Page Copy Optimization and the Value of Keywords

What does good website content look like? Is it tailored to reach to your audience by speaking in a specific voice? What about optimized content for search engines? What about concise content that effectively communicates your message in directly?

This may surprise you, but ultimately the best search engine optimized content is all three. Search engines like content that is readable, effective, and focused. There is a lingering myth that search engine optimized text is inherently shady or “black hat” because most people equate SEO with cheap, keyword-stuffed copy (mostly popularized by ugly micro sites laden with Google ads).

In general optimizing your website copy is more about clear communication and knowing what your audience is looking for (and what language they are using to look for it). You’ll need to get your marketing team on board in order to understand how you want to communicate your message, but you can easily use a keyword report in your analytics tool (or sign up for Google Webmaster Tools) to find out what terms potential clients are searching with. Once you have this knowledge, you can remove or add different keywords to your copy to make sure you are both directing the right kind of visitor to your site and leveraging any variations of your top keywords. Getting this information is free and using it to help write good copy will prove invaluable as you seek more internet traffic.

If you are still a little unsure about implementing an SEO strategy for your site, consider the following. In school you most likely learned that using specific details and terminology creates prose that can more effectively communicate your feelings to your reader. It is the same when catering to search engine algorithms. Just like with print writing, keyword targeting more effectively leverages the words and phrases for its intended audience. For example, why use the phrase “Buy tickets now” when “Buy Chicago Opera tickets for May 10th” is ten times more descriptive and user-friendly for a potential visitor? If it also helps your site show up on the first page of search results for the search, “Chicago Opera tickets”, you have already boosted your ticket sales with that one simple change and more clearly communicated with your visitor.

Of course, smart search engine optimizers don’t go overboard with this line of thinking. Keyword optimization should not interfere with the usability, clarity, or messaging of your site but should help articulate the crucial purpose of your website. If you want to reach potential visitors through search engines more effectively, use your audience’s vernacular (a.k.a keywords) and balance the value of those words to search indexes alongside voice and intent.