There is much more to search engine optimization (SEO) than just content. However, SEO is impossible without writing. It plays a significant role in increasing your visibility in the search results. 

What does “writing for SEO” mean? 

The process of writing content with the goal of appearing on the top page of a search engine, such as Google, is known as SEO writing. 

You must pay attention to three factors to do this: 

• Understand what your target keyword’s searchers are looking for (i.e., search intent) 
• Create the best response you can to a search query (i.e., research and knowledge) 
• Present the solution in a form that is simple to read and comprehend (i.e., have good writing skills) 

In addition, you should have a rudimentary understanding of on-page SEO components like meta tags, picture alt text, internal links, etc. I’ll discuss those later, though. 

Let’s investigate this query for the time being: “Why even should you care?” 

Why is writing for SEO important? 

Because Google receives an estimated 3.5 billion queries daily, SEO writing is significant. This implies that Google is undoubtedly being used by your consumers to find information. 

Additionally, you will start receiving free, consistent, and highly relevant traffic to your website once you rank on the first page of Google for your desired keywords. 

In other words, SEO results in financial gain. 

Organic traffic continues to rule as one of the most crucial marketing channels any contemporary firm can spend in, despite the rising prices of paid advertising and the increasing difficulty of obtaining social media interaction. 

So, how can you achieve the coveted page 1 organic rankings? 

Seven steps to writing SEO content.  

Fortunately for you, the method I employ is extremely basic and straightforward to understand. Every item I post on my blog goes through the seven SEO writing phases listed below once I’ve finished my keyword research and know the keyword(s) I’m targeting:

1. Examine the SERPs for the keyword you want to target (s)

Remember how I said that comprehending search intent is a need for SEO writing? 

For instance, if someone looks for “best restaurants near me,” their goal is to locate a fine dining establishment close to where they are right now. 

It seems straightforward, but it may be shockingly simple to get wrong. No matter how fantastic your content is, you have no chance of ranking on page one of Google if you get it wrong. 

You question how it could be wrong. 

Consider that you want to target the phrase “RV storage ideas.” Initially, you might believe that searching for “rv storage ideas” will produce results that offer not utilising it. 

However, if that’s what you believe, you’re mistaken. Certainly, in Google’s opinion. The actual findings are as follows: 

As you can see, the top outcomes for this term are all how-to guides for adding more storage to your RV rather than listings for RV storage facilities. 

Therefore, before you even start writing, it’s imperative to study the search engine results page (SERP)… With Ahrefs’ Keywords Explorer (as I did above) or by searching for the keyword, you can accomplish this fast and simply. 

In the research phase, you should also search for featured snippets. A highlighted snippet is a portion of data that Google pulls directly from a webpage with a high ranking and displays there: 

To avoid part of the competition for a term and rank for it more quickly, you can tailor your content for highlighted snippets like the one above. 

With Keywords Explorer, you can locate featured snippets the fastest and most conveniently. Simply enter the keywords you’re considering targeting, select “Featured snippet” from the dropdown menu under “SERP features,” and then click “Apply.” 

Now, only terms with featured snippets will be displayed to you! Learn more about how to use them in your content by reading our guide to featured snippet optimization. 

Before you begin writing, there is one more step to do after you have grasped search intent.

2.Produce an article summary!

A key component of SEO writing is developing a content outline. The writing process is sped up and made simpler with an outline, which also ensures high standards of quality. 

Filling in essential SEO details, such as typical queries associated with a specific term, is a step in the outlining process. 

Choosing your article’s header, subheadings, objectives, and approach angle is another step in the process. What distinguishes or distinguishes your piece from all the others on the market? 

Here is an illustration of a section of the outline I created for another article: 

For more information on this phase, please refer to my article on how to write content outlines.

3.Produce a draught.

Almost all excellent articles start off as a rough draught. 

Why? 

You can improve your ideas and complete the research phase by using the draught process. Additionally, it aids in developing the content’s flow. Additionally, once you have a final project, you can simply tweak and revise things without feeling like you’re beginning over. 

My draughts are always written in Google Docs. This makes it simple for my editors, designers, and other collaborators and I to communicate. In actuality, the following is how the draught of this particular section looks: 

You should write in a free-flowing manner during your draught rather than obsessing over word choice or formatting. Just put the important information on the page.

4.Request input and edit the draught.

Obtaining input on your draught, though not always available, might be beneficial. Having a second set of eyes is always beneficial since as writers, we frequently struggle to distinguish between forest and trees. 

If you have a team or employees, ask them to evaluate the draught and provide feedback. Even better, ask your audience for input if you have one. 

This is the ideal situation for an email list or Facebook group. To find out what your actual readers think of your writing, send a draught to a small group of people you trust. They might provide advice you hadn’t considered. In fact, the input can include details that aren’t even available on Google yet. 

Once When you receive criticism, make the necessary writing revisions. proceed to step #5 next.

5.Format the draught into an appropriate article.

You now have a chance to improve the article. 

If you don’t already have one, investing in an editor can significantly raise the caliber of your material. However, you can modify the content yourself if you cannot afford to hire one. 

How do you go about that? 

My simple objective while writing SEO material is to offer the greatest solution in the fewest words and in a way that is simple to skim. 

Therefore, as you’re editing, consider the following: 

•  Is this the ideal response? 
• Am I making it clear enough? 
• Is it simple for someone (with little time) to skim this page and find what they? 

You can organise your text more effectively with headings and subheadings, highlight important points with italics or bold, and change up the length of your sentences to keep the reader interested. 

Avoid using phrases that are extremely complicated since they can make your point hard to understand. Of course, if there isn’t a more straightforward method to describe anything, using more technical language is acceptable. 

In order to emphasis your points, it’s a good idea to break up lengthy chunks of text using images, videos, and bulleted lists. Having media could aid SEO efforts. 

Consider reading your work aloud to yourself as you are revising. Reading it aloud reveals the dull or tedious passages, indicates When something is extremely detailed or obscure, grammatical mistakes can stick out more. 

Speaking of grammar, Google Docs also prompts you when you have used incorrect grammar or spelling. When editing, you may concentrate on the content’s quality rather than the details thanks to this practical tool. Need?

Read: 14 Best Free Chrome Extensions for SEOs

6.Configure your SEO components and post your article!

An excellent post is a significant start toward ranking on Google, but it takes a little more to land on page one. 

On-page SEO was discussed at the outset of this essay. This is in reference to: 

• name tag 
• Meta information 
• URL slug for an open graph tag 
• Categorization of pages or posts 
• Alt text for images, also 

During the writing process, every page on your website needs this optimization. I can easily adjust these things because I personally use the SEO Press plugin for WordPress. 

To upload this data, however, you can usually find a plugin or setting in content management systems (CMSs). I strongly advise switching to one that does if they don’t! 

On-page SEO isn’t the topic of this article. However, if you want to learn more, you can consult this manual.

7.Refresh internal linking.

Always include internal links from other pages on your website to the new content after it is published to make it easier for readers and search engines to find. 

Along with making your website more user-friendly, this also makes it easier for Google to crawl your website and determine the topic of your new page (via anchor text) in order to correctly index it. ` 

Final thoughts 

Writing for search engines essentially involves coming up with the best response to a particular query and presenting it in a way that is both understandable and skimmable. 

You’ve nailed the content part of SEO as long as you nail that and the fundamental on-page SEO best practices I stated.