A website is as good as its content. In order to optimise your site the content needs to be good SEO content. The following takes a look at how to write good SEO content.

Content and Search Engines

An understanding of SEO will show you that a site's content influences how it is ranked in search engine results. In other words, the content of a website determines whether Google and Yahoo! will find your site and rank it. If your site has bad SEO content your site will either not be ranked, be regarded as spam or it will have a low ranking. 

SEO Writing

Content that is written for SEO is different to normal or creative writing. This is not to say that you can't be creative, rather, you need to be creative within the boundaries of SEO. Website content must be written for SEO to ensure that search engine spiders will find and rank the site. Otherwise there is no point of having a website. Remember if Google cant find your site how will internet users?

Irrelevant Information

Another thing to consider when writing good SEO content is misleading words and phrases. For instance, if you repetitively use the phrases "bear in mind" or "the following highlights" search engines will rank your articles as articles about bears or hair highlights.

Writing Good SEO Content

Things to consider when writing SEO content include:

1. Keep your voice, but, keep it simple
2. Keep writing principles including introduction, body, and conclusion
3. Important information should be at the beginning
4. Write using the inverted pyramid
5. The first paragraph is very important
6. Answer who, what, where, when and how
7. Write for the high school student
8. Remember to write for your reader
9. Tell the truth
10. Get to the point
11. Do not waffle on
12. keep the point of the article in mind
13. Keep one idea in your article
14. Have a call to action
15. Make sure it is easy to read
16. Write for the reader
17. Remember that your audience is global
18. Write for the search engine
19. Use simple language
20. Avoid using confusing jargon
21. Use relevant keywords
22. Use relevant keyword phrases
23. Avoid keyword overuse
24. Articles should have 5-8% keyword density
25. Avoid using phrases such as "read on", "click here", "Read below" or "Find out more".
26. Think about the keywords and phrases that users use to find content
27. Write in the active voice
28. Use bullets
29. Use lists
30. Use short sentences
31. Use short paragraphs
32. Use relevant headings
33. Use relevant subheadings
34. Use internal links (inbound links)
35. Use external links (outbound links)
36. Hyperlink to relevant articles
37. limit the play on words
38. Do not use more words than you have to
39. Avoid ambiguous headings or words
40. Limit the word count
41. Keep SEO articles 300 to 500 words long
42. Edit your article and take out unnecessary words
43. Proofread your text
44. Text should be simple
45. Avoid content mistakes

Conclusion

SEO writing is different to normal writing for a reason. It enables search engines to find and rank a website. This results in more website traffic. SEO content needs to be written well, otherwise your site will not be ranked or it will lose credibility. Take the time to learn how to write good SEO content.

Further Articles

• Top 10 SEO Mistakes
• Benefits of SEO
• SEO Misconceptions
• Duplicate Content and SEO
• SEO During Recession