8 Best Ways Crafting SEO-Friendly Content

SEO is one of the aspects of blogging that I both enjoy and hate. For the past few months, I’ve had a lot of fun applying on-page SEO to old posts. To stand out amidst the noise and attract the right audience, you need to master the art of crafting SEO-friendly content. Search Engine Optimization (SEO) has become an integral part of any successful online presence, driving organic traffic and boosting visibility in search engine results.

Throughout my first year of blogging, I concentrated on SEO and applied it to my blog posts. Originally, social media was my primary source of traffic; but, for the last two years, organic search has been my major source of traffic, and I continue to receive hundreds of them each month. Not thousands yet, but I always appreciate it! That is why, beginning in 2023, you will notice me being less active on social media since I want to focus on creating in-depth content and working behind the scenes.

Crafting SEO-Friendly Content

Writing SEO-friendly content requires a strategic approach that combines creativity, relevance, and technical optimization. By understanding the principles behind effective keyword research, content structuring, and optimization techniques, you can unlock the potential to rank higher in search engine rankings and connect with your target audience in meaningful ways.

In this blog post, we will delve into the world of SEO-friendly content writing, equipping you with the knowledge and tools to create compelling, engaging, and discoverable content. Whether you’re a seasoned content creator or just starting your journey, this guide will help you navigate the ever-changing landscape of search engine algorithms and unleash the power of SEO to drive targeted traffic to your website.

Content Research

Before embarking on creating SEO-friendly content, it is essential to conduct thorough research on your topic. Researching your subject matter not only helps you gain a deep understanding of the topic itself but also provides valuable insights into the keywords, trends, and user intent associated with it.

This step allows you to familiarize yourself with the nuances, key concepts, and relevant terminology related to the subject. By immersing yourself in the existing body of knowledge, you can develop a well-rounded understanding that enables you to produce high-quality, accurate, and informative content.

Keyword Research: The Foundation of SEO-Friendly Content

Before diving into content creation, conducting thorough keyword research is crucial. Start by identifying the primary keywords and key phrases related to your topic. You can use keyword research tools such as Ubersuggest, SEMrush, or Moz’s Keyword Explorer to find the most relevant and high-ranking keywords in your niche. Look for long-tail keywords, as they often have less competition and more specific intent.

These SEO or keyword tools provide insights into search volume, competition, and user intent, helping you pinpoint the keywords that have the potential to drive targeted organic traffic to your content. Thorough research enables you to create SEO-friendly content that not only aligns with user search queries but also positions you as a credible source of information in your field.

As part of your research, consider inputting your target keyword into a Google search to assess the current ranking articles. This practice allows you to gain insights into the types of articles that Google deems relevant and valuable for such queries. By examining the top-ranking results, you can better understand the content characteristics and features that contribute to Google’s perception of quality in relation to your chosen keyword.

Following that, conduct a search for your target keyword on Google, and you will come across a section called “People Also Ask.”

Select the questions from the “People Also Ask” section that aligns with the intent of your article, and provide comprehensive answers to them within your content. However, don’t limit your research to just those initial questions. Clicking on one of the questions will prompt Google to display additional related questions, allowing you to uncover more relevant inquiries to address in your article.

Implementing this approach is a smart way to ensure that your SEO-optimized content effectively addresses the queries that people are actively searching for.

Natural Integration of Keywords

Once you’ve compiled a list of relevant keywords, the next step is to incorporate them seamlessly into your content. Google’s mission is to present the best results to its users. Its quality guidelines explain what it expects from websites. Avoid keyword stuffing, which can lead to a negative user experience and potential penalties from search engines. Instead, focus on incorporating keywords naturally within the text. Write for your audience first, ensuring that the content flows smoothly and delivers value.

By default, in any SEO-optimized theme, the post title uses an H1 heading tag. So for the next sub-heading, you can use an H2 heading, and then an H3 heading, and so on. It’s a good idea to use your keywords in H1, H2, and H3 tags.

Optimize Metadata and Alt Text

Metadata, including post titles and meta descriptions, plays a significant role in SEO. Craft compelling and descriptive page titles that incorporate relevant keywords while accurately representing the content. Ensure that each page has a unique and concise meta description that entices users to click through to your website from the search results.

First, you need to understand the difference between a post title and a meta title. Post title is how your reader sees the title of the post on your website and meta title is how search engines show your post in search results. If you have not specified a meta title in your SEO settings, your post title will be treated as the meta title.

Pro tips: Keep your post titles less than 56 characters.

If you haven’t added meta descriptions in the past, it is highly recommended to start implementing them immediately. It is crucial to incorporate your primary keyword into the meta description and ensure that it is aligned with the intent behind the content. By doing this, you enhance the visibility and relevance of your posts in search engine results, enticing users to click and explore your content further.

Meta descriptions hold significant importance in optimizing your content. It is advisable to review your previously published posts and add meta descriptions to those that currently lack them. By optimizing your post’s meta descriptions, you ensure that each written piece has the potential to attract a maximum amount of traffic to your website. Meta descriptions serve as excellent locations to strategically incorporate keywords, further enhancing their effectiveness in driving relevant organic traffic.

It is important to note that Google cannot directly interpret the content of images. To ensure search engines can comprehend the context of an image, it is essential to use proper image names. Unfortunately, many people mistakenly upload images with generic names such as “image001.jpg.” This is a huge mistake!

When naming an image, make sure that the name accurately reflects the content of the image. For instance, if you capture a screenshot of a meta description, naming the image “metadata” would not be optimal for targeting purposes. Instead, use a descriptive name like “meta description.” By adopting this approach, when people conduct an image search on platforms like Google Image Search, they are more likely to discover and access an image within one of your blog posts.

Internal and External Linking

Strategic linking within your content is beneficial for SEO. Internal links direct users to other relevant pages on your website, improving navigation and boosting the overall user experience. Additionally, they assist search engine crawlers in discovering and indexing new content.

So, when writing a new post, it’s always a good idea to link back to old blog posts so that readers will stick around your site for longer and also so that search engines can re-crawl these old posts. This helps in better navigability of your site which reduces the bounce rate- another important SEO factor.

When you interlink, you should use the anchor text technique. Simply put, when you link to a blog post, you see an option to add a link and a title. Make sure to fill out the post title with the main keywords for the post that you are linking to.

As you can see, I made an “on-page SEO” HTML anchor. Go back to the original text you intend to link. Then, highlight the text to the link and click the link button.

In the new field, search or type the URL HTML anchor you just created. In this case, I need to type “on-page SEO” in the box and when I find the right URL, click Enter.

External links to authoritative sources within your niche can enhance your content’s credibility and provide additional value to readers.

Engaging and High-Quality Content

While keywords are essential for SEO, producing high-quality, engaging content remains paramount. Search engines aim to provide the best user experience, so focus on creating informative, well-researched, and original content that satisfies user intent. Offer unique insights, provide solutions to problems, and present your information in an easily digestible format.

Optimizing URL Structure

URLs should be concise, descriptive, and include relevant keywords. Avoid using long strings of numbers or irrelevant characters in your URLs. Instead, create clean and readable URLs that provide an instant understanding of the page’s content. For instance, a URL like “yourwebsite.com/seo-friendly-content” is far more effective than “yourwebsite.com/12345/article.”

Our post titles usually contain lots of stop words. Words like “a” “an” “the” and many others which are listed here are ignored by the search engine.

So for example, if this post title is:

“Crafting SEO-Friendly Content: Unlocking the Power of Keywords”

Then the post permalink, by default, would be:

merryofaugust.com/crafting-seo-friendly-content-unlocking-the-power-of-keywords

“The” and “of”  are stop words in the example above. You can click on the permalink and change the permalink to “crafting-seo-friendly-content”, thus eliminating the stop words and making a simple URL.

Mobile Optimization

With the rise of mobile usage, it’s crucial to optimize your content for mobile devices. Ensure that your website is mobile-friendly, with responsive design elements and fast loading times. Mobile optimization is not only vital for SEO but also for providing a seamless browsing experience to your visitors.

Creating SEO-friendly content is an ongoing process that requires a combination of keyword research, high-quality writing, and strategic optimization techniques. By incorporating relevant keywords naturally, delivering valuable content, and optimizing various elements, you can increase your website’s visibility and drive organic traffic. Remember, while SEO is crucial, always prioritize your audience’s needs and expectations. Strive to create content that resonates with your readers, and the SEO benefits will follow naturally.

Let us know if you have any questions or if you have any other SEO writing suggestions. Share your thoughts in the comments section!