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It’s Not Really SEO That You Hate

April 26, 2013 by

SEO-provides-actionsI had an interesting experience the other day while doing some online research. I ran across a website discussing why writers and content marketers hate SEO. As a writer myself, that was news to me. Hoping it was a lone opinion I did some searching. I discovered pages upon pages of discussions about how SEO forces writers to create bad content and punishes those who write well.

Now, I know I don’t hate SEO, so I asked our Senior Copywriter Nathan Williams, who leads content marketing initiatives for clients in a wide range of industries, for his feelings on the subject. Here’s what he had to say:

“It’s interesting that a copywriter would say they hate SEO, because the two work hand-in-hand, at least in my experience. From the copywriting perspective, SEO is the afterthought. If the SEO tactics are on the level, the copywriter just has to make sure the keywords won’t disrupt the flow or distract from the point.

It’s not fair to say that copywriters hate SEO, because that opinion is painting with a really wide brush. And there’s no need to feel that way. SEO provides actions, targets and priorities, and copywriters use that information to tailor the content. The two sides must work together, or both fail.”

What SEO Copywriting Isn’t

Nathan’s point really emphasizes what separates true SEO from the kind of black hat tactics that give websites a brief bump followed by a long, hard fall. There’s a mindset out there that search is a system to be gamed, and for some reason a terrifyingly large number of people in the SEO biz think that gaming that system is a better choice than working within it.

That’s why you’ll still find sites out there hiring bargain basement copywriters with no real skill or experience, and using spinning software to create meaningless, garbage content. Meanwhile behind-the-scenes they are buying links, hiding keywords in code, and participating in all sorts of unsavory practices meant to trick search engines and serve up content that does not answer the question posed in the search query.

The real irony in this is that they are likely putting more effort into those tactics than we on the white hat, ethical SEO side are by just following the rules and creating quality content.

It’s Not SEO’s Fault

Keyword stuffing and creating nothing content around random terms is not what we signed on for, and the results are not what clients sign on for, either. Any copywriter is going to be unhappy in a system like that.

But what Nathan talked about, and what the rest of us who work on the copywriting side here at SEO Advantage know, is that when your behind the scenes SEO and coding folks are doing their jobs well, all you really have to do is write relevant content with a few placement adjustments here or there. We probably spend less than 10% of our copywriting time thinking about keywords, because if what you are writing truly speaks to the question asked in the search query, the keywords don’t have to be stuffed. They flow organically.

If, as a copywriter, you find yourself at odds with SEO, then the problem likely isn’t with the system itself, but with the way you are being asked to manipulate it.

Filed Under: Copywriting/SEO Content Development, Online Marketing Tagged With: , , ,

Copywriting and White Space – Making Readable Web Content

April 9, 2013 by

If you’re a company trying to build an online presence, you’ve certainly heard how important developing content is. Blog posts, buying guides and keyword landing pages are just a few examples…

Content not only helps you build rankings in the search engines, it also helps you build credibility for your brand and a loyal following. When people see you’re developing engaging, informative content, they’ll remember you as someone who’s willing to listen and take initiative to help customers better understand important points about what you’re offering.

Likewise, search engines will see how youre making strides to provide your audience with engaging, informative content, and reward your site accordingly.

While many strategies and techniques are specific to your business or industry, there are some general ideas you need to keep in mind when writing web copy – one of the most important, yet most overlooked, is white space.

What do you mean by “white space”?

whitespacequote_seoaWhite space can be defined as a break in copy. It has a couple of different purposes.

One, it helps the readers better comprehend what you’re trying to say. They can skim sub-headings, bulleted lists, and other elements designed to help communicate information in a clear and concise way.

The other purpose is to give the eyes a break – how many times have you encountered a page with just long-block paragraphs and immediately clicked the back button in frustration?

In our fast-paced, information-driven world, our senses are literally overloaded with all kinds of messages at all times of the day. We have to discriminate what’s deserving of our attention, and disregard the things our senses and minds tell us are not important.

We do this through scanning…

If your piece – be it a blog post, an article or a landing page – doesn’t provide an adequate break, it will seem dull and intimidating, no matter how well it’s actually written.

What do I need to do to ensure my site’s content has adequate white space?

We don’t want to imply that long paragraphs are bad – if you have a thought that requires a little extra explanation, by all means, take the extra space.

A few ways to boost white space include:

  • Limit paragraphs to 5-7 lines – if you have an extra-long paragraph, consider putting a one-sentence paragraph just below it to either make your final point, or a follow-up point.
  • Include sub-headings – to break up different concepts within your piece, use sub-headings. This allows the reader to scan your piece’s important points without having to read it word for word – your readers will thank you. Including keywords in headings and sub-headings are also beneficial from an SEO perspective.
  • Include a bulleted or numbered list if it makes sense – Another way to add “white-space” and make your piece scannable is by using bulleted or numbered lists. These help draw attention to important points and communicate information quickly. Be careful though – bulleted and numbered lists don’t always fit.

These are general points to consider when drafting content for your website. If you’re writing an e-book or more formal piece of content, you can have longer paragraphs for example. Also, you really won’t have much in the way of sub-headings with a press release (except in the beginning).

The important thing is to remember that you’re writing for real people, not search engine bots. You need to be mindful how you’re content will appear to a new visitor.

Is it easily digestible with a quick scan?

Is it easy on the eyes and not too “in your face” or intimidating?

Keeping these things in mind will help you develop exceptional content for your site. While there are many other things to consider, this is one of the fundamental tenets of writing for the web – and one of the key differences between print and online media.

 

Filed Under: Copywriting/SEO Content Development, Tip of the Day Tagged With: , , , ,

Friday Trivia: Understanding Bounce Rates

March 8, 2013 by Leave a Comment

Welcome to SEO Advantage’s Friday Trivia feature, where we discuss, dissect and comment on the internet and marketing, and how the two intertwine.

Ah, the dreaded bounce rate. It’s that unpleasant little number that lets you know that no matter how many visitors you get to your page, some just aren’t going to stick around to see the rest of your site. This can happen for a number of reasons, though, and not all of them are bad. Do you know the average bounce rate for web pages?

  1. 20%
  2. 40%
  3. 60%
  4. 80%

Answer: 40%

According to Google, Kissmetrics and just about every other source on the internet, the average bounce rate for a web page is about 40%. Whether that’s higher or lower than what you usually see, though, is less important than determining what that bounce rate means for that specific page.

When high bounce rates might not be so bad

Sometimes a high bounce rate might actually mean you’re doing something right. This is especially true of informational pages like knowledge centers, blog posts and even directory listings.

If you’re putting information out there on a page optimized for search with content that directly answers the question posed by the keyword phrases you’re targeting, then you’ve given visitors what they want. They search, come to the page, get the answer to their question and leave satisfied. This isn’t bad from a marketing standpoint, either, because the next time that visitor has a question or needs what your business offers related to that topic, chances are they’ll remember you.

In some cases, bounces might also indicate quality leads. If you host an offsite blog linking to your business home page and that blog has a high bounce rate, visitors may very well be bouncing right where you want them to go. Are you getting a lot of referrals to the main site from the blog? If so, then your blog is doing its job.

A high bounce rate may also be benign for a business website. If you’re observing web design best practices, your contact information is prominently displayed on every page of the site. Bounces in this case could indicate that visitors liked what they saw and took the next step.

In short, if your content is robust, high-quality and relevant to the keywords that are bringing in visitors, a high bounce rate is likely nothing to worry about, and possibly even a good sign.

When to worry about a high bounce rate

Reassurances aside, there are some situations where a high bounce rate really is a no good, very bad thing. The most common occurrence of this: the landing page. If you’ve created a page specifically to bring in visitors with the intention of having them purchase a product or sign up for a service, and those visitors then bounce without buying, browsing or signing up, it’s time to optimize that landing page.

You should also be concerned when high bounce rates correspond with shorter visits. If you’ve written a robust information piece but visitors are spending an average of 30 seconds or less on the page and then leaving your site entirely, it usually indicates that you are either offering information that’s irrelevant to the keywords or your content itself is problematic. It may be too generic, or it may simply be poorly written and difficult to read. If you really want to fix these types of issues, get ready to set aside your ego and get self-critical.

Every page is different

What makes understanding bounce rates so confusing for some is that every page and type of content is different, and you won’t learn anything from analyzing bounce rates in a vacuum. You need to understand how to interpret bounce rates as they relate to your other metrics and the page’s purpose and content.

So, did you guess the right answer? How do you use bounce rate to help you optimize your SEO and online marketing?

Filed Under: Copywriting/SEO Content Development, Friday Trivia, Online Marketing Tagged With: , , , ,

Infographics – A New Frontier or Too Much at Once?

February 8, 2013 by Leave a Comment

Unless you’re completely new to developing SEO optimized content, or have been living under a rock for the last couple of years, you’ve certainly heard of the infographic – many outlets and marketers have extolled the virtue of including infographics in your content marketing mix.

Some have placed them on a high pedestal, going so far as to say you’re really behind the curve if you’re not including them in your content mix.

Others, while enthusiastic about infographics, are a bit more restrained.

Commenting in an interview with CMI, co-founder of JESS3 Leslie Bradshaw says that infographics should be viewed as a “…high-level tactic that are good for educated audiences.” For consumer audiences, infographics may be a bit much. “Consumer audiences are much more likely to share something on Facebook that’s really ‘snackable,’ Leslie explains.

So in order to develop “graphic” types of content that will get shared through Facebook, Google+, Pinterest and others, Leslie and her team develop what they call “data graphics”, which are basically shorter visual representations of one or two data points.

We of course like to take a more restrained approach…

Understanding what infographics are, and more importantly how you should approach them is way more important than putting one together for the sake of doing it.

However, we certainly appreciate the old saying “a picture is worth a thousand words”

Visualization is very powerful, and the ability to convey complex information graphically is what lies at the heart of an infographic.

Infographics is a short hand term for “information graphics” – they can be defined as graphic visual representations of information, or as explained in this CMI piece by Ahava Leibtag, a true infographic takes “…a complex data set and translate(s) it into an easily understood picture.”

Ahava goes on to explain that many pieces marketed as infographics, while good, are really “posters” since they lack complex data. While her example from Copyblogger is a really great, informative piece of content, it really lacks the sophisticated data that takes it to the infographic level – I would suspect Ahava would have the same opinion of an infographic, or “poster,” we did for an e-cigarette client some time ago…

If you’re looking to include infographics in your content mix, there are a few rules you need to follow says Paul Gustafson at CMI. These rules include:

  1. Tell a story
  2. Communicate complex data simply
  3. Make sharing through social media easy

Some of the most successful infographics in fact take very complex information and concepts and boils them down into their simplest, most easily digestible form.

Avaya provides us with some questions you must consider before embarking on the infographic voyage. Answering the following questions is critical to developing a successful infographic she explains.

  1. Do you have something relevant?
  2. Do you have a clear call-to-action?
  3. Can you post the infographic in more than one place?
  4. Do you have a good designer?
  5. Does the infographic approach fit into your branding?

In the end, it all really boils down to determining the purpose of building an infographic in the first place, its relevancy to your brand and message, and its ROI potential

Once you’ve addressed these important questions and you determine if and how an infographic will work for your site, you’re ready to get started.

There’s a plethora of templates out there for you to check out, or you can design a custom one…this handy infographic from Infographic Labs (below) provides a great overview of the “how.”

So in the end, are infographics the new content nirvana, or do they overload audiences and not deliver on the promises so many claim them to hold?

The answer of course – it really depends on a host of factors. If your audience in more “consumer” driven, perhaps you should consider the smaller, or more “snackable” pieces JESS3 develops.

If your audience is more sophisticated (some B2B), perhaps a two-level infographic makes sense…

We should caution though, you have to address the fundamental questions of purpose, goals, relevancy, sharing, ROI and more before you develop an infographic.

Have you developed any infographics for your website? If so, how did they work out?

Let us know in the comments field below or on our Facebook or Twitter profile today.

Related Posts

Content Marketing – 5 Predictions for 2013

Filming an Interview Online – A Primer

Content Marketing over Traditional Advertising – Making the Case

Making your Content Work for You in Better, More Valuable Ways

 

What Is An Infographic? by Infographiclabs

 

Filed Under: Copywriting/SEO Content Development, Online Marketing, Social Media, Tip of the Day Tagged With: , , , , , , , , , , ,

Facebook Graph Search and Ethical Marketing

January 31, 2013 by Leave a Comment

Ways to view follow information on Facebook graph searchThe new Facebook graph search feature, currently in beta, has been making waves all over the internet. Many are rightfully concerned about privacy, while others take issue with the new feature’s usability.

The privacy concerns can’t be ignored, particularly if you engage in ethical marketing. As we explore this tool and begin to utilize it in our online marketing efforts, we absolutely have to stay mindful of doing anything invasive or manipulative with consumer information. With that in mind, I’ve been using my access to the Facebook graph search beta to identify ways that we can use this new tool to advance ethical marketing efforts. Here’s what I found.

Facebook Graph Search can help you better target your content

One of the first things you notice once graph search becomes active on your Facebook page is that the blue bar at the top of the page is slightly larger, and the icons have been moved from the left side to the right.

Where the icons once were is now a search box, and clicking in that box opens a drop-down menu that changes based on where you originate your search. When I clicked from my homepage the options were tailored to me as an individual:

Facebook graph search drop-down from the homepage

Not much potential for marketing here, but then I went to the SEO Advantage Facebook page to initiate a search. That’s when things started to get interesting:

 Facebook graph search drop-down from a business page

Aha! The options change based on where you initiate the search.  When I start at the Facebook page of a group I administrate, the search options include members of the group who live in my town and/or work at SEO Advantage. Starting from an interest page for a favorite TV show allows me to access a list of others who like the show, either throughout Facebook or only those on my friends list.

The company page, though, is where the magic happens. It’s where we learn about the people who support a business, and use that information to target our content. When you select the “people who like” option, it opens up the ability to learn what else those followers like, in very specific ways.

So, for example, let’s look at “interests.” In the case of SEO Advantage, the top three interests of our followers are photography, hiking and traveling:

Facebook graph search follower interests
These intersections give us the most valuable information we can have when it comes to targeting content. The interests above, for example, might not seem relevant from the standpoint of an SEO and online marketing firm, but that’s because you have to look deeper with this sort of information.

People who enjoy photography are visual. They’re more likely to respond to images. People who enjoy travel are an eclectic group, but they tend to enjoy new experiences. These people don’t want us to rehash information they’ve seen before; they want us to provide news and insights.

We can use this information to make analogies our followers will identify with more closely, and in numerous other ways to inform the content we create. Our followers like TechCrunch, so they follow technology news. Their most commonly liked bands are Pink Floyd and the Beatles, and their top movie choices are comedy, science fiction and documentaries. All of this information can be used in countless ways to make our content more useful and interesting for our followers, and for their friends and contacts who will see the content they’ve liked and shared, and I found it all without even looking at anyone’s name.

Privacy concerns and ethical marketing

People are right to be concerned about privacy, and indeed other websites have already outlined some of the ways that access to this information could prove problematic. It’s our choice, though, as marketers, to use the knowledge we can gain from Facebook’s graph search in a responsible and non-invasive way.

As you can see, there’s plenty of value to be had by looking into the generalities. As a bonus, everything we find out here lets us tailor better, user-focused content. It’s not about manipulating consumers. It’s about giving them content they can use, because that’s how you gain loyalty from the smart, savvy online audience.

Filed Under: Copywriting/SEO Content Development, Online Marketing, SEO Advantage, Social Media Tagged With: , , ,
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