Writing excellent copy is both a crucial element and a significant challenge in every SEO strategy. SEO is continuously evolving because the requirements of the search engines are evolving too. As more and more people are producing excellent content, and with the vast rise in digital activity since the pandemic, Google is looking for long-form high-quality, and original content. If you’re looking for the best tips and tricks when trying to produce high-quality lengthy blogposts, then following Google’s E.A.T guidelines will allow you to stay on top of this ever-changing landscape through the remainder of 2021 and beyond.
However there is some good news in the fact that some SEO copywriting tips are fundamental, and therefore won’t change much. Here are ten vital tips that will help keep you stay on top of the current required standards for seo content writing.
1 – Meta Content
Think of meta titles and descriptions as a form of “free PPC” for Google – missing out on these crucial elements of content writing could be costly. Although meta descriptions offer little to no SEO value, they massively contribute to the consumer’s journey from the search engine to your website. If your meta-description is clear, cogent, and persuasively details what the searcher will experience on the webpage then it should match the intent of that searcher. Similarly, if your meta description is a strong call-to-action, it is more likely that the consumer will click through to your intended webpage.
Always remember when you are writing meta content to hit the maximum character limit, but once you hit the max, make sure you stop. Google recently changed its restrictions on meta title and meta description length allowances; title tag length is now 70-71 characters and meta description is 160 characters per line. If your copy exceeds these character limits, Google is likely to truncate the text. The sweet spot for a descriptive, but not truncated, meta description is between 50-160 characters.
So there’s plenty of room for you to really sell your content with valuable keywords.
A key thing to remember when writing your meta description is to not “describe” the post or content. Try to really make someone click through to your content with an engaging meta description, don’t be bland.
2 – Make the content relevant to your embedded links
If you are using phrases such as “click here” or “read more” to link pages then stop. Instead use phrases that are useful to the reader and helps them find what they are searching for – and make the most of your potential link juice.
If your content and link phrases are relevant, interesting and descriptive then it increases its SEO value. This is a fantastic way to link back to your pages from blog posts etc. It helps to think like a search engine in this perspective. When you link to another page on your website, you are telling the search engine that the target of your link is a relevant piece of content that will interest and aid the experience of the searcher. Making sure the text matches the end source is an excellent SEO practice that notifies both people and crawl bots about the content they are about to see.
3 – Always write for your readers
The reader always comes first. That is the golden rule. Always write for the reader first.
Quite simply if you write content that isn’t aimed at your audience or is unreadable, you will never get a full return on your investment from it. No matter how high your page ranks if the copy you have produced is unreadable then people are unlikely to explore your website further or follow links to products and services.
Another important element to consider is writing content for RankBrain – the third most important ranking algorithm in Google’s extensive line-up. Producing content that flows well, is of use to the reader, features images/videos; will definitely score well with RankBrain will in-turn help boost the SEO value of your content.
4 – Make your content useful to the reader
Very similar to the point above, make your content useful to your audience.
Always make sure that the content you produce offers answers to your readers’ questions or offers them something useful then fantastic. If not then don’t be surprised to see all the traffic going to the websites of your competitors.
Always create informative, compelling content which provides value to your audience and you will reap the benefits every time.
5 – Be a storyteller
No we are not saying we want you to become Stephen King or Charles Dickens, but telling a story with your content will be vital to retaining your audience.
Including storytelling elements in your content and can really capture the attention of your audience and allow them to become interested in what you are trying to sell. If they engage with your copy then the chances of your SEO score and search ratings will improve.
Bruce Bendinger describes copywriting as ‘verbal carpentry’ as well as ‘salesmanship’. It is the copy on a page that prompts the searcher to continue searching, exploring and engaging with your website and the solutions it provides.
6 – Engaging visual elements
Most people think that including screenshots of videos/images in their content is the same as including the actual video or image, it isn’t.
While a screenshot can help you make your point they are hard to navigate back from and could result in your reader leaving your website. But if you use embed codes for videos, images and tweets; these help break up large bodies of text while also being interactive for your readers.
7 – Create engaging headlines that draw in the reader
If your content gets clicks it will be moved further up the search engines, but there are so many great articles that don’t get the clicks they deserve as the headlines don’t grab the attention of the audience. Always remember the headline is the first impression and you only get one chance to make a first impression.
If the headline is good the clicks will come and the search engine results will improve. If your webpage or blog post is ranking 3rd or 4th on Google, there is a distinct possibility that it could generate more traffic than the page which occupies the 1st position on Google purely by having a snappier headline. This again stresses how important it is that the end-user comes first when crafting copy. You’re attracting a person first, not a robot.
8 – Be mobile friendly
We all know that the majority of internet browsing is now done on the move. People use their mobile phones and tablets more than ever. So have content that is properly optimised for mobile users is essential.
Google has moved to putting more strength on the mobile-friendly ranking signal, making it more critical than ever to have mobile-friendly content. Fast load times, correctly optimised images, mobile-friendly navigation and minimal JavaScript are essential to providing users on the move with a valuable experience.
9 – Sitemaps
Sitemaps have been around for many years. Are they any less important in 2021? The answer is absolutely not.
What is a sitemap? A sitemap is essentially a roadmap of all the most important pages on your website. It makes the act of crawling your website incredibly easy for the search engines and tells Google how your website is structured.
Give your website a head start on the competition by creating a sitemap, this will help Google rank your content much quicker and offer better results. Sitemaps can easily distinguish between news updates, posts, pages and projects and is a great way of notifying Google that you’re adding fresh content to your website.
10 – Don’t stuff your content with keywords
In recent times the percentage of keyword density which Google will see as “stuffing” has been put to 3% which may not sound like a lot but it actually is. ‘Keyword Stuffing’ is an industry term that denotes the action of overloading a webpage with repeats of the same keyword to manipulate the search engines. This is old hat SEO and is a big no no in the eyes of the Google overlords. Don’t rely heavily on your keywords to pack out your content.
The relevance of the content is just as important as the keyword. So if your content is engaging and relevant; you can dot your keywords throughout. Allowing you to rank well without having to insert a keyword at the end of every sentence.
