Creating content that ranks well takes more than just using the right keywords.
It’s about good writing, and structuring your page in a way that’s both user-friendly and search-engine-friendly.
In this post, I’m going to go over the basics of what matters with your page content for SEO (and without resorting to jargon).
Page headings
Craft a main page heading that instantly conveys your page’s content. If you can, strategically place your keywords right at the start (not always easy, I know). This will help both search engine visibility and engagement.
First 100 words
Kick off your page with your keywords seamlessly written into your text, but — make it both natural and compelling. When you weave the keywords naturally like this, it will both connect with readers and boost your SEO.
Sub headings
Do what you can to make sure these contain keywords related to the points discussed in the text below them. This may seem obvious, but it’s worth checking you’re doing it clearly.
Keyword frequency
Steer clear of unnatural keyword stuffing — it ruins readability and your rankings, and may chase away readers too. Instead, try to keep their use balanced and natural throughout the page.
Text to image ratio
Google prioritises text over images, so relying heavily on visuals on your page won't cut it — even though having some visuals benefits the overall experience. Focus on balancing keyword-rich text content with occasional supporting images, not the other way around.
Content length
Aim for at least 500 words of unique content per page. This length should allow you to explore a topic thoroughly and engage your readers. While more content offers greater detail and depth, 500 words is a solid starting point.
Quality content keeps visitors engaged longer and can significantly enhance your site’s visibility and credibility.
Write for humans
Seems obvious! However, over-optimising for search means Google will flag your content as low-quality, wasting all your hard work. So skip the keyword obsession and just write authenticity, and with value in mind.
Readability matters
We live in a gen AI world now, with writing, which can be robotic if not done well. To counter this, keep your style simple and punchy, with short sentences. Break up long text with subheadings, and keep paragraphs brief.
Update your content
Don’t just write some content and leave it at that for months/years. Google doesn’t really require you to constantly add new content, but updating your page from time to time will probably help. If not to directly to boost SEO, then to keep your audience interested and coming back for more. Regular updates show that you’re active and still relevant, which is a good signal to Google.
Type of content matters
Not only how you write or structure your content, the type matters, depending on your SEO strategy or goals. Informational sites like blogs are great for driving steady traffic. But if you want more backlinks, high-value free tools like calculators and checklists are your best bet (so long as they have a known value).
Bonus: Use Google Search Console
Once you’ve written some pages or blog posts, use data to guide what you write next. After adding your site to Google Search Console (a good idea for SEO anyway), you’ll soon see which search queries are bringing up your pages in results. You can then leverage this data to create more content, and optimise your site for those keywords.
None of the above simple ideas are technical or hard to implement. They’re simply straightforward and effective ways you can affect SEO with your page content.
Use them as a guide, and I’m confident you’ll be driving more traffic and improving your site’s visibility on search engines from now on.
Note: originally published on my Tiny SEO Lessons blog
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