How Content Creators Can Upskill to Add More Value Right Now

As a content creator, you contribute to rankings, traffic, and conversions. So why shouldn’t you have access to the same data and optimization guidance that SEOs use?

Getting access to key SEO guidance before, during, and after the content creation process can help you create high-performing content.

High-performing content can drive key performance indicators such as website traffic, time on page, and bounce rate. Having these skills can be highly attractive to companies that want to hire you.

Upskilling now is more important than ever. The U.S. Department of Labor saw 22 million unemployment claims in the four weeks ending April 11 as a result of the pandemic, setting a new record. The self-employed are also feeling the effects.

Many professionals are thinking of new ways to market themselves. Some will be forced to take on new duties as their companies downsize. Self-employed writers will need to think about added services to help clients.

When budget cuts are inevitable, those that provide the most value will survive. We should all care that we are the best at our trade or get mixed into the crowd.

Research shows that workers with high cognitive skills experienced less unemployment, especially during recessions. And even though we’re waiting to see the long-term economic impact of the pandemic, many professionals feel the blow now. Luckily, both content creation and SEO require cognitive skills.

In times like these, using basic SEO skills during content creation can help:

• Employees pivot and come up with ways to add more value
• Service providers pivot and add new service offerings
• Brands keep their websites relevant and show up in the search results
• Everyone makes data-driven decisions that can improve results

I’m going to show you a simple way that content creators can get the same on-page guidance as SEO pros.

This guidance will allow you to boost your already great content to be SEO-ready and have a better chance of ranking in the search results and driving traffic.

• Tools
• Get analytics-driven writing guidelines
• Track content performance
• FAQ: How can I, as a content creator, leverage SEO to enhance my content’s performance?

The Tools

So how do you get the data and acquire the skills you need to create high-performing content?

An easy-to-use and powerful WordPress SEO plugin. It’s one that we designed with content creators in mind. No previous SEO or analytics experience is needed.

Get Real-Time SEO Guidance

There is a lot of guidance out there on how to optimize your content for search. And much of it is useful.

But the issue is that best practices change based on your industry, the keyword, and the type of topic (for example, a shopping page versus a medical page). Keep in mind that each search query produces different search results.

It’s important to understand that the content that is ranking in the top spots on Page 1 of the search results for a query is your competition. So it makes sense that you would want to analyze the top-ranked content and figure out how to match or beat it.

Our WordPress SEO plugin uses our patent-pending technology to get real-time information on your competition during the writing process.

This includes data on who is already ranking for the terms you want to be found for, and what patterns exist among those top-ranked pages.

Read more:

• What Is an SEO Article? Why Should You Write One? And How?
• The Complete Guide to the Fundamentals of E-A-T

Find Out How to Optimize Your Content

You may be confident in your ability to write great content, but less so in how to optimize it for search.

The good news: Creating quality content is already half of the battle when trying to rank in the search results. But Google needs a little help in understanding it better.

That’s because search engine bots (the search engine software that finds your content) can’t read content in the same way humans read and understand it. So optimizing the content helps bots better understand what the content is about.

This, in turn, gives your content a better chance of being picked to rank on Page 1 among the potential millions of other webpages on the topic.

The WordPress SEO plugin was created to give you real-time recommendations (based on your competition) on how to optimize your content.

The plug-in helps you:

Create meta information: This is one of the first things a search bot encounters on a webpage. It helps them understand what the content is about quickly. The plugin helps you to know how many words you should have in your meta title and meta description.

See optimization targets in the SEO plugin.

Optimize content with keywords: Your keywords, aka the search queries you want to show up for, should be in your content. Our plugin allows you to optimize your content with more than one keyword (a feature that’s lacking in free plugins).

This is important when a) you have a set of search queries you want to be found for (versus just one), and b) the content you are writing answers all of them.

Keywords also need to be distributed from top to bottom of the page. The SEO plugin gives you a visual of where your keywords are.

View keyword distribution in the SEO plugin.

Read more:

• What Are Keywords?
• SEO Copywriter Checklist (PDF)
• Always Up-to-Date SEO Checklist

Get Analytics-Driven Writing Guidelines

The top-ranked pages give clues on how to write content that is fit to rank. So we want to understand what “the norm” is for a particular query.

If all the top-ranking webpages are less than 1,000 words, that would be useful information to know before you plan your content.

Likewise, if you could find out what grade level the top-ranking pages are written at, you could follow suit.

The bottom line is that there’s no point in writing 2,000 words if 1,000 well-written words will do. And if all the competition is writing at a fifth-grade level, and your content is at the 11th grade-, Google may take note.

The WordPresss SEO plugin lets you:

Define a target word count: Get the target word count for your article based on the top-ranked pages in the search results. The goal, of course, is to write as much as you need to make your point. However, knowing the target word count can help you plan better and could change your approach.

See target word count in the SEO plugin.

Know your “readability score”: Different topics require different reading levels. For example, a medical article might be written at a higher grade level than one meant for entertainment. Knowing the readability score that’s natural for your topic gives you a target to hit. It is calculated automatically based on the tap-ranked pages for a search query.

View the readability score in the SEO plugin.

Track Content Performance

Most content creators aren’t privy to how their content performs once they hand it off. Having the right data puts you in a position of power. It allows you to strategically create content that will drive results, and to show it.

Our SEO plugin integrates with Google Analytics, Search Console, and our own SEOToolSet data, so you can see things like:

• Average ranking position
• Impressions in the search results
• Number of pageviews and average time on page, per page
• Top-ranked posts or pages you’ve created (so you know which content to model)
• What queries are bringing search traffic to a page
• Which pages are the top performers
• Who are the top authors in the platform (useful for when you have multiple authors on a site)

Google Analytics and Search Console data is visible in the SEO plugin.

Find out the top-performing content across all content creators.

In summary, content creators should be able to have access to the same data and optimization guidance that SEO professionals do.

While you’re not expected to bear the weight of an entire SEO strategy, basic SEO principles during writing can take the content a long way.

Be more strategic, gain a competitive advantage, and drive better results as a content creator, starting now.

Try the WordPress SEO plugin that can supercharge your content now.

FAQ: How can I, as a content creator, leverage SEO to enhance my content’s performance?

Your success as a content creator rests heavily on its visibility and engagement. Search Engine Optimization is an indispensable tool in today’s digital environment; using it effectively can improve the performance of your content and its reach.

Understanding Keywords and Research

The foundation of SEO lies in keyword research. Start by identifying relevant keywords and phrases related to your content. Use tools like Google Keyword Planner or SEMrush to discover popular and low-competition keywords that align with your content’s theme. Incorporate these keywords naturally into your content to improve its search engine ranking.

Optimizing On-Page SEO

As soon as it comes time to optimize your content, ensure your main keyword appears in the title, headings, and meta description – as well as being utilized throughout it — using engaging meta titles and descriptions will entice readers to click your page, while header tags make the material easy for both humans and search engine crawlers to comprehend.

Quality Content Creation

Add value to your audience beyond keywords by creating engaging, high-quality content that meets their interests and needs. Assuming your search ranking increases over time, more users will remain on your page longer.

Building Backlinks and Promoting

SEO success relies heavily on promotion. Share your content, work with influencers, and engage your target audience to increase SEO rankings. Prioritize acquiring high-quality links from websites reputable within your niche for maximum exposure. These backlinks signal to search engines that your content is authoritative and trustworthy, boosting its ranking.

Monitoring and Adapting

SEO is a constantly evolving field. To stay ahead of the competition and track its effectiveness, use tools such as Google Analytics and Search Console to monitor content’s performance – such as keyword rankings, click-through rates, bounce rates, etc. The data gleaned can then be used to fine-tune and adapt your SEO strategy as necessary to remain competitive.

Content creators can utilize SEO to enhance the performance of their work. Search engine optimization allows them to reach wider audiences faster by conducting keyword research, optimizing on-page SEO, creating and promoting quality content, and monitoring results closely.

Step-by-Step Procedure

1. Start with comprehensive keyword research using tools like Google Keyword Planner or SEMrush.
2. Identify relevant keywords and phrases related to your content.
3. Incorporate these keywords naturally into your content.
4. Optimize on-page SEO by placing keywords in the title, headings, meta description, and body.
5. Craft compelling meta titles and descriptions to increase click-through rates.
6. Use header tags (H1, H2, H3) to structure your content.
7. Create high-quality, informative, and engaging content tailored to your target audience.
8. Encourage user engagement to improve search engine ranking.
9. Promote your content through social media, influencers, and audience engagement.
10. Build backlinks from reputable websites in your niche.
11. Continuously monitor your content’s performance using tools like Google Analytics and Search Console.
12. Track keyword rankings, click-through rates, and bounce rates.
13. Analyze the data to refine your SEO strategy.
14. Adjust your content and promotion tactics as needed to stay competitive and adapt to changing trends.

Bruce Clay is founder and president of Bruce Clay Inc., a global digital marketing firm providing search engine optimization, pay-per-click, social media marketing, SEO-friendly web architecture, and SEO tools and education. Connect with him on LinkedIn or through the BruceClay.com website.

See Bruce's author page for links to connect on social media.