SEO for Creatives
Content creation is embedded with creativity and as such when creatives come across SEO it can feel overwhelming. This is due to SEO being seen as a technical skill and the daunting reputation it is perceived as having. Navigating through the penalties, algorithms and updates is by no means an easy task however as many successful SEO specialists will tell you, it comes down to the ability to effectively research along with your writing and organisational skills. Let’s have a look at how to improve your optimisation.
How does Google choose your site above all others?
With over a billion pages to choose from, how does Google choose which one comes first? Google uses numerous signals to decide where you rank in the multitude of pages. You don’t need to master every signal, just a few of the key ones that can help push you to the top and help you gain traction against your competitors.
What makes your blog posts rank?
The 10 core ranking factors both direct and indirect have been updated recently by Ahrefs. Everyone working in content production should be aware of these achievable tips. Here is a brief summary of this article-
- Make content people want
- Keep your content fresh- updates are everything!
- Check your site is compatible with every type of device
- Minimise pop-ups wherever possible
- Accurately convey to your traffic who you are and what you do
- Use backlinks to get recommendations from other sites
- Be an expert in one field
- Be secure in everything you do.
Becoming an Expert:
It is understandable that when you are involved solely with creating content it can be disconcerting to create content surrounding the same topic. Writing prompts written within your category are a great way to produce content. Check out a few suggestions by Brian Dean for generating these. This is also where keyword research comes in. Here is a beginner’s guide to keyword research.
Some tactics to generate post ideas for subjects include:
- A table of contents filled Wikipedia articles.
- YouTube suggestions
- A handy tool called, “Keywordit” to help you get Keyword ideas.
Links are everything:
Using links within your blog posts can increase optimisation on your website. This has been hailed as the most underrated SEO tactic by search scientist Russ Jones on Twitter quite recently. Here’s are some advantages to using internal links:
- If you mention a topic you have already referenced once before you can use an internal link to connect it back to that article.
- You can link new pieces of writing back to older articles.
- You remain relevant with all content produced and all internal links can direct your readers to one page. Redundant content can give your traffic a negative experience and can reduce your site’s SEO potential.
If you have a sound content strategy in place, mastering these tactics can be relatively straight forward. If your core focus is building up your B2B, try using a product category SEO strategy. Write generalised pieces on your area of expertise and link the content back to your specific products.
This is known as a link lattice.
These little tips and tricks can be picked up by any content creator.