A Few Basic SEO Content Tips

Written content is intrinsic to successful SEO. It’s what the Google algorithm (and other search engines) use to identify and rank websites and web pages for their quality, relevance, and dynamism.

This means that you need the right volume of original, unique, high-quality, and up-to-date text content on your:

Website Home page
Website Landing pages
Product categories and descriptions
Onsite blog
Offsite guest blogs
Social media posts
Meta titles and descriptions

Writing is not everyone’s forte – moreover, writing SEO content differs somewhat from writing other types of copy, including for sales-based marketing.

This is OK! SEOcycle is here to help.

Here we offer some very basic, simple guidelines for writing SEO content.

1. Metas

“Metas” refers to meta tags. These are snippets of code that provide search engines with crucial information about your web pages and how they should be displayed in search results. Though they are not direct ranking factors, they tell web browsers how to display your website to human visitors.

Every web page has meta titles, but they’re only visible in the HTML code. It’s crucial that they, and meta descriptions, be included.

Meta Tags:

Must include a unique meta title tag for each page. It should be concise, descriptive, and include the most relevant target keyword/s for that page to match search intent. Avoid using a generic or vague title, and ensure it makes sense. It should be click-worthy, not clickbait! Aim to keep it under 60 characters.

Must include a unique meta description of, ideally, 150-160 characters (and no fewer than 70-100). This is a sentence or two that summarises the content of the page and is often used as a snippet in search results. It should inform and captivate the interest of human users with a short, original, relevant summary of what a particular page is about and convince the user that the page is exactly what they’re looking for. To also meet the needs of the search engine algorithm, it must incorporate target keyword/s naturally, where it makes sense. (Note that some may exceed 160 characters, but should be no more than 250 at most and that search engines may cut them off.)

2. Copy Body

Copy must be 100% unique and original – even if a page is “rewritten” in the future, it must be crafted uniquely and with no copy-pasting. This includes location-based landing pages (e.g. location pages where the essence of the content is the same but targeted for different suburbs/locations).

Quality matters – copy must be on-point for spelling, punctuation, grammar and syntax (and include an introduction, body, and conclusion). It’s often a good idea to have a fresh set of eyes on all of this before you publish!

Volume – ideally, the Home page written copy should be of at least ~500 words and ~350+ words minimum on a landing page (but 500 is better). eCommerce category pages should have ~150 words at the top followed by individual product descriptions.

Keywords – copy must satisfy user search intent based on likely keyword searches and be relevant to the SEO focus keyword/s for the page. Don’t overstuff target keywords (KW) – keep the saturation of each focus KW to 1-2% of the total word count.

H-Tags – use H1, H2, H3 subheadings. The H1 must incorporate the primary target keyword for the landing page; the H2s should reflect secondary KWs. Incorporate H3s and H4s if relevant and suitable throughout the copy.

Optimise for GEO as well as SEO – GEO refers to generative engine optimisation. It leverages AI tools to create and refine content, and it currently appears at the top of most search results pages on Google. Pose questions to engage human audiences and meet the needs of SEO/GEO – either as H-tags within your page copy or in a GAQ section at the bottom of the page.

Write for Humans as well as the Algorithm – copy must be written to suit both the target human audience as well as to meet the needs of the Google algorithm…

*Keywords need to flow naturally within the copy.

*Written content must be accurate and offer distinct value to human audiences; i.e. be compelling, informative, entertaining, inspiring, motivational, commercial, etc.

*It should encourage readers to explore the rest of the website and convert. INCLUDE A CALL TO ACTION.

Readability – content should be easy to read and scan (based on target audience demographics). It should also be curated for its intended audience. For example, copy intended for an audience of Gen Zs will likely differ greatly from that targeted to seniors; content specifically crafted for legal or medical professionals will not be written in the same way as it would be for the mining industry. Some content must suit all audiences. Getting the balance right can be both a science and an art.

Beware that many readability analysis tools dumb down for the lowest average reading ability level (around 4^th grade) and this will not suit certain clients and audiences.

Optimise readability with short sentences and paragraphs, clear and simple language suited to the target reader, and use dot points and/or numbered lists within the copy if and where appropriate to maximise scanning ease and readability and to further appeal to search engines.

Links – include internal landing page links (especially from the home page) from target keywords to the relevant landing page.

Generally – optimise for featured snippets with clear and concise explanations. Avoid being repetitive. Avoid being generic.

Be aware that, while AI-produced copy might seem good (and is frequently better than what’s written by cheap, non-English-as-a-first-language speakers overseas), it’s often substandard at best (and sometimes it’s terrible: repetitive, overstuffed with keywords, and may even be gobbledygook or factually incorrect). A lot of people can identify it – and it’s not a good look for your business. Moreover, the search engine algorithms are getting better at identifying AI-produced content and it will be penalised in SERPs.

It can be fine to use ChatGPT or similar tools for initial inspiration, but it should not be used for website copy or onsite blogs without being rewritten by a human.

Need Writing Help? Contact SEOcycle!

Writing high-quality SEO content takes time. It takes experience and a level of expertise. It’s not as easy as it may seem. And it’s not quite the same as writing for general marketing purposes.

“I’ll just use ChatGPT” we hear you say. While this may seem like an appealing option, it’s not one we recommend, especially not for website copy or blogs – see why here.

We can help with copywriting and blogging – at competitive rates.

As our head writer and co-owner at SEOcycle, Alana is Australian-born, naturally English-speaking and tertiary-educated, and has been writing full-time since a career change in 2013 (her original career background being in the medical field). She has written on an extensive array of topics for hundreds of clients across industries, sectors, and niches, both for our SEOcycle clients as well as for her own clients on a freelance basis. She also outsources her writing services to several marketing agencies and companies both in Australia and overseas.

From website content to blogs, guest posts, and social media posts to support SEO campaigns, she has written for a myriad of clients on vast topics from vascular surgery to digital marketing, women’s health to the mining industry, travel in the Baltic and Costa Rica to fashion to home staging, interventional radiology to pest control, decluttering to Native American history and culture, finance to plumbing and electricals, beekeeping to liposculpture, and many, many more.

She can also provide professional editing/proofreading services if you prefer to write your copy yourself but have it checked and tweaked to meet the needs of an SEO campaign.

See just what we offer – learn about us and our writing, web design, and SEO services.

Contact us to have a chat about what you need and to explore how we can help take your business to a wider audience, with its best foot forward!

(And see some of our Client Testimonials!)