While it’s true that good content is a must for a best SEO practice, content that is fully optimised for the search engines (SEO optimised content) is in itself a vital element. So why is it important and why does it matter?
Firstly, let’s start with the basics – What is content SEO?
Content SEO refers to creating and optimising content in such a way that it helps the pages of your website to rank in the search engines. This includes everything to do with the writing and structuring of your content including a sound content strategy.
Without optimisation, you can have a great looking website with tons of good content that might not get found. With it, however, that same website should see an increase in visitors, potential buyers/customers – or in the case of a medical or dental website – patients.
So, while the two go hand in hand, as a website and business owner, you should be aiming for good content that is also fully optimised.
How Do You Go About Optimising Content For Search Engines?
Before we dive headfirst into this, it’s important to talk about SEO optimised content and what that means….
First and foremost, the primary focus of any content should always be to provide value to your reader or target audience first and foremost.
Why?
Because they are the ones who are going to potentially take some degree of action. Whether this is to sign up as a customer, buy a product online or – in the case of a dental website – book a consultation.
If, on the other hand, your content is written primarily with the search engines in mind, there is a chance that you could lose focus on your target audience and it won’t have the desired effect.
So always, always consider the consumer first and SEO a very close second!
Now that we’ve cleared that up, let’s get back to the initial question, how do you optimise good content for search engines?
There are in effect three key elements to developing quality content that is search engine optimized to include:
- Keyword research
- Site structure and
- Quality copywriting
So let’s take a closer look at each element in more detail.
Firstly, Keyword Research
Detailed keyword research makes it clear which search terms your audience is using to find out information. This is important because if you look to optimise content for keywords or phrases that your target audience don’t use, then it’s a huge waste of time (and if you are paying for content) then also money!
Therefore, audience-centred keyword research is key as it dictates (initially anyway) where you go with your online content strategy.
In essence, quality content focusing on solid key phrases should be the basis of every page and every piece of structured content on your site.
Site Structure
When it comes to SEO optimised content, there are two main reasons why site structure is such an important ranking factor.
The first reason is that a good website structure helps Google to better understand your site.
Structuring your site correctly will give Google great clues about how and where to find your most important content – remember we talked about content strategy and content planning in the keyword research section above. The easier Google finds your cornerstone content, the higher a website is likely to rank
The second reason is that a good site structure ensures that you are not competing with your own content. After all, your website may consist of multiple articles featuring the same topic.
So let’s say a dental website has multiple articles answering some of the most frequently asked questions on dental implants – how does Google know which articles to place the highest importance on?
Answer – we use our site structure to clarify this. This is where sound navigation and linking structures can help in the task to best optimise content but more about this in a moment…
So how do you structure your site and content strategy?
Consider your site as a pyramid with your home page at the top. Your home page should contain your most important keywords or phrases and link out to various service pages. These pages, in turn, should contain different keywords and should link out, in turn, to lesser pages.
Here’s an example…
A good example might be on a dental website where the home page may contain an overview of say… cosmetic dentistry. This, in turn, may link to a full-page explaining the various cosmetic dental treatments in greater detail. This page should also contain a call to action which should again link out to a contact or bookings page.
As you can see, the structure of your site should determine your content strategy, SEO structure and inevitably, your content optimisation.
Copywriting for SEO
The third and final aspect of successful content optimisation is great copywriting. First and foremost, you should look to write articles that are enticing to read and that keep your readers hooked.
At the same time you want to optimise your content for Google but not overly so, otherwise, it becomes hard to read. Making content easily readable is key because if your text is well-structured and well-written, both your readers and Google will have a better understanding of the message you are trying to convey.
As search engines get smarter, it’s no longer just about the number of times a keyword appears on a page, but also, the context it is written in and the inclusion of relatable terms and phrases. So do bear this in mind when writing your content.
Optimising Content – The conclusion
When it comes to successful SEO optimised content, the key thing is to look at the bigger picture and bring in all the vital elements of good keyword research, sound site structuring and solid copywriting together.
Get all three of these elements right and you should have a website and content that is seen and read often.
If you want to know more about content optimisation, or indeed any aspect of SEO, then come and talk to Mediboost. We’re Australia’s #1 marketing agency for the medical and dental industries.
Book your free strategy consultation today and see just where we can take you! Call us now on 1300 163 058.
