How to Make the Most Out of Content: An SEO Perspective

From the early days of SEO, content has played a vital role in driving traffic, increasing SERPs, attracting backlinks, and converting visitors into customers. But, though SEO specialists have always realized the importance of "content generation," they didn't always emphasize content quality. At least, this was the case before Google's Penguin and Panda updates.

Times have changed, though. Google has become much smarter and is no longer satisfied with spammy, link-stuffed content. The search giant is all about providing value to their users. By value, I mean high-quality content that is useful, engaging, and user-friendly.

And yet, though the content is definitely king, you shouldn't underestimate the importance of search engine optimization. Technical SEO, as well as On-page and Off-page optimization, have a huge influence on usability (UI/UX factors like design, mobile optimization, page load speed, text readability, etc.) and rankings. The belief that content marketing has set digital marketers free from doing SEO is false. SEO and content marketing go hand in hand, but don't replace each other — and never will.

The bottom line is:

If you want your website to rank high in search results, produce high-quality content and optimize this content using SEO. Leverage the power of content marketing to satisfy users but make sure that you care about search engines, too.

In this article, I'm going to explain how to do this and let you in on several on-page SEO tips that will help you bring your content up to snuff.

Create Content that Matters

It all begins with content. If your content is not sufficient, even the best SEO professionals cannot help your site receive a high-ranking position on Google.

Cool design, impeccable usability, high-quality links, and lots of deliberate social sharing may still make a difference; but, if your content is no good, you will end up with a high bounce rate and low average time on your pages, which signals to Google that your site provides poor value.

Topical Trust Flow and the number of external backlinks is a strong indicator of content quality as well. Let's just have a look at the top 3 topics for SEJ and MOZ blog, consequently:

SEJ

MOZ

The examples above demonstrate pretty well that, though SEJ is highly SEO-focused, users tend to view MOZ content as more trustworthy as it generates way more backlinks and is more powerful in the related niches.

I'm not going to get deeper into details here. After all, this article is about SEO. I strongly recommend, though, that you remember one thing: Google knows when your content is bad. It looks at the engagement metrics and immediately sees the big picture. So, instead of trying to trick Google, focus on creating content that really matters and is worthy enough to generate tons of backlinks.

Optimize Keywords, Tags, and Descriptions

When you are done writing and editing your content, don't post it right away. Your job is to help search bots scan and index content using appropriately selected keywords, elegantly placed tags, and a crafty meta description.

Most digital marketers start their content creation process with keyword research, but I don't recommend going that route. While I'm not against having a look at keywords, don't focus too much attention on them. Keywords kill creativity and prevent content creators from providing actual value to their readers. All they think about is keywords, and that's it.

Today, content is more important than keywords. It is a fact. No matter how great your keywords are, if your content lacks quality, Google will dismiss it. Meanwhile, great content that is useful and engaging has a higher chance to rank high without having one single keyword in it.

Anyway, don't be obsessed with keywords (especially exact-match ones) because context, user intent, and engagement rule the day.

If you truly want to generate value and trump your competitors in the process, research their content as a whole, not only their keywords. For instance, if you view MOZ as your competitor, simply research its top-performing pages using "Pages" section in the Majestic SEO tool, like this:

Here we have at least two content-focused pages that perform amazingly well. Figure out what makes them so attractive to audiences interested in SEO. Do your homework and then create and optimize, say, "SEO Guide for Beginners" that is much better than an MOZ's version.

As to the content optimization, checking if your content features the following elements is more than enough:

A main targeted keyword in the headline, URL, and content body

Several long-tail keywords

LSI keywords

Optimized tags: Title, H1-H6, Alt

A meta description with your main keyword and its LSI synonym

If you do that, search crawlers will quickly figure out the subject of your content and start showing it in search results by related queries. Just remember to adjust keywords when necessary. Ruining a brilliant piece of content for the sake of keywords is a sin. Use Visual and Social Elements

I will never grow tired of repeating this: Engagement rates impact organic rankings.

CTR, bounce and exit rates, and time on page metrics are keys that Google uses to evaluate how engaging a site is to users. If its engagement leaves much to be desired, that site will never receive a high organic ranking.

The question is, then, how do you improve engagement to boost organic rankings?

"Create high-quality content" can very likely be the answer. Yet, great content is not merely about the text. Imagery also matters as it allows users to grasp the text's meaning and value quickly.

Let's name visual elements you should incorporate into your content:

A catchy headline

A visually-appealing featured image

In-text images

Subheadings

Bulleted lists

Short paragraphs and sentences

White space

Videos

Infographics

Quotations

GIFs

Though all of these may seem arbitrary, pushing users to consume unreadable sheets of text is bad. Make sure that your content has at least a featured image and several subheadings.

Social elements like share buttons and the comments section influence engagement rates positively as well. They:

Demonstrate users' interest in your content to Google

Allow visitors to share content for further reading

Enable feedback on social media and in the comments' section

Show users that you care

Visual and social elements help users engage with content easily (skim, like, share, and comment), which demonstrates to search engines that it is valuable. Engaging content also generates backlinks from reliable resources, signaling to Google that it is worthy of the top SERP.

Prove Your Point with Links

SEO specialists are aware of how important one single high-quality backlink can be to a site's SERPs. However, as a digital marketer, you shouldn't be obsessed with producing and optimizing content only for their sake. Prioritize quality and, inevitably, your content will generate lots of backlinks.

Links matter, but it is more important to use them, not attract them. Prove your content's value by linking to trustworthy resources. It signals to both your customers and Google that your have done your homework and have researched your topic from A to Z. Value is everything to search engines today.

The rest is easy: Place links only to prove your point. Don't spam and avoid losing link juice to third-party websites (inject "noindex, nofollow" if necessary).

Conclusion

Long gone are the days when the content was second (or less) to SEO or just a filler to stuff keywords with. Today, content marketing and search engine optimization are inseparable and coexist on equal terms.

Content producers need SEO professionals to determine website requirements and perform the technical aspects (such as backlinks analysis), while the latter can no longer shoot websites to the top of search results without having to use high-quality articles, infographics, and videos.

Content marketing and SEO complement each other. Utilize the power of these two together, and you will definitely make the most out of each and every piece of content.

This article is written by Sergey Grybniak. He is a founder of a full-cycle digital agency Clever Solution Inc. The agency provides a wide range of digital marketing services such as SEO, SMM and PPC, as well as web design, application and website development. Clever Solution has more than 10 years of experience in successful collaboration with small- and mid-sized businesses from multiple countries. Follow him on LinkedIn.

Disclosure: Some of our articles may contain affiliate links; this means each time you make a purchase, we get a small commission. However, the input we produce is reliable; we always handpick and review all information before publishing it on our website. We can ensure you will always get genuine as well as valuable knowledge and resources.

Recommended Content for you:
Source: How to Make the Most Out of Content: An SEO Perspective

#Video #SEO: 9 Ways to Optimize Your #Video for Search

Video SEO: 9 Ways to Optimize Your Video for Search So you haven't missed one episode of Whiteboard Friday by the king of SEO himself, Rand Fishkin? You've got website SEO down to a science. But what about video SEO? It's not quite the same now, is it? You've also spent all this time and money ... read moreYouTube SEO: How to Optimize Videos for YouTube Search Marketers were learning that they couldn't just publish a high volume of content -- it also had to be high-quality and optimized in ways ... search optimization by highlighting important keywords. In order to add subtitles or closed captions to your video ... read moreYouTube SEO: How to find the best traffic-generating keywords That's right — the best time to optimize your video for SEO and get ... in YouTube's search results. And since video marketing will continue to grow and grow, mastering YouTube's ranking algorithm starting today is a great way to kick your video ... read more

12 Ways Video Can Improve SEO Search Rankings Video content is becoming the norm across the Web and should be used to increase your SEO rankings. Quality is the starting point, but there are many ways to apply search optimization for your videos. Use the 12 tips discussed to take your quality video ... read more9 Killer SEO Tips Worth 1K or More But you're probably thinking: "How do I dominate search engine results?" If you're a small fish in a big pond, it can seem impossible – but don't despair. I'm going to share with you the 9 SEO tips ... page, your YouTube video just might. read more9 Content Types Search Engines Love SEO is a scary "place" for a business owner to go. It's scary because s/he has products and/or services to offer and is not a content specialist. And, who knows what these search engines ... to include – 15 Ways to Improve your Content, for example. read moreWhat Are YouTube Suggested Clips and What Do They Mean For Marketers? Suggested clips are a new feature in search results ... of an embedded video that directly answer a user's query. Think of it as a user-friendly way to bypass the boring parts of a "how to" video and get to the part that answer your question. read more8 Ways to Optimize Video Content for Search You want to be verbose, include your most important keywords, but to do it in a way that ... include your video directly in related search results (though they could still index the page on which the video lives.) Consider this SEO 101: Optimize the ... read moreThe Best SEO Techniques for 2017 Even if the technique isn't breaking any guidelines, search engine optimization ... of their SEO efforts. By not only creating interesting videos on a regular basis, but also optimizing them for search prior to publishing, you can get your business in ... read more5 SEO Tips for Videos: How Google Ranks Them & How to Optimize We do know, however, that 90% of B2B decision-makers use search to research business decisions. To reap the benefits of video marketing, your videos must be optimized for search. By following a few best practices for video SEO, you'll enjoy more visible ... read more

Buy AutoTrafficRSS script now for $27 only!

We will send the script to your PayPal email within few hours,Please add FullContentRSS@gmail.com to your email contact.
Source: #Video #SEO: 9 Ways to Optimize Your #Video for Search

Does Social Media Help #SEO? [Final Answer]

Does Social Media Help SEO? [Final Answer] The impact of social media on SEO has, and probably always will be, one of the most talked about topics in the search industry. Specifically, whether social media really helps your SEO efforts. So does it? Short answer: yes. For the longer answer, however ... read morePerfect Ways to Improve Your SEO with Social Media Social media should be the main component ... about what Google's algorithm recently does with data on the network what it indexes, If you need to use the social network for Google SEO, about what signals it will help. For example, ranking up Facebook ... read moreTop 6 SEO Mistakes You Must Avoid In 2017 This list of SEO mistakes is your source to help save yourself from making the worst moves. The web professionals at the succeeding marketing and social media agency UAE approves ... Either way, it harms your SEO and does no good to the ranking of the ... read more

How to Create an SEO Strategy Unless you've been living under a rock the past few years, you've probably heard about search engine optimization and why SEO strategy is so important ... Creating active social media profiles can help you build on your owned and earned marketing ... read moreWorst SEO Tips To Steer Clear Of Although social media is not strictly a ranking factor for SEO, it does make your content more visible to a wider ... Having access to such data can help you track your progress and make changes where it is due. For instance, you can disavow links that ... read moreYouTube SEO: How to find the best traffic-generating keywords consequently so does video's influence on consumer purchases. According to recent research by Brightcove: Almost half (46 percent) of viewers say they've actually made a purchase as a result of watching a branded video on social media, and a third (32 ... read moreHow Does Social Media Affect SEO? Do social media interactions ... But any link created purely for SEO reasons is spam. It is an attempt to artificially manipulate rankings. If you watched me work for an hour, you'd think I was crazy. "How could THAT possibly help you sell websites ... read more5 Things You Need to Know About Social Media & SEO Let's start with some more background information on the dialogue around social and SEO over the past few years. As I mentioned above, Cutts' statement that Google does not look ... to on social media. Further research didn't help me get much clarity ... read more5 Ways Social Media Does (or Doesn't) Affect Your SEO Today we'll look at at the ways social media can help your SEO ... While Google+ may not be the most powerful platform for social media, it does help your SEO in an indirect way. Having a strong Google+ page will encourage Google to show your profile ... read more6 Social Media Practices That Boost SEO The total number of followers and connections your social media profiles contain does have a significant influence on your ... Understanding the root causes for social media's effects on SEO can help you better direct and manage your campaign, ultimately ... read more

Buy AutoTrafficRSS script now for $27 only!

We will send the script to your PayPal email within few hours,Please add FullContentRSS@gmail.com to your email contact.
Source: Does Social Media Help #SEO? [Final Answer]

How to rank for ‘position 0’ in 3 simple steps: A featured snippets primer

For many site owners, ranking in position 1 is the holy grail of SEO. However, if you are in a competitive market, achieving that coveted first position in the Google SERPs (search engine results pages) may take a lot of effort and investment.

I'm not saying you shouldn't make the investment, but don't overlook the opportunity to rank in position 0 with a featured snippet. For one thing, getting a featured snippet may be less about the link metrics and more about the actual content on your page. So if you are outgunned in terms of backlinks, then featured snippets could be just the thing for your business.

Surprisingly, it is not unheard of for URLs ranking on page 2 of the Google SERPs to get a "position 0" result with a featured snippet. Of course, most featured snippets are for URLs that are in the top 10 results. As you can imagine, if you are in position 5, getting that position 0 "answer box" result can be a big boost to that page's visibility and organic traffic.

What's a featured snippet?

At this writing, featured snippets appear in 9.1968 percent of search queries, according to RankRanger. They appear at the top of the search results page, above the normal search results (hence the reason we call these "position 0" rankings). The snippet contains the URL and page title, along with a "snippet" of the page's content in an attempt to answer the searcher's query.

The way it works is that Google will "programmatically detect pages that answer the user's question, and display a top result as a featured snippet in the search results." These featured snippets are designed to draw the user's attention, and many site owners find that their CTR (click-through rate) significantly increases for the web pages that have featured snippets in the SERPs.

Featured snippet examples

There are many different types of featured snippets; here are some examples of the most common types.

By far the most common type of featured snippet is the paragraph type:

The list type of featured snippet is often shown for "process" search queries that are looking for a series of steps to accomplish a task. Note that the example below also includes an illustrative image.

For getting the table type of featured snippet, your best bet is to mark up the table on your page using the <table> tag.

So, how can you snag this coveted spot in the SERPs? Read on for advice.

Step 1: Understanding the opportunity for your site

When it comes to featured snippets, not all markets are created equal. If you are a local business, a better use of your time would be to focus on positioning your business for the Google map results, as featured snippets are not seen in SERPs that display the local pack (according to a study done by Stat Search Analytics).

On the flip side, if you are in a market where there is a need for clear answers to frequently asked questions, your industry uses terms that need explanation, and/or you have data that can be presented in tabular format, then featured snippets are likely a great opportunity for you.

In the aforementioned study, Stat reviewed 92,000 search queries for featured snippets and found the types of search terms which often return featured snippets are:

financial

mathematical

time

transitional

status

requirements

health

DIY processes

The types of searches which rarely return featured snippets are:

local

info/help

factual

shopping

images and videos

Stat did a refresh of their study six months later and found something surprising. One category of searches moved from rarely returning featured snippets to commonly returning featured snippets, and that was subjective queries (e.g., "best" or "reviews" included in the query).

While it's tempting to jump into keyword research right away to find question-oriented keywords, you should first check whether your site is ranking with featured snippets today. Keep in mind, just because you have the snippet today doesn't mean you will next week, so you'll definitely want to track your position 0 rankings.

Additionally, matching up Google Search Console CTR data with the keywords for which you have featured snippets also helps you size the opportunity, especially if you can compare CTR data for a time frame when you had the featured snippet against a time frame when you did not.

Even if your site does not have any featured snippets, a review of your competitors' featured snippets will be instructive to give you a starting point for a list of keywords you might want to focus on. Fortunately, there are a few tools available that can help you find keywords that currently have featured snippets.

SEMrush makes it easy to find your featured snippets. And this method works equally well when you are sleuthing for your competitors' featured snippets.

To get started, head over to "Positions" in "Organic Research."

You can then either filter the list of keywords under Advanced Filters by: Include > SERP Features > Featured Snippets, or you can simply select the "Featured snippet" link under the "SERP features" list on the right-hand side of the page.

Another excellent tool for finding tracking featured snippets is Stat Search Analytics.

You will first need to create a keyword list to upload into Stat. Once Stat has the rankings for your keywords, the Stat interface will show you which of your tracked keywords are producing featured snippet result types, which Stat flags as "answer" type results.

With Stat, you can filter those keywords to focus on those you are ranking in the top 10 results for, as well as tag keywords you want to track.

SearchMetrics Suite also features tracking for featured snippets. They call them "Direct Answers," but you can see in the screen shot below where they have filtered for a set of terms that nytimes.com ranks on where there are Direct Answers present.

In many cases, these direct answers are Featured Snippets, as you can see in the example, "vegan Thanksgiving recipes."

Step 2: Finding great keyword candidates for featured snippets

Now that we have a baseline and a better understanding of what keywords are getting featured snippets, let's find more opportunities.

Finding great candidates for featured snippets comes down to good old-fashioned keyword research. As you do your research, here are some things to keep in mind:

Higher-volume terms get snippets more often.

Longer queries that are comprised of six or more words tend to show featured snippets.

Since the purpose of featured snippets is to answer questions, explicit questions like "who," "what," "how," "where" and "why" search queries will obviously often have featured snippets. But don't overlook implied questions with the words like "does," "cause" and "costs," as well as action words like "becoming," "doing," "getting," "making," "forming" or "cooking."

Implied questions also include searches on terms. Consider a search for "email marketing," where the searcher is looking for a definition by essentially asking the implied question, "What is email marketing?" Snippets for general questions usually trigger a paragraph type of featured snippet.

'People also ask'

Particularly if you search on general questions, you can find additional keywords that result in featured snippets in the "People also ask" section in the SERPs.

Here, a search on "email marketing" gets a featured snippet, as well as a list of related search terms in "People also ask," including "What is an email campaign?"

Clicking on "What is an email campaign?" reveals a featured snippet that answers that question.

Answerthepublic.com

To get a list of questions that are asked about particular topic, a very useful data mining tool is answerthepublic.com, which uses the Google Suggest API to find all the permutations of a question that people are searching on.

Shown below are all the questions answerthepublic.com found for the keyword "cook vegetables."

We can then drill down into the specific questions for each question modifier. Here are the "how" questions for the keyword "cook vegetables."

The long-tail keyword, "how to cook vegetables in a slow cooker," does indeed return a featured snippet.

You can also get lists of queries formulated as questions from Moz Keyword Explorer. (Go to the Keyword Suggestions tab, and where you see the pull-down list "Display keyword suggestions that," select the option "are questions.") You can also get questions from Rank Ranger's Keyword Finder by clicking � ��Questions" under "Quick Filters."

If you have a Stat account, you can export a list of keywords from Answer the Public and then upload them into Stat to automate the process for determining which of the questions return a featured snippet in the SERPs.

Step 3: Increasing the potential for featured snippet selection

Whether we are creating the page from scratch or improving the page, to increase our chances of being selected for a featured snippet, we want to take a multi-pronged approach that includes:

content that clearly answers the question.

clean code and tagging that Google can easily understand.

positive user engagement signals.

I have found that your chances of being selected for a featured snippet can improve if you follow the content organizational model that I outline below:

First, repeat the question that is the query, or which is implicit in the query, clearly and prominently on your web page.

Directly following the question, provide a short, direct, clear answer to the question.

Then, provide more information, data, images and so on to answer the question as fully and completely as possible.

One way to structure your content is to use what journalists refer to as "the inverted pyramid." When following the inverted pyramid model, your page starts with the most important information that answers the question, then transitions to more detailed information, and finally wraps up with a broader look at the topic or perhaps a case study or an example.

How you format your HTML can make a difference too. Here are the best practices I recommend:

Make the search query, or a very close version of it, a heading on the page. This means, where possible, format that query or question as an H1, H2 and so forth.

Summarize the answer to the question in a single paragraph.

Format that paragraph in a paragraph HTML tag <p>.

Place that paragraph directly below the heading for the question.

Aim for making the answer paragraph roughly 40 to 55 words.

It can also help to format your content as a list, using the <li> tags. Particularly if the query you are targeting is best answered by delineating steps in a process (e.g., "how to boil an egg"), then use <ol> tags (an ordered list). If you think that a bulleted list provides the best answer to the query, then use <ul> tags (unordered list).

Heading tags for each of your steps can also work, rather than <li> tags. Google is quite adept at extracting the content it needs to build a useful featured snippet.

Additionally, presenting your content in a question-and-answer format (or as a list of frequently asked questions) can also help Google select a short answer from your page as a featured snippet for a question.

And finally, as we mentioned above, if you create a table in your content hoping for a table-type featured snippet, it's best to use the HTML <table> tag instead of using CSS to lay out your table.

For existing web pages, I like to take a look at a page's user engagement metrics (bounce rate, average session duration, # of pages visited) in Google Analytics. If the metrics are substantially below the site's average, that page isn't satisfying the needs of our site's visitors. Since Google is in the business of delivering the best search results to searchers, having a low-performing web page may make it difficult to obtain, and, more importantly, keep a featured snippet. Google will pick up on that poor performer not by spying on your Google Analytics, but by monitoring dwell time and CTR from the SERPs.

I presume the reason you want to rank highly in the Google search results is to attract leads and sales. So, while the tagging and content structuring is helpful to getting your position 0 ranking, it is actually more important to focus on making your page the very best answer to the question. Great content is rewarded not just by Google but by customer acquisition and retention.

Some opinions expressed in this article may be those of a guest author and not necessarily Search Engine Land. Staff authors are listed here.

About The Author Stephan Spencer is the creator of the 3-day immersive SEO seminar Traffic Control; an author of the O'Reilly books The Art of SEO, Google Power Search, and Social eCommerce; founder of the SEO agency Netconcepts (acquired in 2010); inventor of the SEO proxy technology GravityStream; and the host of two podcast shows The Optimized Geek and Marketing Speak.
Source: How to rank for 'position 0' in 3 simple steps: A featured snippets primer

#Review: Is The #SEO Framework the Best Free #SEO Plugin?

Review: Is The SEO Framework the Best Free SEO Plugin? When it comes to SEO and WordPress plugins, there's plenty of choice. The reality is, though, that most users tend to fall back on the most obvious and popular choices without giving much attention to the up-and-comers. Besides our own SEO plugin ... read moreSquirrly SEO Plugin Review: Is It Really All That Great? I love the idea behind this plugin. Essentially, this plugin makes it possible for anyone to wrangle on-page and WordPress SEO. Using Squirrly, you can do keyword research inside of the Post Editor, choose the best keyword to target and then optimize your ... read moreWordPress SEO by Yoast vs All in One SEO Pack: Which is the Best SEO plugin? We're here to figure that out, since we're going to pit WordPress SEO by Yoast vs All in ... of All in One SEO pack is sold by Semper Plugins, but the majority of the support on that page is for the paying customers. That said, each free plugin ... read more

The Big List of All the Best WordPress SEO Plugins You are likely one of the businesses relying on WordPress; but are you well-versed in the best WordPress SEO plugins ... your SEO settings from plugin to plugin. It supports many different SEO plugins and a variety of theme frameworks, all for free. read moreBest WordPress Seo Plugins That Are A Must in 2014 One of the best way's of doing this is through seo or search engine optimization. For the average person, it can be a difficult task on how to do proper on page seo , but with these WordPress plugins for ... can write unlimited reviews and they will ... read moreWP Meta SEO Review & Tutorial – Best WordPress SEO Plugin? WP Meta SEO is a specialized plugin for taking care of the meta content and images of your website. As I have shown in the review, the plugin does its job ... management features you need to ensure the best search engine ranking for your content. read moreWhat Is The Best SEO Tool? – It's Amazingly Free! That being said, I do have my own favorite SEO plugin and I swear to all that is good and true that it is the best. It's also free. When a fellow community member asks "What is the best SEO tool?", I tell them what I believe and to install Yoast! read moreThe SEO Framework – Extension Manager You can choose both premium and free subscriptions ... this plugin is taking approach of "install only what you need". This has always been absolutely the best SEO Framework ever, and this Extension Manager just makes it better. The WordPress SEO ... read moreSEOPressor Connect Review: Must have SEO Checklist WordPress plugin Before, I share SEOPressor review ... SEOpressor latest versions for free. SEOPressor cost only $9/month & with one license you can use it on multiple WordPress sites. This WordPress SEO checklist plugin is the best and must have plugin for your ... read more

Buy AutoTrafficRSS script now for $27 only!

We will send the script to your PayPal email within few hours,Please add FullContentRSS@gmail.com to your email contact.
Source: #Review: Is The #SEO Framework the Best Free #SEO Plugin?

The Anatomy of a Perfect Blog Post

Even though we all are crunched for time, spouting off a mediocre blog post for the sake of hitting a deadline isn't worth it. Considering our audiences have access to countless other articles, it's unlikely that they'd settle for a half-baked attempt.

We get it, though: It can be difficult to keep track of all the right blog components when you've got a full plate of projects. There's a lot to remember when crafting a solid blog post -- which means there's also a lot to forget.

To make sure nothing slips through the cracks and every one of your blog posts is both comprehensive and useful to your readers, we've created a rundown of everything you need to remember when you start writing. Bookmark this blog post, and make sure you've completed this checklist the next time you press "publish."

1) Headline

Every great blog post starts with a headline that grabs the reader's attention, and compels them to click and keep reading to learn more. Internet readers have very short attention spans -- around eight seconds in length -- and the headline is one of the critical first elements that help readers decide if they want to click and stay on your site. In fact, 60% of readers don't read past the headline, which presents a big opportunity. Here's how to write a great headline:

Brainstorm a Working Title

Start with a working title in mind and brainstorm how to make the angle as interesting as possible. This is the phase of blogging where you start with a general topic and narrow down exactly what you want to write about that topic.

For example, if I want to write about the topic of "blogging," I need to come up with a more specific working title first. And those working titles depend on the format of my blog post. Whether you're writing a listicle, an explainer article, or a how-to guide, brainstorm a few titles to guide your research. Here are a few ideas:

The Guide to Business Blogging

How to Get Started with Blogging

10 B2B Blogging Strategies We Love (and Why)

Once you have an angle you want to pursue, it's time for keyword research.

Conduct Keyword Research

Keyword research will help you create a headline that will perform well on search engine results pages (SERPs). Your headline is one of many factors Google considers when ranking results on SERPs, and an optimized title will help people find the information they need more easily.

Tools like Google's Keyword Planner, SEMrush, and HubSpot's keywords tool can help you determine exactly which terms people are searching for, and which will be easier or more difficult for your new blog post to rank for.

"Blogging" is a broad search term, and when I dropped it into SEMrush, more than 75,000 keyword results were returned. We recommend targeting long-tail keywords that are more specific to the exact audience you're targeting -- which you can learn more about by creating buyer personas.

When I searched for "business blogging," on the other hand, I found keywords with lower search volume, but would be more specifically targeted to the audience I'm trying to reach.

Once you've nailed the keyword you're targeting, you can create your final title, as well as your headers (more on that later). For the purposes of this example, I chose, "The Definitive Guide to Business Blogging."

Craft a Title

When it comes to the art of the perfect blog post, we've done some analysis and looked at how our own titles have performed. Here are the consistent principles we found:

The ideal blog post title length is 60 characters.

Headlines between 8 and 12 words are shared most often on Twitter.

Headlines between 12 and 14 words are liked most often on Facebook.

We also found that headlines ending with a bracketed clarification -- for example, "The Definitive Guide to Business Blogging [New Data]" -- performed 38% better than titles without that clarification.

If you're having trouble trimming down the length of a title, run it through SEOmofo and Twitter to see how the title will appear on SERPs and when it's shared on social media.

2) Meta Description

The meta description doesn't live on your blog post -- it lives somewhere different that's just as important.

The meta description refers to the HTML attribute that explains the contents of a given web page. Basically, it's a short description you see on a SERP to "preview" what the page is about. Check it out below:

The headline, URL, and meta description work together to convince searchers to click on a link to read the entire blog post, so you'll want to put thought into what to write for this piece of your blog post, too.

In our analysis, we found the ideal meta description length is under 155 characters.

3) Featured Image

Featured images usually sit at the top of a blog post and are another element to draw readers in to learn more. The image should reflect what the story is about, intrigue readers, or provoke them. It shouldn't be too literal or obvious, and it can simply be aesthetically pleasing, too.

Here's an example of one of our featured images. It features a mobile phone and a bright yellow color -- fitting, considering I was writing about Snapchat:

Make sure you choose featured images that you're legally able to edit and distribute. Here are some of our suggestions:

4) Introduction

The introduction needs to quickly hook your reader and convince her to read the rest of your blog post. It also has to let the reader know what your post is about, so she knows what she's getting. Nobody likes clickbait, so you want to make sure your post is about what the headline says it is.

Whether your approach is humor, interesting and surprising facts, or asking a question, find a way to make the first lines of your blog posts as attention-grabbing as possible. Write an introduction that would make you want to keep reading an article -- a quick few paragraphs to draw the reader in and let him know what he's about to read.

Here's an introduction my colleague, HubSpot Staff Writer Aja Frost, wrote that does this effectively:

Frost uses a cliffhanger approach here -- and now I want to read more to learn about how hard it is to be an entrepreneur. For more introduction inspiration outside of HubSpot Blogs, I recommend reading posts on Medium and Buffer.

5) Sub-Headers

Sub-headers are another on-page SEO element that helps your blog post to rank in Google Search. Sub-headers organize and break up your blog post into different sections to signal to Google (and your reader) what the post will cover.

Sub-headers should be written with H2 tags or smaller -- never H1 tags, which signal a title. Use sub-headers to split up sections of your blog post -- making sure to integrate the keywords you're using this post to target.

In this particular post, I'm targeting the keywords "perfect blog post," which I've used in my title and the first sub-header.

6) Body 

The meat of your blog post -- separated by various sub-headers, of course -- is where your readers will undoubtedly derive the most value. In our analysis, the ideal blog post length is roughly 2,100 words, but that will vary depending on your topic. Medium found that posts that took seven minutes to read earned the most engagement and attention, and serpIQ found that most of the top-10 Google results are between 2,032 and 2,416 words.

7) Data

Whenever it's possible to use data and numbers, do so. Numbers written as numerals (23) instead of words (twenty-three) have been shown to attract reader attention when they quickly scan what they're reading online. Additionally, numbers represent facts -- which are unimpeachable and most trusted by your readers.

If you're using numbers or data in your blog post, add [Data] or [Research] to your headline for additional impact, as we discussed earlier in the post.

8) Multimedia Elements

We've told you a few times that your reader is having trouble staying focused, so wherever it's possible to use multimedia content to break up the blog post and re-engage your reader, add images, videos, audio recordings, and social media posts. Changing up the format of your blog post will provide additional value to your reader while making sure their eyes are focused on what they're reading and seeing.

Works, huh? 

9) Conclusion

When you're ready to wrap up and sign off, make sure to let your reader know the article is closing. Your conclusion doesn't need to be lengthy, but it should serve to recap the blog post the reader just finished and provide more resources and guidance, if wanted. More on that next.

10) Call to Action

Finish your conclusion with a meaningful call to action (CTA) for your reader -- whether it's advice, a content offer, or a link to another related blog post. Use the last lines of your post to leave the reader feeling like he or she learned something from you -- and like there's even more to learn from you, creating the desire to click a link or CTA image and read more.

For more ideas on how to write a killer blog post, learn from our analysis of 175,000 B2B and B2C blog posts.

What's your go-to blueprint for a blog post? Share with us in the comments below.

Source: The Anatomy of a Perfect Blog Post

10 #Google #Ranking Factors Every #Website Must Focus On In 2017

The Simple Step by Step Guide to Increasing Your Website's Rankings On Google In 2017 Every story must ... traffic and rankings is NOT hard. You need to learn what works and most importantly what does not. Make sure to always focus on latest Google updates and learn basic SEO to start implementing those tips to improve your website ... read moreThe big picture guide to local SEO: ranking in 2016 & beyond Having a physical address and proximity to the searcher as ranking factors ... must match the address signals on the website. I like to see the address on every page for single-location businesses and on specific location pages for multi-location ... read more7 Vital SEO Trends to Know for Google Rankings in 2017 I'm going to reveal the top seven SEO trends you need to know in 2017 to ensure you achieve and maintain elevated Google rankings. Note: Backlinks are still 1 of the top 2 Google ranking factors ... Your website must also provide an equally exceptional ... read more

12 Most Effective SEO Strategies For 2017 However, in October 2016 mobile overtook desktop with mobile and tablet accounting for 51.3 percent of all web browsing ... speed will become an even more significant ranking factor in 2017. In September, Google again emphasized the importance of speed ... read moreHow Website Structure Affects SEO There are numerous ways how website structure affects SEO. Fixing these ... really bad for SEO because Google interprets it as spam. A focus on high-quality and unique content on the SERP clearly defines how your website must be structured for ideal ... read more10 Ways to Optimize Your Ecommerce Site for Google Search Ecommerce websites have several inherent qualities — shallow copy, duplicate content and a large product catalog — that make it challenging to achieve a high Google ranking ... Focus on heavily marketing these few hot items instead of every single ... read moreHow to Get More Targeted Website Traffic: 10 Steps to Better SEO Here's how to increase targeted website traffic in 10 steps. We'll use the ... It's a key factor in search engine rankings. Domain Authority is actually an approximation of Google's measurement which is called "PageRank." The authority of ... read more16 Local SEO Fixes to Ramp Up Your Rankings in 20 Days To avoid this, you must ... Google introduced the Accelerated Mobile Pages (AMP) to deliver a better experience to users. While this is not a ranking factor, the need of users to get information as fast as possible is what makes AMP relevant for websites. read moreThe Ultimate Beginner's Guide To Mastering Amazon Affiliate Marketing For reference, here is my Jan. 2017 ... website link to your profile, and some of them may even be dofollow. That will increase your rankings for sure. In general, I'd say don't focus on the competition too much. You will find competition in every ... read moreThe Step-by-Step Guide To Improving Your Google Rankings Without Getting Penalized Add a call-to-action (CTA): Every story must have ... content. Focus on exceptional content, if you want to earn links that will improve the rank of your web pages. Scale link building: Link diversity is the ultimate way to generate Google-friendly links ... read more

Buy AutoTrafficRSS script now for $27 only!

We will send the script to your PayPal email within few hours,Please add FullContentRSS@gmail.com to your email contact.
Source: 10 #Google #Ranking Factors Every #Website Must Focus On In 2017