You’ve heard the expression, “content is king.” This common saying lets you know that at the very heart of search engine optimization, quality content is probably the most valuable tool you can use to get your business noticed. High ranking content should be created to reach your target audience. When you can connect with the right people at the right time and in the right way, you will automatically see your site ranking higher. Here are seven effective tips that will help you to do just that.
- Use Targeted Keywords
Your content needs to attract a very specific group of people. This means that the words you choose must include key terms and phrases that your target audience will use to search out potential businesses. Before writing any content, take the time to learn who you’re trying to reach, what information they need, and why they need it. This will help you choose keywords that your target audience will use to find you.
- Optimization
Whether you are comparing online vs. off-site SEO, the basics are the same. Even though you may know the right keywords to use, you must also know how to use them. In order to get better rankings in the search engine, your keywords must be placed in the right place in your content. Ideally, you want it located in the title, the headings and/or subheadings, the first paragraph, the last paragraph, meta descriptions, image descriptions, and the URL.
- Readability
Your content has to be readable. When someone clicks on your link, they are looking for some information. Make sure that the information you provide is useful to your audience so they will stay on the page and read it. The longer a person stays on your website the better it looks to Google. This is referred to as the dwell time or the amount of time it takes from the click on a search result to when the visitor clicks back to the results page.
- Topic Clusters
Topic clusters are made up of a collection of interlinked web pages that are all related to one specific topic. Each website included in the cluster is linked via several related pages. There are three primary elements to a topic cluster. 1) Pillar content, which consists of information relating to a broad topic, 2) Cluster content, which provides more detailed information about a specific topic, and 3) Hyperlinks, which allows the readers to click on specific keywords to get more information on the subject.
- Enhance for Faster Page Speed
When your site is enhanced so that your pages and content load faster, you’ll get noticed more. When your pages are too slow to load, users will become frustrated and will more than likely leave your site before they get the information they need. On average, at least 50% of visitors will only wait three seconds for a page to load. This means that you are losing at least half of web traffic simply because of a slow page, which can do serious damage to your rankings.
- Take Advantage of SEO Friendly Tools
Creating quality content is not easy. It requires a lot of specific information and know-how that the average person is not familiar with. To make the most of this content, don’t shy away from taking advantage of the many SEO friendly tools that are at your disposal. Tools like SEMrush, which can help you to do effective keyword research; Quora, which helps you find great ideas for new blogs that will draw people in, and WordPress SEO, are just some of the tools that can help you strategize for better rankings.
- Use Visuals
According to one research study, content that includes visual imagery gets as much as 94% more views than those without images. People are hard wired to notice and respond to visual stimuli. By including quality images that are related to your topic you get a much better chance of drawing people in and holding them there. With visual imagery, your content will be more professional and authoritative so it is definitely worth the investment.
No matter what field your business represents, the secret to higher ranking lies in good quality content. By using SEO friendly content and applying these basic techniques you can see your website catapulted up the charts so your target audience can find you.
