Content Optimization: How to Do It?

As you rank the content, it can help grow your audience, increase backlinks to your site and also build trust as well as increase leads and conversions.

Though optimizing content for SEO and ranking is not the only need.

When you optimize for conversions, the aim is to get enough profit from your efforts.

Therefore, your content should be a good enough converting copy that targets new and important keywords, tweak the headlines later on to optimize better and improve your CTA.

Thus, as trends change, your content should also vary and adapt to new ranking systems.

Similarly, when you optimize for readability, the content will build trust among readers by enhancing engagement.

It will help in improving your brand’s position as trustworthy.

It is easier to rely on a brand when it produces good quality work.

Considering all of these factors, content optimization is needed for your brand and website to flourish.

Out-of-date content will only leave a bad impression on the readers and your rankings.

So let’s find out how you can optimize your content for better readability, conversions and SEO. More on that below.

Readability Optimization

• Your content’s Flesch reading score should be high enough so a layman can easily understand it.
• Also, write in short sentences and cut down any monotonous lines
• Write as if you are speaking and in an engaging tone this is also conversational
• Eliminate grammatical and spelling errors, and use software like Grammarly to help
• While writing refrain from using fluff words like “that”

Using platforms will help in minimizing your work and also give tone plus style suggestions.

Therefore, easing the readability optimization work by adjusting long sentences and grammar on its own.

Optimizing Content Structure and Media

Unstructured content looks like a stream of consciousness.

In that case, it becomes hard to scan and read.

Hence, many may return to see some other content.

Though, enhancing visual comprehension of your content is an easy task.

All you need to do is to use bullet points and short sentences to break a paragraph.

Focus on adding a takeaway sentence at the end of each section summarizing it for better understanding.

Moreover, you can add a section of content at the beginning as you can see in this article.

This allows readers to know what is in the article so that they can jump to the section they want to know about.

Besides that, divide sections by using plenty of headings and subheadings.

Use H2 and H3 headings for sections.

Furthermore, use images and videos that are relevant to your content.

They should be relevant, adding to the content of the article.

Avoid using stock images instead add keyword-rich alt tags and descriptive title tags.

This enables people using a screen reader to visualize and imagine what the image looks like.

It also improves your SEO as Google crawls the keyword.

However, beware of keyword stuffing.

This brings us to…

Keyword and Competitor Research

Choosing Keywords

Every SEO article begins with keyword research.

Examine the potential of each keyword by checking its volume and keyword difficulty.

This allows you to understand whether you can rank for the keyword and if it has the required traffic potential.

The keyword should also be in your niche while at the same time not being extremely difficult to target.

If your site is new, avoid keywords with a difficulty level greater than 50.

You should be targeting easy keywords because only then you may have a chance at ranking.

Moreover, keyword research tools help to find semantically related keywords that should be in the content.

Also, write other articles with the keyword in order to give your main keywords links. More on that later.

Looking at Competitors

After you know the relevant keywords to target, it is time to check what is already ranking on Google.

After all, your content should match what the users want.

See what results come up when you type the keyword in Google search box.

Once you have the results, look at what they contain.

Check for:

• The content
• Page Type
• Format

Does the keyword show results for an e-commerce shop page or a blog post?

What format is the article in? Is it an op-ed or a listicle?

Do the rest of the results on the same page approach the topic the same way following a similar format?

You should follow the rest and write content in a similar format and type as your competitors.

Though definitely do not copy and paste content the same way, fill up the missing content and add your own flair.

Adding Links and Keywords

Add more internal and external links to your content.

That makes it easier for the search bots to crawl it.

This way link authority also passes between pages.

Plus, linking all the pages together also helps readers in navigating your website.

Hence, while optimizing the content, look into how each page connects with the other and how you can link them naturally in the copy.

Also, post a link back to the optimized page so the bots can crawl it.

Besides internal and external links, your content should include the target keywords.

Keywords should be inevitably integrated into the meta description, title tag, image alt tags and H1 tags.

Moreover, a few of your H2 headings and title of images will also need to target keywords.

The target keyword and related semantic keywords should be spaced around in your copy.

However, it is imperative to remember that there should be no keyword stuffing.

In fact, this practice can get your website penalized.

Your readers may also leave when they keep seeing the same words again and again in improper sentences.

Thus, it will degrade your brand authority and trustworthiness.

Hence, avoid any negative user experience.

Only moderately add the keywords that will cover your content’s optimization needs.

That will make your content appealing enough that readers will convert.

This brings us to…

Optimizing Content for Conversion

If your aim is to get conversions, the first set is the select commercial keywords with high user intent.

Drive sales with your content by choosing the right topic.

Your product and service should be relevant to the article’s target keywords.

You can find plenty of ideas for keywords from keyword research tools but also other platforms such as quora, Reddit, and Alexa.

While you are writing, focus on using persuasive strategies.

For that:

• List the benefits and uses of the product
• Write in a friendly tone so that you should be approachable
• Show how your product works through case studies
• Don’t forget to add social proof and customer reviews so that the reader knows real people purchased your product

To top off all of it, you now have to include a Call to Action.

Content features aiming at conversion are incomplete without a CTA button.

You can simply add links to relevant products after discussing them, allow a free trial and encourage people to sign up for an email newsletter.

These are usually at the end of the page but can also be in the middle to remind people to take action halfway.

Summing Up

Now that you are familiar with how content optimization is done, rewrite your content to reach a greater number of people.

Optimized content will have a higher ranking, appearing in the first few SERPs where there is a greater possibility of people clicking your content.

Thus, as the reach increases, so do the conversions and your brand’s authority.

Align your previous content to newer optimization trends so that your content is always up-to-date and there are enough visitors as well as conversions.