This is a guest post by James Martell from AffiliateMarketersBootcamp.com.
Whether you are just starting out in your Internet business, or have been at it for a while now, there are some important steps you need to take when developing quality content. Some of this might seem very basic to those who have worked for a while now, but a refresher never hurts.
I am not going to go into much detail on why quality content is important, as I’ve done that in a few other articles. This time I am going to focus on the actual development of material that will attract the attention of Google, an important ally to have when working with the Internet.
Google no longer is friendly to fluff material that are articles stuffed with keywords, yet no substance. They have the ability to zero in on quality content and weed out the material created for computer spiders, rather than humans. Gone are the days of spinning and stuffing.
So, let’s get down to what can help you in creating Google-friendly content.
1. Designated Work Space. I have touched base on this a few times, but will continue to do so, due to its importance. I am a firm believer in having a dedicated office or space for work, when working from home. Working from the dining room table, or living room couch will typically lead to less than professional results.
If you can’t designate an entire room for an office, then find a corner in a low traffic area of the house to set up shop. There are multiple corner computer desks for home to choose from and can fit in nicely. Make sure that everyone in the home knows this is your work area. In other words, it’s not a place to gather around and play games…and when you are sitting there, you are working.
After you have set yourself up in a professional atmosphere, then you are all set to move on to the next steps in creating quality content.
2. Define Quality. In order to define quality, you need to know what your readers are looking for when they visit your site. It doesn’t matter how much time and effort you put into your site. If it’s not what the reader is after, they won’t stick around.
Therefore, quality is actually defined by their opinions, not yours, or even your time spent in producing the site. You need to produce content that answers their questions, or provides solutions for them.
A good example would be a review site. If you are looking to invest in a particular product, you might seek out reviews before purchasing it. When going to a review site, you will most likely appreciate an honest review, over a well-written biased one with all pleasantries. So, by divulging the good and bad of the product, you are giving an honest review that is valuable to the reader. In other words, high quality content.
3. Relatable Story Telling. Take a look at popular print publications. You will probably notice a similarity between them, and that is they are telling a story and relating to the reader.
Conversational style writing is popular for a reason. People are drawn to what they can relate to, and feel connected to when reading. Talking about real experiences, events, and people make the story real. Talk to the reader as if you are telling them a story in person, filled with relatable experiences, links, and quotes.
4. No Need to be a Natural. When I first started my affiliate marketing career in 1999, I had no writing experience in my credentials. I was in carpentry, actually. Sure, I love to tell a story, but not necessarily on paper. Podcasts are my forte.
Knowing that I needed quality content, I realized that I had to find a way to write. I tried for a while, but soon sought outside help. And, I learned something interesting from one of the writers. She told me that she spends triple the amount of time in research than she does the actual writing, no matter how well she knows the topic.
The significance of research is that it helps you to learn what people are saying about the topic, as well as what they are looking for. It also can enhance what we already know and make for a great piece.
5. The Development Process. The process to developing quality content can be broken down into steps, such as the following:
- Research – As mentioned above, it helps to enhance the product. So, do a lot of research, and take notes. Also, include links and quotes that are relevant to the topic.
- Outline – Putting everything into an outline helps with development, by laying out the story, giving it a much easier flow for the readers. Use this outline to pace the story from start to finish.
- Reality – Using real events, people, and experiences adds credibility to your story. It also helps a reader relate to what you are saying.
- Format – It’s best to use shorter paragraphs, rather than those that are long and drawn out. It will help with a reader’s attention span. Also, use subheadings and bullet points when possible, to break up the reading, as well as informing them what is coming up.
- Finishing – Upon completion, read through it to find any errors that might be there, as well as making sure all questions are answered.
Knowing these steps will help you in creating quality content for your website, which will keep readers coming back for more. However, even if you plan on outsourcing this part of the business, it gives you an outline of what to expect and works as a guide for checking work that comes in from those you hire.
6. Technology. Being in the Internet business, we are already relying on technology. But, there are so many tools available to help us in our careers to make it easier, quicker, and more efficient. Some of those are items such as video conferencing, Smart Phones, software for organizing or writing, and so much more.
However, if technology intimidates you, it’s not a problem. There are plenty of people who are willing to assist you. If you are wondering how does video conferencing work, simply ask a sales clerk, or get on message boards. It’s worth it, because video conferencing can save you a lot of time and money by being able to host meetings right from home.
Smart Phones and iPads can keep you connected, no matter where you are, so you don’t miss important messages. Technology is constantly changing and improving. I suggest you do some research on what the latest tools are, on a regular basis.
Well, that is my opinion on the best steps in creating quality content. I am interested in knowing what you have to say about it all. Please leave questions or comments in the comment box below.
Content is the most important factor to grab google attention and that helps you to build the good amount of traffic. These tips are good to follow to do so.
Office at home is sign of your professional attitude.If you go for this, you can easily manage all other requirements to write professional contents and you can easily divert the attention of Google to your site.
Content really is King. People don’t want to see posts that have been keyword stuffed, it’s just confusing and hard to read. Google follows people, and people love content. keeping your readers up to date with great content is a great way to keep them coming back to your site.
We all have been made aware how Google keeps on dynamically improving its algorithms to make sure dodgy websites are caught and penalized for producing contents that only cater to search engines and not to users. While it is important to stay current, original, substantial and informative, the need to be creative in producing information that no other person, website or entity has still tops what Google aims for.
Two insights from our current projects:
1) Where possible – add widgets / AJAX content that a visitor can play with; Google seems to favor these pages and – objectively speaking – it keeps visitors on your site much longer (which appears to be another factor in the ranking algorithm).
2) Cardinal rule – Google seems to build assortments of content in their top SERPS; if the top 10 sites for a term are just offering a directory of providers or an about us page, your odds of getting ranked are much higher if you have something different to say. I’ve seen articles rank quickly since they are different (or at least appear different) than the other 20 items in the search engine.
I was recently reading about how Huffington Post optimizes its post titles by doing a search of trending items on google prior to posting. That is, if your post title can be optimized based on search trends, it would be a way to help more people find you without loading up your cotent with keywords, etc.
HuffPo has this automated according to the article, but it might be worth doing a quick search before posting to see if the title could be optimized to trends.
research is of utmost importance if one plans to make the article compelling….with so many blogs and articles posted daily on internet, its the quality of content and indepth analysis which separate the winner and loosers
Thank Goodness, James! I’m not the biggest blogger in the world; far from it actually. I’m more a consumer of the Internetz rather than a creater so I feel I’m in a position to stand up, loud and proud before proclaiming: ‘I HATE SPUN CONTENT!’
I made the mistake of signing up to another ‘bloggers guide’ type blog that doesn’t come close to your level of ‘no spamminess’ and already they’ve sent me 3 emails about how to spin my content. The Internet is becoming a trash basket at the rate of knots because of this rubbish. I’m glad that Google and yourself are doing all your can to promote unique and useful content.
Keep fighting the good fight, brother!
Why does Google have to change its algorithm so much? Getting bored of having to fight the constant change. Where is all of this leading?
What an informative piece! You demonstrated how a blog should read, concise and realistic. There have been so many recent attempts to “dumb up” the industry, thank you for acknowledging that the internet should be used for more than just “fluff”. In trying to get my blog noticed and read, and most of all, not overlooked by Google, these are perfect tips and guidelines to follow. Blogs should be about giving some useful information and yours definitely demonstrates a top notch entry. Thanks for the common sense and a little more!