Writing an excellent blog post or article is all well and good, but only if people can find it online! Posting it across social media is one way to get some traffic, but ideally, you want your content to appear in Google search, and preferably on the first page!
Even the most skilled writers struggle with SEO, so if you find yourself in this situation then you are not alone. Today, we are going to discuss some of the most important aspects to think about when writing content and how you can make sure Google notices your published posts.
Keywords and Paragraphs
The secret to writing for SEO lies in constructing good, solid keywords that readers will be looking for. You do not want to stuff your text with these words, but you should strive to include relevant keywords in each paragraph, related to the main sub-topic that is mentioned in the paragraph title.
Pro tip: Before you start writing, create a content brief where you map out the body of work. Write down the title, intro, subparagraph titles, and conclusion by grouping keywords that you can use at each point. This will help speed up the writing process and keep your content concise!
Titles and subheadings
It is also a good idea to use subheadings (paragraph titles) if you have lots of information in one place. These act as mini-sub-bodies where you can insert some additional keywords without it seeming out of place or forced. After the main H1 title, each subparagraph title should be H2, and even H3’s underneath those. Google will always put emphasis on what is mentioned in H tags, so make sure you use a descriptive keyword in each one.
Questions and Answers
Anytime somebody wants something answered online they search Google for it! In most cases, this means people are searching for answers related directly to the subject they are reading about at that moment – which makes it an important part of your content planning process.
Including questions in your content gives you the opportunity to answer them directly without coming straight out with a statement. A good example of this is: “How can I make money online in my spare time?” – which could be turned into something like: “Are you looking for an easy way to make money online from home? If so, then read on…” This allows Google search to pick up on the question and (hopefully) display your article as one of the top Google search results when somebody searches that question later.
Meta Title and Descriptions
Make sure you fill out the meta title and description for each page properly. The meta title should contain your main focus keyword and any descriptive words that help explain what the post is about, keep it between 60 and 70 characters in length. The meta description can be a bit longer, up to 160 characters, and contain some additional related keywords – try to mention what the reader can expect to find once they arrive on your page.
Taking all these steps enables you to rank number 1 for relevant keywords, and also makes it seem as if you are a genuine authority on the topic at hand!
Don’t Forget To Optimize Your Site For SearchEngines
Now that you have written some great content. It is time to make sure that Google starts crawling your site and works its way through all the pages. The best way to do this is by including an XML sitemap on your website which guides Google around each page bit by bit. Helping them find everything if they are not visiting regularly.
Creating a sitemap is easy in WordPress (and other content management systems). And will enable you to take full control of how Google sees your site. This can be quite useful as it allows you to reference important keywords. And gives you the opportunity to add some meta-data for specific posts or pages. Which helps search engines further understand what each section of text means.
Using a sitemap will also mean you can keep a log of all the new posts on your website. And when they were posted. This is incredibly useful in research as it means. You can go back to your site whenever you like and find out what was written about at different points during the year – meaning social shares are easier to analyze too!
Internal and external links are very important as well – link out to authority sites such as Wikipedia when possible. And if you have another page or post on your site. That explains a topic that is mentioned in greater detail. Then link to it! Google will follow these links and attribute higher relevancy scores to your content. If it makes sense for it to do so.
So there we have it: five great SEO tips for writing۔ An article that should help anybody who is struggling with content ranking online! Wishing you all the best!