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The Scoop on Backlinking & Content: How Should Getting Links Fit into Your Content Marketing Today?

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The Scoop On Backlinking & Content: How Should

Here are some questions that haunt many a marketer… Does backlinking really matter that much? If so, how do we “get” backlinks? The resounding answer to the first question is yes, absolutely. The second part is a little bit trickier. Backlinks do help your visibility in Google search. But you don’t need to work on “getting” them. There’s a better, more organic way that leads to stronger results. Let’s discuss. ➡ Should You Focus on Backlinking as a Content Marketing Strategy? No. Does a good backlink profile help you rank better in Google? Absolutely. Do you need to spend hours per week on a link building strategy to earn them? Absolutely not. Even further, you don’t need to have a backlinking strategy to build a brand with real authority that lasts over time. Instead, building your backlinks should be a byproduct of building a great brand. If you put the latter first, you’re skipping over an important step. What should you do, instead? Earn your links, don’t build them.  Now, this is the longer road, and it takes more commitment, but it’s more sustainable, too. Ultimately, building your authority over time will also build stronger backlinks to your site, naturally. In contrast, focusing on building backlinks to the detriment of your content strategy as a whole is akin to building a house of cards versus a house of solid stone. Backlinks you weasel out of thin air can vanish in a second. Backlinks you earn as part of a strong content strategy and a strong brand presence will stay with you and grow over time. So, how do you accomplish it all? 1. Focus on Consistency Be consistent in how often you publish content, and only publish the best quality you can produce. Invest in a consistent brand presence across your website, web pages, content, and even your social media channels. Keep it up over time. 2. Focus on Growing Your Expertise Add value to your industry by growing your expertise and sharing your original ideas over time. As you grow as an expert (whether you read tons of books, take online courses, or just continually reflect on your experience as an entrepreneur and common industry pain points), you’ll also have some amazing wisdom that blooms alongside your knowledge. Share it! Your original thoughts and ideas will separate you from the pack of “experts” sharing regurgitated information. When you have something fresh to add to the conversation, that’s valuable to your audience, who are looking to learn from you. 3. Focus on Guest Blogging Once you’re in a rhythm of creating great content, lend some of your energy to creating content for publication on guest blogging platforms. This how you reach a bigger audience that overlaps with yours, not to mention grow your brand and build your authority on a bigger scale. To find guest blogging opportunities, just google “your industry” + “publications to guest blog for.” Remember to only publish stellar content, and always include your site link in your bio/author byline! [bctt tweet=”Building backlinks should be a byproduct of building a great brand. If you put the latter first, you’re skipping over an important step. What should you do, instead? Earn your links, don’t build them. ? More on @ExpWriters:” username=””] Now that we’ve cleared up why you shouldn’t laser-focus on your backlink strategy at the expense of your brand (i.e., don’t put the cart before the horse! ?), let’s take a deeper look at the inner workings of backlinking. How Backlinks Have Changed Over the Years Link building, or backlinking, has changed a lot since it started. Years ago, the standard was to focus on what was known as low-influence linking to build up your credibility. Low-influence links were links that pushed domain diversity even if they were not necessarily links that were perceived authorities in a given sector. The idea was to amass hundreds of links that pointed to domains all over the place that would lead back to your site and raise your ranking. Domain diversity would theoretically lend itself to credibility and therefore boost your overall visibility. It worked once upon a time, but in the end, domain diversity proved to be fruitless as opposed to lucrative. Links like that are not the way to go today. Instead, you want to focus on quality over quantity, but what exactly does that mean? I’m glad you asked. The Differences Between Quality Links and Quantity of Links As was stated, it was common practice to link to hundreds and hundreds of low-ranking sites to raise your rank, but over time, it made more sense to work smarter and not harder. That means working for quality links compared to the quantity of links. In other words, you wouldn’t want to include a link to a power tool company when you are reading an article about nutritional well-being, right? On the other hand, if you wrote an article about post-workout foods that help you recover faster, then you want to link to studies from credible and well-established sites that support your claims. Quality links point back to relevant content and trustworthy websites. You want to focus on the best links that are relevant to your content and go to top-ranked sites. Cultivating quality links takes an extended amount of time to build credibility, but once it is established, it lasts compared to the low-influence links of the past. Know Where to Place Your Links Did you know? There’s a strategic way to place links in your content. In every quality content piece you come across, the link placement is not random – there’s a rhyme and a reason for every single link you see in the material you read every day. On web pages, have you ever noticed there are links both in the content itself as well as at the bottom of the page, in the footer or navigational area? The first example is a screenshot of an article from political site ThinkProgress. You can see that ThinkProgress … Read more

Google Fred: The Biggest SEO Update Affecting Content That Rolled Out in 2017 & How it Can Affect Your Content

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Google Fred: The Biggest SEO Update Affecting Content That Rolled Out in 2017 & How it Can Affect Your Content

Google has become increasingly cagey about its updates. If there is one, unless it’s gargantuan, you probably won’t hear about it from the search engine. Take a look at some of their communications on Twitter via their spokespeople, John Mueller and Gary Illyes: Yes, we make changes almost every day. — John ☆.o(≧▽≦)o.☆ (@JohnMu) March 9, 2017 we have 3 updates a day in average. I think it’s pretty safe to assume there was one recently… — Gary “鯨理” Illyes (@methode) March 9, 2017 It’s like it’s physically impossible for them to come out and say it. Because of this secrecy and caginess, marketers and webmasters have to play a game of detective whenever they notice changes to search. This “volatility,” as it’s commonly termed, shows up in their automated statistics, particularly those for SEO visibility. From there, they have to read the clues and compile data to come to any conclusions. The most recent Google update waves that rolled through the internet happened in March 2017. It’s now simply known as “Fred.” (Gary Illyes jokingly said all the updates should be called Fred, and it stuck for this one in particular.) There was no announcement, no forewarning. SEOs and webmasters noticed the “volatility” affecting their stats and their rankings. Then they compared notes, which all lined up. Here’s a good example from Glen Gabe, the marketer in front of G-Squared Interactive. He shared how Fred affected a site that had heavy advertising: Overnight, the site lost almost 60% of its organic traffic from Google. That’s a huge amount. Lots of other sites reported traffic losses just as deep, but Google kept mum about it. So, that begs these questions: What did Fred do? What kind of sites, exactly, did it affect? How do you stay on Google’s good side if they won’t offer guidance about their algorithm updates? And, perhaps most importantly, what does the biggest Google update in 2017 mean for you and your site? Let’s delve into this topic together. Grab a tea or a coffee, and join me! Google’s “Fred” Algorithm Update: The Shot Heard ‘Round the World This update sent shockwaves through the internet. Some marketers discovered their traffic had been hit hard (down anywhere from 50% to 90%). It was obvious that Google had done something big, but they wouldn’t cop to it outright. This tight-lipped response was nothing new, but it understandably rankled the SEO community, and not just because it was/is frustrating. Not just because it was/is frustrating, but also because Google’s zipped lips are no help in the face of huge chunks of organic traffic gone overnight. Kristine Schachinger for Search Engine Land summed up the frustration in her column: Here’s What Fred Tweaked So, we know that Fred was mainly a quality update – but what aspects of quality did it affect? SEOs analyzed the stats from hundreds of affected sites to figure out what it did. They found that this update mainly affected content sites whose goal was revenue (as opposed to providing value to users). Specifically, Barry Schwartz termed these sites as “ad heavy, low value.” These sites had features like: 1. Heavy Advertising One of the defining features of all sites badly hit: ads. Each and every one had heavy servings of advertising. Or, they had generous helpings of affiliate links sprinkled into their content. These ads were liberally integrated, pushy, and deceptive. Lots looked like on-site links but actually took you elsewhere. 2. Redundant or Non-Expert Information In most cases, sites that suffered an organic rankings dive also featured redundant, non-expert, or rehashed information. This was thin content – not well researched at all, stuff that merely skimmed the surface. 3. User Experience (UX) Interference The user experience is how easily a visitor can navigate your site, click around, and find what they need. This is a big factor for site quality because a poor UX can totally impede that information-gathering process. Here are some examples of roadblocks to a good UX. Glen Gabe calls these “low-quality user engagement problems”: Disruptive pop-ups that take over the whole screen Confusing navigation and site hierarchy Too much advertising – so much so that it drowns out the content Problems viewing the site on mobile 4. “Jacks-of-All-Trades, Masters of None” Content Another common feature was that most of the sites with traffic hits had a content format, like a blog. However, topics covered a wide range of information without any rhyme or reason. Some of these hit sites publicly shared their URLs. Here’s an example of a few posts from one of them: The content was not published to inform users; rather, it only served as a vehicle for advertising. In particular, the above blog featured useless information that Wikipedia or the “help” section of a product website already covered better. Here’s How to Keep Fred Happy Now that you understand what the Fred update did and who was affected, you can keep your own site compliant and Fred-friendly. This will be important for the future because Google is never going to stop throwing out updates. In fact, it’s pretty much a standard monthly thing these days. Here’s how to stay on Fred’s (and Google’s) good side to keep your chances of getting blindsided by any future update slimmer. 1. Recommit Yourself to Quality Content and Good SEO Practices If you’re already on top of your on-page SEO and content quality, good. Keep going. This commitment is one that builds on itself in terms of positive gains. The longer you stick with it, the better the results you’ll see. If you’ve cut corners, tried some “shortcuts,” or are just plain unsure about where you stand, you need to recommit yourself to quality. That means you should start making improvements to your site and content right this second. The sooner you start, the sooner you can get on your way to climbing the ranks, not falling into a black hole of Google penalties. 2. Pay Attention to UX UX … Read more

#ContentWritingChat Recap: "Back to School" with Your Site Presence & SEO: 101 Refresher

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#ContentWritingChat Recap: "Back to School" with Your Site Presence & SEO: 101 Refresher

This time of year, a lot of people are heading back to school. They’re stocking up on supplies, getting textbooks, and preparing for another semester of classes. However, even if you’re not heading back to school, it doesn’t mean you can’t do a little learning! For this week’s #ContentWritingChat, we decided to go “back to school” by talking about the basics of building your site presence and mastering SEO. This was another one of our community chats, where our participants are the stars of the show. And they certainly had some great advice to share! #ContentWritingChat Recap: “Back to School” with Your Site Presence & SEO: 101 Refresher Welcome to #ContentWritingChat! Today, we’re going “back to school” with a refresher on your site presence and #SEO! ? pic.twitter.com/bvY375B8qk — Express Writers (@ExpWriters) August 22, 2017 If you’re ready for a refresher course on site presence and SEO, you’re in the right place! Grab a pen and paper to take some notes and let’s dive right in! Q1: Explain the importance of SEO and how it integrates into your online marketing. To kick off the chat, we asked everyone to share why they feel SEO is important. What did they have to say about it? Here are a few responses from the chat: A1) SEO helps people find & see you online. Keywords, phrases, links, & other things help the visibility of your brand. #ContentWritingChat pic.twitter.com/v5RU365fxM — Jason Schemmel (@JasonSchemmel) August 22, 2017 As Jason said, SEO helps people find and see you online. The keywords you target in your content are just one of the ways you can boost your visibility in search rankings. A1: SEO is integrated into the content we create. We do keyword research which is used in the page title, body copy, etc #contentwritingchat — Netvantage Marketing (@netvantage) August 22, 2017 Lexie mentioned that SEO is a huge part of everything they do over at Netvantage Marketing. They conduct keyword research before creating anything. Then, that keyword is used in the page title, body copy, etc. A1: In summary, good SEO helps a brand to be searchable/more visible on search engines like Google. #ContentWritingChat — Win Shi Wong (@winshiwong) August 22, 2017 When done right, SEO helps your brand become searchable and more visible on search engines. This is why you want to conduct keyword research and choose the right keywords for each piece of content you publish. A1: #seo = how you’re put on the search engine map. If Google doesn’t know you exist, it can’t send people to your site! #ContentWritingChat — Elizabeth Greenberg (@BettaBeYou) August 22, 2017 As Elizabeth pointed out, Google can’t send people to your site if they don’t know you exist. A1. You can’t just build something and expect it to be successful. You have to make sure it’s searchable & relevant. #contentwritingchat — Bourbon & Honey (@BrittanyBrander) August 22, 2017 Brittany made a great point! You can’t build something and expect it to be successful. You can’t just publish a piece of content and expect people to find it. You have to put in the effort to optimize your content for search engines like Google. Q2: What are the basic SEO steps every blogger needs to take when publishing new content? To get started with SEO, we need to have the basics covered. So, which steps should you always keep in mind when you’re publishing a new piece of content? Here’s some advice: A2 ?? a) know your audience, their interests/questions b) research long-tail keywords within their topics of interest #ContentWritingChat — Julia McCoy ? (@JuliaEMcCoy) August 22, 2017 As Julia said, it starts with knowing your audience. Without knowing your audience and understanding their needs, you can’t create content they’re interested in. You’ll want to follow that up with keyword research to choose the right long-tail keywords for your content. A2: First, do keyword research. Use that keyword research in the page title, meta, body copy, but do so NATURALLY. #contentwritingchat — Netvantage Marketing (@netvantage) August 22, 2017 Lexie also knows that keyword research is an essential beginning. The keyword you choose for a piece of content will be used in the page title, meta description, and throughout the body copy. However, as she pointed out, you should always incorporate the keyword in a way that’s natural. A2: Pay attn. to what the target audience is talking about. What are their pain points/FAQs. Use that to drive content. #ContentWritingChat — Flying Cork (@flyingcorkpgh) August 22, 2017 Choosing the right keywords goes back to paying attention to your audience. Your content should address their pain points and the questions they’re asking. A2. Gather insights: keywords people are searching for and conversations they are having. (1/2) #contentwritingchat — Bourbon & Honey (@BrittanyBrander) August 22, 2017 Brittany said you want to go for the keywords people are searching for. The right keywords are going to help you rank higher in search results. A2 I’ve always found this infographic as the simple way. But there’s more to it than just this. #ContentWritingChat pic.twitter.com/VAbzPzq1NF — Tony Stephan (@OmnipoTony) August 22, 2017 Tony shared a helpful infographic with some tips that are important to keep in mind! Q3: How can you make sure you’re speaking to the right audience in your search optimized content? Another priority is to make sure you’re reaching the right audience with the content you’re publishing on your website. After all, you don’t want to risk attracting all the wrong people to your site. Here’s how to make sure you reach the right people: A3) Audience & keyword research. Know who you want to reach, then research the terms/words they associate with most! #ContentWritingChat pic.twitter.com/ub4qhz80lS — Jason Schemmel (@JasonSchemmel) August 22, 2017 Audience and keyword research is essential here. As Jason said, you need to know who you want to reach and then research the terms and phrases they’re searching. This will help you write the content that targets your ideal audience. A3. Do research & create a persona … Read more

6 Top SEO Content Tactics to Use in 2017

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6 Top SEO Content Tactics to Use in 2017

Do you make New Year’s resolutions? We did, last week on the blog. Check out the resolutions a lot of us made way back in early 2016: According to Money, the top goal for Americans was to “enjoy life to the fullest”, and a close second was “live a healthier lifestyle”. Far down at the bottom was “pay off debt.” As a country, most of us are fairly realistic and stick to one goal. It’s good to make goals, even if we don’t always achieve them. Setting goals gives us a vision for the future and puts something in our sights that we can reach for. Personally, we aim for better health, more time with people we love, and a more financially stable lifestyle. On the content development and marketing side of things, setting goals and looking to the most useful SEO content tactics for the next year also gives us something to look toward. Quality content comes from using SEO as an effective tool, drawn from your supply of strategies and experience. Ready to dive into our most useful SEO content tactics to share for the New Year? Grab a latte and join me! SEO Roots: A Look Back at the Beginning Before We Look at the Future I was born in 1991, when the launch of the world’s first website happened. (I like to say it was fate bringing the internet and I together – since eight, I’ve had a natural affinity and love for our world wide web.) As the ‘net grew to include Google (1997) and Yahoo (1994), marketers took advantage of keyword stuffing and spammy backlinks in order to rank high on search results. The art of SEO, or search engine optimization, came along in the early 2000’s to help connect users with the information they needed to find local results. Since that time, user-focused SEO and changes to Google meant rankings had to be earned through relevant, quality content rather than an overuse of keywords. Today, relevant content and mobile optimization are required to rank at all, and must be backed by authority and expert links. Content no longer ranks high simply due to a large amount of spam or repetitive keywords throughout a piece of content: it ranks high based on a lot of factors, many of which are now human-based more than bot or algorithm based. (Check out my post all about how semantic search is the way of the future.) 6 SEO Content Tactics to Use in 2017 Search Engine Journal recently gathered the wisdom of 44 SEO experts to ask their views of what trends will define 2017. We gathered about 15-16 for our roundup in the last week of December 2016. While everyone has a different view of what the year will look like, there is one thing they all agree on: as we move forward, it becomes even more important to stay aware of the latest technology and how our strategies need to adapt, no matter what year it may be. Here are the SEO tactics we need to watch as we go into a new year, one still unwritten, yet full of possibility and growth. 1. AMP The Accelerated Mobile Pages Project (AMP) was integrated by Google early in 2016. The open initiative encourages publishers to create mobile-optimized content—pages load quickly on mobile devices for more efficient use. The goal with AMP is to deliver the best mobile experience to the average user, lessening the wait time for things like videos and graphics. Experts across the board believe that this new year will be the deciding factor in whether AMP stays or gets shelved. 2. Mobile experience Apps will continue to be a part of the user experience, which means indexing them will be important going forward. As the introduction of RankBrain has made its impact in the world of algorithms, so too has the continued focus on mobile. Google has already talked about making their index mobile-first and restructuring algorithms to first use the mobile version of a site’s content to rank pages. This will continue to be important in 2017, especially as 3 out of 4 Americans own a smartphone, up from 2015. Mobile activity will intersect with search engine optimization and ranking going into this next year. As Duane Forrester reminds us at SEJ, “the shift has already happened…if you’re still ‘thinking about mobile’, consumers won’t be thinking about you.” 3. Content optimization As industry experts point out, our focus needs to be on content optimization rather than keyword optimization. And while it remains important to a content marketer’s SEO strategy, there is the temptation to get trapped in the “content is king” cycle. With millions of articles published each month, there has to be something to make you stand out from all of the other voices who want the attention of your audience. Long-form content is a start in the right direction. 4. Machine learning Innovative technology and its capabilities will reveal previously unseen patterns of searcher behavior. Advanced machines like Google’s RankBrain and the rise of artificial intelligence will make it even more important to put forth the effort in order to rank with the best. The area of search engine optimization will move forward as a technical approach. The challenge may lie in not knowing why a piece of content ranks at a certain spot, as machine learning has an influence on the algorithm. 5. Voice search Billions of searches are done each year via voice commands, and the number is only expected to grow. This trend will have an impact on our keyword optimization since we don’t speak in the same way we write—think asking a question versus typing a statement into a search box. The move toward conversational search among a variety of devices will definitely have an impact on SEO, especially as we consider the “one correct answer” given by a device. This goes back to quality content and making sure you are providing the most thorough and most readable answer. 6. Quality links Well-organized … Read more

Why Long-Tail Keywords Are Winners to Focus On In Your SEO Copywriting

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Why Long-Tail Keywords Are Winners to Focus On In Your SEO Copywriting

If your goal is to rank well in the SERPs and draw as many qualified leads as possible through your content, aka online SEO copywriting, long-tail keywords are going to be your best friend. Here’s a simple example to illustrate just what I mean: as it stands right now, Amazon rakes in a whopping 57% of its sales as a result of long-tail keywords! In addition to the fact that long-tail keywords are easier to rank for because they’re generally less competitive, long-tail keywords also help you draw high-quality leads to your content because all the traffic long-tails drive is very, very relevant. I’ve relied on using long-tails myself in the last year to build up a repertoire of well-ranking, well-shared content on my blog. Why YOU Need Long-Tail Keywords in Your SEO Copywriting Arsenal Here’s what you need to know about long-tail keywords and how to incorporate them into your SEO strategy. 101: What are Long-Tail Keywords? Long-tail keywords are search queries made up of three-four word phrases that are very specific to a product, good, or service that’s being sold. Long-tail keywords are the phrases search engine users are generally more likely to type in when they’re closer to purchasing an item. Examples of long-tail keyword phrases: Aztec printed 3×5’ entry rug (not entry rug) juice bar in Austin, TX (not juice bar) size S white dress for homecoming (not white dress) The searcher who typed these phrases are looking for a very specific product and is likely to purchase it when they find it. While long-tail keywords may seem a little clunky and strange at first, they’re a powerful tool for your web-based SEO copywriting. The conversion rate for long-tail keywords is approximately 2.5 times higher than it is for head (shorter) keywords. 3 Major Reasons to Focus on Long-Tail Keywords In the world of SEO and copywriting, long-tail keywords don’t often get as much airtime as their shorter counterparts. Unfortunately, however, marketers who neglect long tail keywords can easily find themselves in a position where they’re missing out on quality traffic and failing to produce all of the conversions that they easily could. Here are three reasons that you should be focusing on long-tail keywords: 1. Less competition When it comes to targeting and ranking for keywords, fewer people are going to be targeting “Salvador Dali vintage-inspired 1980’s duvet cover” than will be targeting “comforter.” Because of this, it’s much, much easier to rank for long-tail keywords than it is general search terms. While general terms may be easier to use, long-tail keywords are amazingly specific and, for the marketer who knows exactly what he or she is trying to sell, they can be a speedway toward ranking success. Additionally, long-tail keywords that present less competition also offer lower cost-per-click prices since few marketers are targeting them. 2. More conversions Because long-tail keywords are so amazingly specific, the people that search for them are highly likely to purchase your products. The longer and more specific the keyword is – the better. As long-tail keywords become more specific, the number of people searching for them narrows considerably. While this may seem like a frightening prospect at first, it’s important to remember that the people who are searching for that wacky Dali-inspired bedspread are highly likely to purchase it. Because of this, marketers who target long-tail keywords effectively can nab more purchases than their competitors. 3. More relevant results Relevance is everything in today’s market and copywriters and SEOs who know how to focus on long-tail keywords will invariably provide more relevant search results for customers. Over time, this simple step can go a long way toward increasing customer loyalty, producing quality word-of-mouth advertising, and helping a brand gain dominance and build authority in a niche. How to use Long-Tail Keywords While long-tail keywords can provide a serious boost for your content, you’ll need to know how to use them correctly – which isn’t always easy. Follow these steps to get started: 1. Decide what your content is trying to do Think of long-tail keywords like the ship and your content like a map. One can’t function well without the other. If you don’t know what the overall goal of your content (information, sales, conversions, etc.) is, then it’s impossible to utilize long tail keywords effectively. Because of this, it’s imperative to understand the overall purpose of your content before you start searching for long-tail keywords to beef it up. To get this process started, sit down and write out the three top goals of your web content. For example, maybe you want it to inform people, drive email subscriptions, and produce sales. Once you’ve defined your top three goals, ensure that everything else in your content is working to support them. This includes your headlines, your social sharing functions, and the value offered by your content. If your content as a whole doesn’t work, is unreadable, or doesn’t provide value, then all of the long-tail keywords in the world won’t be enough to help it. Because of this, evaluating the structure and functionality of your content as a whole helps you lay the foundation for using long-tail keywords effectively down the road. 2. Decide who you’re writing to No matter what kind of web writing you specialize in, marketing personas are important. By defining who, exactly, you’re writing your content to, you can provide more valuable information, tailor your language effectively, and produce more conversions. This is true for everything from introductory “How-to” articles to high-level niche content. In the case of long-tail keywords, however, it’s especially important. Because long-tail keywords are so very specific, it’s absolutely imperative to have a solid idea of who your target audience is before you begin writing. When you visualize your ideal reader in as much detail as possible, you’re better equipped to provide valuable content specifically for them. When it comes to long-tail keywords, this can mean the difference between SEO success and flat-out failure. This is especially true for marketers who intend … Read more

A Guide To Writing & Optimizing Great SEO Content (Gifographic)

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A Guide To Writing & Optimizing Great SEO Content (Gifographic)

How can an infographic get better? Add moving parts. Our fantastic design team created and designed this first gifographic from Express Writers. In it, we’re showing you the major tricks of the trade when it comes to writing and optimizing great SEO content. Tell us how you liked our first gifographic, and for a limited time, we’re taking gifographic orders! Full transcript below.  Transcript A Guide To Writing & Optimizing Great SEO Content (Gifographic) Here’s Why Creating Great SEO Content Is So Crucial To Your Marketing Web traffic drives content marketing. The largest portion of content marketing success, 63%, is derived from website traffic. A big reason why you should focus on having correctly SEO optimized content on your site. 2/3 of B2B Marketers say content fuels their marketing. And if your content is well-written, answers questions, and is optimized for your buyers to find it, buyers are willing to finish 57% of your buying process without even talking to a sales rep. Google loves it! Google has said that quality content is key to rankings. Google Panda is the gatekeeper. The Google panda update has been launched primarily to ensure only high quality content ranks the best. This Panda algorithm looks into factors specifically that include how expertly the content is written, the quality of the source and author, if it is original and not duplicate, authoritative, complete, well-researched, and not-over populated with ads. Optimized blogs are powerful. 8 out of 10 Internet users are reading blogs and social media, which accounts for a whole 23% of time spent on the Internet. 3 Major Types of SEO Content & Tips on Correctly Optimizing Them Content is the fuel for what you publish on the web. Here are a few of the most common web content types: Web pages. Web pages are one of the most commonly optimized forms of SEO content. Boost your web page ranking through the inclusion of related, well-researched keywords, well written title tags, meta descriptions, awesome headers, and high quality writing. Never skimp on the quality of the writing if you want the best results from your web pages. Blogs. There are approximately 152,000,000 blogs on the web and with that kind of competition it’s obvious that optimizing your blog for SEO is an important way to get it to stand out. Include high quality citations (links) that reference any statistics you include and shoot for 2,000 words of high quality, well-researched SEO content per blog or more. Product Descriptions. When it comes to writing product descriptions, you want people to be able to locate them online quickly and easily. Don’t skimp on copy here either. Include keywords in your product descriptions and write descriptive headlines and meta content for each one. Social Media. Did you know that social media can be optimized, too? Except with social media, you optimize your content so that it can be located and shared by people rather than search engines. So don’t write around your keywords; write your social content around your audience.  3 Rules of Thumb in SEO Writing 1. Keyword Amount: Stay under a 3% keyword density in your content (web pages, blogs, etc.) Using them naturally is your #1 rule. Headers, subheaders, and throughout the copy are key areas to use them. How to Calculate: Keyword Density = (How many times you used the keyword / Total words in the text) x 100 Example: (20 / 800) x 100 = 2.5% 2. Don’t count your keywords. We mean it! Think of your audience, the quality of your content, how well you’re researching the content, and if the copy addresses every question the topic could raise. This is far more important than counting keyword density every time. Simply optimize naturally with keywords. 3. Find original sources when you’re stating a claim, and citate (link to it). See our sources at the bottom of this infographic? Those are our citations. You’ll want to actually hyperlink inside your blogs or other content where you’re making a statement or claim that you’ve read online. Make sure you use the original source when you hyperlink. 3 SEO Tools for the Web Content Creator SEMrush is a powerful keyword tool that allows users to optimize their sites for SEO, create intuitive pay-per-click (PPC) advertising, and conduct social media and video advertising research. When it comes to using SEMrush to find keywords for your ad campaign, you’ll want to look into niche-specific long-tail keywords that apply specifically to your industry. While it’s all well and good to target a high-volume search keyword, it’s also harder to rank for these keywords, which means you may be better off focusing on a less competitive, more specific keyword phrase that allows you to rank strongly from the get-go. Wordtracker is another keyword research tool that allows users to search multiple sources for effective keywords. This tool can help you find keywords that nobody is competing on and will be an essential tool for SEO success. BuzzSumo is an effective tool for finding the key influencers that can help you promote your content and get it noticed by a wide audience base. It can also help you find trending content topics and take inspiration for audience related content. Although it’s not specifically SEO, developing great topic ideas and feeding off of industry leaders is every bit as important as SEO optimization. 10 Key Factors of Great SEO Content 1. Write great headers! Aside from your body content, the most important piece of content for SEO is your header. A header tells people what the piece is about, grabs reader attention and gives a general overview of the topic. To make your header as interesting as possible, include your keyword and focus on writing a header that asks a question or addresses your readers’ fears. Create headers that are irresistible and make your readers want to click; include the keyword naturally. 2. Stay away from “stuffing.” Keyword stuffing is a dangerous practice that will get you in trouble with the search engines, decreasing your … Read more

How To Find Your Best-Fit Freelance SEO Writing Solution

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How To Find Your Best-Fit Freelance SEO Writing Solution

When you need a lot of content for your site and you need it done right, these three options usually come to mind: You can do it yourself. You can hire a writer. You can hire a freelance SEO writing service. Freelance SEO Writing: Finding the Best Option for You The problem with the first option, though, is that even if you are the best writer in the world, if you are running a business, you just don’t have time to consistently write that much and still make it quality. However, you notice that I didn’t list ‘don’t worry about creating content’ as an option. If there is anything that we can all agree on in the world of marketing, it is that you need an online presence, and you need great content on that site. Brafton created an awesome infographic illustrating this. This means your best option is often going to be paying someone else to do the writing for you. Hiring a Writer When you hire a writer, you can take on a fulltime employee, use an individual freelancer, or contract through a freelance SEO writing service. With the first two options, you take a risk of hiring someone without as many credentials as you can find through full services. Not only that, but they may not have as full of a range as a freelance service. With a service, you have a wide range of experience, knowledgeable writers who can specialize in whatever type of writing you want done. When you are looking for a service, though, you do not want to just go with the first one you run across. Five Things You Should Look for in Your Best-Fit Freelance SEO Writing Service When you are looking for a freelance service, make sure they meet at least these five important qualities. 1. They can adapt your necessary voice to fit your audience. Great writers come up with an interesting, unique voice that really resonates with their readers. However, great freelance SEO writing services – or writer – actually adapts yours. Your voice becomes theirs. When hiring a freelance writer, you need to find one that, instead of having their own voice, has an easily adaptable voice. They should be writing for your audience in the tone that you would use to talk to your clients. In order to ensure they have this capability, ask for a diverse portfolio. If a portfolio contains amazing pieces, but they are all of one style, then you cannot be assured that they are adaptably or not. A freelance SEO writing service is usually good at ensuring this because they can choose one of their varied writers who best fit your need. While a single author can have many voices, think about how many voices you can choose from when you have many authors who each have many voices. 2. They keep up to date with all of the latest writing trends. The current content marketing structure is likely to look a lot different than the content marketing world of even next year. That is why good writing is not enough. When you look for a writer or service, make sure they keep up with the growing trends. There are many ways they can show you they do this. They can become certified. They can take trainings. They can demonstrate their knowledge and prowess through their own research. However, if this is the way they learn, you might need to periodically check to make sure they are staying up to date. Services are usually good at doing this because they often require their writers to update their training as new issues arise. Therefore, when you use a service, you can be more assured that they are familiar with all new and emerging trends – it is after all their business – as well as know that it is likely easier to get proof of this knowledge. 3. They are talented writers. This one should go without saying, but I am mentioning it anyway. You have to make sure you hire a freelance SEO writing provider that actually knows how to write. While this alone does not make a good freelance writer, it is the most important. No matter how well rounded they are, a freelancer without writing talent is not a freelancer you want to use. Here, it might not matter as much if you use a freelance SEO writing service or an individual. However, at least with a service, if you do not like the writer who is assigned to your project, you have the freedom to request someone else. 4. They are talented writers in the area that you need them to be talented in. Just as important as hiring a talented writer is hiring a writer that is skilled in the areas that you need them to be. Creative writing versus professional or technical writing versus copywriting versus niche writing and on and on all are vastly different. If you need a professional writer, it is probably not a great idea to use a fully creative writer – even if that creative writer is an incredible creative writer. You can determine if a writer is good and if they are good at what you need them to be able to do in a lot of ways. Ask for referrals. Check their portfolio or website. Read reviews and testimonials. Ask for a test article in order to see their merits. While you can find an individual that meets your needs, just remember that here to a service might be a good idea. They have all good writers, but they have writers of varied natures. This way, you are more likely to get the writer you need. 5. They are all-encompassing. Writing services are good at offering you a wide variety of services. When you use one, they do all the work for you. Look for a service that works with you start to finish. They consult with you and brainstorm what you need. … Read more

Getting Ready for Next Year: What 2015 SEO Content Will Look Like

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Getting Ready for Next Year: What 2015 SEO Content Will Look Like

It’s that time of year again. Thanksgiving and Christmas turkeys are being prepped. New Year’s celebrations are being planned. SEO content predictions are being made. We published a 2014 Social Media Guide at the start of the year that talked about new trends, solutions, and predictions. We covered social media and marketing trends to live by in 2014. Let’s take a moment to see just what panned out before we jump into a sneak peak of what we think 2015 SEO content will look like. The Good, the Bad & the Ugly of 2014 Predictions can be like the weather, sometimes good, sometimes bad, and every so often, downright ugly! We are happy to report that our 2014 SEO content predictions didn’t mirror the weatherman, whose reports end up wrong or slightly off. In a nutshell, here’s what we predicted for SEO content in 2014: Audience engagement and an in-depth understanding of your audience would be vital. Social media would grow in leaps and bounds becoming even more crucial to your SEO. Mobile optimization would be a must. Predictive tools would begin to replace analytical tools. Facebook video ads, Twitter ads, and possible G+ ads would start to be incorporated in marketing strategies. Video and mobile marketing would skyrocket. Offline material would be just as important as online and would need to lead people to your virtual doorstep. Easy to understand SEO best practices would be adopted. A social media strategy would be vital to lead generation and audience engagement. Engagement and inspiration would become the cornerstone on successful online presences. 2014 predictions the Internet over hung on the idea that social media would explode. Consumer engagement would radically determine success. And there would be a migration from best desktop display practices to mobile readership. Check out the growth social media saw in 2014: by Digital Insights Image Source: DigitalInsights.com There’s no denying that our predictions were spot on. 2014 has been the Year of the User. From algorithm updates to content creation, everything we’ve done has been based on what our target audience wants and needs. Those of us who created and stuck to a strong content plan, coupled with social media, audience engagement, mobile optimization, and SEO best practices have reaped the rewards. Facebook advertising and the takeover of predictive tools phased out, but everything else came true. Based on what has worked and what has changed, what is in store for 2015? What should we be planning, and what trends should we watch? What to Expect in 2015 2015 is shaping up to be a great year for SEO content. And there’s awesome news in the air. SEO best practices got a lot simpler in 2014, and they’re looking to get even simpler in 2015. In fact, we dare to say SEO is on its way to becoming as simple as the production of high quality, amazing content. End of story. Okay, it’s not really the end. It’s never the end. But 2015 is gearing up to be the year of local search, organic ranking, natural writing, great storytelling, and some data and analytics thrown in for good measure. Let’s break down what to expect in the New Year. Content Will Reign Supreme Content has rapidly become an all-encompassing term. At its core is expertly crafted copy that speaks to the reader. It incorporates great storytelling, research, backed statements and facts, calls to action, and humanization. It’s neither simple nor impossible to create. And it will reign supreme in 2015. We predict that content will become the new face of SEO. It will be at the core of everything we do, and it will organically build rankings. It will be the best SEO practice, a timeless optimization tool that will never go out of style. What’s more, it comes in a variety of forms. There’s no such thing as black and white content. It comes in every form possible. And as we step into the New Year, here are some content ideas to contemplate: Create and manage a blog, if you aren’t already. Repurpose your content into new mediums like infographics and videos. Expand into content types that are friendly for on-the-go audience members, like podcasts and videos. Blast newsworthy press about your company to the media via a press release. Mobile Traffic Will Invade Epicnewmedia.co.uk predicts that mobile will be king in 2015, and we have to agree. We saw an epic boom in mobile traffic and search in 2014. The predicted migration happened, and you’re the proof. Just stop and think about how many times you use for mobile device—whether phone or tablet—to conduct an Internet search or check out a recommended website. We use our mobile devices to stream and track content of interest. We’re practically chomping at the bit to check in on our social media. Mobile traffic will invade in 2015, staking a permanent claim to SEO. In other words, mobile searches are about to overrun desktop. If you’re one of the thousands of businesses still ignoring mobile content, it’s time to change. If you don’t, you’re in for a sobering experience. Currently, 48 percent of users who land on a business website that doesn’t perform on mobile take it as an indication that the business just doesn’t care. We predict this percentage to grow in 2015. Ignore mobile traffic needs, and you’re setting your business up failure. Be Social or Die Here’s the thing; Google uses social media to rank your website. In fact, social media affects your SEO in numerous ways: Social sharing equates to link building. Link building has always been crucial to SEO. The more social sharing you receive, the more potential there is for an inbound link. Social sharing equates to activity and authority. The more your content is shared over social media, the more activity Google sees. As more people share, comment on, and discuss your content, Google takes note. Before you know it, you’re seen as an authority. Google gauges the activity as something worthwhile, … Read more

7 Ways Content Can Get You High Content Rankings in SERPs

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7 Ways Content Can Get You High Content Rankings in SERPs

You’ve heard it repeated over and over, ad nauseum. It’s a cliched phrase. And yet, we’re going to say it again anyway (with enthusiasm!), because it’s true: Content is king. (Or queen ?.) In other words, it’s kind of a big deal. Without content, you can’t rank on Google’s first page.  Nope. Never. It’s not going to happen. This is because content does two things for search engines: It provides information on what a web page is about, plus a roadmap for how the other pages within the domain relate to each other (called “interlinking”). It answers a user’s questions and/or fulfills their search intent. Both contribute to rankings. To find out whether your page nails either one of them, search engine crawlers will look for major clues – dead giveaways that your web pages provide exactly what the user and the ‘bots are trying to find. If you don’t have content on your website, these ranking clues will be nonexistent. That means your site and pages will not get indexed, let alone hit the coveted top 10 or top 5. Content MUST be at the base of your rankings strategy. According to Search Engine Land, “Get your content right, and you’ve created a solid foundation to support all of your other SEO efforts.” Content is not only king or queen; content is key. If you want high rankings for your content and pages, you have to have it. How does it work? Why does it work? Let’s explore. 7 More Reasons High Rankings in SERPs Depend on Content 1. Content Tells Search Crawlers What Your Page Is About How do search crawlers figure out what your page is about? How do they know which keywords to rank you for (and if your page is worthy of ranking)? They crawl the entirety of your page, from the code to the content.  The code helps distinguish your page, but much of the clues to what your content is about comes directly from it (Google calls these clues “key signals”).  The parts of your content that help organize the information for readers is also helpful for crawlers. Think: Headers Sub-headers Keywords and keyword placement Link anchor text Hierarchy of headers (H1s vs. H2s and H3s, etc.) 2. Content Is a Framework for Natural Keyword Use Once upon a time, you could repeat a keyword on your page with zero context and rank for that term. According to Moz, this meant search results had extremely limited value. Conversely, think about search results today and how relevant they are – how they answer the questions you have or fulfill your information needs. This is possible because search engine engineers have improved the way results match up with user queries. Search ‘bots don’t just look for instances of keywords anymore. Instead, they look at:  The context of those keywords/phrases The relevance of the content to the user’s search terms In other words, natural keyword use matters more than your primary keyword appearing X number of times on the page. And, of course, the best foundation for natural keyword use on your page is to write comprehensive content on your topic. 3. Content Gives Users What They’re Looking For Think about doing an online search. Most of the time, when you type some keywords or a question into the search box, you want something. Content fulfills your search intent, depending on what you’re looking for. According to Yoast, search intent falls into four categories: Navigational Informational Transactional Investigational Wordstream defines the three major ones: Each type of search intent has corresponding content: Navigational: Homepages Informational: Guides, how-tos, articles Transactional: Sales pages, landing pages Knowing your audience and building content to match their search intent will help your site pages rank well. For Google, especially, satisfying users is #1.  4. Updated Content Keeps Your Website Fresh Another factor for ranking that search engines look at is freshness – has your site been updated recently? Is someone taking care of it? Or has it been abandoned or forgotten? The freshness of your content tells search crawlers that somebody is still keeping house. The lights are on, and yes, you’re home. Publishing fresh content helps crawlers establish your relevance, but updating old content is helpful, too – it keeps the information you offer up-to-date and accurate. Plus, according to Moz, “Websites that add new pages at a higher rate may earn a higher freshness score than sites that add content less frequently.” This means publishing fresh content consistently will work in your favor for higher page rankings. 5. It Keeps Users on Your Page Longer The longer visitors stay on your page before returning to a search engine, the more relevant it must be to their needs. Makes sense, right? This concept is called dwell time, and it could be a Google ranking factor. Image via WebpageFX Similarly, “time on page” is the amount of time the user spends on your page before navigating off-page (the destination doesn’t matter). Both concepts are relevance-related. That means, if your content fulfills your user’s search intent, they’ll spend more time on-page. If your content isn’t relevant (or, let’s face it, if it sucks), the user will leave more quickly – sometimes immediately. If you keep your visitors on-page longer, it’s a good indicator of your page’s relevance, which can contribute to better rankings. How do you create topically relevant pages? With quality content. 6. It Builds Connections Between Your Site Pages Search crawlers can’t index your pages without links between pages. These links help the ‘bots understand how your entire site ties together and the various page hierarchies you’ve put in place. Content with links to other pages on your site helps the ‘bots AND your users make connections between them. These are “breadcrumbs” that show the way, so to speak, so both crawlers and users don’t get lost navigating your website. Without a defined link structure, your website will become a maze of pages that are too hard to navigate. … Read more

The Next Big Thing in SEO Content? Using Citations and Internal Linking

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The Next Big Thing in SEO Content? Using Citations and Internal Linking

Citations and internal links are nothing new in the world of content or search engine optimization (SEO), but they are certainly starting to draw a lot more love and attention from SEO gurus and content marketers across the Net. Back at the beginning of the year, we published our top 10 SEO predictions for 2014, and prediction No.5 was all about link building. It’s interesting to see how link building has quickly evolved from a super important need for external links to a want for internal ones. Link building is a well-researched strategy with industry experts like Moz and KISSmetrics backing it fervently. But with so much controversy resting on whether or not linking was dead at the outset of the year (it wasn’t), there wasn’t much talk about the specific kinds of link building that should be leveraged. So, here we are speeding toward the final quarter of the year, and we’re already seeing noteworthy attention shifting to both citations and internal link building (using high quality, natural resources) as the next big thing in SEO content. The Scoop on Citations In the world of SEO, two types of citations are leveraged to boost optimization in an effort to promote more favorable search engine rankings. You have citations and co-citations. Now, we all know what citations are, or at least we hope we all do! We see citations everywhere in content. They’re used when we borrow direct quotes, images, media, etc. Citations are all about giving credit where credit is due. Not only do they make the difference between proper credit versus plagiarism, but they are also send out signals of credibility and even authority. Here’s a good example of a standard online citation: According to KISSmetrics, a “co-citation is when one website or band is mentioned (not linked) by two different sources.” Therefore, unlike the more classic citation we just displayed, we would mention KISSmetrics, avoid a direct quote, and not provide a link. Both types of citations serve as probable SEO boosts, and here’s why: Backlinks Send Signals: When we cite a source and provide a link back that source, it can work in our favor. Think of it as a give and take relationship. You give a link back with a citation, the source takes it. In like manner, the source gives a link back to your content as able. This sort of backlinking sends a signal to Google, telling the search algorithms that your content must be worth taking not of since other websites are linking back to you. Citations Build Credibility: The main reason we incorporate citations in our content is to build credibility. I could tell you all day long that you need to eat more vegetables because it’s healthy, but chances are you won’t take me too seriously. Now, if I give you hard evidence proving that eating more vegetables is crucial to staying healthy and you can check up on my research by visiting and checking my sources, you’ll suddenly take what I say a lot more seriously. This is how credibility is built. Opinions are great, but everyone has at least one. People want credibility and authority, two qualities citations rapidly build. Citations Build Authority: What is an authority? When it comes to content, every industry on the planet is populated with experts who are considered authorities on the subject matter they specialize in. In the online arena, our businesses and brands have the unique opportunity to establish themselves as experts, authorities within our given industries. One means used to strive toward this establishment is citations. Cites are not merely a means of avoiding illegal copying or plagiarism. They are a means of proving our dedication to fact over opinion, truth over fiction. Citations have been around since our high school days. Most of us didn’t get a true taste of them until college, and the manner in which we cite online is often far less formal than academic standards. However, there are still some forms of online content that benefit from a return to the more formal format of academic citations. Yet again, such formality can serve to increase credibility and build authority. Regardless, this basic ingredient to quality writing is quickly gaining attention as a new trend in SEO. Citations are a means of drawing some favorable attention from the search engine gods, attention that can ultimately increase your ranking. If you aren’t actively leveraging citations in your content, it’s time to start. Internal Linking Is In Regardless of your current SEO expertise, it’s beneficial to brush up on the basics of internal linking before we briefly identify how it will impact SEO. According to Neil Patel in his KISSmetrics article about internal linking, this type of link building has three main purposes: First, it aids in website navigation. Second, it defines both the architecture and hierarchy of the website. Third, it distributes two important qualities throughout the site: Page authority and ranking power. Internal links were a Moz search ranking factor for local search, and now they appear to be gaining value. Internal links have all sorts of benefits, but they are starting to house SEO value. According to Search Engine People, Google’s iron fist has tightened around link building techniques, and, as a result, on-site optimization (internal linking) has taken off. Unlike the incorporation of external links, internal links are almost always natural, thus making them more positive to favorable SEO versus external linking. You can still link to websites outside of your own, but there’s a great deal to take into consideration nowadays. If your link profile becomes over-optimized with non-brand keywords and anchor-text pointing readers to deep landing pages, chances are Google isn’t going to be happy. On the other hand, internal links are a strong means of building a sturdy link profile without much risk of over or improper optimization. Here’s how internal links can boost your SEO strategy: Create a Juicy Menu: The navigation menu of your website is the perfect … Read more

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