When we’re implementing our content marketing strategies, this question always pops up. How can I write content that ranks higher in search engines and is appealing to people at the same time?

You probably know that there are different writing techniques depending on what we want to achieve with our piece of content. Sometime we want to sell a product, sometimes we want to attract people to sign up to our newsletter, etc. But when it comes to SEO-targeted content, some people out there forget that apart from Google, real people are going to read their content and, at the end of the day, it’s up to them to do what you want them to.

Although some experts keep telling us that content must be optimised for search engines, I personally think (and I’m sure that some of you won’t agree with me) that it’s even more important that our content is focused on our readers. They are the pillars of our content and thanks to them we’ll achieve (or not) our objectives. And then, we’ll have the time to adapt it to the search engines. Do you want to know how I write content for people and search engines? Then, stay with me!

1. Adapting your content to search engines

Yes, I know I have just told that people first, and then search engines. However, I prefer to set up the structure of my piece of content in first place so I can focus on my audience later on.

If we want to rank high in the different search engines, we must understand their algorithms. Let’s take Google as an example:

[Tweet “Google takes into account the authority and relevance of our content.”]

Let’s analyse this sentence:

• We understand authority as the number of links, shares and engagement that point at a certain page of our site. (If we want people to interact with our content, we also need to write for them, see why it’s that important?)
• We understand relevance as the use of certain words during our piece of content that will show if our content is relevant for that specific topic. In other words, we have to target our content through keywords that Google will analyse.

And all this is translated into a content of quality:

[Tweet “If you want to become number 1 in Google, you have to create quality content.”]

Ok, great, but how do you structure your content for search engines?

I could talk about how marvellous SEO is and the most effective techniques to promote SEO in your content. But if you look up SEO on Google, you will have thousands or even millions of blog posts to read about this already. However, I’m going to tell you this simple but effective SEO tip that will help your content rank higher:

Behind SEO, there’s always a purpose. So, ask yourself: what do I want to achieve with this piece of content and how am I going to do it?

This simple question and approach to your content will help you create an effective content strategy. Think about relevant keywords to include in your content, but do not forget about your audience and their needs!

These are some of the aspects that I take into account when I write for search engines:

• Headlines: remember to include your keyword in your title and be creative so you can get more clicks through social media.
• Content: remember to include your keyword in the body of your content. But don’t be a robot and write the same keyword 5 times in the same paragraph, people won’t enjoy that!
• Metadescription: take some time to write a targeted metadescription and, also, include your keyword.
• At least, a quality picture: visual content helps a lot. Although you want to include different pictures (screenshots to explain certain point in your content, for example) through your content, take some time to include a good picture
• Site speed: if your site takes a while to load, it will lose some points with Google.
• On-site links: try to include relevant links in your site; Google will take that into account (and so will your clients if they need more information about any of the points of your piece of content).

Apart from this, Google also pays attention to some external factors such as the links that point back to your page and engagement and shares of your community.

You can also have a look at this image:

BUT, I’m afraid this won’t work unless…

2. How to write for real people

And, believe me, this is the most important part of this blog post. SEO will only help, but this will make your content work. And this is the key:

[Tweet “If you want to create effective content, find “the voice” of your brand.”]

But, what’s the voice of my brand?

• The voice is how people within your brand communicate with your readers. How do you want to convey your messages? Do you want to use a formal or informal style? How technique is your content going to be? Your voice will show that we’re not robots, that there are real people behind our content that care about their readers. And your readers will notice it.
• Your voice will differentiate you from your competitors. That’s why you can’t just copy the content that read in other blogs and that’s it. That’s not going to work, because it wasn’t you who wrote it. Your loyal readers will eventually familiarise with the way you write, that’s why your writing must connect and touch them.
• It will build trust within your community. They’ll know that the person behind the content is always there, offering the best content in a way that connects with us. And once they know you, they’ll know that they can rely on you.
• And when people trust you, it will easier to persuade them. But we don’t have to do it for this reason. If my readers know that can trust me because they have been following this blog for a year, they will know that if I launch a new product for them, it’s going to be a reliable product, and my chances of selling it in my community are going to be higher.

Ok, you convinced me, but how can I found the voice of my brand?

Try this simple exercise. Take three brands that you follow and describe them with three words. For example:

• Apple: innovation, design, quality.

And now have a look at your brand. How would you describe it in three words? Try to ask people around, specially if you know some of your readers.

These three words will tell you:

How formal or informal you should write. If you are going to talk about technical topics, you can do it from different points of views depending on your audience. Depending on the topics within your content you may also consider using colloquialisms, slangs or even swearing.

But remember that you’ll have to do it in a way that connects with your audience.

The power of storytelling

Stories promote readability. Remember when you were reading a book and you could stop reading, even when you finished the chapter and needed to go to bed? Well, something like this happens with content when we’re telling a story.

We’re talking about human emotions: frustration or excitement that our readers can be living in this exact moment. They’ll feel identify with your content and won’t be able to stop reading.

If you want to find the perfect story for your brand, think about the challenges that your readers are facing day by day. How your products or services could solve these problems? If you achieve to solve the pain points of your audience, you’ll have already won half of the battle!

 

How do you plan your content? Do you use any specific technique to write your content? I’d love to hear from you!

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