Do you want to improve Google rankings with optimised content, but you don’t know where to start? Well, you’ve come to the right place! In this article, I will go through 17 incredible tricks that will allow you to master SEO copywriting.
For most people, writing is a real choir. As if that wasn’t bad enough, you also need to improve these pages, so they have a chance of ranking within search engines. To be good at this job, you have to understand Google’s algorithm and what people look for from a specific piece of content.
SEO copywriting is one of the best ways of increasing organic web traffic, and it gives you a great foundation to adopt Google Ads management and full SEO services. That being said, it should be the focal point of your web optimisation efforts.
What is SEO copywriting?
Basically, this term is used to describe content creation for the main purpose of reaching top spots within search engine results pages (SERPs). When writing an optimised copy, you focus on specific keywords that would lead potential visitors to product pages, blog articles, homepage, and more.
Not only can optimised copy increase the traffic for a specific keyword, but it can also allow you to rank for a higher number of keywords.
What is the connection between SEO copywriting and Google rankings?
Google has a sophisticated algorithm that allows it to “decipher” natural language in content and assign value according to its relevance and quality. It relies on natural language processing technology to understand the meaning behind a page’s content.
Back in the day, you could easily manipulate the system to get better SEO results. However, as the algorithms advanced, it has become harder to do so. Nowadays, you need to create informative pieces of content that would provide real value to readers in high relevance to their search query.
17 tips for SEO copywriting
When creating any type of content, you should always put emphasis on users as people who will ultimately read what you’re writing. At the same time, you also need to create content that can be understood by Google bots (also referred to as crawlers).
Perfectly optimised copy caters to both readers and Google’s algorithm. Here are 17 things you need to keep in mind when creating optimised copies.
Research and draft
- Finding an optimal keyword
The process of SEO content creation always starts by choosing the ideal keyword. When performing keyword research, you shouldn’t focus on phrases with the most traffic but instead on those that you can optimise for.
People often make a mistake by going with the most popular phrases. Unfortunately, these terms are very competitive and often impossible to rank for. This is especially true for new websites as well as a website with low authority. No matter how good your articles are, you are unlikely to gain traffic for such phases.
Determining whether or not you can rank for a keyword is a bit tricky. To do so, you need to establish a keyword difficulty score beforehand. Perhaps the best way to perform the analysis is by comparing the keyword’s score to your website’s domain authority. If your DA supersedes or is equal to the keyword difficulty score, you have a chance to rank.
Generally speaking, these phrases are usually longer, or they might be educational in nature. No matter the case, they can give you a real chance to gain some quality web traffic.
- Check the best articles
To understand what kind of content ranks for a particular keyword, you should check the top results in Google. You can utilise these pages to reverse engineer content and create pieces that are similar to it.
Make sure to focus on things such as the length of the content, meta descriptions, and page titles. The point of this exercise is not to rewrite other people’s pieces but instead to figure out what Google is looking for in a particular phase.
- Try to answer search intent
We can classify all search intent into four groups: transactional, informational, commercial, and navigational. Depending on the category, you need to create a piece of content that would satisfy particular user intent.
When talking about transactional phrases, Google is interested in articles that focus on services and products. The user is looking to buy something, so you need to fulfil that need.
Informational keywords should answer a particular question. These are blog posts such as how-to articles, top lists, and resource-focused articles.
- Create a proper outline
There will always be some differences in terms of outlines and paragraph structure. However, your task is to establish the topic and general talking points. If you do this correctly, the keywords are placed naturally within the content without you having to overly optimise the text.
Although there are people who don’t like to use outlines, they are one of the best ways to create a properly optimised and naturally-sounding copy.
- Focus on quality no matter what
No matter the type of content, Google is always looking to rank the highest quality copies. But, how do we define quality in this case? There are several factors you need to consider, such as relevance, links, loading speed, etc.
When looking for specific signals, the search engine’s algorithm puts special emphasis on:
- Originality
- Comprehensiveness
- Expertise (both in terms of sources and information)
- Spelling and grammar
If you manage to meet all these criteria, Google will perceive your content as high-quality.
How to write SEO copy
- Gather the information
Based on everything we’ve seen over the years, there is a clear correlation between high-ranking content and content length. Among others, this is due to the fact that longer pieces are more likely to satisfy Google’s quality requirements, as I’ve mentioned in the previous tip. Furthermore, longer pieces are more likely to gain social media traction and extra links.
So, make sure to gather all the necessary info and be very thorough. You can utilise various tools that will show you what kind of topics are related to your main topic. That way, you can include a few paragraphs on these subtopics to increase the overall relevance of the content.
- Think about Passage Ranking
Passage Ranking was introduced in early 2021. With it, Google focuses on certain passages of text and not necessarily the whole content. For example, when you ask a specific question, the algorithm returns an answer based on a certain line or paragraph of text. That way, you can get the best possible answer to your query.
With Passage Ranking, the same piece can rank for numerous keywords. So, by creating a proper outline, you have a chance of gaining extra traffic.
- Utilise tools
By utilising the right content tools, you can achieve much better results. Software such as SEMRush, SearchAtlas, and Clearscope are just a few that can help your optimization efforts while eliminating the guessing game.
In most cases, content tools extrapolate data based on top ranking pieces and make a list of suggestions as to what you can add to your own content. If you’re able to utilise these phrases naturally, this should have a major impact on your rankings.
Some of these tools can provide overnight results, increasing the number of impressions and boosting the rankings.
- Make sure to answer relevant questions
You can also gain a lot of traffic by answering specific questions that people are asking in regards to the topic. The best way to find these FAQs is to simply browse Google. You can also check the “People Also Ask” section to gain additional insights. Alternatively, you can read the autocomplete options.
Proceed by adding these questions to your piece and providing immediate answers below.
- Utilise your main keywords and synonyms within headings
Although you should always try to include the main phrases within the headings, you can do a good job with synonyms and related keywords, as well. If possible, try to utilise all the phrases that are semantically related to your main keyword.
Google search engine utilises natural language programming to decipher these phrases and assign appropriate relevancy. Simply adding them to your headings should be of great help. It sends a powerful signal to the algorithm without having to rely on keyword spamming.
- Shy away from long paragraphs and sentences
Readability is one of the most important things for users. Being able to skim through content is crucial regardless of the topic you’re writing about. Also, you need to make sure that the piece is not too technical or academic so that people can understand it.
Another thing that is important is grammar. Having too many typos or poorly phrased sentences deters visitors. Ideally, you should create shorter paragraphs and sentences. Once you’re done, make sure to reread the content and fix any errors you might have. Tools such as Grammarly can help you with that.
Additional copywriting tips
- Utilise rich media to segregate content
Breaking up the content is very important for readers. As previously mentioned, keeping them engaged sends a strong signal to Google’s algorithm showing that this article is of high quality.
Adding things such as infographics, videos, and images is a great way to manage your paragraphs. Although these elements are not necessarily important to Google, they are important to readers, which provides passive effects.
Keep in mind that things such as pictures can slow down the loading time of a page, thus acting against you. So, you will have to optimise them as well.
- Add hyperlinks with the right anchors
Links and their anchors are some of the most important ranking signals for the Google search engine. Always link out to an authoritative website. You also need to consider some of the best practices pertaining to anchor texts:
- An anchor needs to be relevant to the specific page.
- Using an exact match phrase is good, but don’t overdo it.
- Don’t use generic phrases for anchors.
- Whenever you can, rely on contextual anchors.
- Think about navigation
Jumplinks and the table of content are a great way to skim through content. They are especially important for long pieces with lots of subtopics. These elements are crucial for enhancing user experience, which is why the Google algorithm perceives them as highly valuable.
Final touches
- Ensure that the algorithm understands the focus of the article
After a few days, you should check Google Search Console to see what kind of keywords you’re getting impressions for. It is very important to receive impressions for your target phrases. If that is not the case, Google has probably misunderstood the focus of your content which is why you will likely have to edit the piece.
It takes time for content to reach the top spots in SERPs and get all those juicy clicks. Nevertheless, impressions can serve as a good initial indication that your article is on point.
- Check the meta tags
Nowadays, the Google search engine is able to rewrite metas and titles on certain occasions. Unfortunately, this only happens in about 20% of the cases. Regardless, you shouldn’t rely on Google to fix your mistakes. Instead, you need to make sure that the algorithm understands the focus of your copies by providing optimized meta tags.
Keep in mind that meta tags can be updated every couple of months. If a piece manages to reach page one of Google but still can’t get enough clicks, you should analyze metas and titles to determine what is wrong and how to fix it.
- Make content revisions
Sooner than later, most content becomes obsolete or outdated. Whether you’ll need to change the information or keyword focus, there is a good chance you will have to perform some revisions after a while. Every once in a while, analyze the pages that are underperforming or that were written a long time ago. Revisions are especially important for dynamic industries or for articles that discuss the latest trends.
Last thoughts on SEO Copywriting
Most people don’t realise this, but posting a piece on your site doesn’t end the process of SEO copywriting. There is a whole on-page SEO checklist you need to consider. Content needs to be checked every once in a while and updated accordingly. By performing this little step, you make sure that the piece remains relevant for years to come.
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