In addition to Dann’s work in video games journalism, freelance work and web design he also dabbles in search engine optimisation from both design and content angles. Here’s a little section of the site where he shares some free, easy to apply SEO tips and tricks for bloggers that he has picked up on over his decade-long history of working in online media.
Below the free tips, there’s also a chance to pay for a PDF that’ll give you a fantastic foundation for creating visible content that can start to rank on search engines. It costs less than a decent bottle of wine, and a lot less than filling up your car, so why not give it a look?
SEO content writing basics
- When it comes to writing content for the masses, remember that you have to write it so that it answers a question. Search Engines – Google being the largest – are built to answer questions, so if you are not answering questions with your writing then Search Engines won’t present your work as answers to questions. Sites like Google are designed to give the best results for people’s queries, and while Google has recently loosened the noose for catching spam sites, spamming and trying to trick search engines will not work, and will result in manual actions against you.
- Once you’re done deciding which question your content answers, no matter how vague that may be, check out the competition before going ahead. News sites, like the BBC or The Guardian, have active readers and people who will travel directly to the site to read content there – that is not the case for the vast majority of websites out there, which instead compete over keywords, search terms and even local traffic. It’s critical to be aware of what you’re up against when writing in an already heavily-contested marketplace.
- There’s no such thing as too much information, but going off on tangents is dangerous. When it comes to building articles that answer a question you want to give large, comprehensive answers; you’ll also want to link out to other useful resources. But, you must try not to ramble around the point too much. If you’re writing about Dinosaurs then don’t sidestep into discussing modern Alligator variants – you’ll lose reader attention, and Google’s spiders are trained to mimic the ‘average’ reader. Maybe follow up with that Alligator thought, and tie the two posts together with internal links.
But, SEO is so much more than content. Layout, linking, keywords are just the tip of the iceberg. Good SEO is possible without plugins, and it’s possible without coding knowledge, but you need to create a page that search engines see as delivering solid answers to questions and doing it quickly and efficiently. Adding more to the confusion, Google regularly updates their expectations from websites and have found new ways to rank sites based on not only their content but structure. Keeping up to speed with it all requires either a lot of reading, a lot of contacts, or an expert on hand.
If you’re interested in learning more then I’ve created an extensive introduction to writing great content for search engines. You’ll find more great tips – like above – in there, as well as an outline of what modern SEO is, what different types of SEO there are and even an extensive glossary that will help you understand the conversations around SEO. It’s sure you help you in your journey to learn more about what you need to do to be found online.