9 SEO Copywriting Experts Share Their Top Tips

Want to peek inside the busy brain of an expert SEO copywriter?

Recently, I asked a number of well-known writers to share their favorite SEO writing tip. Many people generously responded with resources, articles and words of advice.

Make sure that you follow these writers on social media and read everything they write. The education you’ll gain will be well worth your time. Trust me.

(And big thanks to the nine copywriters who submitted their tips. You guys rock!)

Kate Toon, Kate Toon Copywriter

Don’t get hung up on exact match keywords: Mix it up a little with related search terms. I use tools like keyword.io and ubersuggest.org to help me find alternate keyword choices. Using synonyms not only pleases the Google god, but it makes your content richer, more engaging and more enjoyable to read.

Jessie Wojdylo, Wojdylo Social Media

Break up your content in subsections with headers. Use the html code to make the subsections drop downs from a table of contents at the top of the article such as this…

Stoney deGeyter, Pole Position Marketing

Make the content readable! Don’t force keywords that don’t work. Add images throughout. Use headings and sub-headings to break up content. Add bullet points where possible. Readable font size. Easy to understand concepts. Short paragraphs. Etc. Etc. Great content still fails if you don’t make it easy for people to read, skim and scan for key points.

Glenn Murray, Divine Write

Assuming someone else has done the keyword research, and the site structure has been informed by that research, my no.1 tip is to not think about SEO at all, until after the client has approved the copy. It’s the ‘copy’ part of ‘SEO copy’ that’s hard. Get that right, and the SEO pass is child’s play. Almost.

Eric Enge, Stone Temple Consulting

My favorite tip is to give your writers a suggested article title or article focus, and then let them write. Don’t burden them with keywords (beyond the title) to focus on. Just let them do their thing.If they know their field, they will naturally create semantically rich content. If you feel a need to tweak it once you have seen what they deliver, not problem! But, don’t let artificial constraints stand between them and creating great content.

Demian Farnworth, Copyblogger

I’m with +Eric Enge. I like to grab an idea, close my eyes, and storm the gates.

Larry Kim, MobileMonkey

Elisa Gabbert (WordStream’s content marketing manager) wrote “3 Super-Actionable Keyword Research Tips to Try Right Now” earlier this year.

Heather Mueller, Mueller Writing

Good question! My answer is probably the simplest: Write for readers FIRST, then see where keyphrases fit naturally. And remember the whole purpose of keyword research is to see what your actual readers are typing into Google to discover what you’re writing about. Otherwise, it’s too easy to get hung up on trying to force verbiage that won’t make sense to your target audience.

Michelle Lowery, Passion Fruit Creative Group

Keep the focus on the topic and the reader–not yourself. Your bio section is where you list your credentials. Don’t waste valuable post space trying to convince the reader you know what you’re talking about because you have this, that and the other experience. Don’t make it about you, a personal blog post being the exception. Giving the reader something of value means something they can use, that will benefit them–not your résumé, or your “humble brags” about your achievements.

What about you? What tip would you add to the list?

15 replies
  1. Susan Marshall VA says:

    Thank you Heather for this article. My favorite tip was the Wordstream article by Elisa Gabbert. Can’t wait to try out her three easy to follow tips, especially the Google wild card tip. It makes me wondering what other things about Google searches I haven’t discovered yet.

    Reply
  2. Kevin Carlton says:

    Hi Heather

    Here are my two quick tips to add to your list.

    If you’re writing all the pages for a typical 5–10 page website then don’t write a single word until you’ve decided exactly what information will go where.

    That way, your client will have a much better structured site. Pages will be better targeted to searches without even having to think about SEO. And the website user experience will be so much better.

    And great web writers don’t just pluck copy from thin air. So make sure you thoroughly research your client and their own customers’ needs first.

    Reply
  3. Nick says:

    I like the fact that you mentioned “write for readers first…” because this is congruent with Google’s recent updates. We all know that when you are publish friendly content that Google likes, you have already won half the battle.

    Reply
  4. Geraldine says:

    Thrilled to see Kate Toon as one of your contributors as I’m an active follower of her FB page and always find her blogs really useful.

    There definitely seems to be a common theme running through all of these tips, which implies concurrence amongst leading players!

    Reply
  5. Elizabeth says:

    What a great post!

    I like to interview clients, as well as read up on them. I find that a conversation can help uncover areas that the client thought was “unimportant.” It also helps take the client away from the overwritten, formal tone that many clients think they need to use for their websites.

    Reply
  6. Dirk says:

    I like what Eric Enge says and it is something that I have to think of. Well, he’s right and I realize that I am putting too much keyword pressure to my team. Indeed, letting them write freely would help. Thanks!

    Reply

Trackbacks & Pingbacks

Leave a Reply

Want to join the discussion?
Feel free to contribute!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.