Search Engine Optimization is something that haunts many bloggers, especially those who have recently jumped into the arena, while thinking that their strong writing skills will save the day for them, only to find out that the reality is different, and that there are some rules and regulations to follow, before they can get anywhere near the victory stand (i.e. top rankings). The fact of the matter is that unless or until you can get to the top of rankings for some strongly searched keywords, your blog will fail to prosper. Sooner than later, all bloggers have to realize that they need to have more than average know-how of Search Engine Optimization to survive.
Knowing the SEO might be a requisite, but some bloggers get a little too aggressive and starts focusing more on SEO instead of the writing. As a result, while the blog starts to improve on the SEO front, the quality of the content starts to decline, and soon the blog becomes an epitome of good SEO practices, while a disaster from any other perspective, especially the quality of the content, which means when you are focusing excessively on the SEO, you are running the risk of losing your biggest asset i.e. your readers.
I was there when all the hoopla about SEO started, and to be honest, back then a big majority of good SEO practices were quite contrary to what an average user was looking for. For example, stuffing the keywords in Meta tags and or even hiding chunks of keywords, getting links in bulk from as many domains as you can, and thinking more from the perspective of search engine crawlers as compared to the actual users. Thankfully, Google has been making rapid tweaks and changes to its algorithm, and finally it is reaching a point where good SEO practices are actually more inclined towards providing actual value to the users as compared to a search engine robot, which is good news for bloggers, as they can focus solely on providing the best quality content, and it will take care of many SEO factors as well.
Let’s see how…
- Try to cover the topic as comprehensively as you can, Google prefers good detailed content laid out on fewer pages, as compared to a simple topic discussed on dozens of pages on the same website in different words. Being loyal to your readers and covering the topic in detail will result in lengthy and comprehensive posts, which is a big SEO plus.
- Try to be unique by including your thoughts and opinions in your writings. Readers are not coming to your blog for news like the launch of Google Plus; they will be more interested in how it can help their online businesses or blogs. Spend some time going through the features and write down your thoughts, it will help them save time, and more importantly it will result in unique content, which will be preferred by Google over hundreds of blogs doing nothing but sharing the news.
ALSO READ: HOW TO Write Unique Content in Short Time
- If you do unique and constructive posts, every now and then, your insightful posts will be linked by other blogs as well, resulting in quality links for your blog.
- One of the biggest disadvantages of keeping your readers as the second priority and keeping your ads and earnings to the top, that the visitors will soon find out that the owner is not sincere with them, with all those ads scattered around and the need to go through many different pages to find straightforward content. When you’re loyal, you will make it easier for them to find the most valuable content without much ado, and it will reduce the bounce rate, which is another SEO plus.
- Engage with the users via social media widgets on your blog, that will keep your visitors hooked, but more importantly, strong social reputation will help your rankings at SERP as well.
Arba is an SEO expert, and writes on topics related to Internet Marketing. She’s working for brochure printers offering all types of printing services. If you wish to write for us, kindly check out the guidelines to write a guest post.