Ever since the Hummingbird algorithm update, quality and consist content became top-of-mind for many SEOs. We, at 411 Locals, have always wanted to produce better quality content, and here are some tips that have worked over the years for us.
Audience-focused content VS keyword-focused content strategy
Many SEOs believe that researching a keyword alone is good enough for a content strategy. Now, the problem with that is that not all your audience’s content needs are met in the search. Don’t get us wrong, of course, keyword research is important and can develop a good quality content, but is this good enough for your potential customers?
Before anything, you should start by targeting the audience and diving deeper and understanding your brand’s expertise and unique value proposition. Simple enough and a basic marketing strategy. Now, think about the exact moment of one of your potential customer’s journey to conversion. The search results are most certainly not the only source from which a potential customer can get the information. Then, why limit your audience’s understanding to keyword research only?
Base your strategy on the following questions:
- What is my audience like?
- What are their needs?
- What type of content is suitable for them?
- What unique expertise my brand offers?
- How to match my expertise to my audience’s needs?
We understand how hard can it be to let go keyword research opportunities if they don’t get the content strategy. And yes, there are going to be certain keywords that will definitely increase your organic traffic. The point is that if the keywords don’t fit your target audience’s needs, you don’t actually need that traffic in the end.
Build a customized content strategy for your brand
- Set your goals – What are you trying to achieve? Document everything and figure out what type of content you need.
- Identify your audience and their pain points – In order to properly you do, you will most likely need teams such as customer service, sales, technical support, product management & marketing, social media marketing.
- Determine your unique expertise – Do a little bit of research. See how your competitors work and think about what can you do better. Focus on that!
- Figure out your content tilt – After combining the last 2 points, you should have a pretty clear idea about your content tilt. Now develop a list of potential topics based on that tilt.
- Keyword research – No SEO strategy can work without keyword research, the idea is not to count on that research to do all the job.
- Create the content – Looks like you are ready to get creative. Brainstorm your teams, try out different ideas, do a competition if you must – this is the fun part and you should enjoy it!
This is how the 411 Locals team does it! Of course, after you launch your content, you will have a lag before seeing any results, but hold on, be patient, and hope for the best. If you know that you did well, you will definitely do well!