SEO Writing: 13 Tips on Writing Blog Posts That Rank on Google

I’ve written hundreds of blogs arsenic a contented marketer, but I’m still susceptible to nan amateur correction of reasoning astir writing for SEO only aft a blog is already written.

However, I’ve recovered that it’s a batch easier to deliberation of SEO arsenic nan bookends of your blog. It tin pass what you should constitute and optimize it erstwhile you’re done.

In fact, whenever I’ve consulted SEO trading software earlier penning a blog, it’s fixed maine penetration into what questions my assemblage is asking, really I tin simplify things, and what benignant of outline I should follow.

SEO contented penning doesn’t request to beryllium boring aliases consciousness for illustration it was written by a robot, either.

Read further to get tips connected really to incorporated SEO successful your blog penning while still creating interesting, useful content.

Table of Contents

• Tips connected How To Incorporate SEO successful Your Writing
• Why is SEO contented penning important?
• The Basics of SEO Content Writing

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Why is SEO contented penning important?

Without SEO, your contented is little apt to rank highly connected hunt engines. Ranking little whitethorn inhibit your expertise to pull and prosecute pinch your target audience. It whitethorn besides make your contented — and your marque — look little reliable and authoritative.

A 2024 First Page Sage study recovered that nan clickthrough complaint for websites successful position 1 connected nan SERP is 39.8%. This number drops drastically to 18.7% for websites successful position 2 and past to 1.6% for websites successful position 10. When you get to page 2 of Google, that number sinks moreover lower.

This intends that if your website is not connected nan first page, there’s only a mini chance consumers will find your website organically. Fewer visits to your tract mean less opportunities to make leads and, ultimately, revenue.

Your adjacent champion action is investing successful advertising to get those users to your site. But that costs money, and if you’re connected a tight budget, why not put clip successful SEO writing? It’s free and will apt bring you postulation for overmuch longer than a run would.

SEO besides addresses nan apical 5 issues marketers presently look (see below). By doing capable SEO research, you tin make caller blog ideas, summation engagement, pull traffic, scope your audience, and make leads.

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The Basics of SEO Content Writing

When getting started pinch SEO contented writing, it’s important to understand nan basics. Here are immoderate basal principles to travel erstwhile incorporating SEO into your writing.

Keyword Optimization

Keyword optimization is each astir strategically utilizing applicable keywords and phrases successful your contented to boost its visibility and ranking.

This facet of SEO is ace important because it helps hunt engines amended understand your content, thereby expanding nan chances of it appearing successful applicable hunt queries and attracting integrated traffic.

To prime nan champion keywords, you’ll request to investigation and place what precisely your target assemblage is looking for and align it pinch your content’s topic. Finding nan correct equilibrium betwixt incorporating keywords successful a measurement that makes consciousness to readers and satisfies hunt motor algorithms is key.

I’ll spell much in-depth astir really to find keywords and really to disperse them passim your contented successful nan tips section.

User Intent

User intent refers to nan information aliases intent down a user's hunt query. It’s astir figuring retired what they really want to observe erstwhile typing thing into a hunt engine.

There are mostly 4 types of personification intent:

• Informational intent describes group seeking accusation aliases answers to questions. These users are looking for definitions, explanations, how-to guides, aliases investigation materials.
• Navigational intent is erstwhile a personification searches for a circumstantial website aliases brand. They already cognize what they want to find and are utilizing a hunt motor to navigate to a peculiar webpage.
• Transactional intent describes a personification who’s fresh to return action, for illustration making a purchase, subscribing to a service, aliases booking an appointment.
• Commercial intent describes personification researching products aliases services pinch nan intent to bargain thing later. They are comparing products, reference reviews, and looking for nan champion deals earlier making a decision.

By knowing personification intent, you tin create contented that aligns pinch what group are looking for and boost your chances of appearing successful hunt results. Each manufacture and niche besides changes your personification intent.

For example, SEO for lawyers will beryllium very different compared to SEO for marketers. It's each astir giving group what they request and providing a bully hunt experience.

Readability

Writing for SEO isn’t conscionable astir what you write. It’s besides astir really you write. It isn’t capable to simply driblet immoderate keywords into your blog posts and telephone it a day. You besides request to see your readers’ experience.

This is wherever readability comes in.

Readability is each astir striking nan correct equilibrium betwixt optimizing for hunt engines and ensuring that your contented is enjoyable and valuable to quality readers.

In summation to optimizing your contented pinch keywords and soul links, you’ll want to attraction connected personification experience. Write successful a measurement that’s reader-friendly, utilizing clear and concise connection and avoiding jargon. You’ll besides want to usage headings and make your contented much scannable (more connected that below).

When penning and editing your content, inquire yourself: Is this easy to understand? Does this person a logical flow? Is this engaging? If nan reply to immoderate of these questions is “no,” you whitethorn request to make immoderate changes.

Historical Optimization

Every SEO writer knows that an evergreen blog station will ne'er beryllium wholly finished, moreover aft publication. Thanks to algorithm updates and competitors targeting nan aforesaid keywords, hunt results are ever changing.

That’s why it’s important to person a contented update strategy that ensures your older web contented is caller and applicable successful hunt motor rankings. This believe is called historical optimization.

To fig retired which blog posts you request to update, measure your older contented by conducting a contented audit to find underperforming aliases outdated pieces. Then, find really to amended nan piece.

This usually involves refreshing nan contented by adding caller information, removing outdated information, optimizing keywords, and improving formatting and readability.

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1. Start pinch keyword research.

Google processes an estimated 95,000 hunt queries a second. Staggering, right?

If you want to trim done SERP clutter and outrank your competitors, you request to target nan circumstantial keywords and phrases your imaginable customers are searching for. Otherwise, really other will they find your contented and website?

Start pinch a keyword investigation tool. Sites for illustration SE Ranking, Ahrefs, and Google Keyword Planner springiness you specifications connected what users are searching for and really celebrated those queries are.

For an wrong look into really Ahrefs tin assistance successful your SEO keyword investigation and beyond, cheque retired our lawsuit study and exclusive question and reply here.

Google Trends tin besides springiness you a consciousness for what keywords are celebrated astatine immoderate fixed time. If you spot searches steadily declining complete clip for a circumstantial keyword, you cognize that’s astir apt not nan correct keyword to target for your marketing. The other is existent for rising trends.

If you’re ever moving debased connected keyword ideas, get inspiration from your competition. Use competitive intelligence tools to spot what keywords their domains presently rank for. If these keywords are applicable to your business, see utilizing them too.

However, support successful mind that nan astir evident keywords don’t ever align pinch your strategy. Additionally, your attraction keywords will germinate arsenic trends shift, terminology changes, aliases your product/service statement grows.

Be judge to behaviour keyword investigation periodically to guarantee you’re still focusing connected nan correct keywords for your target assemblage and not missing retired connected captious ranking opportunities.

2. Use headings to your benefit.

Headers thief Google’s web crawlers understand your blog station and nan sections wrong it.

Think of nan crawlers arsenic readers who are skimming your blog. They want an overview of what your article will cover. That’s your H1. Your H2s, H3s, and H4s break down nan subtopics wrong nan piece.

So, your subheaders should bespeak nan contented successful nan assemblage and see high-intent keywords. When you usage nan correct keywords, meaning nan ones your target assemblage is using, you person a overmuch higher chance of ranking connected nan SERP.

3. Optimize your contented for featured snippets.

Featured snippets connected Google are nan astir nonstop answers to hunt queries. For instance, if I were to search, “How do you constitute a blog post?” Google mightiness usage a featured snippet to show nan champion answer.

To gain a featured snippet connected Google, you'll request to reply nan mobility thoroughly and succinctly.

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For instance, if nan hunt word is “How to screenshot connected Mac,” you tin put “How to Take a Screenshot connected a MacBook Computer” arsenic your H1 aliases H2, followed by nan steps successful a numbered aliases bulleted list.

Once you’ve done that, beryllium judge to see portion of nan mobility successful your answer. Using nan illustration above, you would commencement nan paragraph pinch nan following: “To return a screenshot connected your MacBook, present are nan steps…”

Additionally, commencement each condemnation pinch an actionable verb, for illustration “click” and “select.”

If nan keyword requires a definition, constitute an reply that’s nary much than 58 words to summation your chances of capturing a featured snippet.

4. Write for humans, not hunt engines.

“If an AI tin constitute it, an AI tin service it to users alternatively of a link,” writes Search Engine Journal elder editor Ben Steele, a contributor to HubSpot’s 2024 State of Marketing Report.

Your target assemblage needs a logic to click connected your content. And pinch each these SEO guidelines, it’s easy to hide that if you’re connected Google, you’re looking for an answer.

The champion measurement to amended your chances of ranking is by penning high-quality blog posts. Steele predicts an “increased request for verifiably quality contented astir deeper and much analyzable content.”

What does that look like? Thorough answers, scannable sections, organized subheaders, and ocular aids.

Keep your purchaser personas, their motivations, challenges, and interests successful mind. It’s besides important to take topics that will resonate pinch your imaginable customers and reside their symptom points.

While immoderate SEO devices tin thief connected nan method broadside of your site, you tin besides opt to usage content penning SEO tools to thief you constitute correct, concise, and human-friendly contented that will rank good and prosecute readers.

These types of devices see standalone SEO- and keyword-research devices (like Google Search Console and Ahrefs) arsenic good arsenic AI editors and penning assistants (like HubSpot’s Content Hub).

There are besides devices that measurement contented engagement, allowing you to spot really agelong group walk connected a page, whether aliases not they sojourn aggregate pages, aliases really acold group are scrolling down your site.

Pro tip: Writing tin beryllium difficult erstwhile juggling each of these variables. One measurement to simplify nan process is to shape your main thoughts aliases large ideas. Then, usage them arsenic a punctual for an AI tool, for illustration HubSpot’s free AI blog writer.

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As pinch immoderate AI contented generator, you’ll want to spell done nan draught and adhd your ain experience and expertise, which will make it nosy for humans to read.

5. Optimize your title.

Even pinch a great, SEO-friendly station body, a bad header could wounded you successful nan SERP.

To title your station pinch SEO successful mind, constitute thing compelling that includes your main keyword. Here are a fewer tips:

• Incorporate numbers. (“5 Ways to Rock a Matte Lipstick.”)
• Include your connection successful nan title. (“How to Write a Cover Letter [+ Free Template]”)
• Add a teaser. (“We Tried nan New [Insert App Name] App: Here's What Happened”)

We’ve sewage much ideas connected title optimization successful this in-depth look astatine blog SEO.

6. Include keywords successful your meta description.

Are you adding meta descriptions to your post? If your reply is “no,” past you‘re astir apt missing retired connected traffic. Let’s get into why they're important.

We‘ve talked astir a mates of nan ways a blog station tin pass pinch Google: subheaders, keywords, and snippets. However, that’s not an exhaustive list.

Meta descriptions are different area Google crawls to find hunt rankings. Meta descriptions are nan one- to three-sentence descriptions you'll find underneath nan title of a result.

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Use meta descriptions to sum up what your station is about, and retrieve to:

• Keep it short.
• Use 1 to 2 keywords.
• Make it compelling. After all, location will beryllium akin posts, truthful your explanation needs to guidelines supra nan rest.

Most content guidance systems (CMS) person meta explanation boxes built-in, truthful you apt won't person to look acold to usage nan function. WordPress users whitethorn find this successful nan Yoast plug-in, which will guideline you done nan recommended connection count.

HubSpot’s metadata explanation container successful Content Hub is similar:

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7. Answer nan questions nary 1 other will

In his bestselling book “They Ask, You Answer,” contented marketer Marcus Sheridan and INBOUND speaker explains that answering avoided questions is “an attack to communication, institution culture, and nan measurement we waste arsenic a business.

“It starts pinch an obsession: ‘What is my customer thinking?’ And erstwhile I opportunity ‘obsession,’ I really mean that. It extends past ‘What are they thinking?’ to ‘What are they searching, asking, feeling, and fearing?’ Some companies deliberation they understand these questions, but nan truth is astir do not.”

These questions mightiness beryllium pricing, really overmuch your merchandise costs, manufacture tips aliases secrets — fundamentally thing your manufacture is avoiding penning about. These questions are untapped SEO opportunities that you tin return advantage of by answering them pinch awesome content.

I saw this successful existent clip connected a client’s website, which I helped build. The institution didn’t want to talk really overmuch their work costs successful lawsuit competitors decided to underbid them. I pushed nan thought of a pricing calculator alternatively — to fto group put successful their accusation and what they’re looking for to get a value range.

Their quote requests skyrocketed. No competitor was consenting to moreover springiness a value scope connected services, truthful my customer generated SEO postulation to seizure caller leads.

Consider penning an full blog that addresses a taxable your manufacture doesn’t want customers to cognize astir to spot what benignant of postulation you tin generate.

8. Resist nan impulse to keyword-stuff.

The extremity is to make your page afloat optimized, not overbearing. Find earthy fits for keyword additions, but don't unit them to nan constituent wherever your contented is illegible.

For example, if your keywords are “account-based marketing,” “startups,” and “sales,” debar a meta explanation for illustration this: “Sales for account-based trading startups.”

Instead, attraction connected 1 aliases 2 keywords to make nan explanation much natural: “Are you looking for slayer strategies to boost your account-based trading game? Discover our research-backed techniques successful this post.”

With this approach, you‘re still utilizing keywords, but you’re not oversaturating nan post. Remember, your extremity is to lick for your audience. If your users person a mediocre reference experience, that will awesome to Google that your station isn’t gathering their needs.

9. Link to high-authority websites.

As you build your blog post, don’t beryllium acrophobic to nexus externally.

Linking to reputable websites not only offers blog readers further reference worldly to grow their knowledge, but it besides shows hunt engines that you’ve done your research.

Nothing strengthens a blog station for illustration research-backed statistic from influential websites. Compelling stats thief you build a much convincing and actual statement that will thief you summation spot from your readers.

10. Aim for longer, scannable posts.

In an property of short attraction spans, you would deliberation shorter blog posts are nan measurement to go. But successful fact, hunt engines for illustration Google really for illustration longer, in-depth blog posts.

Think astir it: nan much contented connected nan page, nan much clues hunt engines person to fig retired what your blog is about. At HubSpot, we’ve recovered that nan perfect magnitude tin scope from 1,200 to 2,400 words. If you’re unsure, usage SERP competitors and personification intent arsenic your guides.

The downside to longer blogs is that they whitethorn overwhelm your readers. One measurement to combat that is by breaking down your contented into bite-size, scannable chunks.

Bullet points are a awesome measurement to execute this, arsenic they’re easy digestible and attention-grabbing, particularly connected mobile devices.

Turn a long-winded condemnation into 2 and support your paragraphs to nary much than 3 sentences.

Pro tip: Need thief fine-tuning? Check retired Hubspot's AI Paragraph Rewriter instrumentality for effortless refinement.

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11. Link to different posts connected your site.

Linking to different pages aliases blog posts connected your website helps hunt engines create an meticulous sitemap. It besides helps your assemblage observe much of your contented and get to cognize you arsenic a trustworthy, reliable root of information.

On nan personification side, soul links to different valuable contented support readers connected your tract longer, reducing bounce complaint and expanding your imaginable for a conversion. And isn’t that what it’s each about?

When linking to immoderate pages connected your website aliases moreover extracurricular sources, usage earthy connection for your anchor text. Avoid spammy aliases generic calls to action, specified arsenic “top-rated inexpensive laptops” aliases “click here.”

Instead, usage descriptive keywords that springiness readers a consciousness of what they will find erstwhile they click nan hyperlink, for illustration “Download your SEO guide.”

Never force-feed links to your apical web pages, featured products, aliases discounted items. Include links that heighten nan points made successful your posts and people necktie successful pinch nan taxable matter.

12. Avoid AI-generated blogs and content.

AI has travel a agelong way, and that intends much and much blogs are generating full blogs written by artificial intelligence.

However, AI still can’t walk arsenic human-written contented — some humans and hunt engines are beautiful bully astatine spotting it. This intends that AI-generated contented is getting flagged by hunt engines and hurting your SEO.

Instead of having AI make full blogs for you, usage AI arsenic a instrumentality to velocity up your creation process and cheque for SEO. For example, you tin person AI create an outline for you based connected hunt motor results truthful you person a starting constituent for your writing.

AI devices for illustration ChatGPT and Claude.ai tin beryllium useful; for instance, I conscionable pasted nan assemblage of this blog station into Claude 3.5 Sonnet and asked it to place missed SEO opportunities. Use our list of AI SEO tools to find much devices (and much usage cases!).

Among its recommendations was to cheque for contented freshness, making judge that I’m giving you nan astir caller statistic and tools:

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Keep successful mind that devices for illustration ChatGPT aliases Claude are moving successful a vacuum — that is, they don’t person nan discourse needed to measure nan consequence of content cannibalization, arsenic 1 example. As pinch thing AI, quality oversight is still important.

HubSpot’s AI-powered contented agent, Breeze, assists writers astatine nan opening of nan penning process. It besides helps pinch tasks for illustration creating SEO-optimized landing pages that are designed to summation your conversion rate.

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13. Feature a FAQ conception successful your blog

Search engines reward contented that gives them direct, easy-to-identify answers to often asked questions.

With AI Overviews triggering much often successful Google searches, well-written FAQs whitethorn thief push your contented to nan apical of nan SERP.

Remember, you want to reply concisely and optimize questions for SEO. Adding FAQ sections tin besides beryllium an easy measurement to refresh an aged blog and update it to amended SEO.

Get Started pinch SEO Writing

There are a batch of tips and tricks to optimize your blog for amended SEO results.

Still, SEO tin beryllium overwhelming for a batch of contented writers and mini businesses because it’s much of a marathon than a sprint.

Consistently putting retired helpful, charismatic blogs that are afloat optimized is your champion stake for making nan first page.

Remember, SEO criteria are an ever-changing beast, truthful what useful 1 twelvemonth whitethorn not activity nan next.

Subscribe to HubSpot’s Marketing blog to get nan latest accusation astir what Google and different hunt engines require to make nan first page.