SEO Guidelines for Writing Content

In order to have a working SEO strategy for a small business, you need to keep abreast of the best SEO  practices. There are about 200 different factors that Google considers when ranking a page. It follows then that there is no hard and fast rule when it comes to SEO. You cannot find a one-size-fits-all strategy; rather, you need to find a good mix of the best practices.

There’s no need to be overwhelmed though because there are simple practices you can start doing from day 1 that will pave your way to SEO success. Take note first that it’s not enough to simply publish a kick-ass content in the hope that your SEO goes up. You need to write content that people will want to read; however, it’s not the end-all and be-all.

Here are some guidelines when it comes to content writing:

1. Techniques – A good written material has proper sentence structure, impeccable grammar and proper spelling. Aside from all these, it must engage the reader.
   1. Write content that your reader hasn’t read anywhere else. Be careful not to use content from another website and just change a few words here and there to make it look original.
   2. Use the keywords properly. Dropping them every so often no longer works.
   3. Try to write at least 500 words on every page that you want to rank. A few sentences with lots of pictures, negative space and symbol may be aesthetically pleasing but they will not go up the search engines. Search engines need to know that your page is an information thrive.
   4. Remember that when people search on Google, there are looking for something specific. Make sure that your page can provide this.
2. Data Driven Approach –Know which keywords to use. Nowadays, whenever people need information, they go to Google. Know what keywords people use when they search in Google. Look at the Google keyword planner to see what the people are looking for. Armed with this data, you can be the expert who can provide answers to their concerns.
3. On-page Optimization – It’s imperative that search engines can see that your page is about. Make sure that your title tag includes your primary keyword. Use unique and keyword-specific phrases. If you are going to use images, name them according to your keyword direction.