Every content creator's goal is for others to see and engage with their content. After all, why spend hours editing a video or compiling information for an article if no one is going to see it?
Thankfully, there is a way of making sure your content has the best chance of reaching as many people as possible- by creating SEO-friendly content.
SEO—search engine optimization—friendly content refers to online content that is formatted to appeal to search engines and, therefore, has a higher chance of ranking on the first page of search results.
Not sure how to create this type of content? No worries- you’re in the right place!
Watch Your Wording
Using the right keywords is crucial to improving your content for SEO, especially if you are marketing for a smaller and lesser-known brand that has to overcome the challenge of competing against similar, more popular websites.
One way to overcome this challenge is to use more specific wording and utilize long-tail keywords, which typically consist of three or more words rather than one or two.
Think about what your brand offers that makes it special and sets it apart from its competitors as you formulate your keywords. Here are a few examples of converting keywords into long-tail keywords:
KEYWORD: Cupcakes
LONG-TAIL KEYWORD: Vegan frosted vanilla cupcakes
KEYWORD: Women’s clothing
LONG-TAIL KEYWORD: Pink organic cotton women’s tank tops
KEYWORD: Cat collars
LONG-TAIL KEYWORD: Faux leather bell collars for medium to large cats
See the difference? The more specific you get, the more you’re likely to rank higher in search results!
This also benefits you by allowing your target audience to find you more easily by detailing exactly what they are looking for.
You only get a certain amount of keywords before search engines accuse you of keyword stuffing, so use them wisely!
Think Of Your Audience
As a brand owner or marketer, your focus should be not just on your brand, but on your target audience.
Who are they? What do they look for in a product? What are they always searching for?
These are all pieces of information that can help you create effective SEO-friendly content. Search engines will show internet users the content they may be most interested in seeing. To help figure out what this content is, you can use a simple Google search.
Let’s say you run a blog focused on arts and crafts with DIY tutorials. You’ve made a post about how to knit for beginners who did well for your brand, and you want to expand on this topic further. How can you do this?
Start by searching for “beginner knitting.” Immediately, Google recommends words to help further your search, including “blanket,” “scarf,” and “stuffed animals.” There you go!
Use these words to guide you in creating and releasing content next. Google receives over 90 billion searches every month, so it’s safe to say it knows what people are searching for!
Give Them More!
Today’s internet users need constant engagement and entertainment—use this to your advantage! There are multiple different forms of content, and you do not need to settle on just one at a time.
In fact, doing this can hurt your content’s performance. Instead, provide multiple forms of content for your audience to interact with. If you are posting a gallery of images, provide text captions for each photo.
If you are posting a news article, include a poll that asks your audience what they think. If you are posting a video, include a caption describing the content of the video as well as links to similar content you have posted.
The more engagement you receive on your content, the more trustworthy it will appear to search engines, and the higher it will tank!
Keep all these tips in mind as you create SEO-friendly content for your own brand, and watch as the clicks flow in!