Search engine optimization, or SEO, is that the process by which an internet site is optimized to perform better and rank higher in relevant searches. Content marketing, on the opposite hand, maybe a subset of inbound marketing that involves moving an internet site visitor through the sales funnel by offering them helpful, interesting, or convincing content pieces.

Although these two could seem like night and day, it’s possible to make a content marketing strategy for SEO —that is, a content marketing strategy that helps your website rank better, for more keywords, and reaches more customers.

As Google’s algorithms have developed and altered, they need began to favor many of the weather of an honest content marketing plan—for example, fresh content of a particular length, with good keyword targeting, and on specific pages. In fact, a solid SEO strategy now involves content creation even as very much like it involves classic, more technical factors.

The SEO benefits of content marketing

Let’s look a touch closer at some content marketing SEO benefits, and learn specific ways in which a content marketing plan can offer you a foothold over your competitors in program rankings.

More Content = more keyword opportunities

Search engines can’t “see” websites such as you and that I can. Although we as citizenry can check out an internet site with pictures of pet supplies and understand that it’s an eCommerce site selling leashes, dog bowls, and dog toys, Google has no way of knowing what a website’s purpose is unless those words are written somewhere.

Content marketing allows you to travel beyond the tiny paragraphs of homepage copy and alt text descriptions on photos, where your space for keywords could also be limited. Through the utilization of articles, blog posts, guides, and other written content, you’ll use more keywords relevant to what your website is about—and what people are checking out.

For example, if your website sells pet supplies, you’ll want to rank well for keywords associated with dog collars. rather than trying to cram all the collar-related words and phrases you’ll consider into one small space or page, you’ll write a really natural guide like “How to settle on the proper Size Collar for Your Dog,” or create a blog post about the most recent colors and designs of collars in your store. This content isn’t just helpful and interesting. It’s also an excellent opportunity to use keywords and rank well in searches!

According to one study, pages that rank the very best in Google’s program results pages (or SERPs) tend to even have the very best amount of content:

As the chart above shows, pages within the first three positions of the SERPs averaged around 2,400 words each.

Is longer content always better? Not necessarily. After all, if your article, blog post, or guide goes on and on without making some extent or offering any quite substantial information, visitors will get uninterested in it and leave, which can actually hurt your rankings (see below). However, substantial, informative, and detailed content tends to be longer, so it is sensible that it might correlate with the very best rankings.

Think about the last time you looked for a solution or tutorial online. How long did it take you to seek out a page detailed enough to completely answer your question or assist you to solve your problem? the likelihood is that you found this page directly.

As SEO has evolved, it’s changed to include factors aside from keyword density (that is, the number of times you used the keyword you would like to rank for). So by creating substantial content that visitors really appreciate, you’ve got a far better chance at taking the highest spot than someone who tries to urge their keyword usage perfect.

Content keeps users on the page longer

Let’s say someone involves your website from search, can’t find what they’re trying to find, and leaves directly (without visiting the other pages). this is often called a bounce, and therefore the percentage of individuals who do that on each page on your site is factored into your bounce rate.

Google can factor metrics like bounce rate into your site’s overall SEO profile. If a page features a very high bounce rate, that’s typically a symbol that there’s something wrong with it—and Google certainly doesn’t want to continue ranking it highly if it’s sending all its visitors right back to the search results. Sometimes content can assist you to combat a high bounce rate and solve problems like this, especially if it’s done thoughtfully.

For example, let’s say the bounce rate on your homepage is extremely high, and you think that that’s because visitors don’t know where to start out learning about your products or services. you’ll add some content to introduce your SEO company, suggest where they might start, or maybe a link to some pages. this will keep them on the page longer, send them to other pages, and reduce confusion – so it’s actually solving three problems, not just one!

\As we mentioned above, content that doesn’t help your visitors doesn’t make its point or just bores the reader can drive visitors away. If your content begins to send people away very quickly, this, too, can harm your bounce rate. So length is vital, but don’t waste your visitor’s time, either!

Finally, there’s one thing that SEO and content marketing often have in common: they specialize in finding something that hasn’t been done before and trying to rank highly for it.

By combining keyword research—one of the crucial skills you ought to learn to enhance your SEO—and your content marketing program, you’ll focus not just on creating a content marketing strategy for SEO gain, but on creating unique, never-before-seen content that exposes your business or website to visitors checking out “long-tail” keywords where you’ve got a much better chance at ranking within the top spot.

Fine Chocolates

For example, if you sell fine chocolates online, your immediate reaction could also be to make a piece of writing about why chocolate tastes so good, or maybe why it makes an honest gift. But this has certainly been done before! Instead, by doing touch research, you would possibly find that a couple of dozen people are searching monthly for an in-depth article on the health benefits of bittersweet chocolate, but there aren’t any good pieces out there on the subject.

This is an ideal topic for your content marketing program because you’ll write authoritatively about it, and have the knowledge and resources needed to try to do so. Additionally, because you sell chocolate, you’ll end the article with a mild call to action along the lines of “click here to ascertain our big choice of dark chocolates, shipped liberal to your home or a beloved .”

As long because the content you’re writing is exclusive and relevant to your company, these unique pieces can assist you to occupy additional places within the SERPs, rank for even more keywords, and reach a wider audience.