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7 Smart Ways to Combine Content Marketing with SEO for More Qualified Search Traffic
Introduction
Content marketing and SEO, like the classic combination of peanut butter and jelly, are powerful on their own. But when you bring them together, magic happens! Just like how a peanut butter and jelly sandwich is a timeless favorite, combining content marketing and SEO can lead to remarkable results.
It’s no wonder that the average person consumes about 2,500 of these delicious sandwiches by the time they turn 18. Similarly, if you want to grow your qualified search traffic, it’s essential to unite your content marketing and SEO efforts. Running them as separate campaigns may not yield the same impactful results as when they work hand in hand.
Even for larger companies, this synergy between content marketing and SEO might require a restructuring of the organization. By bringing both departments together, you can create a powerful force that drives traffic and boosts your online presence.
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Now, let's delve into 7 smart ways you can seamlessly combine your content marketing and SEO efforts:
Tactic #1: Create content that even Wikipedia would love to link to
Leveraging the power of Wikipedia for driving relevant traffic to your website can be a game-changer. This influential platform ranks for almost every search term on Google and is among the most popular sites on the web. I stumbled upon the true potential of Wikipedia during a marketing presentation by Comedy Central. They unveiled how they achieved significant traffic growth, with Wikipedia playing a crucial role in their traffic acquisition strategy.
The numbers were mind-blowing – Comedy Central generates over 100,000 monthly visitors from Wikipedia alone! But what’s even more fascinating is the domino effect they noticed. Pages linked from Wikipedia tend to attract more backlinks from other sites as well, boosting their overall authority and visibility.
So, how can you tap into this rich source of links from Wikipedia? Enter Wikipedia broken-link building.
Wikipedia has a system of noting dead links, which presents an opportunity for editors to find replacements. Here’s how you can discover these broken links through Google:
Use the search query – “site:wikipedia.org insert keyword ‘dead link'”
Scan the search results and find the occurrences of “dead link” on the pages.
Once you identify a relevant dead link, you can leverage Archive.org to access the content of the dead page. If your website offers valuable content related to the broken link, consider creating a similar page that adds value to your visitors.
With your similar page ready, it’s time to edit the Wikipedia entry. Before you proceed, create a user account on Wikipedia and make other constructive edits to show your commitment to contributing to the community.
Wikipedia encourages users to add value to the platform, not just promote their own sites. Once you’ve established your credibility as an editor, you can navigate to the Wikipedia entry with the dead link and click the “edit” button on the top right.
Now, for an advanced approach, take the URL of the broken link and input it into Ahrefs. This will provide you with a list of sites linking to the dead page. Reach out to these websites and kindly request them to replace the dead link with a link to your similar, valuable content.
While this strategy can yield impressive results, it’s essential to maintain relevance and quality. Focus on creating pages that align with relevant keywords and cater to the interests of your visitors. Avoid being tempted to flood Wikipedia with irrelevant pages just to score extra links.
By strategically implementing Wikipedia broken-link building and offering valuable content, you can establish a strong online presence and drive significant traffic to your website. Embrace the power of Wikipedia and see your traffic soar to new heights!
Tactic #2: Write content based on keyword data
Blogging with purpose is the key to success. It’s not about posting random content; it’s about creating content that your visitors want to read and targeting specific keywords to boost your visibility.
Even if most of your search data is “not provided,” you can still uncover valuable keyword insights using three essential Google Analytics reports.
These three reports will help you identify the keywords driving traffic to your site. Armed with this knowledge, you can craft content around these keywords while ensuring it also adds value to your visitors’ experience.
Take my experience with Quick Sprout, for example. I analyzed my analytics data and discovered that Instagram-related keywords were driving sticky users to my site. To capitalize on this trend, I wrote a blog post on Instagram marketing.
The results were astounding. Within just 30 days of publishing the post, I saw a remarkable increase of 120,000 visitors per month.
To achieve consistent success with this strategy, cross-referencing your targeted keywords with Google Trends is essential. Focus on topics that are trending upwards and gaining popularity. Avoid writing about topics that are losing relevance, as it will only lead to dwindling traffic over time.
While you won’t achieve such exceptional results with every post, using this tactic regularly can lead to significant wins.
Remember, quality is key. Avoid keyword-stuffing, as it can harm your rankings and credibility. Stay true to providing valuable and engaging content while aligning with the trending keywords to drive substantial traffic to your blog.
Tactic #3: Create quality content before you aim for large quantities
In the early days of Google, website owners could publish any kind of content and easily attract thousands of visitors. However, as Google’s algorithm evolved, it became smarter at distinguishing high-quality content from low-quality ones.
That’s why it’s crucial to prioritize writing in-depth and high-quality content.
Research shows that web pages ranking on the first page of Google typically have a word count of at least 2,000 words. This correlation between word count and search engine rankings is further reinforced by a study conducted by Moz.
Moz analyzed the relationship between word count and backlinks, and the results were striking. Longer blog posts with more extensive content tended to receive a higher number of backlinks. This means that by investing in more comprehensive and detailed articles, you can improve your chances of earning valuable backlinks and boosting your search engine rankings.
Moreover, Google’s In-depth Articles feature presents a fantastic opportunity to increase your website’s traffic. By crafting thorough and detailed content, you can take advantage of this feature and attract more visitors to your site. In fact, we saw a remarkable 13.15% increase in search engine traffic by leveraging the in-depth articles update.
Our analysis revealed that pages with an average word count of 2,183 experienced the most significant traffic boost. On the other hand, blog posts with fewer than 1,000 words didn’t see a noticeable increase in search traffic.
To fully capitalize on this strategy, it’s essential to focus on writing comprehensive and high-quality articles. Once you’ve mastered the art of crafting detailed content, you can then turn your attention to increasing the quantity of your posts. But until then, stay committed to creating in-depth articles that captivate your audience and elevate your website’s performance in search engine rankings.
Tactic #4: Don’t forget about FAQs
If you’ve ever wondered why your website visitors aren’t converting into valuable customers, fret not! The solution lies in two powerful tools: Qualaroo and Survey Monkey. By leveraging their capabilities, you can gain invaluable insights into the minds of your audience and address their concerns effectively.
The key is to ask the right questions, and Qualaroo and Survey Monkey make it easy for you. With queries like “What else would you like to see on this page?” and “Is there a reason why you didn’t convert into a paying customer?” you can uncover the obstacles preventing conversions. Moreover, you can dig into your support emails and consult your support team to uncover additional objections your visitors might have.
Once you have a comprehensive list of concerns and questions from your visitors, it’s time to take action. Create an informative FAQ section that addresses these points, and watch your website rankings soar for long-tail terms related to your product.
Although this strategy may not flood your website with traffic, the visitors you do attract will be highly relevant and conversion-focused. At our company, Crazy Egg, we implemented this precise approach in our support section, driving an impressive extra 4,108 visitors to our site each month. Remarkably, a significant 82 of those visitors tend to convert into paying customers.
So, are you ready to unlock the secret to boosting conversions on your website? Embrace the power of Qualaroo and Survey Monkey, and let the valuable insights pave the way to higher conversions and a thriving online presence. Your success story awaits!
Tactic #5: Target industry blogs for guest-posting opportunities
Link building is a crucial strategy for boosting your website’s rankings and attracting relevant traffic. As part of our content marketing efforts, we have successfully targeted industry-related blogs to secure valuable backlinks.
Over the course of 61 guest posts on 49 different marketing blogs, we strategically included links to relevant internal pages of our website, Quick Sprout. Our approach was to avoid using rich anchor text and prioritize providing value to readers.
The results were impressive. Within just three months, we witnessed a significant increase in search traffic by 22.7% for the articles we linked to.
To replicate our success and increase your own relevant traffic, consider the following tips:
- Choose relevant sites for guest-posting: Focus on industry-related blogs that align with your niche and target audience.
- Prioritize user value: When linking to your site, ensure it benefits the readers and enhances their experience.
- Avoid using rich anchor text: Instead, opt for natural and contextual linking that blends seamlessly with the content.
We understand the importance of adhering to Google’s guidelines while guest-posting. To learn more about how to execute effective guest-posting strategies within these guidelines, we encourage you to read our comprehensive post on the topic.
By following these best practices, you can harness the power of link building to elevate your website’s visibility and drive relevant traffic. Take advantage of guest-posting opportunities and watch your search traffic soar.
Tactic #6: Focus on indirect conversions
If you want to maximize your SEO efforts and attract a broader audience, focusing solely on converting keywords won’t cut it. Instead, catering to your ideal customers’ needs through insightful blog content can bring in valuable traffic from various related search terms.
For instance, let’s take KISSmetrics as an example. Their ideal customers are successful internet marketers with businesses generating $10 million or more in annual revenue. Although KISSmetrics sells an analytics product, they recognize that their customers are also invested in SEO and social media marketing. To cater to this diverse audience, their blog covers topics like “how to steal your competitor’s social media followers.”
This approach has resulted in an impressive additional 349,335 monthly visitors from Google to their blog. Many of these visitors are marketers who may not convert immediately. However, after the 3rd visit, they often decide to try out KISSmetrics’ product, attracted by the quality content they provide. Consequently, the blog drives a significant portion of their leads each month, ranging from 49% to 72%.
KISSmetrics isn’t the only success story in this regard. Moz also experiences a substantial amount of blog-driven traffic, leading to indirect conversions to their product. This strategic focus on valuable blog content has proven to be a game-changer for both companies and can work wonders for yours too.
Tactic #7: Don’t forget to cross-link
Enhancing your website’s content is crucial, but it’s not enough on its own. To truly boost your search traffic, you need to implement cross-linking strategies. During my consulting work with prominent blogs like TechCrunch, Mashable, and Gawker Media, I discovered that fixing on-page issues, especially cross-linking, significantly improved their search rankings.
One of the most common issues we encountered was the lack of cross-linking between internal pages. When your website has thousands of pages, it becomes challenging to ensure that all of them are indexed by search engines. That’s where cross-linking comes into play.
Take Mashable, for example. By effectively cross-linking its internal pages, we achieved impressive results that persist to this day. Mashable continues to utilize this tactic, which is a key factor behind its top-ranking position on Google for competitive terms like “Twitter”.
You too can replicate similar outcomes by implementing cross-linking on your website. However, it’s crucial to exercise caution. Over-optimizing anchor text in your links can lead to negative consequences. Instead, vary your anchor texts strategically to avoid any penalties. For instance, if Mashable had used only the anchor text “Twitter” when internally linking to their Twitter page, it might not have achieved the same high ranking it enjoys today. By diversifying anchor texts and using natural linking practices, you can boost your search rankings effectively.
Conclusion
While content marketers and SEO specialists possess distinct skill sets, they can achieve remarkable results when working together. Combining content marketing and SEO efforts can lead to a significant boost in qualified search traffic, propelling your online presence to new heights.
Among the various techniques discussed, one that stands out as a personal favorite is the implementation of an FAQ section. This versatile approach can be effectively utilized by businesses of all types and sizes.
Now, let’s explore other impactful ways to synergize content marketing with SEO to maximize your online visibility and engagement. By strategically incorporating relevant keywords into your high-quality content, you can improve your search engine rankings and attract a targeted audience. Additionally, focusing on link building and backlink strategies can enhance your website’s authority and domain credibility, making it more appealing to search engines.
Furthermore, creating valuable and shareable content that resonates with your target audience can amplify your brand’s reach and generate organic traffic. Embracing multimedia elements like videos, infographics, and interactive content can captivate your audience, keeping them engaged and coming back for more.
Moreover, aligning your content marketing goals with your SEO strategy can lead to an improved user experience. By optimizing your website’s navigation, improving page load times, and ensuring mobile-friendliness, you create a seamless and enjoyable journey for your visitors, encouraging them to stay longer and explore more.
Resources
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