Content Marketing is the latest buzzword in the SEO industry. Forget everything you’ve learnt about building links; spinning articles, directories, link exchanges and all that business.
You now need to focus on earning links (actually Google has been saying this for a long time!)
Since Panda and Penguin and the devaluation of low quality links, content has become an incredibly large influencer of good rankings. Sadly, not every online marketing agency has clicked onto this!
Adapting to Content Driven SEO
It sounds simple enough – create killer content that people want to link too and share in social media and it’s job done.
In reality its a little more difficult. You need to develop a strategy, there’s no use throwing out random infographics and blog posts all over the place, it has to be organised.
Also, think about what great content you can create to post on other sites such as bloggers in your industry or news related sites.
BUT – It isn’t just about the links.
Stop thinking about making Google happy and start thinking abut making your visitors happy. Once you master that, you’ll rank better. If people like your content they will share it but just as importantly, they will get to know you and eventually trust you.
Great content helps establish you as an authority in your field, that’s only going to help you generate more traffic and sales.
I don’t know what content to create, help!
I hear this all the time. Its not that hard at all. Think about what makes your job interesting, if you really think about it im sure you can come up with an interesting story.
I was at a social media conference a few weeks ago and during a group session a locksmith claimed that his business was “boring” and that he wouldn’t know what to write about.
The reply from the speaker: “Your telling me, you’ve never had to rescue someone from a locked toilet?”
The guy hadn’t BUT it started a process that would lead to many amusing stories of dogs locked in cars, people locked in rooms for days, all of which make for a great (and entertaining) blog that customers will enjoy reading and share on Facebook or Twitter for example.
A simple example but it’s content that will be responsible for ranking your website at the top of search and not creating thousands of spammy links.
If you get an SEO Quote and your offered something like this:
- 200 Article Submissions
- 30 Press Release Submissions
- 100 Social Bookmarks
- 50 PR6 Links
- etc
- etc
Then run a mile. Its an old solution to a new SEO problem and you’ll fall foul. SEO in 2012 and beyond is truly adapt, or die.
