Writing SEO-Friendly Content
Quality written content is the key to simple search engine optimization (SEO) for any small business. In general, search engines prioritize relevant, informative, and valuable content for readers. At the end of the day, if the information you put on your website doesn’t benefit the person who will actually read it, search engines will figure this out as they want to provide the right information for the search the end user typed into their search engine. Therefore, having quality information on our websites is the most important thing we can focus on with our websites.
As you might expect, we have established an article structure “formula” that works well for us. Sure, we aren’t always rigid on this “formula” all of the time and do try different styles from time to time, but we have found that there is a “formula” for the structure of an article that seems to work best. In fact, this formula works very well for both our readers (from a reading/skimming perspective) and for Google. Yes, there are certain formulas that help Google understand what an article is about, which ultimately leads to Google putting priority on certain articles. When Google ranks an article high, you get more people finding your articles and ultimately more exposure to helping others through the information on your website.
As business owners, one of the best things we can do to have SEO-friendly content on our websites is to structure our articles and content in an SEO-friendly way. To do this, we can focus on four key areas:
1-Article Title: Our title should set the stage for the article or page a visitor is reading. It should explain in just a few words what the entire webpage or article is about and be a guiding “north star” for everything else included on that page. A strong title can make or break a page for SEO purposes.
2-Content Format: Information on a webpage can be formatted to help readers easily understand the information they are reading. Specific formatting will also help Google and other search engines understand what the webpage is about, helping to increase the overall SEO ranking of a webpage.
3-Length of Content: While short articles and webpages are often easier to create, the general rule in SEO is that longer articles rank better (assuming they provide extensive value related to the topic someone is searching for).
4-Internal Links: Websites can benefit from enhanced SEO results when appropriate internal links are used on a webpage. Internal links are hyperlinks that point readers to another page of your website that relates to the topic, or similar topic, of what they are currently reading.
Let’s take a deeper look at each of these four key areas.
1-Article Title
Believe it or not, the title is the most important part of the article. A good title will both pull a reader in and rank high for search engines like Google (because people are searching for something for which the title/topic—and content of the article—provide the solution). The title of each article or webpage on your site is important for SEO because it tells both readers and search engines what the content is about. Search engines use the title to understand the main topic of your page and decide where to rank it in search results. Including relevant keywords in the title helps search engines connect your page to user searches. A well-crafted title also encourages users to click on your post, which can improve your site's traffic and ranking.
We have found it best to lock in the title of the article before you begin writing it so that the content can stay focused on the main point (which should be reflected in the title).
To come up with a title for an article, blog post, or web page, you can start by focusing on relevant keywords that your audience is likely to search for. These keywords should relate directly to the products and services your business offers. Another approach is to create a title that answers a specific question or solves a problem, as this can attract clicks from those who have the problem or question. Lastly, it’s important to make the title as clear and engaging as possible. This can be done by using words that spark curiosity or offer value, like "How to," "Top Tips," or "Ultimate Guide." These strategies not only help search engines but also help readers to better understand your content.
Tips for Article Titles/Topics
Here are a few tips we use that help us to come up with article topics and ideas:
Answer a question. Answering a question is a great way to take a deep dive into a specific topic related to your business. If you have been in business for any length of time, you likely know the questions you keep hearing over and over about your products or the industry you serve. These questions are often perfect to use as content on your website.
Provide tips or steps. Articles with practical tips and steps are a great way to provide benefits to readers. Articles with tips and steps could help your readers to do things like prepare to use your product or service, how to get the most out of your product or service or explain a related issue. For example, if you sell replacement windows, you might provide tips or steps on how to find a contractor who can replace your windows. Alternatively, if you are a mold remediation company, you might provide information on how to prevent mold from returning after the mediation is complete.
Use Google to help you find topic ideas. When you go to Google, you will probably notice that the search bar likes to auto-fill suggestions. This auto-fill is a great way to come up with possible article topics, as the Google search bar is basically telling you that these are things others are already searching for.
One thing you will find is that the more specific the topic of question, the easier it will be to rank in Google and, therefore, have others find your article. For example, instead of typing in “lawyer”, we can be more specific by typing in “Indianapolis estate lawyer” to get more specific results that relate to our business. Then, we can see what searches Google is suggesting and use those searches to come up with the title of our web page or article.
2-Content Format
The next thing we can do to have SEO-friendly writing on our website is to format our writing in a way that helps both the reader and Google understand it. Formatting articles in a certain way helps both readers to easily flow through the often times complex information our compliance articles have, but it also helps Google to better understand what an article is about.
The strategy we use in much of our writing is to follow a specific format where we start with a brief introduction to our topic and then use various “headings” to break up an article into bite-sized pieces (which really helps readers to understand complex topics). To explain “headings,” let’s think of this in terms of bullets where each level of heading is a subsection of the level above it. For example, let’s consider an article that contains an introduction, three main sections, and a conclusion. If we were to bullet it out, it would look like this:
Title
Title (Heading 1)
Introduction
Heading 2 (This section contains 3 parts)
Heading 3 (A of Heading 2 above)
Heading 3 (B of Heading 2 above)
Heading 4 (Part I of Heading 3 above)
Heading 3 (Part II of Heading 2 above)
Heading 3 (C of Heading 2 above)
Heading 2
Heading 2
Heading 3
Heading 3
Conclusion (this could be a Heading 2 or not)
As you can probably tell, this entire web page is written following a similar structure, and we do this on many of our articles for all of our businesses. In keeping with the structure outlined above, here are a few more thoughts to consider when formatting or structuring content on your website:
Title: Heading 1 (H1)- Your title should be your Heading 1. While heading 1’s can be used different ways, one strategy is to only use a H1 as the title of your article or page. This helps with formatting and you will use H2, H3, and H4 for the remainder of the page.
Introduction - This is typically an overview/summary of the article and directly relate to the title of the article. It is important to write the introduction for the reader (and not Google), but it is a good idea to use the article title, or a very similar phase to the title in the introduction a time or two. The goal of the introduction is to pull the reader in and to directly relate to the title of the article.
Heading 2’s (H2) - After the introduction, we like to break articles into parts. There may only be two main parts, or up to about five. If you ever organize in bullets, these would be your main points that sub-bullets would fall under. Heading 2’s should all directly relate to the title/H1 of the article and may even include part of the title in the heading.
Heading 3s (H3) - These titles are subsets of each Heading 2. Heading 3s should directly relate to their Heading 2.
Heading 4s (H4) - Heading 4s are sub-parts of Heading 3s. These are completely optional and you may never use them, but can if you want to dig deep into a Heading 3.
Conclusion - Articles don’t necessarily need a conclusion section, but it is sometimes nice to summarize the article at the end. You would likely put the title of a conclusion in an H2.
3-Length of Content
The ideal length of an SEO article on a website can vary depending on several factors, such as the topic, the competition for that topic, and the goals of the article. Although short articles and webpages are usually quicker to create, the general SEO guideline is that longer articles tend to rank higher, as long as they offer in-depth value and thoroughly cover the topic a user is searching for.
When it comes to creating SEO-friendly content, understanding the ideal length for your articles and web pages is key to ranking well on search engines. While shorter articles can work for specific, low-competition queries, longer content tends to perform better overall. This is because comprehensive, well-detailed articles not only provide more value to users but also give search engines more context to determine relevance. In this section, let’s now explore general length guidelines for different types of content, why longer content often ranks better, and how to strike the right balance between length and quality.
Let’s take a look at a few considerations regarding the length of articles on our website.
General Length Guidelines
In general, the ideal length for SEO articles depends on the topic, what a reader is looking for, and how many competitors have articles already ranking for a keyword you are targeting. Short articles (300–600 words) can rank well for specific, low-competition queries but often lack depth. Medium-length articles (600–1,200 words) strike a good balance, providing enough detail to cover a topic thoroughly while remaining easy to read. Long-form content (1,500–3,000 words or more) tends to rank better for broad or competitive keywords because it offers in-depth coverage, detailed explanations, and more opportunities for internal linking, making it more valuable to both users and search engines. At the end of the day, the ideal length of an article or web page will depend on a number of factors.
In summary, here is what we have found typically works best for short, medium, or long articles and web pages:
Short Articles (300–600 words): These can still rank well for very specific or less competitive queries, but they tend to provide limited depth. Short articles are often used for quick updates or informational pieces.
Medium-Length Articles (600–1,200 words): This is a common length range for SEO articles. It’s long enough to cover the topic in some detail and incorporate relevant keywords and subtopics, but short enough to maintain readability and user engagement.
Long-Form Content (1,500–3,000 words or more): Longer articles are becoming increasingly favored by search engines, especially for topics that require more in-depth coverage. These pieces tend to rank well for broad or competitive keywords because they provide more value and context. Search engines, like Google, often reward content that thoroughly answers a user’s query, and long-form content allows for more detailed explanations, examples, and internal linking.
As you can see from this web page, long-form content needs to not only be numerous in words but also provide valuable information, or you might lose the reader and, thus, the search engine rankings.
Why Longer Content Often Ranks Better
Long-form content tends to perform better in SEO because it provides more opportunities to engage readers. By offering in-depth coverage, longer articles can address a topic from multiple angles, incorporate a wider range of keywords, and keep visitors engaged for longer periods. This increased depth and engagement not only enhances the content’s relevance and authority but also makes it more likely to be shared or linked to, which further helps with SEO.
Here are four reasons why longer content can help your website to rank better in search engine results:
More Comprehensive: Longer articles allow you to address a topic from multiple angles, include detailed explanations, and answer related questions, which enhances their authority and relevance.
Increased Keyword Opportunity: With more words, you have more room to naturally use a variety of keywords, related terms, and semantic variations that help improve your SEO performance.
Higher Engagement: Long-form content often keeps visitors on the page longer, which can improve engagement metrics like time on page and bounce rate, both of which are signals to search engines that the content is valuable.
More Shareable: Comprehensive content that covers a topic in detail is more likely to be shared by users or linked to by other websites, which can boost your backlink profile and, by extension, your rankings.
Content Quality Over Quantity
While long-form content can help with SEO when done correctly, it is important to remember that quality is always more important than just the number of words in an article or on a web page. Google’s algorithms prioritize content that provides value to users, so a short, well-written article that answers the question directly is often better than a long one that is repetitive or off-topic. Therefore, a good approach to any content is to make it as long as it needs to be rather than targeting an exact number of words.
Sometimes, just saying what needs to be said is all we need.
Ideal Length for Different Types of Content
The ideal length for an article, blog post, or webpage can vary depending on the type of content we're creating, as different formats serve different purposes and audiences. For example, a detailed how-to guide should be more detailed and thorough than a simple product description, while a blog post should be a length that balances thoroughness with readability. Understanding the best length for each type of content helps to ensure we’re providing enough information to satisfy both our readers’ needs as well as search engine requirements. By tailoring our content length to the purpose we want it to serve, we can improve user engagement, SEO performance, and the overall effectiveness of our SEO efforts.
While every article should have a length determined on a case-by-case basis, here is a general estimate of how many words to use for various types of content:
Blog Posts and Informational Articles: Aim for at least 1,000 words for a well-rounded post, but 1,500–2,500 words are often better for competitive keywords.
How-To Guides & Tutorials: These tend to perform well when they are comprehensive and detailed, often ranging from 2,000 to 5,000 words. (For reference, this page will end up somewhere between 3,000 and 3,500 words.)
Product Pages: These typically don't need to be long but should be well-optimized with relevant information, reviews, features, and specifications. Usually, 500–1,000 words is a good range, depending on the complexity of the product.
Case Studies & Listicles: These types of content often perform well when they're longer, around 1,500–2,500 words, since they tend to be informative and actionable.
Bottom Line on Article Length
While there is no one-size-fits-all answer, aim to write comprehensive, high-quality content that addresses the needs of your audience. If a topic can be fully covered in 800 words, that’s fine. But if a topic requires 2,000 words to cover all relevant angles and rank well, then go for it. Focus on providing real value and answering the search intent of users, and you'll likely see better results in the long run.
4-Include Internal Links
The final thing to consider when working to make our websites SEO-friendly is to include internal links on the content and articles we publish on our site. Internal links are links that connect one page of our website to another. While external links are those that point to our website from an outside source, internal links point from one part of our website to another - all within our website. They help users easily find related content on our site, making it simpler to explore more pages. Internal links are also important for SEO because they help search engines find and understand all the pages on our website, improving our chances of ranking higher in search results. They also expand the page’s "link authority," so other pages on our site can rank better, too. In short, internal links make our site easier to use and help it perform better in search engines.
There are a few different ways internal links can be used on a website. Here are three possibilities:
Linking to Related Blog Posts or Articles: In your blog or article content, link to other relevant posts or pages on your site. For example, if you're writing about SEO tips, you might link to another post on keyword research or page speed optimization.
Navigation Menus and Footer Links: Include internal links in your website’s main navigation menu or footer to important pages like your homepage, product pages, or contact page. This helps users easily access key areas of your site.
Contextual Links within Content: While writing, link to other relevant pages or resources within the text itself. For instance, if you mention a service or product, link to its dedicated page on your site for more details.
Conclusion
In conclusion, writing SEO-friendly content is valuable for a small business because it helps increase visibility on search engines, making it easier for potential customers to find your website. By using relevant keywords and providing helpful, well-organized content, your site can rank higher in search results, which can drive more traffic and generate leads. SEO-friendly content also improves user experience, keeps visitors engaged, and builds credibility, all of which can lead to higher conversion rates and business growth.
