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The ultimate SEO Content Creation Guide by Labelnone

In today’s digital age, technology is rapidly evolving and opening up new possibilities for creating content with the help of artificial intelligence. However, when it comes to search engine optimization, Google places a higher value on content that has been crafted by human hands. That’s why it’s more crucial than ever to understand how to create SEO-friendly content that meets the highest standards. Whether you’re a blogger, marketer, or business owner, mastering the art of SEO content creation can help ensure your website ranks well in search engine results and reaches the right audience.

The evolution of search engines

Before we get down to business in terms of SEO content creation, it is essential that we understand how search engines have changed and evolved over time. 

Over the last decade, there have been substantial changes in the way Google searches have been performed. In the past, people often used shorter, fragmented phrases when searching online. Nowadays, it is more common for people to ask full questions using complete sentences. With the increasing popularity of mobile devices and voice search, the way people formulate their search queries has become more conversational. 

In recent years, Google has made efforts to improve its natural language processing capabilities in order to better understand these types of queries. One significant example of this was the launch of Hummingbird in 2013.

What is Hummingbird

Hummingbird is a major algorithm update implemented by Google in 2013 that improved the accuracy and relevance of search results by better understanding the context and meaning behind search queries. The update placed a greater emphasis on the meaning and context of words within a query, allowing Google to better understand the relationship between different terms and concepts and to provide more relevant results for complex and conversational search queries.

From individual keywords to semantic search

As we have just mentioned. There has been a change in the way people search for information on Google, and therefore it has affected the way search engines analyze information.

In 2015 Google released Rankbrain. It is a system used to understand the likely user intent of search queries. We can consider RankBrain as a machine learning system based on Hummingbird, which turned Google from an environment of “strings” into an environment of “things”.

Google and other search engines no longer rely on lexical searches to rank websites. Instead, they use semantic searches, which consider the meaning behind the search query rather than just matching the exact words or their variations. Lexical searches are based solely on word matching, without any understanding of the overall intent behind the query.

This has had a huge impact on SEO content creation. In order for our websites to rank better and appear among the first pages on SERPS, it is important not to create and optimize content by keywords, but by topics instead.

Topic clusters

A topic cluster is a content marketing strategy that involves organizing a group of related content pieces around a specific central topic or theme. The goal of a topic cluster is to create a comprehensive and cohesive resource on a particular subject, with the central topic serving as the ‘hub’ and the related content pieces serving as the ‘spokes.’ Topic clusters can help to improve the discoverability and visibility of a website’s content in search results, as well as the user experience of the website.

When we create topic clusters, we need to differentiate between:

  • Pillar Page: A pillar page is a comprehensive and detailed webpage that covers a specific topic or theme in depth. It serves as the central hub of a group of related pages (clusters), which provide more specific information on subtopics within the overall theme of the pillar page.

We can see pillar pages as roadmaps or summaries about a topic. When we create a pillar page, we need to define the goals we want to achieve through it (leads, conversions…).

  • Cluster Pages: Clusters are groups of web pages that are related to a specific theme or topic. They are organized around the pillar page, which provides a broad overview of the topic, and include sub-pages that delve into more specific aspects of the theme. The relationship between a pillar page and its clusters helps to improve the overall structure and organization of a website.

The main goal of a cluster is to increase the authority of both the pillar page and the rest of the clusters.

Every cluster must be linked to the pillar page and vice versa. It is important that when analyzing the performance of clusters, we do not do so individually, but rather by analyzing their collective performance. One high-performing cluster can boost search rankings for all the other pages linked to the same pillar.

Steps to create SEO-optimized content:

Once we have decided what topics we are going to use for our blog, we need to create an editorial calendar, organizing the topics and their pillar pages and clusters. Only after having organized the content we are going to create, can we start writing it!

Do not forget to pay attention to seasonality. Seasonal SEO is a crucial aspect in terms of content creation.

1) Research keywords and understand your audience

Although we have said that right now search engines focus on topics rather than keywords, keyword research is mandatory when it comes to SEO content creation. We need to make sure the keywords we are including in the text have a high search volume (people are interested in them) and the right intent.

When users land on a webpage, they expect to find something concrete. If they see something different, not related to their search, they will leave.

2) Create SEO-optimized Meta titles and Meta descriptions

Although we have said that right now search engines focus on topics rather than keywords, keyword research is mandatory when it comes to SEO content creation. We need to make sure the keywords we are including in the text have a high search volume (people are interested in them) and the right intent.

When users land on a webpage, they expect to find something concrete. If they see something different, not related to their search, they will leave.

  • Meta Title: It must be unique for every single web page, between 50-60 characters, including the main keyword we want to rank for. If we include the brand, we need to separate it from the keyword with hyphen or vertical bar.

An example of this: The Labelnone Digital Marketing Blog – Labelnone

  • Meta Description: Meta descriptions also need to be unique and catchy. The optimal length is between 120 and 155 characters and it is important to include a call to action, in order to increase the CTR.

An example of this: Check out our digital marketing blog and find the latest updates about digital marketing strategies, marketing news, and insights.

3) Use headings and subheadings effectively 

When Google bots analyze a website, they have a limited amount of time to spend on it (crawl budget). Because of this limitation, it is mandatory to structure the content in a way Google bots can follow fast and easily to identify as much relevant information as possible.

The HTML structure shows Google crawlers the path they need to follow, acting as a ladder with different levels, organized by importance:

  • H1: The main heading. It must contain the main keyword we want to rank for.
  • H2: The subheadings. H2 headings are used to develop the subtopics depending on the main H1. They should include synonyms or variations of the main keyword.
  • H3: Level-three headings are used to explain subtopics of an H2 heading.
  • H4, H5, and H6: Subsections of the heading of a major section. They are not very relevant in terms of SEO.

4) Incorporate internal and external links to your content

Google’s algorithm is constantly evolving, and the importance of links in SEO content creation is beyond doubt. An example of this is the last link spam update released by Google on December 14, 2023. In this update, Google aims to remove the effects spammy links may have, eliminating any possible benefits that the spam links might have generated on websites.

Developing a properly optimized link-building strategy is essential for a website to increase its authority and therefore, be able to rank for competitive keywords.

We can think about a website like a water jug. When we create a website, it is filled with “average water”. This water will determine the website’s authority.

In order to increase this authority, we need to clean this water. How can we do that? By getting high-quality water (backlinks) from other websites. The higher the authority of these websites is, the more will improve ours.

Internal links

We can see links as the doors Google bots use to analyze content. Including links to different web pages on our website will provide Google crawlers with different paths to them. This will increase the chances of a web page being crawled and rank for keywords.

When creating internal links, it is important to use the right anchor text, including the keyword we want to rank for and linking to the web page where we want to rank for that keyword.

As we previously mentioned, SEO content creation is directed to a system of clusters, rather than topics. For this reason, it is highly important that we link our articles to each other, offering google crawlers more doors to access them and allowing the transfer of authority between web pages.

If you want to learn more about internal linking take a look at our internal linking for SEO 2023 guide.

External links

After reading this you are likely to wonder “why should I include external links on my website then? I do not want to send authority to another website”. The answer is in Google E-A-T.

Google E-A-T, which stands for Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness, are three factors that Google considers when ranking websites in its search results. Google aims to provide users with relevant and trustworthy websites, and E-A-T is one way it determines which websites to display. Maintaining a high level of E-A-T can help improve a website’s visibility in Google search results.”

  • E – Expertise: The content on a website should be created by experts in the field or industry related to the topic.
  • A – Authoritativeness: A website should be a trusted source of information and should be credible. This can be established through links to high-quality, authoritative websites.
  • T – Trustworthiness: The website and its content should be accurate and trustworthy. This can be established through the use of fact-checking and citing sources.

Although including outbound links will make us send some authority to other websites, the truth is that linking our posts to web pages that act as an authority in the sector will allow us to justify the arguments given in such content and, therefore, increase our Google E-A-T. This will be beneficial for our authority.

If you are interested in learning more about external links, take a look at our blog post the importance of backlinks in SEO

5.) Optimize your images and media for SEO 

When creating content for a blog or website, the content we write is as important as the graphic elements.

The inclusion and optimization of images is a fundamental pillar in SEO, and as such, there are a number of factors affecting image content indexing.

  • Name of the picture: This is the most important aspect since the image will be positioned based on the keywords it includes. It must be short, include descriptive keywords of the image, and separate the words with hyphens, instead of determiners, prepositions, conjunctions…
  • Image Context: Text around the image should include the keywords mentioned in the file in a natural way, as well as related keywords and synonyms. 
  • Title Attribute: The title attribute displays text on a rollover when the cursor is placed over the image. 
  • Alt Attribute: It is the text that Google analyzes to understand the content of the image and that is read aloud by the voice assistant. It must be less than 100 characters, include the keyword, and make sense when read aloud.
  • Size: Image size must be less than 100 kb.

If you want to learn more about image optimization, please have a look at our post on how to optimize your content for Google Lens.

6.) Incorporate tables, bullet points and ordered lists 

As mentioned above. Google robots need us to provide them with the information in the most structured way possible to find relevant content quickly and accurately. This is the reason why elements such as tables, bullet points, and ordered lists are so important.

What is the optimal content-length in SEO

There is no specific rule about content length in terms of SEO. Since the ultimate goal of SEO is to provide the user with the best possible answer to their needs, it is impossible to say “your blog post must be this number of words exactly”. However, there are a number of criteria that can be used to optimize our content. According to our experience, we can say that:

  • The content below 600 words is considered low content.
  • Posts over 1000 words tend to perform better.
  • It is important to check the text/HTML ratio. This is the relationship between the amount of text and HTML code on a web page.

It’s important to note that longer doesn’t always mean better. It’s more important to provide valuable and relevant content to the user, even if it means less word count. Additionally, the readability and user experience should be kept in mind while creating the content.

What is the optimal keyword density in SEO?

Keyword density is the percentage of times a keyword or phrase appears in relation to the total number of words on a webpage. In the past, some SEO practitioners would stuff their web pages with keywords in an effort to improve search engine rankings. This is known as “keyword stuffing” and is considered a black hat SEO tactic and can even result in penalties.

A good rule of thumb is to aim for a keyword density of around 1-2%. This means that if a webpage has 1000 words, the targeted keyword should appear between 10 to 20 times.

It’s also important to note that targeting a single keyword phrase too heavily can lead to over-optimization and decrease the readability of your content. Instead, consider using variations of your target keywords, including related phrases. This will make your content more natural, and will still allow your pages to rank for a variety of search queries.

Additionally, it’s worth noting that Google and other search engines’ algorithms are getting smarter day by day, so focus on relevance and user intent, instead of trying to manipulate the algorithm by keyword density.

The influence of typography in SEO content creation

Some elements ​​help capture attention and improve scannability.

  • Bold Text <b>: Bold text is used to highlight phrases that might otherwise go unnoticed by readers. Regarding SEO, it has no relevance and it is recommended to use the <strong> tag instead.
  • Strong Element <strong>: The strong tag is used to indicate to search engines that the text is relevant and has semantic importance.
  • Italics <i>: This tag is used for emphasis. Nevertheless, it has no actual impact on SEO and it is recommended to use the <em> tag instead..
  • Em element <em>: Used to emphasize and indicate search engines that a sentence has a different tone.
  • Underlined Text <u>: Underlined text generates confusion, as it could be confused with links and harm the UX.

The importance of featured snippets in SEO content creation

You should consider aiming for the Featured snippets (also known as rank 0), since they are really important in SEO content creation. They show directly the information a user is searching for, being direct answers to specific questions.

According to Ahrefs’ study, featured snippets have an average CTR of 8.6%, stealing them from the first organic position. This is the reason why we should aim to achieve the rank 0.

Something really useful when it comes to appearing in featured snippets is to include questions in the headings and try to give the best possible answer in the content. 

It is also convenient to highlight the specific answer we have given to the question, using resources like the strong element.

Conclusion

In conclusion, creating SEO-friendly content is more important than ever nowadays. By understanding the evolution of search engines, specifically the shift towards semantic search, and the importance of creating relevant and valuable content that caters to user’s needs and intent, we can master the art of SEO content creation.

One effective way to organize our content is by using topic clusters, which includes creating comprehensive pillar pages and related cluster pages, allowing search engines and users to easily discover and navigate through our website. 

As a blogger, marketer, or business owner, utilizing these strategies can help ensure your website ranks well in search engine results and reaches the right audience. Thank you for reading “The Ultimate SEO Content Creation Guide” by Labelnone.

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