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If your organization markets any type of written content online, words like algorithm, SEO and engagement probably elicit some type of reaction (whether it be voluntary or not, positive or not). It’s an age-old question, at least in this day and age: How do we create good content? That is, content that people are seeking, and content that Google will actually show them? How do we write in a way that satisfies algorithms, and more importantly, satisfies humans? DemandJump – an SEO platform and a strategic partner of AOE - recently hosted a “Writers Roundtable” webinar with some of their in-house content writers to provide some tips for tackling this challenge.
Keywords
With DemandJump hosting the webinar, you had to know keywords were going to be mentioned! Keywords/phrases are of the upmost importance because they are how readers will find your content. How are they searching for certain topics? SEO tools and platforms like DemandJump can provide insight into various relevant topics for your organization so you can see how people are searching for them, as well as what related content may look like. A key takeaway from the webinar was to look for patterns and similarities among the keyword data to see what the content should focus on.
Pillar-based marketing
Pillar-based marketing is DemandJump’s signature strategy, so of course this topic was mentioned as well. Your pillar page is the cornerstone page that provides an overview of a broad topic, and sub-pillar pages are related pages that dive into the specifics of that topic. The panelists really stressed consistency throughout content—and referencing back to your pillar page when creating the subsequent sub-pillar pages and blogs that branch out from it.
Readability
Keywords can help algorithms push your content out to readers, but once they get to your site, they’re going to be looking for answers. If your content looks like it was written for and by a bot, they’re going to go elsewhere for those answers. One of the panelists shared a statistic that the average person reads at an 8th grade level. With this in mind, clarity is important. The information should be accessible. Straight answers to questions satisfy both humans AND algorithms. Bullet points and bolding key messages will help draw the eye down the page. Bad grammar will discredit you as a source and make you look sloppy; use a free tool like Grammarly to help avoid mistakes.
Aim to educate
People who are using search engines are most likely in “research mode” and want to learn. Your site offering educational content is just as (if not more) important than offering transactional content. Prove that you’re a subject matter expert (or talk to one!) The panel offered up ideas on what to ask a subject matter expert:
What does the day-to-day look like?
What is something people misunderstand about [insert topic]?
Where do you go for your information?
What pain points does [your organization/service/product] solve?
To learn more about DemandJump, reach out to the AOE team. We would love to collaborate with you on your content marketing strategy using these innovative tools.