
But first,
What are featured snippets?
According to Google, featured snippets are “answer boxes” that give a short, concise, and descriptive response relevant to a searcher’s query.
The featured snippet is often called position zero because it comes before the traditional first result, and the visual format is also different.
Unlike regular results shown on Google’s search result page, the link to the source page is displayed first before a snippet describing the page, but for posts that make it to the point zero spot, the standard format where the source page link is displayed first is followed.
In learning how to get Google featured snippets, you first need to know the types of featured snippets so you know how to optimize your content for the different types.
These snippets give simple definitions to words. They can also come as a paragraph snippet containing a short excerpt of the web page relevant to the searcher’s query.
Lists/How To Snippets
These snippets show a short list, such as steps in a process, ingredients in a recipe, or products in a category. These list snippets could be in an ordered or unordered form.
Table Snippets
These snippet types show relevant information in a tabular form for the searcher. It is often used for queries that require comparison or contrast.
Video Snippets
Video snippets are often shown for queries requiring demonstration or when Google concludes that a video format best represents the searcher’s intent. For this type of snippet, Google cuts a section of a YouTube video or any social media video that best answers the query and embeds it as part of the SERP for that query.
PAA Snippets
These are also accordion snippets, shown in the drop-down answer section of the PAA part of the SERP.
Appearing in position zero of a search engine result page helps increase the visibility of your website. You can agree that a stage is the best way to get attention, which a featured snippet spot will earn you.
You will draw attention to your website and content, and people who would not have seen you will have a chance to interact with your content.
Higher click-through rates (CTR)
A featured snippet spot will increase your organic click-through rates mainly because that spot earns your audience’s trust.
When your content appears as a featured snippet—even if you are not known as an authority figure in that niche—the chances of someone clicking on that particular result are higher than 50%.
There is this unsaid belief that if you can appear as the first result in a SERP, your content is top-tier, and whatever you say can be trusted.
Enhanced authority and credibility
When your organic click-through rate increases and you consistently focus on appearing in the featured snippet for niche-relevant queries, you will gain and, most importantly, retain the trust and credibility you have built.
Increased traffic
Appearing in the featured snippet spot will increase your organic CTR and traffic. You get to market your website to a larger audience, and because you took the stage position, you can draw people in.
One significant benefit of the featured snippet spot people don’t often talk about is the possibility of ranking for voice searches.
The voice assistant often reads out voice search queries, and unlike regular searches, your voice assistant will not go through the SERP and load different web pages to get the answer.
It will pick from the first result and read it to you as an answer.
When you are in the featured snippet spot, chances are that the voice assistant will pick your web page, provided that the search results for voice searches use the same search algorithm as regular searches.
Increased SERP position
The more you rank for featured snippets, the more your SERP rankings increase. This is similar to how ranking on the first page helps to increase your visibility, domain authority, and trust.
When you are consistent with the quality of content you deliver to the extent of consistently ranking for featured snippets, Google begins to pay attention to your website as credible, reliable, and relevant.
Due to this, it starts to move your content higher in SERPs for other search queries/keywords.
How to get Google featured snippet for your content
Now that you have gained insight into how beneficial a featured snippet is, here is how to get Google featured snippets:
1. Identify featured snippet opportunities.
You can identify featured snippet opportunities by manually analyzing several keywords. This means you go on Google, type in your keywords list, and see if the SERP shows a featured snippet.
You can also use tools like Ahref or Semrush to help you technically identify featured snippet opportunities online.
I love how Samantha North broke down how she uses Ahref or Semrush to identify featured snippet opportunities she might be missing.
Here’s a breakdown of how to get Google featured snippet opportunities you might be missing out on using Ahref:
Identify all the keywords you are ranking for.
Go to your Ahref Site Explorer and type in your domain name.
Navigate to the ‘Organic Keyword Report’ to get a list of the keywords your site currently ranks for.
Click on the ‘SERP features’ filter and select the ‘featured snippet’ option.
Click ‘Apply’ to apply the filter to your results.
You will see a list of keywords you currently rank for, and a quote (‘’) sign before the URL indicates that the particular web page is now at position zero.
Identify your top 10 keywords.
This step aims to identify your ‘potential’ featured snippet post. It will be easier to get a featured snippet position for your blog posts already ranking on the first page of a SERP than to get a top position for a low-ranking post.
Here’s how you can do that on Ahref:
Go to your Site Explorer and type in your domain name.
Navigate to the ‘Organic Keywords’ Report to get a list of the keywords your site currently ranks for.
Click on the ‘position’ filter and enter ‘1-10.’
Click ‘Apply’ to apply the filter to your results.
Repeat 1 and 2 for your competitors.
Do the same processes for your competitor to compare the results with yours. If their top 10 results are different keywords from yours, you have a content gap you need to close up.
When you can identify their featured snippet post, navigate to the post and analyze the content to find something missing.
Create your superior content.
When you finish all the steps, try as much as possible to recreate a similar blog post with the added content.
2. Match user intent.
Understanding the user’s intent is crucial for featured snippet optimization because a featured snippet aims to get the correct answer to the searcher in record time.
Creating relevant content for the searcher will be challenging when you don’t understand the reasoning behind the search.
The way you can match the user intent with your content is to manually analyze the web pages in the featured snippet position as well as the top three results on the SERP. With these, you can meet the expectations of the searcher.
When creating or optimizing your content for a featured snippet, you must note the type of featured snippet you want to rank for and create your content accordingly.
For example, if the SERP for ‘top-rated movies’ has a table-featured snippet, you should include a table in your content. This means Google believes a table snippet is more beneficial than a list snippet for that particular keyword.
4. Optimize your content structure.
This step has helped me a lot when I tried to rank on the first page of Google, and it has also helped with my content.
Your content structure is crucial, and it will surprise you to discover that little changes like using the proper header tags or short paragraphs in your content can change the trajectory of your ranking.
Include question-based keywords in your sub-headings.
Reduce your definitions to 45-60 words.
Always go straight to the point.
Use tables when you can.
Use the right heading tags for your listicles.
Start your answer with the question to keep context.
Use basic HTML tags to format your page.
Include keywords in your subheadings.
Include a list summary for your listicle posts.
5. Use schema markup.
Using schema markup or structured data can help improve your chances of ranking for featured snippets. Using schema data markup will help search engines understand your post’s content and context.
This can help boost your SERP rankings and position you for a featured snippet spot on Google.
According to AIOSEO, using FAQ, how-to, product, and recipe schema types gives you a higher chance of getting the featured snippet spot.
6. Improve page load speed.
Improving page load speed can help you get a featured snippet spot on Google because faster pages are more likely to be prioritized for featured snippets over slow-loading pages, giving you an advantage.
Also, faster pages will provide a better user experience, which Google wants.
7. Build backlinks from relevant and reputable websites.
While backlinks might not directly impact the ranking for featured snippets, they play a crucial role in overall website SEO and authority.
Building backlinks from reputable and relevant websites signals to Google that your content is trustworthy and authoritative, which can indirectly increase your chances of earning featured snippets.
The quest for the featured snippet spot may take time and effort, but the rewards for increased visibility, traffic, and authority are worth every step. So, what are you waiting for?
With the right strategies and a commitment to optimizing your content, you can elevate your online presence and offer valuable solutions to your audience.
Are you ready to claim your spot at the top of Google? Start optimizing for featured snippets now!
Living in an era where content is the new black or orange has placed content writers in high demand. While we are still trying to maintain quality, the increased workload has made it almost impossible for us to avoid using content writing tools for SEO purposes.
This blog post is dedicated to all hardworking content writers who need content writing tools for SEO to improve the quality of their content and meet deadlines. The reward for us is when we see those blog posts that we write ranking on the first page of Google’s SERPs.
What is content writing?
Content writing is the entire process of planning, writing, and publishing content in written formats. These pieces of content take various forms, but whatever form they take, the endpoint is usually to convey a message to a particular audience.
Depending on the quality of your content, it has the ability to convert your audience into paying and returning clients.
The importance of SEO in content writing includes:
Visibility
No matter the platform you are writing for, the end game for every writer is to be able to showcase their work in front of an audience.
For example, when you write content for blogs, you want to see it show up on the first page of a SERP for its focus keyword. When you write content for social media, you want to see it get the needed engagement and traction.
Whatever content you write, what makes your efforts worthwhile is when it is visible to your target audience. What better way to do this than through SEO?
SEO allows your content to be visible to people who are searching for it.
Engagement
Due to the fact that SEO is based on research, it allows you to discover what people want to read about in the exact format that they want.
This lets you create personalized content, which promotes engagement.
Brand building
When your visibility increases, it helps you develop a strong online presence, which is advantageous to your brand.
As more people engage with your content, they become familiar with your brand, its values, and its offerings, fostering a positive brand reputation.
Builds credibility
When you consistently produce high-quality content that is optimized for search engines and users, earn quality backlinks from reputable websites, and optimize your website to enhance user experience, it will help to build your credibility as an authority in your niche.
Niche relevance
SEO-driven content ensures that your brand is associated with specific keywords and topics that are relevant to your target audience. By incorporating relevant keywords into your content, you align your website with the search queries that your audience is using. This targeted approach effectively positions your brand as a relevant resource for users seeking information or solutions within your niche.
Free marketing
Organic traffic is the icing on the cake when it comes to SEO. Unlike other paid marketing options, SEO is more long-term and rewards consistent, quality content with adequate research and cost-effective strategies.
How to choose the best content writing tools.
Selecting your most suitable content writing tools for SEO requires careful consideration of various factors to optimize your content creation process and achieve your SEO goals effectively.
Here are some factors to consider when choosing the best content writing tools for SEO:
Your Content Needs and Requirements
Assess your content writing needs and identify the specific tasks you want to automate or enhance with the use of these tools. Consider whether you need tools for keyword research, content optimization, plagiarism checking, grammar assistance, or a tool that combines these functionalities.
Ease of Use and Good User Interface
Prioritize content writing tools for SEO that offer a user-friendly interface and easy navigation, especially if you are a beginner. This little factor can significantly affect your workflow and productivity.
Accuracy and Reliability
Ensure that the content writing tools for SEO that you choose provide you with accurate and reliable data. This is crucial for making informed decisions about your content strategy and optimizing your content for search engines.
Pricing and Budget
Evaluate the pricing plans of these tools and compare the functionalities offered by different plans. Select tools that align with your budget and provide the features and functionalities you need without breaking the bank.
Free Trials or Demos
Take advantage of the free trials or demos offered by many content writing tools for SEO. This allows you to experiment with the tool’s functionalities before making a purchase.
Integrations with Existing Tools
Consider how well the tools you choose integrate with your existing content management system (CMS), analytics platform, and other relevant tools. It needs to have seamless and hitch-free integration with your existing tools for overall efficiency.
Customer Support and Resources
You need to consider the level of customer support provided by the developer. Access to comprehensive tutorials and responsive customer support can be your saving grace when troubleshooting issues arise.
Content Writing Tools for SEO Writing
Grammarly
If you are a content writer, I am absolutely sure you’ve heard of Grammarly at least once. This is because it is one of the best content-writing tools available.
The essential features of Grammarly cover spelling, punctuation, and grammar, but it doesn’t stop there. When you upgrade to the paid plan, you get plagiarism checks, vocabulary, and even sentence tone checkers.
One thing that distinguishes Grammarly is that it uses AI systems to detect subtle writing errors, making its reviews and feedback very accurate and spot on.
Although AI systems have certain disadvantages, including the inability to identify word structures outside of their programming, the benefits outweigh the disadvantages. You can manually correct your writing where you deem appropriate.
The free version of Grammarly, though limited, is far better than most spellcheckers and editing tools as it offers a variety of features, including:
Integration with several browsers
Integration with Google Docs
AI system for spelling, punctuation, and grammar errors
Availability on mobile devices
Readability metrics
As expected, the premium version offers far more value than the free version and gives writers literally all the features needed to have a WOW effect on readers. It goes beyond the basic suggestions and checks word tone, style, ineffective word usage, and plagiarism. Another feature of the premium version is outsourcing your writing to an actual human proofreader, although this comes at an additional cost.
Grammarly Premium makes sure your writing has clarity and emotional appeal and is free from plagiarism.
Developed by SEMRush, this writing assistant has all the features necessary for content optimization, and the good news is that these features are automated. Unlike other content writing tools for SEO, the features are not exactly embedded in the tool but come from various integrations, including all the SEMRush tools.
I like this tool because it shows you recommendations and gives you feedback as you write. This means that you don’t have to wait till you’re done writing to make necessary corrections. You also get to finish your work faster and learn on the go.
The SEMRush Writing Assistant offers:
SEO suggestions
Real-time feedbacks
Google Docs integration
Integration with other SEMRush tools
It can be used as a WordPress plugin
The limitation of the SWA is that you cannot access it unless you have an active SEMRush subscription which starts at $120 per month.
There are several ways you can use the SEMRush Writing Assistant:
Inside SEMRush: This allows you to check the viability of your content right from the SEMRush platform, although this prevents you from styling options or image insertion.
As a Google Docs Plugin: More preferable than the first option, although you need to have a Google Workspace account. Then you have to install the plugin to your Google docs from the GSuite Workspace market, after which you enable the add-on via your Google Docs.
As a WordPress plugin: This is the most preferred option as it is easy to use with more available options. All you need to do is go to your WordPress plugin page, search for the SWA, and install and activate. Click on the ‘Flat mode’ in your post editor, log in to your account, and your SWA is ready for work.
For any content creator or writer, answerthepublic gives you insight into your customer’s minds. It compiles a list of search queries based on specific keywords. It then categorizes these queries into several forms, including:
Questions like why, where, how, who, what, can will, etc
Prepositions like without, near, with, to, without, etc.
Comparisons like versus, and, or, like, etc
Alphabetical: displays results in alphabetical order
Related
and presents it in an appealing visual format.
This tool is best for researching market trends and observing queries around specific keywords in any niche. These keywords are predictions of what your audience will search for, and it is an accurate analysis as these data are updated frequently.
The free version offers you search insights and allows you to download the displayed data, although you have a limited number of searches per day.
The paid version allows you access to unlimited daily searches, unlimited users, data comparison, and CSV export.
There is no free trial for answerthepublic, and the pro plan starts at $99 monthly with a 20% discount if you want to pay for an entire year.
Initially, when I started writing, I always loved using Microsoft Word for all of my writing until I discovered Google Docs.
Besides the fact that Google Docs automatically saves your writings to your drive or device to prevent the risk of losing your writing, it also allows you to add plugins that can help your content writing process.
Working with a team allows you to collaborate on a document and automatically syncs all inputs.
When writing blog posts, I always use Google Docs, and it’s incredible how I can highlight a particular phrase or word, search the internet for related posts, and automatically insert the links. This saves you the stress of having to insert URLs or add related links to your writings manually.
If you are using WordPress as your blogging platform, what you see on your Google Docs is what you will see at the backend of your website, so you hardly have to edit your texts.
If you aren’t using Google Docs as a blogger or writer, you should try it!
Possibly the best keyword tool for SEO writers, Ubersuggest brings all your SEO needs to fulfillment. Developed by Neil Patel, it offers insight into keywords, content analysis, website analysis, competitor analysis, link tracking, and many other features.
It has a reliable and vast database of keywords and uses the API (Application Programming Interface) for Adwords, specifically Google Keyword Planner and Google Suggest, to get its data. This gives its users insights that help their SEO strategies and ranks them better in search engines.
If you are looking for an SEO tool that covers all the aspects of SEO, then this has got you covered. The free version offers you limited access to keyword analysis and content analysis. There is also a 7-day free trial that gives you a preview of what you can have access to in the premium version.
There are three categories of the paid version:
Individual: $12 monthly or a $ 120-lifetime access
Business: $20 monthly or a $ 200-lifetime access
Enterprise: $40 monthly or a $ 400-lifetime access
One of the best tools is the Hemingway editor when it comes to streamlining writing styles and writing clarity. Perfect for writing concision and word phrasing, it shows the readability of the article and aspects of the writing that need corrections by using different color codes.
Yellow: Phrases highlighted in yellow indicate long, complex sentences.
Blue: Highlighted blue phrases show weak verbs and phrases. You might want to edit these phrases with context words and more impactful verbs.
Green: Green highlights are indicative of passive voice.
Red: Red highlights show that the highlighted phrase is difficult to read, and the readers will likely not get its meaning.
Purple: Phrases highlighted with purple usually indicate that you can shorten the selected phrase or that the highlighted word has a simpler alternative.
There are two ways to use the Hemingway editor. You can use it as a free tool online or download it as an app. The online Hemingway editor is entirely free, but the App version comes with a one-time fee of $19.99.
Although the features for both the online and app versions are the same, a significant difference is that you cannot download or upload your corrected work using the online version, but you can do that via the app. The app also gives you download options, including HTML, Markdown, or Word document.
The app version also allows you to use it without an internet connection, while an internet connection is necessary for the online version.
This makes it to my list because it is one of the few AI tools that can actually help you with SEO. The Jasper AI has integration with Surfer SEO to help writers and bloggers with on-page SEO.
What is Jasper AI?
Jasper AI is a GPT-3 (Third-generation generative Pre-trained Transformer) content writing tool that helps you create and edit content. The fact that it is a GPT-3 tool means that it can use a small amount of input text to generate large amounts of relevant texts using the internet data, making it a perfect choice for long-form and short-form content.
Another reason you will love this tool is that it offers a lot of templates:
Long-form assistant: to write long articles from start to finish.
AIDA Framework: Utilizes the AIDA model for copywriters (Attention, Interest, Desire, and Action)
Content Improver: To copy and paste pieces of your writing to make it better.
Facebook Ad Primary Text: Create highly converting copy for the ‘primary text’ section of your Facebook ads.
Google Ads Headline: To create highly converting copy for your Google Ads’ headline section.
Marketing angles: To add vibrancy to your marketing by researching different angles.
Video description: To create unique descriptions in your YouTube videos.
Email Subject Line: For compelling subject lines to get readers to open your mail.
Real Estate Listing – Residential: Creating enticing real estate listings that sell homes fast.
PAS Framework: For creating new marketing ideas using the PAS framework (Problem-Agitate-Solution)
Pricing for Jasper AI. starts at $29 per month for the starter plan and $59 per month for the Boss mode. There is an option to pay yearly with 2-month payments off.
Well, if you have an app that allows you to make amazing graphics for your content in record time and offer millions of templates, then maybe you don’t need Canva.
Visual content is just as important as written content. In fact, your written content is not complete without pictures, infographics, or short videos. Canva makes it easier for content creators to develop graphics they can use to hook their readers.
With millions of templates ranging from infographics, websites, concept maps, planners, posters, invoices, ebook covers, YouTube intro, blog graphics, Instagram posts, videos, and the list goes on! It is a must-have for all content writers and bloggers.
Pricing: The free version is available and has a lot of templates from which you can select.
As the name implies, this tool majorly helps generate topic ideas for your writing. This is the tool for you if you are continually hitting a creative block or running out of topics.
When you open the site, you get to add a noun that best describes what you want to talk about. Hubspot allows you to add up to five nouns, and it gives you days, weeks, or months’ worth of blog topic ideas that you can use.
You can access more ideas when you sign in to the platform using your website’s URL.
The Hubspot blog topic generator is completely free.
Improve your writing: In less than a month of using appropriate tools, the quality of your writing is sure to increase. As the tool makes corrections, you also learn aspects of your writing that need improvement.
Improve reader experience: One of the benefits of most content writing tools for SEO is that they optimize your content to be reader-friendly. These include paragraphing and flowing sentences.
Optimize for search engines: Yes, your content gets to go through SEO scrutiny and editing—keyword stuffing, paragraph length, keyword research, word count, etc.
Organize your content: Content writing tools help organize your content layout and make it visually appealing to your readers.
Professional content: After editing and revising your content, the final product is usually professional.
Instant feedback: Most tools instantly revise your content as you write and make suggestions where necessary.
My content SEO Tools: top picks
These content writing tools for SEO have a lot of advantages, and they are sure to improve your writing quality and optimize for search engines.
My top picks from these tools would be
AnswerThePublic,
UberSuggest,
Google Docs,
Grammarly, and
Canva
What tools have you tried out? Do you think they help improve your writing skills? Did I fail to include your go-to content-writing tool?
As you probably know, SEO is the talk of the decade. While the end goal of most SEO strategies is to increase organic traffic to a website, there are several other reasons to optimize your website.
This is where plugins come in.
SEO plugins help you simplify SEO and save time. It doesn’t matter if you are a beginner or an SEO expert; plugins are necessary.
This post focuses more on plugins that are either created or compatible with WordPress websites, and this is because, when it comes to making your sites rank on the first page of Google, having a WordPress site takes you steps closer to your goal.
SEO plugins are your best bet for self-managing your website’s optimization, but how do you choose? This post selects the best WordPress SEO plugins you need for 2024.
What are plugins?
Plugins, also called ‘add-ons‘ or ‘extensions,’ generally refer to a software component that is made to enhance or add to the functionalities of an existing computer program without altering the program’s initial function(s).
Basically, you can add functions to a computer program without affecting the program.
When it comes to SEO plugins, the main focus is to be able to assist the content management system by expanding its SEO functionalities.
SEO plugins are extensions installed in a browser, software, or content management system like WordPress that allows for an expansion of function or the performance of specific and technical optimization tasks that the program cannot perform.
This API allows the plugins to access and control functions on the existing program and carry out their specific functions.
However, plugins will not work without an existing program with which it is compatible.
What to consider when selecting a plugin
Compatibility: If you are downloading and installing a plugin, it is important to check its compatibility with your site or the version of your content management system. Some plugins might require you to update your CMS before it can function properly.
Easy installation: Most WordPress SEO plugins are easy to install and use. However, you need to consider if there is backup support for the plugin and the possibility of using that plugin without support.
Cost: If you are just starting out as a blogger, I will advise you to stick to free or low-cost plugins. There are several WordPress SEO plugins that are free and with enough functionality to help you scale your SEO strategies.
The Plugin function(s): This is very important because your active installed plugins should be relevant to your website and SEO goals. For example, you have no business with a WooCommerce plugin if you do not have an online store.
Technical knowledge: Stick to plugins that are on par with your technical knowledge or, at the very least, have 24/7 customer support for when you’re stuck.
Why WordPress?
Besides the tons of search engine-optimized themes available, it can load web pages faster and optimize for mobile devices. The SEO plugins in WordPress are specific to their platform. This means that you do not have to worry about the plugin being compatible with your website.
These WordPress SEO plugins help improve your SEO game without requiring you to be tech-savvy.
Most of these plugins are easy to install, compatible with all kinds of websites (e-commerce, blog, vlogs, educational, etc.), and include paid and free versions.
Why do you need a plug-in for WordPress?
There are several in-built features embedded in WordPress accounts that help to optimize your sites for search engines.
However, there is a limit to their functionalities, and there might also be a need to add extra features depending on your optimization goals.
More powerful extensions can be added to your website to help carry out specific SEO functions.
It is possible to optimize your sites and rank well on search engines without plugins, but that also means that you are a step behind those who use a plugin.
The best thing to do is install a beginner-friendly free WordPress SEO plugin. This way, it doesn’t cost you capital, and you get to enjoy the benefits of an SEO plugin, albeit limited.
Aspects of SEO that you need plug-ins for
There are different reasons you’ll need WordPress SEO plugins aside from visibility and organic traffic.
You’ll also need SEO for:
Website crawling
XML Sitemaps
Media optimization
Snippet featuring
Broken link checking
Caching
Redirection
Backlinking
Social media SEO
Google AMP SEO
Others
These various aspects are like the SEO needs that you need to consider when selecting the plugin to use for your website.
This particular plugin is one of the most popular plugins among WordPress users, which helps with both on-page and off-page site optimization.
As effective and versatile as the Yoast plugin is, it is also beginner-friendly. This plugin is best for your websites to rank higher in search engines.
The plugin appears on each post and reviews your content while also giving suggestions on how you can improve each blog post for search engines.
These suggestions include keywords and readability and show how your page will appear on Google’s SERPs when uploaded on the net.
The fantastic thing about Yoast is that the free version contains all the necessary functions needed to have a fully optimized post.
Key Features of Yoast SEO plugin
Content analysis
Readability analysis
Schema blocks
Google preview
Automated technical SEO
Automatic XML generator
Fast site loading speed
In addition to all these goodies, the Yoast plugin also comes with several extensions compatible with the free version, including WooCommerce SEO, Yoast video SEO, and Yoast local SEO, among a few others.
Prioritizing user experience, AIOSEO is the best plugin for higher rankings and increasing your site’s traffic.
As the name implies, it goes beyond just optimizing your site but starts right from website set-up and into everything needed for search engine optimization. It also contains functions that help to uncover new SEO growth opportunities.
AIOSEO is an easy yet powerful SEO plugin that effortlessly integrates with other important tools and social media platforms.
It is user-friendly, beginner-friendly, and incredibly easy to install. When you install the AIOSEO, it automatically generates all the necessary features, which you can later customize in the settings.
Key Features of the AIOSEO
Easy installation
Comes with a marketing toolkit
Beginner-friendly
Optimized for several search engines
XML sitemaps
Optimized search appearance
Social media integration
Schema markup for SEO
Optimized SEO meta title
Optimized SEO meta description
404 error page monitoring
Redirection management
Can integrate with other plugins, including speed and caching plugins
Named the first WordPress SEO plugin to use artificial intelligence (AI) and one of the fastest-growing SEO plugins, it is also the plugin of choice to increase site traffic while saving time.
The free version of Rank Math offers more SEO features than any other plugin’s unpaid version and provides features that will otherwise be paid for in other plugins. The paid version also contains AI content analysis, which is peculiar to this plugin, alongside SEO rank tracking.
Using the Rank Math plugin, you can import data from previous plugins to avoid data loss when converting. This plugin can be used instead of AIOSEO and not together to prevent conflict plugin.
Like the AIOSEO, it contains all the features necessary to have a fully optimized post and site on several search engines besides Google.
In a WordPress review, it was said that the features of Rank Math are so numerous that if you need any SEO function to optimize your site, Rank Math probably has it, i.e., they cover everything and anything SEO.
This is arguably one of the best WordPress SEO plugins ever!
SchemaPro is a plugin that allows you to add schema.org structured data markup automatically to WordPress sites in the recommended format.
This optimizes your content and improves how Google presents it on its result page. This process helps sites to enhance their ranking and the way they appear on search engines.
Although most plugins have in-built schema markups that provide the same function, you might want to consider SchemaPro if you need more variety of schema types.
The SchemaPro also simplifies adding schema markups to posts.
When it comes to indexing your site, this plugin does it better. It creates a special XML sitemap that will help search engines index your site better.
It lets the crawlers get a complete and simplified view of your website’s structure and also retrieves this information completely and easily.
If you understand the importance of site indexing and how it makes it easy for Google to crawl and index your web pages, you will discover that this sitemap is one of the most necessary WordPress SEO plugins to have.
This is another plugin that must be included when talking about the best WordPress SEO plugins because it is easy, efficient, and powerful. It contains features similar to other plugins, including adding meta titles, meta descriptions, redirection, and XML sitemaps.
Installation is easy, and it is suitable for beginners and advanced SEO experts. If you are looking for a simplified plugin that addresses your SEO needs, you might want to consider SEOPress, although it has limited features compared to Rank Math, Yoast, and AIOSEO.
Ever thought of being able to access your site’s analytics quickly on your WordPress dashboard? The MonsterInsight plugin allows you to easily install Google Analytics on WordPress and access it on your WordPress dashboard.
It shows all the details found in Google Analytics and includes eCommerce SEO which shows the progress of your products.
Personally, this is one of the active WordPress SEO plugins that I use for my website, and it has made SEO easy for me.
Are you looking for the best SEO plugin without ads? SEO framework focuses on increasing site speed and optimizing content for search engines. It is fast, lightweight, and visually appealing to its users.
The user interface is flexible and organized to make navigation easy for users and gives easy access to most SEO functions compared to other plugins.
Compared to other WordPress SEO plugins, the unique selling point of Slim SEO is in its automation. It can automatically generate meta tags, schema markup, redirections, and sitemaps.
The downside to Slim SEO is that it cannot do an on-page SEO analysis, but you can configure how your content will appear on social media.
Key Features of Slim SEO
Automatic generation of several SEO functions
Redirects for author pages
Modification and sharing option for contents
Easy configuration
Addition of custom codes to headers and footers.
WP Optimize
WP Optimize is an all-in-one plugin, unlike some other WordPress SEO plugins that helps you optimize your website for search engines. It helps you with website caching, database optimization, and even image optimization as well.
The WP Optimize WordPress SEO plugin also helps with deferring CSS and Javascripts for fast loading time.
This plugin works for WordPress versions 4.5 and above.
Key Features of WP Optimize
Database cleanup
Website Caching
Image compression
a3 Lazy Load
The main goal of this particular plugin is to assist with site speed, which can be hugely affected by large-sized images and the time it takes to load.
a3 Lazy Load is a WordPress plugin that helps you lazy load your images. This means that images will only be loaded when they are needed, which can improve your website’s loading times.
This plugin has over 100,000+ active installations and is compatible with WordPress versions above 5.6.
Key Features of a3 Lazy Load
support different image format
Support WebP images
Video lazy load feature
customizable loading behavior
Mobile-focused
Backup support
Ahref’s SEO Plugin
Ahrefs is a well-known SEO tool that can help you track your website’s backlinks, keyword rankings, and competitors.
It combines your website’s data from Ahref. Google Analytics and Google’s Search Console data show you how your posts are performing based on specific keywords.
If you are looking for one of the best WordPress SEO plugins that helps you with content and build your backlink profile, then this is for you.
Key Features of Ahref’s SEO Plugin
Content auditing
Backlink tracking
Rank monitoring
Competitor research
Performance score
GA and GSC integration
Broken Link Checker
Described as the “fastest and most accurate” broken link checker on WordPress, this SEO plugin helps you find and fix broken links on your website.
Broken links can negatively impact your website’s SEO, so it is important to fix them as soon as possible. The 700,000+ active installations for this plugin show how necessary this plugin is.
WPSmush is one of the most important WordPress SEO plugins that help you optimize your images for the web. WPSmush can automatically compress your images without sacrificing quality, convert your images to WebP format and also resize your images.
All these can help to improve your website’s loading times and SEO.
Elementor is the best WordPress page builder used by over 5 million people. It allows you to create beautiful and responsive websites without writing any code.
Key Features of Elementor
Drag-and-drop interface
Wide range of widgets (40+)
Responsive designs
Template library
Multiple language support
Imagify
Imagify is a WordPress plugin that helps you optimize your images for search engines. Imagify is an advanced plugin that allows you to optimize your images with a single click and just like the WPSmush plugin, it does not sacrifice quality as well.
Key Features of Imagify
Bulk image optimization
Image compression
Image resizing
Image file format conversion
Automatic image optimization
WebP conversion
JetPack
Jetpack is a WordPress plugin that includes a number of features to help you improve your website’s SEO security. It also helps to grow your traffic and back-up your website.
Jetpack also has features that support quality website performance, including image optimization features, site speed, and eCommerce features.
Key Features of JetPack
Automatic site security
Automatic backup
Site change details
Examine incoming traffic
Anti-spam features
Sitemap generation and submission
Social sharing buttons
Automated-Related posts display
LuckyWP Table of Contents
LuckyWP Table of Contents plugin automatically generates optimized tables of contents for your blog posts/pages.
This can help to improve the readability of your posts, and it can also help to make them more scannable for visitors.
Key Features of LuckyWP Table of Contents
Automatic & optimized TOC
Customizable TOC
Color themes
Smooth scroll
WooCommerce
WooCommerce is a WordPress plugin that allows you to create an online store and customize it to fit your brand’s aesthetic and purpose. It also makes it easy to sell and buy products/services online.
Key Features of WooCommerce
Customizable storefront
Product catalog management
Payment processing
Integration with payment platforms
Shipping option configuration
Contact Form by WPForms
Contact Form by WPForms is a contact form builder plugin that allows you to create contact forms and other types of forms on your website.
SEO Squirrly is one of the few WordPress SEO plugins that are good for SEO beginners willing to optimize their content for search engines.
This plugin assists you in writing entirely optimized posts by giving suggestions as you write.
Key Features of SEO Squirrly
Real-time keyword optimization
Competitor analysis
Keeps data from previous plugins
Sharable content reports
Final Thoughts
A list that contains the best SEO plugins for WordPress can be relative because it may vary from individual perspectives and experiences. However, as earlier stated, there are some factors to consider when selecting your plugins.
It is also important to note that when using SEO plugins for your website, it is usually best to limit them as possible without compromising your SEO needs.
When you have a bunch of plugins installed on your website, it can reduce your site’s loading speed. This doesn’t speak well to search engines and will make your website slip down in search results.
It will be challenging to select specific plugins as the best because your SEO needs can differ, so these explanations should help make your selection process a bit easier.
Keywords serve as the backbone of all SEO efforts and strategies.
Like most other search engines, Google constantly strives to bring content the searcher wants to them, and your job as a blogger is to present such content by writing content as closely related to what the searcher will likely search.
Keywords can be regarded as the most critical element in search engine optimization (SEO) as search engines crawl your page, searching for these keywords to ensure your content is relevant to the searcher’s query.
Placing your keywords in the correct quantity and the proper manner is crucial to a website’s ranking.
This task may seem daunting and almost impossible, especially for someone new to the SEO space. So, in this blog post, you will understand keyword optimization in SEO with tried and tested methods of using it.
What exactly are keywords in SEO?
Keywords are the words, clauses, and phrases searchers enter into search queries on which they want to see content.
For your website, keywords are the main ideas of your content. They are the things that all the paragraphs, images, and illustrations should boil down to.
Also, keywords are phrases and words placed strategically in your content to remain relevant to the searcher’s query, keep their attention, and prompt Google to deem your content a viable answer to their search queries.
Types of keywords
Concerning length and relevance, 3 (three) types of keywords are used in SEO.
These, also known as generic keywords, are concise phrases of one or two words. They are popular, broad search terms that generate significant traffic but face high competition. An excellent example would be the term “Men’s Shoes.”
2. Long-tail keywords
Long tail keywords are specific phrases with lower competition and lower search traffic. Due to their specificity, they often yield higher conversion rates. These are typically the longest keywords, tailored to specific audiences or topics. “Black and White Comfortable Men’s Shoes” is a long-tail keyword.
These keywords fall between short-tail and long-tail keywords. They have moderate traffic volume but offer better conversion rates and less competition than other keywords. “Comfortable Men’s Shoes” is an example.
Keyword optimization is the process of identifying and selecting the right keywords in your content so that your target audience can find your pages more easily in search engine results.
It means identifying common phrases and clauses searchers type into search queries and forming your content to match those keywords. In keyword optimization, you analyze the best possible keyword for the content you wish to create and work those keywords into your ideas to appear as relevant to the search query as possible.
Why is keyword optimization relevant to your blog?
Keywords are vital because they link the content people want and the content you create. And, importantly, proper keyword optimization:
1. Drives organic traffic to your website
Searchers will likely click on headlines and websites that display keywords that correlate to their search queries. You also increase your likelihood of ranking higher on SERPs, which enhances your chances of organic traffic.
2. Reduces bounce rate
With proper keyword optimization, the searchers will find your website relevant to their search queries and be less likely to leave your website as soon as they enter it (bounce).
3. Competitive advantage
In the SEO world, everything is subject to comparison; your goal in SEO is to rank HIGHER than your competitors. A website with proper keyword optimization has an advantage over its competitors because it can get more traffic.
Keyword research
Keyword research is simply gathering information from available registries on the right keywords for your content, how well they do on search engines, rank difficulty, and content from other sources regarding the same or similar keywords.
Keyword research helps you understand your audience better so you can write content they want to read.
If you’re thinking of all the stress involved in research, there are tools to help you. Keyword research tools show you data concerning the keywords you want to use so you can avoid common pitfalls, such as writing content on topics with high-ranking difficulties or writing good content people do not search for.
There are several options regarding the keyword research and optimization tools to use for your SEO journey. Here is a list of trusted and known keyword research tools:
The first step in keyword optimization is to conduct your keyword research. Know what the searchers want and conform to that.
You can use keyword tools to find and incorporate keywords that fit your goals into your writing. Begin by brainstorming a list of keywords and phrases associated with the content and then systematically enter each keyword into a search or tool.
Also, keep notes of all the analytics you get from your brainstorming session and use them to further your SEO goals.
ii. Map your keywords.
Keyword mapping is simply mapping your keywords!!!
After you’ve done your keyword research and have all your data, consider where all the keywords will go while writing. Think of it like drawing a map; you don’t want to keep all your keywords in one place and then have a lack of them in other spaces.
Keyword mapping ensures your user’s interest is still piqued throughout your entire post, not just at certain points.
It is vital in keyword optimization to think of quality over quantity.
It is more important that the keywords you use are relevant to your content.
It may be tempting to discover keywords with high search volumes and want to place many on your site. However, most search engines have learned to adapt to this and do not rank websites with excessive and unnecessary use of irrelevant keywords.
iv. Don’t forget your target.
As previously discussed, understanding your target audience is pivotal in optimization.
Consider a scenario where you’ve diligently optimized a webpage, striving to secure a high-ranking position in search results, only to realize that the people searching for the terms in your content seek something entirely different.
Two potential consequences may unfold when you fail to reach your intended audience.
Firstly, many individuals outside your target demographic might stumble upon your page, discover it doesn’t align with their interests or needs, and promptly exit, potentially avoiding your site as a future resource and negatively impacting your site by increasing its bounce rate.
Secondly, your intended audience might never come across your site in search results.
It’s crucial to weed out keywords that attract the wrong audience to your site and instead incorporate the search terms that resonate with your target audience’s preferences and interests.
v. Target popular keywords.
When a keyword enjoys high popularity, indicating a significant volume of searches, it can drive substantial traffic to your website if you attain a high ranking.
To maximize website traffic, focus on optimizing for highly searched keywords. However, note that as a keyword’s popularity increases, so does the level of competition, making it more challenging to secure a high ranking.
vi. Target less competitive keywords.
On the flip side, while it might appear counterintuitive to target less popular keywords, this approach is often the most effective for new websites.
Competing with well-established websites that have already gained trust and authority for trendy keywords in competitive industries can be highly challenging.
Therefore, newer websites often find tremendous success by optimizing less popular and less competitive keywords or by enhancing their keywords with modifiers, such as thematic or geo-targeted modifiers, to create mid to long-tail keywords.
In the ever-evolving world of digital marketing, search engine keyword optimization remains a cornerstone of success.
Understanding the intricacies of keyword research, implementation, and monitoring can help propel your website to new heights in search engine rankings.
But remember, it’s not a one-and-done task; it requires continuous effort and adaptation to perfect it.
How often do you optimize your keywords, and how does it help you?
Everyone who knows something about SEO can understand the difference between plain and quality backlinks and why it is essential to focus on selecting and building an effective backlink strategy for your website.
This blog post will show you how to build quality backlinks even if you don’t have much SEO experience and also emphasize strategies that will increase your backlink profile and SERP position.
Let’s get right down to it.
What are backlinks?
Backlinks are called ‘inbound links,’ ‘incoming links,’ ‘external links,’ and so on. They are hyperlinks from another website, connecting to a page on your website through an anchor text.
When determining a page’s prominence, search engines use measurement metrics, and the website’s backlink profile is highly considered.
The quantity and quality of backlinks that point to a website are important ranking signals for most search engines, including Google.
There are different factors to consider when determining if a backlink is good quality. These are the features that differentiate a regular backlink from a quality one.
They are:
Relevance: The link should be related to your content.
Authority: It should come from a respected source.
Trustworthiness: From a reliable and trustworthy website.
Natural: Earned naturally, not bought or forced.
Diverse: From different types of websites.
Editorial: placed by editors or authors.
Contextual: Makes sense in the content.
Follow Link: Preferably a follow link for SEO.
Traffic Potential: Can bring visitors to your site.
Low Spam: Avoid links from spammy sites.
Anchor Text: The clickable text should make sense.
Consistent: Build them over time steadily.
How to build quality backlinks to your website in 2024
1. Identify relevant websites.
The first and most crucial step is identifying relevant websites if you want to build quality backlinks.
Relevant websites are websites in the same niche or industry as yours and with a similar target audience.
When you get a backlink from a relevant website, it tells Google that your website is also relevant to that topic and is a trusted source of information.
There are a few different ways to identify relevant websites for link building:
Search engines
Search engines like Google can help you find websites that rank for keywords related to your niche.
For example, a simple search like ‘SEO blogs’ if you are in the SEO industry can give you more than enough relevant websites.
However, focus on lesser known websites to increase your backlink chances.
Industry directories
Many industry directories list websites by niche. These directories can be a great way to find relevant websites you may not have found otherwise.
Social media
Using social media sites like Twitter and LinkedIn, you can look for relevant websites, bloggers, and influencers in your industry.
Competitor analysis
Look at your competitors’ backlink profiles to see which websites link to them. These websites are likely to be relevant to your business as well.
Here are some additional tips for identifying relevant websites:
Consider the website’s topic and niche. Is it similar to yours?
Look at the website’s target audience. Are they the same as yours?
Check the website’s quality and authority. Is it well-designed and informative? Does it have a good reputation?
Review the website’s backlink profile. Does it have backlinks from other high-quality websites?
Once you have compiled a list of relevant websites, contact the site’s owners and editors. This strategy increases the likelihood that they will link to your website.
2. Create valuable content.
Another way to build quality backlinks is to invest in quality content creation.
When you create informative, engaging, and valuable content, other websites are likelier to link to it than ‘ordinary’ content because they want to provide visitors with the best possible resources.
Here are some tips to consider when creating valuable content:
Write about topics that are important to your target audience.
What are they interested in? What problems do they have? Write content to help them solve their problems or learn more about the topics they care about.
Do your research.
Your content must be accurate and up-to-date. Be sure to reference your sources so that readers can learn more about the subjects you are covering.
Write in a clear and concise style.
Do not use technical terms or jargon that your audience might not understand.
Make your content visually appealing.
Make your content more engaging by breaking up the text with pictures, videos, and infographics.
Promote your content.
Share your content on social media, other websites, relevant online communities, and forums. Ask other bloggers and industry influencers to share your content by contacting them.
Create different types of content.
Create content such as blog posts, articles, infographics, and videos. This will give you a more comprehensive range of content to promote and help you find websites that are interested in linking to it.
Make sure your content is search engine-friendly.
It will help people find your content when they search for relevant keywords.
3. Network with bloggers and website owners.
When you contact other website owners and bloggers in your industry, you can build relationships with them.
Here are some tips for building backlinks through outreach and networking:
Identify relevant websites and bloggers.
Make a list of websites and bloggers in your industry relevant to your target audience and likely to oblige your request.
Personalize your messages.
Personalize your messages when you contact website owners and bloggers via email or direct messages on social media.
Address them by name and reference something specific about their website or blog.
Offer value.
Don’t just ask for a backlink; instead, suggest a backlink as a reward for a favor you are willing to offer them. Offer to guest blog for them, share their content on your social media channels, or promote their products or services to your audience.
Be persistent.
Keep going even if you don’t hear back from everyone you contact. Just keep following up and building relationships.
Create link roundups or request to be in one.
Link roundups are blog posts that list links to other websites and articles on a specific topic.
You can create link roundups to which the websites mentioned will link back. Or, you can reach out to other bloggers in your industry and ask them to include your website in their link roundups.
4. Guest post.
Guest posting is one of the best ways to build quality backlinks, mainly when writing for relevant websites with a significant audience in your niche.
When you guest post, you write an article for another website in your industry.
It is a great way to get your content in front of a new audience and build relationships with other website owners.
To build backlinks through guest posting, you need to follow these steps:
Identify relevant websites.
Make a list of websites in your industry that are relevant to your target audience. You can find relevant websites by using search engines, industry directories, and social media.
Target high-quality websites.
When you’re guest posting, focus on targeting high-quality websites with a good reputation. This strategy will help you build more valuable backlinks.
Research the websites.
Once you have a list of relevant websites, take some time to research them. Read their content, see what topics they cover, and identify the authors who write for them.
Pitch your guest post ideas.
Pitch topics relevant to the website’s audience that you can provide value on.
Write a high-quality guest post.
Writing a high-quality article is crucial once your guest post pitch is accepted. Make sure your article is well-written, informative, and engaging.
Include a link back to your website.
Include a link to your website in the author bio of any guest posts you write. It is a crucial step for building backlinks through guest posting.
Write high-quality content.
The quality of your guest post is essential in determining whether it will be accepted and published. Your guest posts must be well-written, informative, and engaging.
Promote your guest posts.
Once your guest post has been posted, share it on your website and social media. It will help you get more exposure for your content and build more backlinks.
While you want to guest post for relevant websites in your niche, you can also focus on reaching out to prominent bloggers to either guest post on your website, collaborate on a post, or create a crowdsourced blog post with experts in your industry.
5. Broken link building.
Broken link building is a link-building strategy that entails locating broken links on other websites and notifying the owners.
They might agree to replace the broken link with a link to your website if you can offer a working link to a resource of a similar nature on your website.
To build quality backlinks using broken link building, you can follow these steps:
Find broken links.
You can use various tools to find broken links on other websites, such as Google Search Console, Ahrefs, and SEMrush.
Identify relevant websites.
Once you have a list of broken links, you need to identify the websites they are on. The websites should be relevant to your industry and have a good reputation.
Reach out to the website owners.
Once you have a list of relevant websites with broken links, you need to contact the website owners and let them know about the broken links. Personalize your messages and offer to provide a working link to a similar resource on your website.
Follow up.
If you are still waiting to hear back from a website owner, follow up with them. You might need to send a few emails before they respond.
Be polite and professional.
When you’re reaching out to website owners, be polite and professional. Address them by name and explain why you’re contacting them.
Make it easy for them to fix the broken link.
When you offer a working link to a similar resource on your website, make it easy for the website owner to fix the broken link. You can do this by providing them with the exact URL of the resource on your website.
Broken link building is an efficient method for obtaining high-quality backlinks from other websites because it demonstrates your interest in the content and your keen eye, increasing your credibility with the website owner.
6. Directory listings.
Directory listings are an excellent way to develop quality backlinks, particularly for local businesses.
Directories are websites that list businesses in a particular industry or location. When you create a listing in a directory, you typically need to provide your website address. It is a great way to get backlinks from high-quality websites.
To build quality backlinks using directory listings, you can follow these steps:
Identify relevant directories.
Make a list of directories that are relevant to your industry and location. You can find directories by searching online or asking other businesses in your industry for recommendations.
Create listings in the directories.
Once you have a list of relevant directories, create listings in each directory. Also, include your website address in your listing.
Optimize your listings.
Once you have created listings in the directories, optimize them. This means including relevant keywords in your listing and ensuring your listing is complete and accurate.
Submit your listings.
Once you have optimized your listings, submit them to the directories. Some directories may review your listings before publication, while others may publish your listings immediately.
Be complete and accurate.
When creating directory listings, include complete and accurate information about your business. This includes your business name and address, phone number, website address, and email address.
Use relevant keywords.
When optimizing your directory listings, use relevant keywords. It will help people find your listings when they search for those keywords.
Monitor your listings.
Once you have submitted your directory listings, monitor them. Your listings must be accurate and up-to-date.
Directory listings are a way to build high-quality backlinks because they practically put you out there and increase your chances of being mentioned in a roundup post. It could be a post of local businesses in a specific area or a roundup post of your type of service in a geographic location.
7. Press releases.
Press releases are a great way to get your company in the news and build backlinks simultaneously.
When you write a press release, you announce a newsworthy event by your business or website, such as a new product launch, a partnership, or an award.
You then distribute the press release to journalists or help a reporter using platforms like HARO.
Journalists may write about your press release if it is engaging and well-written, exposing you to a new audience and generating backlinks to your website.
8. Local SEO strategies.
To build quality backlinks using local SEO strategies, you need to focus on getting backlinks from websites that are relevant to your local area.
This includes websites such as:
Local news organizations
Local chambers of commerce and business associations
Local government websites
Local universities and colleges
Local tourism websites
Local directories and listing websites
You can build backlinks from these websites using a variety of strategies, such as:
Guest blogging:
Write guest blog posts for local websites and blogs. In your author bio, mention your website with a link.
Sponsor local events and charities. It is a great way to get your name out there and build relationships with local businesses.
Local outreach:
Contact other local businesses and ask if they want to link to your website. You can also offer to link to their website in return.
When constructing backlinks using local SEO strategies, it is crucial to concentrate on obtaining backlinks from websites with a solid reputation and relevance to your local area.
Here are some additional pointers for building high-quality backlinks while utilizing local SEO techniques:
Optimize your website for local search.
This includes incorporating relevant keywords into your website’s title, meta descriptions, and header tags. Your Google Business Profile should be complete and up-to-date.
Get involved in your local community.
Attend local events, join local business associations, and support local charities. This strategy is a great way to build relationships with local businesses and get your name out there.
Create high-quality, locally relevant content.
This could include blog posts, articles, infographics, or videos. When you produce high-quality content, other websites are likelier to link to it.
9. Ask for mentions.
Google has stated that social media relevance is not a ranking factor; however, some noticeable trends in social media mentions and SERP rankings indicate this might be a good use.
Having your business mentioned across the web, including on social media platforms, can signal search engines like Google that your website is relevant in your niche.
To build quality backlinks by “asking for mentions,” you need to:
Focus on high-quality websites and influencers.
Not all websites and influencers are created equal. Target high-quality websites and influencers with a good reputation when asking for mentions. It will help you build more valuable backlinks.
Research the websites and influencers.
Once you have a list of relevant websites and influencers, take some time to research them. Read their content, see what topics they cover, and identify the authors who write for them.
Reach out to the websites and influencers.
Personalize your messages and explain why mentioning your website or product would be valuable to them and their audience.
Make it easy for them to mention you.
You can do this by providing them with a link to your website and a brief product or service description.
Don’t be pushy.
When you ask for a mention, it’s important to remember that you’re asking for a favor. Don’t be pushy or demanding. If a website or influencer says no, don’t take it personally.
Be patient.
Building backlinks through the “ask for mentions” method can take time. Keep going even if you don’t see results immediately. Just keep reaching out to websites and influencers and building strategic relationships.
Here are some specific examples of when to ask for mentions:
If you have a new product or service, contact relevant bloggers and influencers and ask them to review it. In exchange, you can offer to send them a free sample or to give them exclusive access to your product or service.
If you have published a new blog post or article, contact other bloggers and influencers in your industry and ask them to share it. You can also reach out to websites that compile lists of the best blog posts or articles on a particular topic.
If you have been featured on another website or publication, you can ask your audience to share the news. You can also contact other websites and publications and ask them to mention your feature.
Asking for mentions is a great way to build quality backlinks, but doing it professionally and respectfully for the websites and influencers you’re contacting is essential.
When deciding on the exact strategy to build high-quality backlinks, it is crucial to understand that what works for one website may not work for all websites.
Link building is not a one-size-fits-all process. Hence, it is crucial to understand how a website works and conduct proper research before deciding on any link-building strategy. Niche, website structure, and marketing strategy can affect your link-building success rate.
What link-building strategy have you used before, and how well did it work for you?
We’ve had over eight clients with over 140 optimized posts since SARMLife became an SEO agency and launched her do-it-for-you SEO writing services in 2021.
Using proper SEO content writing strategies, we now have several posts ranking on the first page of Google and even some making it to the featured snippet spot!
We have posts ranking for keywords like ‘Challenges of an African blogger,’ ‘Ways to Build A Christian Home,’ and ‘Woman Evolve Quotes,’ among others.
Four years ago, SEO was an alien term. So, how did I go from knowing nothing about SEO to writing blog posts that are doing well on search engines? What is my SEO content writing process? And how can you optimize old and new posts to rank well on search engines?
I’ll cover these questions and more.
First, I want to explain the difference between content writing and copywriting because most website owners are unsure if hiring a content writer or a copywriter is the next best step for their site.
SEO Content Writing Vs. SEO Copywriting
Is content writing any different from copywriting?
Yes! The main difference is the search intent and content goal, although both involve SEO and content.
SEO copywriting uses SEO techniques to convert site visits to leads and sales through targeted content.
SEO writing can also generate leads and sales, but the primary purpose is to write content that satisfies a user’s query, i.e., answer questions on a particular topic.
Both content writing and copywriting involve having a form of content; however, the endpoint of SEO copywriting is conversion, usually in the form of sales.
Why SEO Content Writing Is Important
SEO content writing is the process of writing content that is fully optimized for readers and search engines.
SEO should be a part of your content writing process because you need SEO practices to get in front of your audience.
Remember, there are billions of blog posts on the web, and even for certain queries, hundreds of specific and related posts are in the search result.
Despite this number, the average searcher only reaches the first ten search results. The competition is even fiercer for voice searches.
So, SEO content writing aims to ensure your content appears as the first ten (10) search results.
Here are my top reasons why SEO content writing is essential:
It helps to increase your ranking.
Competing against thousands and millions of blogs for a single keyword is doable only with SEO in your writing.
You can increase your rankings on search result pages for most search engines through SEO content writing, which will help you become a go-to in your niche.
It builds domain authority.
When you consistently appear in top searches for niche-specific keywords, other website owners and bloggers in your niche will start to link to your content. You will also get quality backlinks from authority websites, helping to increase your website’s domain authority.
It builds brand authority.
Talk about being your niche’s go-to for information, products, and services. Not only will your business be profitable, but you will succeed in branding what you do. The mere sighting of your name on blog posts, webinars, and so on will automatically attract people to you because you have built enough authority in your niche, and it starts from writing optimized content.
SEO Content Writing Process
My content writing process is straightforward but takes a lot of intentional effort, from the idea generation to the final draft and editing.
The SEO content writing process involves the following:
1. Idea Generation
Consistently generating blog post ideas is one of the sure ways to grow your business.
It can be challenging to develop niche-relevant ideas that can be optimized.
Sometimes, your topic idea might not be voluminous to be a blog post, but there’s always a way to ensure your ideas are relevant and optimizable for SEO.
How to get blog topic ideas
Here are the ways you can get topic ideas consistently:
(I) Customer feedback.
One of the most effective ways to develop blog post titles relevant to your target audience is to get feedback from them.
They know what they want, and what better answer than from the horse’s mouth?
This step will help you to align your content to the needs of your audience.
There are ways you can get customer feedback.
Through social media platforms
You can create polls on Instagram or keep your DM open to your audience for topics they wish you would discuss.
You will get your audience’s pain points and challenges.
It could be information they’ve searched for and not gotten answers to.
When you create a blog post in response to feedback, alert them.
Also, your comment section is a great place to get topic ideas.
Your followers will probably ask a couple of follow-up questions in the comments.
Check your comments now and then to know what your followers want.
Conducting surveys
Create short, straightforward, and fun surveys.
Usually, with surveys, you ask the questions; all you need from your audience are the answers.
However, creating a survey and providing a blank section for your audience to write freely is better because your questions might not be satisfactory.
Your target audience might have other ideas, observations, and questions you didn’t include in the survey.
You can create surveys using Zoomerang, SurveyMonkey, or online surveys, but always keep your surveys simple and short.
Direct inquiry
You can inquire from your audience directly, online or offline, from friends and family.
You may have noticed a handful of your consistent followers who engage with your content online.
Go to their DM and ask them direct questions like:
Is there something you want me to talk about?
What do you wish we do that we don’t?
What are your primary concerns when it comes to (niche)?
Do you have any topic suggestions or collaborations? And so on.
(ii) Content gap analysis.
What keywords are your competitors ranking for that you aren’t?
These are tons of blog post ideas that are relevant to your niche.
A content gap is a topic your audience needs or is searching for but isn’t on your website.
Neil Patel describes content gaps as “missed opportunities” because these are topics your audience wants but are not in your content. The next step they’ll take is to check out your competitors’ websites.
Content gaps occur due to outdated information, keyword fluctuations, ignorance, and new updates in your niche.
Content gaps can be in the form of keyword, topic, or media gaps.
Keyword gaps concern the type of keywords you use for your posts.
Are they short-tailed, medium-tailed, long-tailed, or conversational keywords?
Topic gaps have to do with your content.
Are your topics/content relevant to your users?
Do they cater to all levels of knowledge?
For example, an advanced post about image optimization that only talks about technical and advanced tips will be useless to someone just getting to know about image optimization.
Does your content structure align with search intent?
These are all content gaps.
Media gaps are the multimedia on your posts.
Are your audience interested in infographics? Do they want to see a video explanation or just read texts?
What kind of images do top-ranking posts have? What type of videos are your competitors using?
After identifying your content gaps, you want to take active steps to rectify them.
The content gaps you discover (mostly keyword and topic) are ideas you can use for your next posts.
The media gaps will show you the multimedia you’ll add to your posts.
(iii) Industry trends.
It is essential to stay updated about industry trends because new industry updates = new blog post ideas.
In my guide to Google algorithm, I mentioned that one of the best ways to stay updated is to follow industry experts. Identify your industry experts and follow them on their social media platforms. If they have official information sites, it is also good to follow them.
For example, When ChatGPT rolled out, I noticed that many SEO experts were talking about its use for SEO, and I knew this would be valuable to our audience, so I wrote a blog post on ChatGPT for SEO.
The same goes for your blog. When new updates will be valuable for your audience, be among the first to share them.
You can also stay updated on industry trends through niche-specific communities, Google Trends, and subscribing to expert newsletters.
(iv) Personal idea.
You might have some personal experiences in your business that can be useful to your audience, and you can share these ideas.
However, when sharing personal experiences or branded strategy with your audience, relate it to an existing term in your niche.
For example, the skyscraper technique, developed by Brian Dean of Backlinko, helps with link building and traffic. To share this with his audience, he related it to link building in the post’s title and wrote it as ‘Link building case study: How I increased my search traffic by 110% in 14 days.’
If he had written a blog post titled ‘My skyscraper technique,’ no one would know what he was talking about, and the CTR for that post would be low.
So, in sharing your branded solutions with your audience, include a term they are familiar with.
For example, suppose you use a technique to keep your wigs tangle-free and brand this solution by giving it a name. When you write a post on it, you want your readers to know what solution your branded technique is giving.
In Brian’s case, it was link-building.
(v) Question and answer forums.
There are different types of question-and-answer forums on the internet today. Some have even been made into apps, valuable places to get your audience’s questions.
Question forums like Quora and Reddit have groups for specific interests.
So, depending on your niche, you can search for groups or communities your audience will likely be in and read the questions being asked.
These questions are content ideas you can optimize as blog posts on your website.
The main difference between blog writing and SEO content writing is Research.
When it comes to blog writing, all the ideas generated in the first step are good to go, but with SEO writing, you need to ensure these ideas are optimizable by verifying them on search engines.
This step is optional, but I prefer to crosscheck each of my ideas against existing blog posts. It assures me my content is niche-relevant and gives me an idea of what type of content ranks in the top results.
This step is fast and easy.
Steps to optimize your topic ideas
To optimize my topic ideas, I use one or both of these tools:
(I) AnswerThePublic.
AnswerThePublic is a great SEO tool Neil Patel took over in May 2022. With AnswerThePublic, you see visualized data showing you the questions that Google Search users are asking.
To verify your content ideas, you can input the keyword in this tool’s search bar, giving you a concise list of related questions.
All you need to do is check if your topic idea is similar to any of the questions asked on Google.
The questions are organized into:
Most searched
Average searched
Least searched
The premium version will show you the search volume for each question, which is essential to know if you are optimizing your content for voice searches.
If you don’t get a question similar to your topic idea, it does not mean it is not optimizable; you can check Google to see if similar blog posts exist.
(ii) Google.
You can search on Google to check if blog posts are already written about your idea to optimize your ideas.
You will be surprised that only a few posts about your idea exist. It could mean your idea is not valuable to your audience, so it is better off as part of a post or a new topic in your niche.
If it is not something your audience wants, there is no need to write about it, except if you wish.
If it is better off as part of a post, you can create an umbrella post and add the idea as a subtopic.
If it is a new topic in your niche, ensure you understand it so you don’t post erroneous information for your readers. Or, you can wait till industry experts talk about it, read their posts, understand it, and then write yours.
If your topic idea exists, it means your audience needs it, and your competitors are talking about it—viable content.
The next thing to do is to take note of the top 5-8 ranking pages and check their content structure, title, word length, and even the keyword used (usually in the URL or introduction).
This information will help match user intent and tell you what you can do better!
3. Keyword Research
After verifying that the idea is one you can work with, the next step is to find the keywords you will use for your post.
Types of keywords
Here are the different types of keywords:
(I)Short-tail keywords.
Short tail keywords are one-word keywords that cover a wide range of topics. For example, SEO, branding, chatGPT, SEO writing, etc., are short-tail keywords.
Sometimes, short-tail keywords can also be two-worded. E.g., image optimization, voice optimization, Google algorithm, etc.
These keywords usually have a high search volume and SEO difficulty.
Short-tail keywords are inappropriate for your primary keyword, even with a high search volume, because they are too broad. Except if you are writing a guide, you may be unable to cover the entire topic.
Also, searches are now more streamlined, meaning people hardly go online to type in one or two words. They know what they want, and they are specific in their searches.
Short-tail keywords also reduce your chances of ranking because it is too competitive.
(ii) Long-tail keywords.
Long-tail keywords are more specific and streamlined. These keywords can form complete sentences and usually have a low search volume and SEO difficulty.
These keywords usually contain more than five words and can form standalone sentences that leave you no doubt about what the searcher wants.
For example, ‘$40000 a year is how much per hour’ is a long-tail keyword that tells you what the searcher wants.
SEO experts frowned at using long-tail keywords for a while because searchers usually opt for short-word queries.
However, long-tail keywords are returning with the prevalence of voice searches and their infusion into voice assistive devices.
Does this mean you should use the long-tail keyword as your primary keyword?
Not really.
However, you can use long-tail keywords in your content as FAQs or subtopics.
(iii) Medium-tail keywords.
This is the best option for your primary keyword.
Medium-tail keywords are between 3-4 words that give a bit of context to your keyword without being too streamlined.
These keywords allow you to cover a broader range than long-tail keywords while still being specific to a particular audience.
For example, if you want to talk about on-page optimization.
A short-tail keyword like ‘SEO’ or ‘SEO tips’ is too generic; a long-tail keyword like ‘on-page SEO strategies for businesses’ is too specific, but a medium-tail keyword like ‘on-page SEO strategies’ or ‘on-page SEO guide’ is just spot on.
(iv) Conversational keywords.
These keywords are similar to long-tail and are mainly used for voice searches.
They are long-tail keywords but more conversational—as if you are asking a friend a question.
SEO experts will advise you to use conversational keywords in your content so that your content can rank for voice searches.
For example, ‘How can I prepare tomato sauce’ is a conversational keyword used mostly in voice searches.
Conversational keywords should be a part of your content but shouldn’t be added as a part of your keywords.
The ideal number of keywords per post is 3-5 words. Usually, I create a balance of short, medium, and long-tail keywords. If I focus on one type of keyword, I will miss the benefits of having others.
Here’s how I structure keywords per post:
1 short tail keyword
2-3 medium tail keywords
1-2 long tail keywords
Tips for keyword research
(i) Understand search intent.
Search intent is a big deal for search engine optimization because search engines are now more focused on the searchers than the search engines themselves.
What are the searchers looking for? If your focus keyword is ‘on-page SEO tips,’ are searchers interested in listicles, images, guides, or short-form content?
When it comes to search intent, it includes what your searcher wants and how they want it.
Search intent is generally classified into four, namely:
Informational: This intent shows that the searcher needs informative pieces that give them specific answers to what they want.
Transactional: This shows the intent of people searching to buy at that exact moment. These searchers are usually specific because they know what they want to buy.
Commercial: These are more like transactional intent but usually to buy later. These types of searchers need a list of related products they can choose from instead of information on a single product.
Navigational: Navigational intent has to do with people that are searching for specific brands. With polysemic words like Apple, sometimes, Google can understand if a searcher wants the fruit or the company’s website.
(ii) Do a keyword gap analysis.
Keyword gaps imply the keywords your competitors are ranking for that you do not have on your website.
You can carry out keyword gap analysis using keyword analysis tools like Ubersuggest.
(iii) Know your keyword metrics.
Knowing and understanding your keyword metrics is essential for deciding the keywords to settle for. These metrics include:
Search volume is the number of searches made for a particular keyword. Usually, most keyword analysis tools give the average monthly search for a keyword.
CPC (cost per click) is the amount advertisers pay to get a pair of eyes on their ads. Even if you do not run ads, knowing how competitive a keyword is is crucial.
A high CPC shows that ranking organically will be more difficult.
Paid difficulty shows how difficult it will be to rank high for a particular keyword in paid searches.
SEO difficultyshows the difficulty of organically ranking for that exact keyword.
Trends show the searcher’s behavior for that keyword over time. Do searches increase during an exact period? Is it an active search?
It shows you the keyword’s relevance and if it is still relevant.
Other keyword metrics depend on the tool you use. However, these are the most important metrics to take note of. If you are focused on ads, you will want to dwell more on paid metrics like cost per click, paid difficulty, and trends.
(iv) Carefully select your primary keyword.
You should carefully select your primary or focus keyword to align with your content goals. I focus more on organic results, so my focus keyword is based on the search volume and SEO difficulty.
When writing for businesses with new websites, I go for lower SEO difficulty keywords so they can rank.
I focus more on the search volume when I write blog posts for more advanced websites.
(v) Understand keyword placements.
There are certain places you must input your focus keyword in your content:
URL: Your focus keyword must be part of your URL. URL optimization is one of the best practices for SEO; it gives web crawlers an understanding of your website and your content.
Title: Your focus keyword in your title is a must for SEO. It has to be intact with no dividing word, i.e., if your focus keyword is ‘voice search optimization,’ your title shouldn’t be ‘optimization practices for voice search;’ instead, it should be in any of these formats:
Prefix – (focus keyword) – suffix: You can insert your focus keyword between a prefix and a suffix to make your headline meaningful and provide context.
(focus keyword) – suffix: You can insert your focus keyword before a suffix to give it more meaning because some keywords cannot make meaning on their own, except support words are added.
Prefix – (focus keyword): You can put a prefix before your focus keyword so it makes sense.
(focus keyword): If you are using a conversational keyword, your entire headline can be your focus keyword.
First 100 words: Your focus keyword should appear in your introduction, preferably the first 50-100 words.
Headings: At least one of your header tags aside from your title should have your focus keyword.
Meta Description: Having your focus keyword in your meta description increases your ranking chances.
Images alt-texts: At least two of your images should include your focus keyword.
Your content should not be keyword stuffed; to do this, ensure your keywords appear as natural as possible. Also, leverage the use of semantically related keywords in your content.
Make your headlines or titles compelling to readers.
Your headline should tell a reader the content of your post in a straightforward way.
When a searcher types a query on the search engine, they get millions of results in a split second. They search through the search result and click on a web page.
They haven’t seen the post’s content yet but are deciding it seems better than the rest of the results. Why?
The headline.
The headline is your first chance to make an impression on your audience and should clearly state what the reader will learn upon clicking on your page—the more specific the benefit, the higher the chance of a clickthrough.
Best tools for headline optimization
Here are the best tools to use for headline optimization:
Usually, your headline analyzers will give suggestions to improve your headlines. However, to save time, you can use some helpful tips to develop the most compelling headlines.
Include your unique selling point in your headline.
Have a specific focus.
State the benefit of your content.
5. Content Research
This includes the content structure and information that needs to be in your content. What are the points that need to be in your post? What are searchers looking for? How should you structure your content to give you an edge?
With content research, I check existing blog posts using the same focus keyword as mine and look for ways to improve.
If they wrote a 15-list post, I would write a 20-list post or make a 15-list post that’s more detailed. If the word count is 2000, I will try to write more. The goal is to ensure your content is more valuable and up-to-date than existing posts.
You can create a detailed outline by comparing top-ranking results on Google, using the content idea section of Ubersuggest, or using an AI tool like ChatGPT.
Types of blog posts to write
How-to’s: These blog posts show how to perform a specific task.
Tutorials: These are similar to how-to posts but will mostly contain videos and graphical illustrations.
Industry studies: These are posts designed around industry research that you make. Industry studies are costly, but you can start with basic research that won’t exhaust your budget.
Award Bait: These posts are primarily about recognizing relevant businesses or blogs in your niche. Award bait posts are suitable for link building.
Guides: This post type shows the reader everything about a particular topic and guides them through everything they need.
Listicles: These are list articles; the significant part is you can create a list for anything.
Infographics: These are graphical illustrations from charts to tables and images. Infographics show important information graphically.
Ebooks: These are downloadable electronic books. You can create blog posts in the form of eBooks for users to re-read at their own pace.
Case Studies: These posts show behind-the-scenes, success stories, and even fail stories.
Expanded list posts: These detailed list posts contain carefully explained actionable steps about a particular topic.
Checklists: This post shows the reader actionable steps to take. It gives you a breakdown of what you need to do and how to do it sometimes.
Industry news: These posts talk about the recent updates in your industry. They don’t have to be lengthy but should accurately explain the new updates to readers.
Crowdsourced manual: This is a compilation of experts’ opinions about a subject in your niche.
6. Content Writing
How do you write posts that are optimized? What practices should be put into writing the content of a blog post?
The main juice of SEO content writing is in the content of your post because Google is working round the clock to ensure they deliver the best results to their users.
No matter how many updates are being rolled out, the main goal of Google is QUALITY.
From the introduction of your post to the conclusion, here’s how to create the best content:
(I) Meta description
A meta description is a summary of the content of your post displayed immediately after the headline and URL in a search result.
It is an HTML element, and you have to include it in your HTML code; however, most content management systems, like WordPress, allow you to type your desired meta description in a designated field.
They are essential to your content because they can directly impact your clickthrough rate.
Tips for writing good meta descriptions
Write short meta descriptions. They summarize your content, so it shouldn’t exceed 120 characters.
Use your focus keyword in the meta description. It tells the reader you stayed true to the context of your title.
Use a direct tone.
Include CTAs in your meta descriptions.
Make it compelling.
Align your meta description to the content of your post.
Note that Google can automatically change your meta description to match the search terms a searcher uses. Don’t be alarmed when the meta description for your posts is not the same as what you see on search results.
(ii) Introduction.
Readers first see your introduction when they click on your post.
It is not enough to have a good title and meta description; if your introduction is bad, it can cause a high bounce rate, bringing down your rankings on a search result page.
Your introduction is your chance to hook the reader on what you are talking about, raise anticipation, and keep them scrolling.
Types of introduction
The main point of every good introduction is to start with a captivating start line. There are different ways you can make your start line captivating. These include:
Statistics: Start with interesting statistics about your topic.
Story: Use a relatable story to keep readers hooked.
Question: Ask a thought-provoking question that addresses their pain point.
Quotes: Start with a famous industry or life quote relevant to your topic.
Comprehensive or long-form content is the best type of content to write.
Your content needs to be as detailed as possible so that a reader doesn’t leave your post with questions. Include FAQs to answer more questions and optimize your post to rank for voice search results.
Word length for a well-optimized post should be about 2,000-2,500 words. With this, you can be sure to cover a wide range of a topic.
However, there are power blog posts that go beyond 2,500-3,000 words; you can convert them into PDFs for easier, self-paced reading.
You should note that comprehensive content isn’t just about the word length; the content itself needs to be valuable and relevant to a query. You should also avoid stuffing your content with keywords or unnecessary words.
To get enough content for your post, you can browse related questions about the topic and answer them comprehensively in the post. You can also compare existing posts and add relevant updates to them.
(iv) Header tags.
Header tags are crucial for SEO, making your content more accessible for web crawlers to understand and easy for readers to go through.
These tags show the hierarchy of your post to both users and search engines.
There are different types of header tags from H1 to H6.
H1 tag: These tags are used for the headlines, although they are often used interchangeably with title tags.
H2 tag: These are used as the main subheading tags.
H3 tag: These are also used as subheading tags.
H4 tag: This shows a subsection of a subheading.
H5 tag: I try to stop my tags at H5 because they indicate a smaller subsection important enough to be tagged.
H6 tag: These tags draw attention to a mini point.
Header tags are like book chapters that give you an idea of the entire content.
(v) Paragraphs.
The readability of your content is also essential, and writing short paragraphs can keep readers on your page longer.
Short paragraphs are easier to read and understand, making your blog post look breezy enough to captivate your reader.
You must break down the entire content of your post into small paragraphs.
How long should a paragraph be?
I’d say 3-5 sentences long. Each paragraph should explain a single concept.
While writing paragraphs, you should ensure each of these paragraphs connects.
There should be sentence flow in your content; it increases the coherence of your content.
(vi) Reading level.
No matter your niche’s seriousness or professionalism, your content should be easy to understand.
Google does not explicitly state that this is a ranking factor, but we know that understandable contents consistently rank high in search results.
(vii) Tone.
Always try to write your content in conversational tones.
User experience is the most crucial ranking factor right now, and if your content is conversational, readers are bound to spend more time on your page and even share your content on social media pages.
Also, conversational tones are perfect for ranking in voice search results.
(viii) Links.
One of the essential SEO content writing practices is to include links in your blog posts.
There are two types of links:
External links: These are links to other websites from your web page.
External links are great for link building, but they also show professionalism and can increase trust.
It is always important to link to authority websites in your niche and include link-building strategies to help you get backlinks from credible sites.
Internal links: These are links to other web pages on your website. You should link each post on your website at least once to another post.
It shows site crawlers the relevance of that post.
With strategic internal links, you can increase the page authority of your blog posts and make it easier for web crawlers to index your posts.
When linking to other websites or posts on your site, take note of your anchor texts. With Google’s updated link practice guide, we see that Google prioritizes natural language anchor texts that make it easy to understand what the page you are linking to is about.
If you can’t use a natural language anchor text, it is best to resort to the focus keyword for that post.
Here are some best practices for linking
Only link to important pages.
Use keyword-rich anchor texts.
Use natural language anchor texts.
Avoid exact-match anchor texts.
Don’t use the same anchor text for two pages.
Avoid automating internal linking.
Link to only credible websites.
(ix) Conclusion.
Your conclusion is just as important as your introduction.
This part is where you summarize your main points so that even if a visitor does not read the entire post, they can get enough value through the conclusion.
Conclusions are usually short but can also be longer depending on how well you summarize your post.
Also, your call to action is a part of your conclusion.
Most SEO content writers should put more work into their CTA.
CTAs are necessary to lead a visitor to take a specific action on your website.
If it’s not specific to an action, it’s not a good CTA.
(x) URLs.
URLs are also helpful for search engines to understand what your web page is all about.
To create an SEO-friendly URL, here are some of the best practices to follow:
Make it short.
Include only your focus keyword.
Do not stuff keywords in your URL.
Use hyphens to separate words.
Avoid long URLs.
Do not include dates in your URL.
Avoid unnecessary words.
Use lowercase.
Include HTTPS in your URL.
Avoid using your post title as your URL.
7. Images
Your blog posts are only complete once you have added relevant pictures. Your posts need images to keep readers interested, give them information at a glance, and provide more context to your words.
Also, as popular as voice search is, Google’s image search is gaining traction among users, especially with the integration of Google Lens, which allows you to search using pictures taken on your phone.
It is a good idea to be able to rank for image searches.
Types of images in a blog post
Stock Images
Charts
Tables
Original Graphics
Screenshots
Ensure that every picture you insert in your blog post is appropriately optimized.
After adding images to your blog, you can upload them to your website.
However, don’t leave all the work to search engines after uploading your posts.
Here are some things to do:
8. Content promotion
No matter how optimized your content is, you don’t leave the fate of your post to search engines.
Ways to promote your content:
Email marketing: Big names in the industry, like Search Engine Journal and Neil Patel, among others, send newsletters with links to their blog posts.
Send strategic newsletters to your email list and add links to your blog posts.
Social media marketing: Social media is a great place to promote your content. You can include images from your post or make a shareable image summary and share it on these platforms.
You can promote your posts on:
Facebook
LinkedIn
Twitter
Instagram
Pinterest
Question forums: Answer questions on these forums and include links to a blog post that explains it in detail.
The fact that you want to link to your post does not mean you shouldn’t answer a question as detailed as possible.
It is best to give a detailed answer to a question and, afterward, offer a link to your blog post.
Users will trust you and click on your link based on how well you can answer the question.
9. Content Updating
Change is constant!
There are always new updates in every niche.
For example, on-page SEO practices three years ago are different now. There have been new updates based on Google algorithm changes, and even old techniques have experienced upgrades.
So, what will happen to the on-page SEO post you made three years ago? You have to update it.
Aside from this, search behavior also changes, so you want to ensure your content stays relevant through the years.
While updating your old content, you should also take note of the links, statistics, and industry updates.
Historical optimization is updating your old content and making it relevant in real-time.
This entire post explains the best practices for SEO writing, from getting ideas and optimizing them to performing keyword research and writing your fire post.
However, here is a summarized list of the best tips for SEO writing.
Understand buyer persona.
Match searchers’ intent.
Have a content calendar.
Invest in a human editor.
Use long-tail keywords in your headings.
Optimize your images.
Include FAQs in your posts.
Optimize for rich snippets.
Optimize for featured snippets.
Avoid keyword stuffing.
Add keywords to your meta description.
Include actionable tips.
Write what you know.
Write in conversational tones.
Update your old content regularly.
Optimize your URL.
Invest in original images, especially infographics.
SEO Content Writing Tools
These are tools that make SEO writing easy for you. Several SEO tools can make the content writing process breezy, from writing tools to writing assistants.
Here are my top picks for SEO writing tools:
1. Grammarly.
Grammarly is a writing assistant that helps to review your writing. It is one of the most used writing tools worldwide because it is easy to integrate into software and devices.
Grammarly is also AI-powered, so you quickly get real-time suggestions that will help to improve your writing.
Features of Grammarly
Grammar checker
Plagiarism checker
Citation generator
Essay checker
Tone detector
Style guides
Snippets
Analytics
Brand tones
Plans
Free Plan
This plan focuses on basic writing suggestions and tone detection.
With the Grammarly free plan, you get help with grammar, spelling, punctuation, conciseness, and tone detection.
Premium Plan
This plan is designed for individuals and focuses on helping with clarity, vocabulary, and tone improvements.
The primary focus for this plan includes everything in the free plan with full-sentence rewrites, choice of words, tone suggestions, and citations.
Pricing is $12.00 per month.
Business Plan
This plan is designed for teams, businesses, and organizations. The features include everything in the premium plan with style guides, snippets, brand tones, analytics dashboard, SAML single sign-on, account roles, and permissions.
Pricing is at $15.00 per member/month
2. Google Docs.
Google Docs is the best tool for writing, especially when collaborating with other writers. Google Docs allows you to write, edit, and collaborate on a document.
My favorite part of Google Docs is you can automatically update your changes. There is no fear of losing your content due to device breakdown or technical difficulties.
You also get to edit your document offline, and once you connect to the internet, your changes are automatically saved to the drive.
3. Hemingway Editor.
Hemingway Editor is a content writing tool that helps you to analyze your texts and revise your work.
With Hemingway Editor, you can revise your work no matter how lengthy.
Here are some of the analyses you can do with Hemingway:
Reading time
Letters
Characters
Words
Sentences
Paragraphs
Readability
This tool analyzes the text, highlighting complex sentences or phrases using color codes. Here are the color codes and their meanings:
Yellow codes show lengthy, complex sentences and common errors that should be split.
Red codes show dense and complicated sentences that need to be reworded.
Purple codes show sentences with shorter alternatives, and you can move your mouse over these highlights to get hints.
Blue codesshow weak phrases that you should replace with more powerful words.
Green codes show that the highlighted sentence has a passive voice or tone.
The online version of Hemingway is free, but the desktop version (Mac or Windows) costs $19.99.
4. NeuralText.
NeuralText is an AI-enabled SEO content optimization software that helps you to create optimized content in half the time. It can analyze top-ranking pages about a topic and create curated SEO-optimized content in record time.
It also gives you long-tail keyword suggestions, clusters semantically related keywords, and uses AI to suggest words to complete a sentence.
Features of NeuralText
Audit management
Competitive analysis
Content management
Dashboard
Editorial calendar
Keyword research tools
Machine learning
Multi-channel campaigns
SEO management
Natural language processing
Plans
Free Trial
$1 for a 5-day free trial.
Starter Plan
This plan supports only one user and allows you to generate 20,000 AI words, write and optimize five articles and get up to 2,000 keyword suggestions.
Pricing is $19 per member/month.
Basic Plan
This plan is also for a single user, and although similar to the starter plan, it can generate 20,000 AI words, write and optimize 40 articles, get 20,000 keyword suggestions, and cluster up to 5,000 keywords.
Pricing is $49 per member/month.
Pro Plan
This plan is available for three users, and it can generate up to 40,000 AI words, write and optimize unlimited articles, get 50,000 keyword suggestions, and cluster up to 15,000 keywords.
Pricing is $119 per member/month.
5. Jasper.ai
Jasper is an AI tool trained to write original and creative SEO content for users; it helps you to write optimized content ten times faster.
Jasper is probably the best AI writing tool out there because not only does it help you to write good blog posts, but it also helps with social media posts, email subject lines, and even product descriptions.
The features of Jasper.ai are so numerous that I can’t possibly list them all!
Features
Text summarizer
Paragraph Generator
AIDA framework
PAS framework
Product Description
Creative story
Content improver
Blog post topic ideas
Blog post outline
Blog post intro paragraph
Blog post conclusion paragraph
Feature to benefit
Sentence expander
Bio writing
Ad writing
Title and meta descriptions
Headline writing
Email subject lines
Text Rephrasing, and so on.
Plans
Free Trial
You get a free trial of Jasper for five days.
Boss Mode
This plan is designed for individuals and small-scale teams and can take up to five users. You get over fifty templates, a tailored brand voice, 30+ languages, browser extensions, Grammarly, a plagiarism checker, and SEO mode.
Pricing starts at $82 per month for 50,000 words/month—the more the number of words, the higher the price. Prices get as high as $500 per month for 700,000 words/per month.
Business Plan
This plan is designed for growing teams and businesses and is open to more than five users. But there is yet to be an exact plan and price for this option.
You get to contact the sales department and get personalized plans and pricing that depends on what you want for your team.
