SEO Content
SEO Content: Brief Summary
Search engine optimisation, or SEO, is the practice of optimising a website, web page, or piece of online content, in order to improve its rankings on search engine results pages. Essentially, it is the process of maximising visibility on search engines like Google, in order to reach a larger audience. Today, SEO is considered an important aspect of online marketing, because search engines are often the first touchpoint between a business and its customers.
With this in mind, SEO content can be described as content that has been either created or optimised with the intention of improving its search engine visibility, or the visibility of the website it appears on. Creating SEO content requires an understanding of search engine algorithms and how to influence them. As a result, the task of writing or creating SEO content is often outsourced to professional marketing, copywriting or video content experts.
SEO Content: Detailed Description
Search engine optimisation is a form of internet marketing, based on optimising web pages and other online content, in order to enhance visibility on search engine results pages (SERPs). As a concept, SEO is based on the viewpoint that most users will enter a search term into a search engine, and will only look at results that are displayed near the top of the results. By improving a page’s ranking within SERPs, it becomes more likely to attract visitors.
In order to optimise content for SEO purposes, content creators need to have an understanding of how search engine algorithms work, and how search engines like Google actually decide which results to display and what order to display them in. As such, this means that SEO content requires a certain degree of manipulating those algorithms, in order to ensure they treat the content positively and display it near the top of their rankings.
SEO techniques can be broadly separated into two categories: black hat SEO practices are practices based on deception, or practices that search engines disapprove of. An example of this is including hidden text on the page, which visitors cannot see, but which search engine crawlers pick up. The antithesis of this is white hat SEO practices, which are practices that are in-keeping with guidelines from search engines and feature no deception.
One of the best examples of a way content can be optimised, in order to have a positive influence on search engine rankings, is the use of keywords within content. Here, writers or marketers identify specific words, or search terms, which are used by people trying to find businesses like them on Google. These words or search terms are then inserted into an article, blog post, video description, or a web page headline, so that the algorithms pick it up.
In the early days of search engine optimisation, keyword density was one of the major search engine ranking factors, meaning that websites could benefit from the practice of keyword stuffing, where keywords are inserted into content as much as possible. However, search engine algorithms have evolved and keyword stuffing is now penalised severely. The use of keywords is a white hat technique, but keyword stuffing is considered black hat.
Content can also be optimised for discovery through search engines in a number of additional ways. For example, consistent URL structures, mobile optimisation of pages, and including internal links to other site pages are all ways to improve visibility. Within a blog post or article, the addition of high-value external links to sources of authority can also be beneficial, as can gaining backlinks from other websites.
SEO Content: Best Practices
Original Content – To get the best possible results, it is important that published content is original and unique. Duplicate content, which can also be found elsewhere on the internet, is penalised by most search engines, resulting in a lower placement on search engine results pages. The best writers and SEO experts also understand the importance of creating content to be read by people, rather than by search engines.
New Content – Google’s algorithms reward new additions, so try to publish new content on a regular basis. This is the reason why many SEO experts recommend attaching a blog to your website, because a blog with regular new posts can have a positive bearing on the overall search rankings of your entire website. Regular content can be contributed by in-house staff, or can be outsourced to copywriting professionals.
Keyword Usage – Although keyword stuffing is now penalised by Google, the practice of including keywords within content is still important for SEO. Pay attention to keyword density and avoid using a single keyword too much. However, you should aim to include keywords within the main content body, within the headline, and within the meta description. Keywords can also be used in video titles and image tags.
High-Quality Links – An SEO strategy can be enhanced through intelligent use of links. Include both internal and external links within your content, but make sure the links are relevant, valuable and either link to other pages on your site, or to high-quality external web pages. You should also try to encourage other websites to link to your content too, as in-bound links will also help to boost your SEO strategy.
Local SEO – With more search queries now originating from smartphones, and with location technology having improved dramatically in recent times, local SEO is now more important than ever. To maximise local search results, try to include your location or address on as many pages as possible, using a standard format. It is also worth securing your Google ‘My Business’ page to assist in attracting a local audience.
Quality Content – There is a common saying among SEO and copywriting experts: “content is king”. While there are various ways to enhance the visibility of on-site content, there is no real substitute for creating high-quality content, which is easy to read and genuinely useful. This kind of content is more likely to be read to the end, and more likely to be shared on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter, which can boost SERP rankings.
Conclusion
Search engine optimisation is the process of optimising web pages and other content, in order to maximise visibility on search engine results pages. Therefore, SEO content is content that has been optimised with this purpose in mind. The creation of SEO content requires an understanding of how search engine algorithms work. Typical features include intelligent use of keywords, the inclusion of internal and external links, and originality.