According to Google CTR study by Sistrix, 28.5% of Google users click on the first organic result that appears in the search engine result pages (SERPs). This is followed by 15.7% for the second position, and 11% for the third position.
As you can see in the image below, pages ranking on the 1st page of Google for a given search query acquire the majority of clicks.
Based on these numbers, it’s easy to conclude how essential it is for your web content to be optimized for search engines in order to rank better and generate clicks, no matter if you're a blogger, copywriter, digital marketer, or business owner.
Fortunately, there are a few methods and SEO writing tips that you can use to instantly improve your SEO performance and rank your content higher in search engine results.
10 Content Writing Tips for Better SEO
Here are 10 SEO content writing tips to improve your search engine rankings in 2024.
1. Perform Initial Keyword Research
Conducting keyword research before and potentially during SEO writing will help improve your chances of ranking your content high up in the search engine results pages (SERPs).
By researching the right keywords for the topic you’re writing about, you will be able to align your content better with your audience based on what they're searching for on Google Search. You’ll also be able to set more realistic expectations for your results.
One of the easiest ways to research a keyword is by searching up different combinations of the keyword on Google and having a quick look at the related keywords and questions that surface in the SERPs.
You can also use SEO software tools that include features for conducting in-depth keyword research to gain insight into keyword search volume and demand, keyword difficulty in regards to ranking, and other helpful SEO metrics.
Check out all-in-one SEO software like Semrush or SE Ranking for leading keyword and competitor research capabilities, among other valuable features for improving content writing and SEO efforts.
2. Structure Your Content Properly
Google and other search engines strive to find the most valuable content for users. One of the best ways to help search engine crawler bots understand your content properly, and therefore, promote it as a high-ranking result is to keep your content well structured and neatly organized for readability.
For instance, you should always make sure that your headers and relevant HTML heading tags are in cascading order. For example, use an H1 title tag for title headers, an H2 tag for subheaders, an H3 tag for lesser headings under H2 sections, and so on.
An optimized content structure helps in making your content is easier to skim through in smaller bites, which helps readers find what they’re looking for in your content.
3. Include Multimedia in Your Content
Incorporating multimedia such as images or embedded video in your content can leave a stronger impression on your content and make it more understandable and engaging.
In fact, using supporting images with keyword-rich titles and alt text can help your content get found not only on regular search result pages but on image search engines like Google Image Search as well.
In addition to static images, adding other forms of media, such as animated GIF images or videos for each step encourages additional engagement with your content, which can signal to search engines that your content is well-received and worth ranking more prominently.
4. Understand Your Target Audience
Speaking of trustworthiness, many search engines use a variety of domain authority signals to assess and evaluate website content for ranking in search results.
Publishing more content that matches your target audience’s needs will help you build a level of authority and establish yourself as a trustworthy expert on the topic.
While doing keyword research, consider the topics, subtopics, and questions your target audience is using when searching online.
This is the type of content that has a good chance of resonating and being deemed helpful and authoritative by your audience and search engines like Google.
5. Use Content Optimization Tools
You can always hire an SEO specialist or agency to optimize website content and improve your SEO performance. However, you can also perform effective content writing and search engine optimization on your own with the right tools.
There are a variety of software tools specifically designed to help your digital marketing and SEO writing efforts, with features to help you research data, optimize content, and write content for improved engagement and rankings.
Here's a detailed breakdown of the best SEO writing software for 2024.
A few powerful tools for SEO copywriting include Jasper AI for creating high-quality, original content quickly with AI and Surfer SEO for optimizing written content to rank better on Google based on 500+ factors and the top-ranking pages for a given keyword.
6. Include Internal and External Links
Links are a major Google ranking factor that is used to understand web content and the connections between content in order to index and rank said content.
Using the right link-building strategies can have a major impact on SEO performance.
Internal links are links in your content that point to other content on your website while external links are links that point to other websites.
Whether internal or external, ensure links are used to include helpful supporting information for readers. Internal linking is an important aspect of on-page SEO. Consider ways you can add internal links to improve user navigation on your site.
When linking externally, make sure you link out to websites that are relevant to your content and trustworthy.
7. Improve Website Page Speed
Here’s a tip that a lot of website owners ignore while writing content for their websites. There are many site plugin tools you can use to keep track of content and analytics, such as the number of viewers, retention and dwell time, clickthrough rates, etc.
While these metrics and tools are helpful to keep track of your audience, if they are plugin-type tools or require the use of tracking codes, using too many of them can slow down your website significantly.
Page speed is a ranking factor. Also, slower loading times, even by fractions of a second, can discourage viewers from staying on a website. For that reason, websites with slower page speeds will usually have trouble ranking well regardless of their content.
8. Write Content That's Unique
Avoid the temptation of writing the same meta descriptions and similar titles across all your posts and pages. Doing so will inevitably reduce the alignment of your page content with what searchers are looking for.
Additionally, when writing for SEO, keep search intent in mind and avoid keyword stuffing in these elements and in the body of your content.
Check out these free SEO tools for ways to analyze page speed and potential issues.
9. Make Your URLs SEO-Friendly
URLs are usually bulky and random by default. However, with simple tools, you can make your content more SEO-Friendly by shortening your URL.
Even better, aim to include the primary keyword or phrase of your page or blog post topic in the URL, which is yet another way to gain an easy SEO boost for your content!
10. Write Content for Real People
Last but not least, you should never create web content or blog solely for SEO or base your writing style on appealing to computer algorithms.
Instead, try to establish a level of trust and personal connection with your readers by making your content as informative, helpful, and “to the point” as possible.
Conclusion
There you have it! 10 tips for SEO content writing to help you rise up the ranks and generate more organic traffic.
SEO strategy and content writing go hand in hand, and with these tips, you’ll be able to improve your search presence and reap the benefits of prominent rankings.