With all the changes over the past year and a half with Google, people don’t know what to do. SEO strategies that worked before are now getting sites penalized. Content that used to be great for getting ranked is now considered problematic.
How do you create content that will still rank well in another year? How can you anticipate all the black and white animals Google wants to throw at webmasters? The short answer is that you can’t predict what Google will do next month, much less next year. However, there is one very simple way to create timeless content that will always do well in the search engines. Simply create content that readers love to read.
The first thing you need to do is set up a website. Find a good hosting option by reading reviews online and then get a domain name. Most hosting sites now offer domain registration as a part of their packages. Once this is done, you can either set up a blog on your own or hire someone to do it for you.
Writing For Your Audience
Creating quality content isn’t about keyword stuffing or trying to write what the search engines will find most useful. While keywords do have a place in online content, they should not be the focus. Instead, look to your audience for inspiration.
Your articles should be useful to the reader. As soon as you produce something that solves a problem for someone, you have captured that person’s attention. They will probably want to share the solution to their problem with others. At this point, the search engine becomes secondary, because your post is going viral on social media.
Is your message abstract or random? That’s not a good way to go with a blog. Every piece that you write should have a common focus. It’s a good idea to create a mission statement for your blog. A mission statement is just a few lines stating what your blog’s purpose is.
Are you trying to educate people about your products or services? Are you planning to solve problems for a specific set of people? Knowing exactly why you are writing will help you tailor each article to your audience.
Tips for Getting Read
Writing content for readers may be a good SEO technique, but it also means you really need to grab those readers by the eyeballs. Don’t let them go. Here are a few tips for keeping readers around.
Be friendly. Write a letter to a friend and make that your post. Your audience should feel as though you are someone they know.
Get active. Verbs are a great way to make readers feel like they need to get going and do something. Aim for action and you’ll have readers who do more than just read your post. They will go out and do what you’ve told them to.
Make them feel. Your readers will continue to read your writing if you make them feel strong emotions. Write to get their imaginations going. Make them want something better for themselves.
When you write for people, your content will never go out of style. With every change that Google makes, the really useful content is what floats to the top. Make sure you write content for a human audience and you will be at the top, too.