04 Jul The Basics for SEO Writing

Search engine optimization is the lifeblood of any blog, website or e-commerce site. It is what guarantees reach, and it’s an integral component of the cocktail for deriving conversions. However, while it was in the past sufficient to just fiddle with a bit of SEO, today, on the backdrop of sophisticated algorithms and refreshed SERP requirements, that approach no longer cuts it. 

So, what works and how do you go about it? Read on to find out 

• Level up your keyword game

Keywords are the primary determinants of your search engine ranking; if you are going to rank higher, you need to research on current trending keywords and then integrate them into your SEO strategy 

• Stop words matter too 

In contrast to keywords, search engines are trained to ignore stop words like ‘to’ and ‘a.’ knowing what stop words are currently relevant and refraining from incorporating them into your tags, URL or image text is also important 

• Keep it natural/organic 

The formative days of SEO are long gone, so packing a web post full with keywords won’t pull in any organic SEO results. If anything, it negatively affects your SEO, since it is usually associated with high bounce rates, an indicator search engines take into consideration when building results. 

• Accurate meta descriptions and titles are a must 

Meta tags function as roadmaps for search engine crawlers. When present in the right format and stuffed with essential keywords they help search engine bots determine the relevance of your site to particular keyword niches. What this means is you get a better chance to rank higher. 

• SEO-rize everything 

Make sure to label virtually everything appearing on your web pages with relevant SEO tags. From images to videos, presentations, PDF files, literally everything. Search engines only comb through text when sorting out rankings and the only way to make accessory content count is to tag them with SEO text. 

• Link building is equally important 

Links provide extra juice to whatever SEO strategy you’re implementing. The way search engines work, sites with many inbound links are thought to contain qualitative content since inbound links indicate that other webmasters are referencing your page. That’s why you need to invest the time and effort to build your inbound dofollow links organically. Also, make sure to integrate links of former posts in current posts – that’s equivalent to ‘self-juicing.’ 

• You’ve got to maintain relevance 

Don’t be a Jack of all trades and master of none. Instead be the blog or website that’s an authority on a particular niche. Ever noticed that top results for most searches are usually authority websites dedicated to a specific niche. This is what you should be aiming to achieve. Be the authority!

• Track your performance and make adjustments 

Implementing strategies and tweaking posts is just one side of the SEO coin. Tracking these changes, determining if they worked, and making readjustments is the other part. Keep a keen eye on your key performance indicators (KPI’s), the likes of the number of unique visitors, bounce rate, time spent on site, cost per click or click-through rates, more specifically when you’re implementing a change. If a change leads to improved results as per the readings for these metrics, then it’s a keeper. Otherwise, it might need further tweaking. 

Overall these are the essential things you need to make your text (and in extension website) SEO friendly. Remember, however, that if all this feels too complicated, you can always opt in for a professional SEO content writer. You can start with reaching out to me and if you need a full SEO overhaul, I have partnered with some excellent agencies.