When it comes to content writing for any part of your company’s SEO campaign, a common challenge marketers and content professionals face is optimizing content for both human audiences and search engines like Google. Achieving both these goals simultaneously is definitely possible – you just need the right basic tools and approaches.
At Upward Engine, our SEO solutions for our clients, who span from local companies in Salt Lake City, Utah to national campaigns, include a variety of content marketing services. Copywriting strategies are among these, whether you’re looking for sales copy, site copy or various other forms of content. Here are some basic approaches to writing for both Google and your audience using engaging content, plus conversion tips and general copywriting strategies to consider.
Chasing User Intent
When we talk about user intent, we’re referring to the “why” behind a given search term or query entered into a search engine. It’s important to understand user intent when crafting content because it allows you to tailor your messaging and approach to better meet the needs of your target audience – while simultaneously optimizing your content for search engines.
Generally speaking, copywriting professionals break user intent down into three types:
- Informational: The user is seeking information about a specific topic.
- Navigational: The user is looking for a specific website or webpage.
- Transactional: The user intends to make a purchase or complete some other type of action.
Understanding these different types of intent can help you determine the best keywords and phrases to use in your content, as well as identify any potential gaps in your messaging. For example, if you are trying to sell a product but only focusing on informational keywords, you may be missing out on reaching users who are ready to buy.
Readability
Another key feature that both search engines and human audiences care about when reading your content is readability. This refers to how easy or difficult it is for a person to read and understand your content.
To improve the readability of your content, consider the following tips:
- Use simple and clear language: Avoid using complicated jargon or technical terms unless they are necessary for your topic.
- Break up long paragraphs: Long blocks of text can be overwhelming and hard to read. Instead, break them up into shorter paragraphs with descriptive subheadings.
- Use bullet points or numbered lists: These can help organize information and make it easier to digest.
- Use appropriate formatting: Use bold, italic, or underlined text sparingly for emphasis. Avoid using all caps as it can be perceived as shouting.
Importance of Keywords
One vital way to ensure your content is easily readable and scannable is by incorporating relevant keywords throughout your text. Keywords are words or phrases that are commonly used in web searches and can help attract the right audience to your content.
When creating content, it’s important to conduct keyword research to identify the most relevant and high-performing keywords for your topic. This will not only improve the visibility of your content but also make it more engaging for readers who are searching for those specific terms.
Incorporating keywords into your headings, subheadings, and body text can also break up long blocks of text and make it easier for readers to scan through your content. However, be sure not to overuse keywords, as search engines will view this as a negative practice called “keyword stuffing” and will actually penalize your content.
Internal Links
Another great way of optimizing content for both search engines and human audiences is by including internal links within your content. Internal links are simply hyperlinks that direct readers to other pages or posts on your website.
By adding internal links, you not only provide further information and resources for your readers, but you also give search engines an indication of the structure and hierarchy of your website. This can help improve the overall ranking of your site in search results.
When adding internal links, make sure they are relevant to the content you are linking from and use descriptive anchor text (the clickable words) so that both readers and search engines understand what the link is directing them to.
External Links
In addition to internal links, it’s also beneficial to include external links in your content. External links are hyperlinks that direct users to a page on a different website. These can provide additional information or resources for your readers and also help to establish your site as a valuable source of information.
When choosing external links, make sure they are from reputable sources and relevant to the topic you are discussing. This will not only benefit your readers but also improve the credibility of your own content in the eyes of search engines.
As you can see, there are several ways to ensure that your copywriting strategies are tailored toward creating engaging content, both for search engines and for your human audiences. At Upward Engine, we’re here to help with these and various other content marketing services – contact us today to get started!