I’ve listed some of the many recommendations I can find below. Even if we just put one or two on a post-it note on the wall, it should help.
In SEO, one thing hasn’t changed in recent years: it’s still all about words. However, the different types of search now being developed mean that queries are becoming more specific, so we need to think more about phrases and intent. Just optimising for words isn’t going to be enough.
What’s going to happen is that search will become more of a conversation with the search engine, and unlike with traditional keyword-based search, we won’t see what that is. So what’s the best advice? I’ve listed some of the many recommendations I can find below, but they’re a lot to take in, so even if we just put one or two on a post-it note on the wall, it should help.
- Research and understand the phrases, terms, and keywords our target audience uses, and focus on creating content that mirrors these natural search terms in tone and structure.
- Understand the type of intent behind user searches: informational, navigational, transactional, or commercial investigation, and craft content to directly address this, before leading users logically to the next step.
- Speak in a tone and style that aligns with the audience’s preferences, which means technical jargon is fine if expected.
- Whether it’s the website, email marketing or paid ads, keep the ‘brand voice’ consistent, perhaps with the help of a style guide.
- Build topic clusters to establish authority around a subject, a strategy designed to “enhance semantic relevance” and help search engines understand the content.
- Learn about structured data and schema markup to help search engines identify and contextualise products, services, people, places, etc.
- Organise content to guide users seamlessly through awareness, consideration, and decision stages, with logical internal links that direct users to relevant content, such as blog posts, product pages, or FAQs, based on their stage in the journey.
- Provide actionable calls-to-action that align with the user’s intent, including links to related articles or a downloadable resource.
- Optimise for accessibility by following Web Content Accessibility Guidelines and prioritise bullet points, and short paragraphs to make content scannable.