Blogging with SEO in mind

We all already understand the point of writing SEO copy for your website, but the same value should be applied to writing your B2B blog. The benefit of blogging with SEO in mind is that you’re not only creating useful content that your customers value, but you’re also ensuring that potential customers can find you through a web search when they have a problem that needs a solution. So how does a blog work for SEO? Follow these easy steps:

1) Choose your keyword

In the beginning, it is best to focus on one keyword to master it. In addition to making sure it’s relevant to your ideal customer, use a “long tail” keyword phrase. This means that instead of writing “consulting,” write “San Diego financial consulting” or “medical software training.” The more specific to your business (without using too many adjectives) it allows your website to rank higher for specific searchers who are more likely to convert into customers.

2) Keep it relevant

It should seem like a no-brainer not to start typing broad, irrelevant keywords like “cars,” “clothes,” or “cat memes.” And if it doesn’t seem obvious, we can make it clearer: don’t do that. Whose.

3) Include keyword variations

With Google’s Hummingbird update, the algorithm now detects conversations more than traditional keywords. For example, if you’re an accounting firm, typing “accounting services” and “accounting services” helps you describe your business in a variety of ways.

4) Avoid keyword stuffing

That’s why we often suggest sticking to one or two keywords per blog post, because sometimes businesses are too eager to include all the hopeful keywords in their list. Also, spread the keyword evenly throughout the blog post. Mentioning it once in each paragraph is a bit overkill depending on the length of the content. Ultimately, your natural voice and whatever is most comfortable to read will delineate a keyword’s placement. Which brings us to…

5) Don’t be a slave to the keyword

The goal of a blog post is to attract visitors, not search engine bots. Your copy should be really enjoyable to read and, more importantly, be a valuable resource for readers. While we want to be nice to bots, they are not your customers.

Now that you’ve written your blog post with SEO in mind, it’s time to upload it to your WordPress or other content management system. Here are areas on the backend of your blog that need your keyword:

1) SEO meta elements

With WordPress, you can easily download the Yoast plugin to have simple fields to fill in with keywords. These fields include:

• Title – This is different from the blog title you are using and should include your keyword. Implementing a title tag is useful when your blog post may have a clever title, but visitors may not be searching for that exact phrase. With title optimization for a more searchable phrase, you can have your cake and eat it too: a great headline AND web traffic.
• Description – This is a field of 165 characters maximum where you can quickly summarize the content of your blog post. It appears below each linked result for a search term (see photo below). While it’s important to include keywords, it’s even more vital to make the sentence interesting enough that when a user reads it, they’re inclined to click.
• Keywords: This field is possibly the least important of the three. Search engines rarely use it, but it can still serve as a reminder of what your target keywords are in that particular post.

2) Headlines and special fonts

The main header (the h1 tag) should include your keyword. Where appropriate, include the keyword in any subheadings, bold text, or other special font treatments you use.

3) Links on the page

When linking to a phrase or piece of text in a blog post, instead of linking “Click here” for your contact request, try “Call Bop Design if interested in more information.”

4) Image names

Naming your image with the SEO keyword will give your blog post some “juice”.