The Importance of Content

Do you know what content marketing is and why it should be worked on in your SEO strategy? Learn how to create relevant content so you can make your site an authority.

 

What is content? 

Content is everything a person seeks to answer a question. In other words, content can be structured information in any support: videos, texts, images, audios, etc.

 

Users look for content that brings relevant and good quality information, thus, when we know that it does not add value, it considers the source to be less relevant and will not use it for future searches or will disregard the content, seeking other sources.

 

In this context, search engines seek to evaluate content to prioritize the sources that will best suit the user's behavior, prioritizing the sources that provide and supply. This quality assessment is represented in the results of searches on the SERP (Search Engine Results Page), being prioritized as the sources that tend to be most relevant to the user.

Content for search engines

In 2016, Google took another step towards valuing the user first. Previously, search engines could only display pages directly related to the search term. Now, the intelligence of the algorithms is also able to interpret searches and find pages that are not necessarily linked to the keyword used. Therefore, having a repetition of keywords in the content is no longer enough.

 

In addition, search engines are increasingly improving to understand and show more relevant results on the subject searched, delivering quality content to the user who actually delivers the solution to the search. This is:

 

• With real information;
• According to the user's search;
• That offer the solution sought;
• Content without keyword stuffing (excessive use of keywords);
• Specialized content that really addresses a subject with quality and foundation.

 

This change reinforces the importance of thinking about the persona first, then focusing only on the keyword. The content must solve users' queries in a clear, direct and complete way.

 

Without relevant content, Google and other search engines can punish your site for bad practices or simply give it less importance in the ranking, causing your site not to appear among the top positions in the SERP.

 

Fact is: if you want to see your website or blog on the first page of searches, you need to learn about this subject.

Keyword Stuffing:

Keyword Stuffing is the name given to keyword excess, that is, an exaggerated repetition of keywords to manipulate search engines.

 

Current search engine algorithms are capable of detecting this technique, classified as Black Hat, that is, a punishable bad SEO practice (deletion of the page from the index). Therefore, when creating your Meta tags and content, beware of excessive keyword repetition.

SEO and content marketing

Content Marketing is a strategy that is part of Inbound Marketing, that is, it works as a marketing to attract customers through the creation of relevant content.

 

Therefore, Content Marketing is a marketing method that does not directly promote the brand, but attracts the target audience by bringing solutions to their problems. This creates value for people so that they create a positive perception of the brand, generating more business.

 

The main goal of SEO is to deliver the best content possible to the user. This includes several points such as:

 

• Quality of information;
• Ease of reading;
• Ease of finding content in searches;
• Content relevance and coherence in relation to what was sought;
• Between others.

 

Therefore, content marketing and SEO are practically two sides of the same strategy. This strategy consists of giving the persona what they are looking for, in the best possible format. And every day, search engines become more efficient in a mission: to prioritize the user experience.

Content Authority

For your content to be authoritative, you must be a reference on the subject, giving value to it. In other words, to create authoritative content you need to really know what you're talking about. Therefore, there is a big difference between content and valuable content.

 

For example:

 

We assume you are looking for a digital marketing agency. Do you prefer an agency that has appeared several times in your search and has good references, or one that you've never heard of before?

 

I believe that your choice is with the agency that won your trust, showing that it understands the subject, that is, that its content has authority.

 

Therefore, the intent of valuable content is to deliver the user the solution he needs. And if you write shallow, unimportant content, the user will have a bad experience. But if your content has authority and delivers what the user is looking for, it is very likely that he will look for you later and generate a negotiation, whether with products, services or content consumption.

 

In 2018 Google launched the Medical Update. In this update, the mechanisms also started to take into account the authors of the content, managing to define whether that person or site is a reference in the subject covered or not. Check out more about Google Core Updates.

 

For example: if an author writes about finance and has several contents on the subject, which generate access, the robot understands that this author is an authority on the subject of finance.

 

Therefore, having quality content is essential for both users and search engines.

How to create relevant content

To create the best content and be relevant, you should think and prioritize this following topics:

 

1. You need to attract and keep people on your page and approach content with quality.
2. It is important to be a reference in what is said. The user does not want to read wrong content or with information irrelevant to his solution.
3. A content can contain subjects that can affect a user's life, especially when they address subjects related to health and finance, for example. Therefore, it is important that there is real, relevant information and no fake news.
4. Spelling errors give the reader a lack of confidence.
5. Be authoritative on the subject. In addition to attracting users, make your page a reference for a certain type of content. Being a reference gets more people to visit and mention your site. This creates authority for your domain, especially when it's referenced by domains of authority.

 

A good Content Marketing strategy is to define your objective, know who you are dealing with and use the right keywords to attract these users. That way, you'll be able to deliver value to the right person at the right time. Understand better:

Goal setting

Every content marketing strategy starts with setting goals. They can be increasing the number of visits to the blog, increasing the number of subscriptions to the newsletter, improving traffic, increasing the length of time on the site, etc.

 

KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) are performance indicators that are used to measure the progress that a company has in pursuit of the established goals.

 

Its main features are:

• Relevant;
• Measurable;
• Simple to understand;
• It must lead to positive action.

 

For example, if you set a goal of increasing blog visits, your KPI might be the number of unique users per month who access your blog.

Have a persona

A buyer persona is basically a character that represents your ideal buyer, and your ideal buyer is the persona that you have for your business. When a persona is defined, it will help the company better understand who its customer is and what they need, guinding to understand what kind of content should be produced and how to approach them..

 

It is necessary to understand that every search arises from a need. Therefore, understanding the psychology of research is very important. 

 

When creating the persona or choosing keywords, put yourself in the place of whoever is researching. How would the user search? What does he need? Why is he searching? What does the user want to find?

 

When we put ourselves in the place of the user who performs the search for information, we start to understand much better what our contents need to be relevant. And if the user finds what he needs, he will stay on that site much longer. All of this influences the relevance of your page.

Define keywords

Keywords are the terms we type into the google search bar. When writing an article, we need to find out what are the most searched keywords on the subject we are going to write. If you have a website about beer, for example, you will need to have keywords related to the topic on your website.

 

However, to analyze the best terms and get closer to the language used by users, a study of keywords is carried out based on the search volume of each one of them, which is the average of monthly searches for the terms analyzed, and the difficulty of positioning.

 

These keywords must be used strategically on the website pages, meta tags and content.

 

The study of keywords is based on the terms that users search for a particular product or service in search engines. For example, "Gluten Free Beers".

 

‘Short tail’- short keywords, high search volume. Example: "Beers".

‘Long tail’ - long keywords, high conversion rate. Example: “Best Wheat Beers”.

 

To perform keyword research, there are some tools and extensions that provide data on search volume, placement difficulty, competition, among other information. Check out some options:

 

Tools/ websites: Ubersuggest, Semrush, Keyword Planner, KW Finder, Answer the Public

Plugins Google Chrome Web Store: SEO META in 1 CLICK, Keyword Surfer, Keywords Everywhere

 

But we cannot write an entire article repeating the same words over and over again. That's why Google is smart, and understands word variations.

 

So we must define secondary keywords.

They are fundamental to help in ranking the content and can be used as a term for internal linking or even a subtitle if they fit, for example:

 

Main keyword: Sustainable food;

Secondary keywords: sustainable food, food and sustainability,

food and the environment, how food production harms the environment

environment.

Text structure

To help you build a text, we have separated some guidelines. Content construction tips (for text introduction, body, and completion) do not necessarily need to be followed (especially with regard to the number of characters), but they are guidelines to help you write.

First Paragraph or Lead Introduction

1. It is the most important, where you will convince (or not) the user to read your text to the end;
2. It's the introduction;
3. It must be a summary;
4. Explain what the reader will gain by reading your text, how he will solve their problems;
5. It must have a differential in relation to the competition;
6. Must contain the keyword preferably in the 1st sentence. So that neither google nor the reader has any doubts that this content is relevant to this keyword;
7. It should contain about 230 characters.

Text Body

1. Keep in mind that the user is searching on google and wants to find an answer within minutes. It detaches from text easily, and often skips paragraphs and parts of text;
2. It's not a linear read;
3. We were taught to write long texts, with long paragraphs, long and complicated sentences, but that is not what the internet reader wants today. So be objective.
4. One of the important points to increase the relevance of the content in search engines is through the improvement of the user experience.
5. The second paragraph should be about 500 characters long, and part of the keyword;
6. Use short sentences in the text, with a maximum of 20 words — these are not rules, they are suggestions. A balance needs to be struck between using short sentences and long sentences. Too many short sentences leaves the text "broken", as well as very long constructions;
7. Use simple words that make it easier to read, that is, don't use sophisticated vocabulary;
8. Opt for a full stop whenever possible, rather than lengthening the text with lots of commas;
9. Avoid and if possible not use the semicolon in the body of the text;
10. Short paragraphs (minimum three full lines, maximum six lines half filled, or 300 words);
11. Use subtitles (H2) in texts longer than 300 words;
12. Organize information into content blocks with subtitles;
13. Use at least two subheads: the 1st with the keyword, the 2nd is not necessary. Subheads break up the text and make it easier to read;
14. Minimum of words: the texts must contain between 400 and 600 words for a content. Remembering that: The amount of words is not more important than the relevance of the content. Don't write more just to reach the number of characters. Be clear, direct and objective;
15. Words in bold: it is interesting to draw the reader's attention to an important subject in the body of the text, and does not interfere with SEO.

Conclusion Paragraph

1. Address what the reader learned from reading your text;
2. You can use a 'call to action', interact with the reader asking their opinion about the content, invite to share or suggest a new reading;
3. Exemplify what the next step is: now that the reader has solved all the doubts about the content, which way to go? 

 

Complements

● Don't forget to work the content hierarchy! Taking care of the organization of information is very important for the understanding of the user and search engines. Therefore, be sure to use heading tags correctly. They serve to delimit titles and subtitles and range from H1 to H6.

● Always remember to use internal links in your content. A well-crafted internal linking strategy is one that manages to distribute your site's authority on pages with relevance.

● You can also use the Link Building strategy as long as the URLs are also relevant and true.

● There is a Semrush extension to analyze content. In it, you can get a grade for your text, based on: originality, readability, brand tone, SEO and keywords.

How to use the Semrush extension for content

Download the free extension by clicking on this link. You will need a Google account as the extension works from Google Docs.

Open Google Docs and insert your content into it. Then you will click on:

Complements > Semrush SEO Writing Assistant > Show

 

Then, in the right corner of your screen, something like the image on the right will appear, showing the note and the features that can be improved in your content. 

 

 

If you have a subscription to Semrush, this evaluation can also be done in the tool.

In the toolbar, in the left corner, look for “Content Marketing”. Then click on “SEO Writing Assistant”. Click on the “Analyse my text” button.

 

 

Then you'll see a space to insert your content, like the image below. Remember to organize Heading tags!

 

 

On the right side of your screen will appear an information field to fill in with keywords and location. Just fill in, click on “get recommendations” and check your rating!

 

 

Plus: also check out this Neil Patel article with some tips to use when creating titles for your content.