SEO has always been the rough edge of each web marketing strategy. Yet, there are numerous points of view regarding what is the best method for achieving a great score.
As the international readership on the Internet is growing, effective content writing becomes one of the top priorities. Τhe way you serve the content to your users, along with the search engine optimizations, are the key to attracting and keeping visitors on your website.
Although there are several solutions available in the market, YOAST SEO appears to be the most complete as it incorporates a well-designed toolbox that allows you to check the article -step by step- focusing on a number of critical points. At first, the interface may appear confusing; yet, with a closer look, you’ll notice that the tabs are marked with symbols, not with words. Note, that we are talking about the free version of the plugin which is a good start for learning how to optimize your content.
Most of the work is done on the tab with the Traffic Lights, particularly on the Readability Analysis and Keyphrase Analysis (a.k.a. SEO) sections. The other two tabs are used for Facebook title, description and image and for Search Engine readability allowance accordingly.
The compact view of Yoast SEO (standard edition) tools as shown in the backend of this post
Let’s begin.
First, we need to select a subject and focus on a keyword or keyphrase, as it is the base of our strategy. Yet, in some cases, we may need to start writing before locating the exact keyword, as it’s not always obvious from the beginning. For a really effective content writing, a research of the current trends is of great importance. The trends should be related to the type of the website you’re writing for.
After you find the actual subject for the article, you must come up with a title. It’s always good to search for the correct one, but don’t spend all day wondering what’s the best title. You don’t have to make the best pick right away. You can (and in most cases, you will) change it later when you’re starting to getting “deeper” into the subject and actually realize what it’s all about.
Always begin writing using the standard WordPress editor and not using a page builder. This is important as the highlighting of the YOAST tool may not working on some cases in the page builder element preview. When you’re finished with the writing, the proofing and the optimization of the article, you can add images and customize the layout. In addition to an effective content writing, the search engines will also crawl for HTML tags on the text and images.
If you are using Gutenberg, YOAST integrates well and in some cases, it’s even more convenient than with the Classic editor. In both cases, you can work well.
The Basics for Optimal Readability
The first paragraph should clear up what the article is about. It should contain the keyphrase (for the search engines) and a short introduction (for the human reader).
– Add the key phrase at the beginning of the first paragraph.
– The article should have at least 300 words to validate.
– Avoid using large sentences which make it hard to read.
– Try avoiding passive voice as it alienates the reader.
– Use transition words between sentences.
– Use headings to clearly separate the sections.
– Add a featured image.
The Basics of SEO
The Meta Description should not be less than (approx.) 160 characters and it should go straight to the point, as it appears in the results page of the search engines.
– Use a key phrase with a maximum of four words. Do not add stop words (the, and, but…)
– Use at least one inline link to a page/post of the website the article is located
– Use at least one inline link to an external website
– Remove any stop words from the slug
– Use tags and alt tags on the images of the article (featured and inline)
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