So What Are You Going to Write About?
Now that you know how to write and optimize the text on the page, what do you write about? If there is only one thing to take away from this blog, it should be to write for your audience, not the search engines.
For the long-term benefit of your site, you should create content that users will enjoy. Over time, this will give you the most SEO benefit. Here are some guidelines:
Use words that your audience understands. If you're writing for techies, use techie terms and don't apologize for them. If you're a techie company trying to attract nontechie customers, explain everything. English has more acronyms that you can believe (Google “ABA” if you don’t believe me). Acronyms are the secret language of the clique. Only use them if you don't care if someone doesn't understand. However, you stand a good chance of alienating your audience if you do.
Use words that will attract the right people to your site. Different words mean different things to people. Try to think like your target audience. If they're calling it a Thingy and you keep referring to Widgets, you're going to lose at least part of the people who visit. Also, the keywords you put into your site will be discovered by people looking for explanations. At least refer to a location where people can get their answers.
Always keep Google in the back of your mind. I know, I know. I said not to worry about Google. However, do keep them in mind because they are one of the most important visitors to your site. Put your keywords in the right places and fill gaps in the search engines. Find areas in your industry that aren't covered well by others, or that have a very limited amount of good pages explaining them, and write about it.
Be timely
People are looking for insight into the world around them. What can you add to the news item that just came out on http://www.CNN.com? How can you tie your products and services into what's going on? It's easier than you think.
Check back on Friday and I’ll let you know how to keep your content fresh and up to date with industry news.
