We have reached an age where an individual can simply start earning without ever stepping out of their house. This is, however, possible only due to the advent of the digital age. The internet is a massive platform and provides great earning opportunities. One can choose a job based on their skillset available and on their choice of domain. Out of numerous jobs available such as web developer, blogger, youtube, software developer and many more, the job of an SEO content writer is one of the most lucrative ones.
What is SEO content writing?
Individuals who hear the term SEO for the first time may have difficulty in understanding this abbreviated form but the concept is rather simple. SEO stands for search engine optimization, which refers to modifying a content by placing keywords in such a fashion that that particular article comes at the top of the search results. This can be better understood if someone knows how a search engine operates.
Search engine optimization is important to make sure that your blog or site results come in the first page of the search engine, else it is not supposed to generate enough traffic.
This gives to the rise of SEO content writers; whose job is to write contents with specific keywords that can help a site list higher in the search results. Therefore, if you want to get hold of this lucrative and demanding job, here are 10 steps to become an SEO content writer:
1. Research: This is inevitably the most important step toward becoming an SEO content writer. First, you need to realize the phrases and keywords that people are searching for. This also helps you make an informative and high-quality article, which readers will like to give a read. Once you are armed with that knowledge you can create a quality content including these keywords. There are several third-party software’s that can help you in finding the popular searches.
2. Placing keywords: When it is said that we need to place keywords, it does not mean we can place them in any order to get the desired results. It is advised to make the placement of the keyword look natural therefore not affecting the quality of the article and having a negative impression on the reader’s mind. It is advised to make your keywords appear in the title or in the first 300 words of the article. It should also be noted that the keywords being used should not appear too much, making the content monotonous. Here the most important part is to maintain an effective frequency and density.
3. Selecting the topic: It is important to ensure a topic is taken into consideration that people would like to give a read. It often happens that the keyword placements are near perfect but the content does not gather traffic as the topic of the content is not appealing to the people. The topic must have some value for the reader, else why will someone read something? You can also gather knowledge about this from experts and endorsement from popular bloggers for your blogger to help you with your blog.
4. SEO friendly URL: A good URL is easy to grasp and looks better to the user. This further improves the search results as many search engines also take into account the keywords used in the URL itself. This further improves the optimization. The URL’s used also should not be excessively long.
5. Meta Description: This refers to the text that is shown just below the respective search results. It is important to make sure that your meta description is well made as it often happens that people don’t open the site if they are not satisfied with the meta description. It should showcase some of the essential elements to make people interested. Therefore, metadata should be enticing and appealing.
6. Platform friendly: It is important to make sure that the site being used is platform friendly. It means that the site should be accessible from both cell phone as well as computers. It should also work for different browsers, thereby increasing the accessibility of the site to a greater number of people.
7. Use tools: There are numerous tools available that can improve your task and they should be used effectively to achieve better results. Use tools such as Google search console, which allows people to know about the keywords that are gathering traffic. These also allow to produce a structured data for your pages and provides a rich mobile experience. The best part is that it allows you to track your changes when you make changes in your title tags and meta descriptions.
8. Improving skills: It is always said that learning is a never-ending process. One should train themselves in different skills such as basic HTML editing, H1, H2 and meta tagging. Additionally, one should be aware of how to use platforms such as WordPress and Drupal. One can further improve themselves by attending conferences by industry experts and acquire certifications from legitimate sources. This further helps in acquiring credibility in the professional world and propels your business forward.
9. Focus on analytics: once you are done with your SEO, you should focus on the traffic it has helped build. It often happens that your SEO is not effective has a negligible contribution to developing the site concerned. Regular tracking allows you to get a better overview and therefore allows you to get hold of better plans for modifying it. The bounce rate is also an important factor. If your site has a high bounce rate it can push visitors away and provides a bad impression.
10. Editing: This is a critical part of this occupation. You should not only create high quality, error-free content but also focus on building a well-structured and aesthetically appealing article. The facts provided in the content should be legitimate and the sources cited should be credible. The paragraphs are advised not to be too long and must have subheadings if required.
The above stated points if followed can not only help in improving the quality of your work but also develop your overall efficiency. By being able to generate more traffic in the sites you worked for, you can further showcase it and gather better assignments in the future. These all are essential points that need to be followed to have a successful professional career.