Content marketing should appeal to Google AND users

Effective content marketing is a delicate balancing act. On the one hand, your content must be optimized to appeal Google’s sometimes-fussy algorithms; on the other, it must also be relevant, relatable, and useful to the customers you wish to attract to your website.

If you focus only on SEO-friendliness, you may be left with unreadable, keyword-stuffed copy that doesn’t communicate brand identity or the value of your products. However, if you ignore SEO best practices and write content that speaks directly to customers, you may never be discovered through search engines.

“Great SEO copywriting involves much more than simply writing for Google, or even writing for your target audience,” wrote Keys&Copy Founder and SEO Strategist Jessica Foster in an article for Search Engine Land. “It is a beautiful balance of both, and to do it effectively, you often have to think outside the box.”

Foster suggests spending time on customer-facing content marketing, including blogs, landing pages, and your home page. Each of these presents opportunities to describe who your company is, what it does, and where its values lie, information that helps foster relationships with customers and builds trust. Because these pages are high-traffic assets for most websites, improved reader-friendliness and sturdy SEO standards should result in improved conversion rates.

As a Premier Google Partner digital marketing agency with access to valuable insights on Google’s preferred practices, GrowthEngine Media combines the latest SEO strategies with engaging, empathetic copy to deliver content marketing that ranks highly and resonates with customers. Our writing team has experience crafting SEO-friendly website content, informative and engaging blog posts, and attractive product copy. Though marketing in 2018 looks much different than it did 10, 20, or 30 years ago, effective communication remains at the industry’s core. At GrowthEngine, we’re proud to champion the written word and empower our team of experienced, creative writers.