This post was written by Sam, a blogger who specializes in website conversion rate optimization and other online sales conversion services.
As Google continues to emphasize the importance of quality content over tricky SEO practices, the complexion of Internet marketing is slowly changing. Where once every self-proclaimed guru on the Web was eager to sell you a million backlinks for one low, low price, there is now a consensus that bloggers need to help each other and allow pages to develop as naturally as possible. The old methods are the fastest way to get a website shuffled to the bottom of search rankings, and browsers have come to expect engaging, insightful writing instead of a poorly-crafted sales pitch. These are five ways to keep your content interesting, bring in new customers and hopefully make a sale or two in the process.
Know Your Audience
This first rule is an essential one for any marketer. You should have a good working knowledge on any niche you get into. Even more importantly, you need to understand those that are new to the topic as well as the experts. By knowing what people of different experience levels are looking for, you’ll be better able to gear your products and information to them. People who feel like you’re meeting their needs are also more likely to stick around for more, giving you a loyal and voracious readership.
Solve One Problem Per Post
One of the biggest mistakes bloggers make is to wander over several topics in a single post. Not only does this hurt your SEO, but it’s also a waste of potential future posts and makes it harder for users to track down a specific piece of information. Every article you publish should form a tightly-woven narrative that explores a single problem and then either solves it or points to a product that can. Try creating a loose outline before getting down to the real writing, and you may find that your posts both sound more professional and convert better.
Keep it Evergreen
Evergreen content is more difficult in certain niches such as sports and technology, but whenever possible a post should not be easily dated. Although Google values fresh content, there will always be a place for solid information that stands the test of time. If your niche is horse racing, for example, it’s better to write about how to handicap a major stakes race than discuss a particular running of that race. You can always write both posts, of course, and get the best of both worlds. Both time-oriented and evergreen content can be profitable on the Internet. The proper ratio on your blog will depend upon your niche and style.
Refresh Published Content
When you do write content that is likely to age quickly, you can enjoy the immediate benefits of news-related searches and then go back and rewrite it to be more evergreen. Similarly, keep your permanent pages on Google’s radar by updating them occasionally with new information or developments. This is especially important if you are relying on searches to bring traffic into your website. Walking the fine line between fresh and outdated is one of the hardest things a blogger must learn, but it can mean the difference between long-term success and failure.
Worry About Readability Over SEO
Finally, pay close attention to the one company that can sink your business: Google. The days of poor-quality link-building and keyword stuffing are over; developing communities and providing real value to searchers have become the new SEO. If your content is worth reading and you reach out to your fellow bloggers, you’ll see your rankings improve and cultivate a reader-base that is truly interested in what you have to say. Many bloggers are finding that this is a vast improvement over the old days spent stressing over one percentage point of keyword density, so keep an open mind and you might find your blog succeeding more than ever before.
One of the biggest mistakes bloggers make is to wander over several topics in a single post. Not only does this hurt your SEO, but it’s also a waste of potential future posts and makes it harder for users to track down a specific piece of information. Every article you publish should form a tightly-woven narrative that explores a single problem and then either solves it or points to a product that can. Try creating a loose outline before getting down to the real writing, and you may find that your posts both sound more professional and convert better.
Keep it Evergreen
Evergreen content is more difficult in certain niches such as sports and technology, but whenever possible a post should not be easily dated. Although Google values fresh content, there will always be a place for solid information that stands the test of time. If your niche is horse racing, for example, it’s better to write about how to handicap a major stakes race than discuss a particular running of that race. You can always write both posts, of course, and get the best of both worlds. Both time-oriented and evergreen content can be profitable on the Internet. The proper ratio on your blog will depend upon your niche and style.
Refresh Published Content
When you do write content that is likely to age quickly, you can enjoy the immediate benefits of news-related searches and then go back and rewrite it to be more evergreen. Similarly, keep your permanent pages on Google’s radar by updating them occasionally with new information or developments. This is especially important if you are relying on searches to bring traffic into your website. Walking the fine line between fresh and outdated is one of the hardest things a blogger must learn, but it can mean the difference between long-term success and failure.
Worry About Readability Over SEO
Finally, pay close attention to the one company that can sink your business: Google. The days of poor-quality link-building and keyword stuffing are over; developing communities and providing real value to searchers have become the new SEO. If your content is worth reading and you reach out to your fellow bloggers, you’ll see your rankings improve and cultivate a reader-base that is truly interested in what you have to say. Many bloggers are finding that this is a vast improvement over the old days spent stressing over one percentage point of keyword density, so keep an open mind and you might find your blog succeeding more than ever before.
When you do write content that is likely to age quickly, you can enjoy the immediate benefits of news-related searches and then go back and rewrite it to be more evergreen. Similarly, keep your permanent pages on Google’s radar by updating them occasionally with new information or developments. This is especially important if you are relying on searches to bring traffic into your website. Walking the fine line between fresh and outdated is one of the hardest things a blogger must learn, but it can mean the difference between long-term success and failure.
Reach. Reach is an estimated number of persons or potential customers that can be reached via an advertising or marketing medium or campaign. It can also refer to unique or qualified visitors each month to a website or to the audience of a broadcast during a specific period of time.
Analytics. The collection and analysis of data used to manage the effectiveness and performance of marketing programs, with the intent of maximizing the ROI of marketing dollars spent. This is frequently done through the use of various software programs designed for this purpose.
