Do you often feel that your blog is well written, but it is rarely viewed, and it is not ranked?
Columnist Kristopher Jones shares some common SEO mistakes bloggers and content marketers make.
The digital marketing landscape has changed significantly over the past two decades. And between Google's changing algorithms and the drain of misinformation in the digital marketing world, it's easy to overlook the basic practices we ourselves should apply in our SEO and content marketing strategies.
With every new update and shift in search technology, we become obsessed with how the field of SEO enters a new paradigm, and to do so we shift our focus. However, the core tenets of changing the medium remain the same - it's time to get back to basics.
We all know the secrets and best practices of SEO, so why can't these tactics be leveraged on a regular basis? Let's explore five common blogging mistakes you may be making.
Unoptimized Keyword Structure
Despite the rise of semantic search and machine learning techniques, keyword research still takes precedence when modeling internal marketing campaigns. All on-site content should be connected to overall business goals by topic and keyword themes.
If our content simply covers topics email list rather than keywords, how do we know what users really want? Without keyword research, how can you know who your users are? Who are you writing for?
Keywords are the bridge between user intent and informational/transactional content. Keyword-optimized content can help position individual pages for higher rankings or bring exposure to targeted searches. This makes blog content a potential customer.
For web bloggers, the focus should be on informative long-tail keyword phrases. Common examples include question phrases that begin with how, what, when, where, and why.
Other keyword ideas might include frequently searched actionable phrases such as "tips" and "tips" at the top to improve certain actions.
Bloggers often fail to optimize titles, meta tags, and content with targeted keyword phrases. Considering the fact that specific keyword phrases are often bolded in the meta descriptions of SERP listings, this may improve CTR.