TIPS FOR WRITING SEO FRIENDLY BLOG POSTS

As a Fort Collins SEO company, we can tell you that blogging is one of the most effective tools for someone looking to generate site traffic. Well-written and properly optimized blog posts can extend the reach of a website to meet the needs of those within their target audience and even those beyond that circle. It creates an opportunity to provide expanded and detailed information for pertinent, sought after topics.  

Although a blog has the potential to help your business in many ways, it cannot be effective if it is not written skillfully and strategically. Knowing the tips needed to write an SEO friendly blog post isn’t complicated, but to be most effective, writers should take some key considerations into mind. A carefully curated blog post will appeal to readers and attract the attention of search engines.  

SEO Friendly Blogs Should Be User-Friendly First

Optimizing a blog for SEO should focus primarily on readers. At its core, the purpose of SEO is to create content that both search engines and users can find and benefit from. In fact, Google’s algorithms have been updated to promote the value of content over the volume of it. When creating a blog post, concentrate on offering focused, high-quality content that carefully integrates strategic elements of SEO.  

Don’t Limit Yourself on What a Blog Post Can Be

  Blogs are not meant to be long-winded pieces stuffed with keywords and useless information; they are meant to provide a resource for common questions, concerns, and points of interest. A blog can be SEO optimized and still be useful, entertaining, and appealing. It can include a variety of material in addition to informative articles such as tutorials, answers to frequently asked questions, product or service reviews, promotional information, and much more.  

Articles That Are SEO Friendly

1. Put Some Thought Into It

  In order to produce quality blog posts, you must invest time into researching topics that your audience would like to read. Think carefully about the purpose of your post. What question(s) are you answering? How will it benefit readers? What is the overall goal of the post for both reader and website? What topics will you cover to fulfill its purpose?  

2. Do Your {Keyword} Research

Your blog cannot attract the attention of readers without a message in mind and it cannot attract the attention of search engines without keywords in mind. While you shouldn’t ever stuff your post with keywords, you should carefully incorporate relevant keywords that will help search engines understand what your post is about so they can display your post on a relevant results page. Make sure you’ve included your keyword or keyword phrase in your article headline so that readers and search engines alike know the purpose of your post right from the start. You should be able to naturally incorporate your keyword (or keyword phrase) and keyword variations in your post as you are writing.

3. Create Your SEO Page Title and Meta Description

Your SEO page title is what users will see in a snippet preview in search results, like this one: The title provides search engines and readers with key information on what your post is about. If you use WordPress and have Yoast SEO installed, you would enter you SEO page title as shown below: An effective SEO page title should only be 55-60 characters long so that it will be visible in its entirety. It’s important to include your target keyword(s) in your title, and then provide a general yet interesting description of your post and let readers know what they can expect from the content through your meta description. A good meta description will entice people to read your post by clarifying what the page is about. It should be short, sweet, and to the point. If possible, include your target keyword in the description.   

4. Structure Your Article

Structure keeps the writer on track, but it also helps keep readers engaged to continue reading. In general, a blog post should have an introduction, a main section and a conclusion. The main section of your post can be divided in many ways, but it keeps sub-categories connected and thoughts in line with your message.  

5. Divide Up the Body Content

Using smaller, targeted paragraphs in your body content is far more effective than one large chunk of words. Paragraphs make blog posts easier to read and easier to follow. You can also incorporate videos, images, or other media elements to make the content more interesting and valuable.  

6. Use Headings

Headings allow you to maintain the structure of your post as you divide up the body content. Headings make paragraphs easier to follow, but they also provide search engines with clear insight into the purpose and value of your post. Keep in mind that each paragraph does not need a heading; use headings to divide groupings of thought.  

7. Add Links Strategically

  Blogs are a great way to incorporate internal linking to services or products you offer or to previous content on your site. Through linking, you can also associate yourself with other trustworthy sites that are either relevant to your topic or authoritative in your field to add value and reliability. Add links when pertinent, not simply for the sake of doing so.  

8. Choose an Optimal Length

Research has shown that blog posts with a longer word count are more likely to appear in search results. That being said, length does not guarantee ranking. The quality of the content within the post is by far more important and should play the biggest role in the quantity of words. However, longer content creates better opportunities for valuable content, keyword variations, and linking.  

9. Post Regularly

A blog on your website is most effective with regular posting. It shows your site is active and reliable. Hiring an SEO company, such as Red Rocket Web Specialists, can help you create consistent blog posts with the right quality of content.