Content Development
SEO Content Development Strategy
SEO is not magic. In fact, websites that consistently perform well in Google search rankings tend to share a few qualities in common. One of those qualities is a steady supply of fresh, valuable, authoritative content in the form of either blog posts, articles, white papers, case studies, instructional videos, and more.
That’s why it’s important to incorporate a content development strategy—which may also be referred to as a ‘content marketing strategy’ or ‘inbound marketing strategy’—into your customized SEO plan. A strategic content development plan can be a key factor in equipping your website to deliver the results that move the needle for your business.
But before you dive into randomly creating a bunch of new content, it’s important to understand why content development is such an effective strategy for your website, what content should accomplish for your website, and how you can implement an effective content strategy.
Why is content a good SEO strategy?
Your website is (and should be) the “home base” for your business’s online presence and online marketing. Consequently, the information there—whether it’s in the form of blog posts, product and service descriptions, or informational videos—is critical to your SEO success.
Specifically, content development on your website...
Builds site authority. The content on your website is like “showing your work” on your fourth-grade long division homework. It shows that you have experience and expertise working in your field.
When you answer detailed questions about your service or product based on verifiable knowledge of the industry, it signals to search engines that your website is a good option to share with people who have questions relevant to your business. They know they aren’t sending searchers (who are the search engines’ customers!) on a wild goose chase for information. Your content provides valuable information up front.
Keeps your website “fresh” and evolving. Most businesses regularly change and evolve. You want to show your customers (and the search engines who have the power to direct potential customers to you), that you are relevant and have an up-to-date knowledge of your industry. Content marketing allows you to do just that.
Creating fresh, new content is extremely relevant for potential customers, and it signals to search engines that the business is staying abreast of a changing industry.
Is an opportunity to optimize for semantic search, including longtail and related keywords. Increasingly, searchers are using longer queries when searching for information online. This trend is expanding even more with the rise of AI (artificial intelligence).
As a result, it’s important for businesses to get specific about what niche their business addresses through longtail and related keywords. Content on your website gives you a platform to address this niche so that the right audience can find you and do business with you!
What content should accomplish for your website?
Now you know why a website content marketing strategy is an effective tool for SEO. But what are the specific things that content should accomplish for your website?
Content will bring in more website traffic and potential customers. Although content will help to communicate your brand in a more compelling way to customers who are already on your website, it will also increase the traffic to your website.
Fundamentally, content is a business tool that should drive results. By increasing the number of people who interact with your business online and increasing the quality of interactions for site visitors (which drives conversions), content is a key factor in driving bottom line results.
Content will communicate your value proposition. Your content provides an opportunity to go beyond basic product or service descriptions and give your user a true impression of the values that drive your business.
Your value proposition will distinguish your business from others, and content on your website provides you with an opportunity to share that value proposition. A clear and compelling value proposition will go a long way in building trust and confidence with your target audience.
Content will create a good user experience. Search engines are constantly refining their algorithms to make sure that searchers have a high quality and valuable experience. Through product reviews, helpful descriptions, informative blogs, and more, the content on your website can help create the high quality experience search engines are trying to create for their users. In other words, using content to create an excellent user experience directly benefits your SEO and online visibility.
How can you start to implement a content strategy?
There are a lot of benefits to implementing a content strategy as part of your customized SEO plan, but success is not automatic. It requires a comprehensive content development PLAN, which takes into account your goal, the value you wish to project, and the targeted steps required to earn your website a prime position in search rankings.
Here are a few tips to keep in mind when creating a content strategy:
Create a strategic content goal. An important first step is to know your audience and have a goal for every piece of content that is created. Make sure that you are working toward current SEO milestones (it’s an industry that changes frequently and quickly). This will make sure that the work you put in will result in success for your bottom line.
Answer questions with your content. People use search engines because they have questions. As a result, the most relevant content is designed to directly answer questions.
In fact, by shaping your content to provide clear and succinct answers to common question, your content can even show up as an answer in Google's “People also ask”. This not only provides users with any easy option to narrow down broad search queries, but almost guarantees higher positionings and click thrus.
Providing straightforward, relevant content can also help your website show up in Google's “featured snippets” and Knowledge Graph. With competition for search rankings increasing every day, getting your content to show up in featured snippets can be a powerful way to drive conversions.
Incorporate social media. Content is a valuable way to drive your social media traffic to your website. Amplifying your content on your targeted social channels can be a powerful medium - as part of your content development strategy – for engagement, interaction, and lead generation.
Provide content consistently. Content development is not an overnight process. It takes time to build both an audience and authority for your website. In order to reach this point, you need a strategy that puts all of your online properties to work.
I can provide you with the tactics, training, and services you need to keep your content marketing on a consistent trajectory. Ready to get started?