Well, you might already know a lot of SEO writing and also how it evolved with various changes in the algorithms of search engines, majorly Google, but there is a definite and sharp twist that has happened recently. Not many know about it and they still beat the drum about the same strategy: stuffing, sprinkling or using the keywords in the articles efficiently.
Welcome to the new update: SEO writing is not about keywords! It is more of print-style with a flair or touch of virality (a new word for social sharing).
What was SEO writing?
I am a Mechanical engineering graduate; however, I ventured into the writing field in 2004. It was a SEO work, of course. To be true to my skills, I would have proved myself as a terrible writer had I started in print. But anyways, SEO writing around 10 years back was different and ‘content used to be the king’.
Ten years back, SEO writing was all about using keywords in the article with a density of 5-10%. H1, H2 and H3 tags also need to have keywords. Meta tags also have to have keywords. I mean there was nothing else than the keywords. Whether grammatically or contextually the sentences made sense or not, it hardly mattered.
When we used to show our writing to someone who belonged to the real writing world, they used to say in simple terms: this is bad writing!
What is SEO writing now!
‘Content is still the king’ but the type of content is changed. SEO writing is more evolved in terms of its target audience. Search engines want to know whether human readers like your writing or not. It should not be technically search-engine-savvy but should be informational and well-written for human users.
How you will measure whether it is well-written or not? It’s measured in terms of its virality–a good article or a good content piece has more chances and probability of being shared across various platforms of social media. Search engines have started given weightage to them. They give importance to the social signals.
One more aspect of SEO writing is LSI, which is nowadays known as proof words. Instead of simply stuffing your article with keywords or keyphrases, you should use proof words, which are closely related to the main topic of your article.
Suppose you are writing about cars, you may use vehicle, auto, automobile, four-wheeler as proof words. Search engines consider the usage of these proof words important; while they discourage over-usage of keywords.
Write well
The only mantra right now for all the SEO writers is ‘write well’. If you write good articles, they have better chances to get shared across social media, which happens to be the largest factor in search engine ranking as per the latest recommendations from the industry experts.
