SEO Optimization: Let’s Get Started

A graph on a computer screen demonstrates the benefits of good SEO optimization.

Scribendi shares some starter tips on how to

get your content seen with effective SEO optimization.

So, you've taken your business online. Your website is spectacular, your friends and colleagues have nicknamed you the Copywriting Guru, and you're generating scintillating, topical content that just screams success. Problem is, nobody is seeing it. Without effective search engine optimization (SEO), you might as well be trying to reach your target audience by passenger pigeon.

Don't announce defeat yet! Here are some fundamentals to keep in mind to start getting your content seen.

All the right words in all the right places

SEO optimization relies on keywords. The effective use of keywords leads to better SEO optimization; good SEO optimization will make your website come up in search results ahead of ones that don't have good SEO optimization. So if, for example, your content was about SEO optimization, you'd want to use the keyword "SEO optimization" a lot. See what we did there?

But it's a mistake to overpopulate your content with keywords and expect that to do the trick. The above paragraph reads pretty horribly, doesn't it? Instead, think about the placement of your keywords rather than trying to cram in as many as possible. Including your primary keyword in your content's title (you just checked our title, didn't you?), in the description, or in the first 50 words of your text will be more effective than having the same term appear 15 times in the latter half of your copy. Remember that the Internet breeds click-happy, instant-gratification-expecting consumers. If the focus of your copy doesn’t make itself known right away, your content won't do well in search results, and it won't entice readers to stick with you long enough to find the information they are seeking.

Choose your keywords wisely

Obviously, the keywords that are entered with the highest frequency into search engines represent the most popular inquiries. Simply targeting your SEO optimization at these searches may not be the most effective approach, however. Consider the amount of competition you'll have in getting your website to the top of a search results list if it's been optimized strictly with the most popular keywords, i.e., the same keywords that every other website in your industry is using. Sometimes it's better to look for mid-range keywords that still appear in a lot of searches but, in being less obvious, may not have been jumped on yet by other companies.

A picture is worth a thousand words

Have you ever done a Google search and clicked over to the Images tab because the regular web results weren't giving you what you wanted? The fact that this tab even exists means that SEO optimization goes beyond just streamlining your text. Not only that, but a well-optimized image or video can appear in other types of searches (web, news, etc.) if the search engine deems it relevant or it turns up in results even when your written content doesn't. So how do you turn your images into search engine gold? Easy. Choose keywords for your images' alt tags, image tags, and file names using the same principles you'd apply when optimizing your text. To keep your webpage from loading too slowly (and thus losing impatient, clickaholic customers), reduce the file size of your images as much as possible without sacrificing their quality.

Invest in a tool to help

The people who specialize in SEO optimization do it so you don't have to. There are many SEO optimization tools available to help you increase your visibility in search engines without sacrificing the relevance of your writing to customers. Some of these tools are paid services, while others, such as those offered by Google, are free. Take a few moments to figure out which tool is going to suit your needs and knowledge level the best.

These SEO optimization basics may not make up an exhaustive course, but they will start you on the right path to increasing your copy visibility, and using Scribendi's SEO editing service can help you perfect your optimization. Remember that the Internet is a trend-happy universe; don't assume that what is popular in searches now will still be leading the pack next quarter. Staying on top of consumer trends and inquiries and keeping your content optimized to suit them will help your material stand out among the competition.