Reading Time: 9 Min
Especially since the pandemic, SEO blogs have remained essential to nearly every digital marketing strategy. For instance, marketers still incorporate blogs to increase leads, enhance SEO strategy, and boost brand credibility. However, since its value has stayed intact over the years, and because roughly 60% of people still consistently read blogs, how we approach blog postings has become more crucial than ever.
Here’s the bottom line—blogs are alive and well today. But when it comes to writing exceptional ones, we simply must work a tad bit harder to entice folks into reading them.
So, what are we talking about in this blog about SEO blogs?
This article is for people who want to understand the FIVE fundamental blog features. It’s also for those who wonder what makes each aspect crucial for developing awesome ones! So, freely skip to the portions you’re most interested in reading from the following list.
Article Features:
- The ‘What’ & ‘Why’ of Blogging
- #1—Titles & Keywords
- #2— Engaging Quality Content
- #3—Blog Elements
- #4—SEO Mechanicals
- #5—The Extras
- Connect with the SEO Blog Experts!
Before reading any further, I have a special gift for you!
What’s the purpose of writing blogs, and why do people read them?
This question is a blog in and of itself!
However, blogs are essential marketing tools for any website and business. Their primary purpose is to serve as venues for online visitors to become familiar with various brands of products and services.
Furthermore, blogs help companies become reliable information resources for current and potential customers. So, when businesses regularly post informative and engaging blogs, the chances of lead conversion rates, visitor site traffic, purchases, and opportunity responses greatly improve!
Why do people read SEO blogs?
Recently, HubSpot surveyed people to discover why they commonly read blogs. To my surprise, the number one reason was not that targeted audiences wanted to learn more about business products and services! That fact alone made me want to rethink my own blogging practices!
However, the top reason people read blogs was that they wanted to learn something new. So, nearly 35 percent of people reported they mostly read “How To” blogs. Others said they enjoyed reading entertaining articles1, while a smaller percentage read blogs to stay updated on news and current industry trends. Yet, the most intriguing percentage was that whopping 4% of readers who stated they read for information on products and services!
Therefore, I quickly realized that winning over consumers with blogs meant consistently developing content that they valued. So, as business owners or marketers, it’s vital to write enjoyable SEO blogs that add value to readers, match and connect with their search intents, and keep them engaged enough to frequent a site! Hence, blogs should not just be about brands but developed around how people search for the information they need.
#1 Titles and Topics and Keywords—Oh my!
Before publishing an SEO blog article, writers must first plan to conduct pertinent industry research. They must also be aware of what people commonly search for online and which industry topics are trending. And with every search query, there are keywords and phrases that clue writers about the information people need.
So, let’s talk about ‘Titles’.
I guess it’s true what Copyblogger had to say about the 80/20 Rule of blog headers. About 80% of online visitors will read your blog title header, especially if it’s intriguing. But roughly 20% of visitors will actually read the rest of what’s written in a blog; again, the topic must be hot and the content captivating.
This rule confirms that blog titles are just as, if not more, important as the content that follows, and they can either make or break the success of what you’ve written. Titles should also clue readers in on what the blog is about. So well-placed words and key phrases in the title should captivate and connect with readers at a glance.
Choosing the right ‘Topic’ matters!
Research remains essential as a first step when it comes to blog topics. If you don’t talk about what matters to your targeted audience, blogging will become pretty ineffective, and you’ll lose your following. Current and potential customers have a valid reason for coming to a website, so ensure that your blog topic confirms or validates their reason; in other words, prove them RIGHT!
Fascinating blog topics and titles pull people in and encourage them to engage in conversation, share posts, and make purchases, which is what you want them to do. So, make sure your blogs address their concerns and connect with their immediate interests and need for information. Likewise, ensure your article topics provide valuable insight and resource solutions for whoever reads them.
Now, concerning ‘Keywords’ and search phrases in SEO blogs:
Every writer must understand one vital aspect of blogging— keywords are “key.” For example, the keyword or phrase for your blog should match people’s search intents (what they’re looking for online), especially if you want readers to find you digitally.
So, your title must contain the keyword or phrase that people are searching for; it’s what moves people into your sales funnel. Also, the blog topic must include the keyword throughout the writing. In truth, the keyword could be the subject of the article but doesn’t necessarily have to be. For instance, this blog you’re currently reading is about SEO blogs, which just so happens to be the actual keyword phrase of the article.
Keywords in blogs ultimately help readers narrow their search to find precisely what they need. For example, their eyes will scan the TITLES or article HEADERS to see if the KEYWORD is present and if they all match their actual search and interest. Again, keyword research is crucial to determining what you want to discuss in your SEO blog and should be based on the online information people want to read.
#2 King Content that Captures Consumers
Quality content is the essential lifeline of any SEO blog article. Like a title/header, it will make or break your blog, website page, email message, and any other digital asset you post for readers online. What you say to your audience online and how you say it is a huge determining factor in whether a potential customer will choose you over a competitor. As such, content remains the king of digital marketing.
So, high-quality, relevant, and engaging content is the venue for offering your audience resource solutions and the valued information they need. Any content you post outside of that will cause visitors to leave your site and never return. Remember, salesy-style blogs are old-hat because they read like infomercials.
People today are smarter and even more savvy about finding what they want online. So, the only way to be digitally golden is to ensure your blogs and web page content provide what they want and need. Overall, writing successful blog content starts with keeping your targeted audience in mind. With that, clearly specify your connective stance on the issue, relate to them, offer appropriate solutions, and always ensure the content keeps readers engaged.
#3 Basic Blog Elements & Must-Haves
In the movie, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle, directed by Jake Kasdan (Sony Pictures, 2017), Spencer told Fridge regarding writing his homework paper —“Yeah, I proofed it, and I gave it uh, a beginning, an ending, and uh, some in the middle.”
And similar to what Spencer said about writing papers, blogs also have a beginning, middle, and ending, because they are, in fact, “digital papers.” However, unlike homework papers, blogs must have particular elements that cause them to stand out and entice people, besides teachers, to read them.
The Nine Basic Elements of an SEO Blog include:
- 1. The Header or Blog Title
- 2. Beginning– Blog Intro
- 3. Middle– The Article Body, with the following elements—
- 4. Sub-headers
- 5. Videos (Not a must-have, but certainly a “nice-to-have”)
- 6. Bullet points, bolded text areas, and high-quality hyperlinks (interlinks, backlinks)
- 7. Images, graphics, and charts
- 8. CTAs (Calls-to-action) and Contact Information
- 9. The Ending– Your Blog Closing
Each of these elements is critical to what makes a blog a blog. And if you aim to attract readers to your website and help them engage, the content must be substantial and conducive to search needs.
#4 Applying the Major Mechanics of SEO
You could write the most brilliant blog in the world, but no one will get to read it if it’s not optimized correctly! Instead, it may end up buried somewhere in the outer limits of cyberspace. Therefore, it’s crucial that you know, understand, and apply the proper SEO page mechanics to every blog you publish.
The primary purpose of blogging through digital marketing is to attract your target audience and get them to your website to purchase products or services. So, if your content isn’t set up to do that, you’ve wasted time and resources.
Regular blogging consistently increases content to your website and must be a part of each innovative SEO strategy. Moreover, constantly adding blog pages on a site signals to Google that it’s relevant and active in your industry. In fact, it’s Google that actually helps your overall SEO rankings.
However, marketers and writers must effectively apply the proper SEO page mechanics to win here. In doing so, the chances of your target audience finding you online dramatically increases as your site begins to show up in Google2 SERPs.
Major page mechanics include the following:
- Keyword Saturation (2-3%)
- Blog Word-Count (minimum 350 words)
- Meta-Description and Excerpt/Snippet
- Optimized URL Address
- Tagged Blog Images
- One H1 Header and Subsequent Sub-Headers
- Quality Internal and External Resource Links
- Original Content – Not Duplicated or Plagiarized
#5 The Essential Extras that Every Blog Needs
Like putting icing on a tasty cake, every blog needs those kicks of oomph, spice, and pizzazz. Meaning, you should add some essential extras to ensure your article continues to attract, engage, and keep readers reading all the way through.
Such elements can include captivating images that immediately connect with your audience or graphics that pull them in closer and indulge them like fine chocolates. Blogs loaded with a bunch of content are boring, and readers will be quick to click out at first glance of text-only posts.
Instead, ensure that you break up the content into small bite-size sections. Then, add warmth, humor, and educational elements with connective images, intriguing graphics, and educational charts and tables. These elements aren’t necessary for every blog due to your industry and the type of subject you’re discussing. However, images are a must for every blog, while subsequent bullet points, bold fonts, dashes, and text boxes can certainly add to the visual appeal of a highly-informative blog.
It’s time to make a move!
If you cringe at the thought of writing blogs for your business or hiring new staff to write them, have no fear, BUILDINGBLOCKS is here! We’ll take the load off and support your digital marketing efforts so you can experience genuine success. Let’s meet to discuss what an innovative SEO strategy can do for your ROI. For additional questions or concerns, call us at 281-203-0529.
In the meantime, download your free SEO Blogs Checklist –
Image References
- Child reading entertaining blog, photo concept by Ludovic Toinel.
- Google online search query image; photo concept by Nathana Reboucas.