Writing a blog for your website may seem like a smart idea but the wrong execution could end up harming your SEO efforts instead of boosting it. The truth is many companies fail to properly take advantage of the potential benefits blogs can give to their overall marketing efforts.

Many website owners make rookie mistakes like failing to update blog content, writing irrelevant information and poorly worded articles. Here are some ways to help you better integrate SEO into your blog post so that you make them more search engine friendly.

Know What Your Audience Wants To Read

Running a business for a particular product or service requires you to properly identify your target audience so that you reach out to the right people. And while you know who you want to target, how much are you aware of what they really want to know and read? Do your research to make sure you deliver content that is relevant and vital for on-page optimization. Consider the following:

  • Utilise available tools to identify specific keywords users are typing in to solve their problems.
  • Check out your competition’s websites and see what words and topics they are covering for readers.
  • Ask users directly through surveys, questionnaires and social media.

Blog content is most valuable when it helps to solve a problem or answer a question so it pays to know what your audience wants to read in order to provide information that is most relevant to them.

Include And Optimise Images

Would you read something that was so inundated with text and words that you see no end in sight? Probably not! That’s why images can make a powerful impact because they break up your text and can provide a great deal of value that is relevant to the content you’re providing. Consider the following when including images in your blog posts:

  • When uploading photos to your blog make sure keywords are included in the file name.
  • Fill out the alt text field with a brief description of the photo, which should be relevant to your content.
  • Upload an image that reflects your content in the best light, while grabbing the attention of readers.

The visual medium can have a powerful impact on readers so don’t underestimate how important images are to your blogging SEO strategy.

Link To Authoritative Websites To Back Up Your Content

Users love content and data that are backed up by authoritative websites so they know what they are reading is authentic. There are plenty of advantages when it comes to linking your blog content to authoritative websites:

  • Referencing information from external websites will make you appear as an authority yourself on the topic.
  • You may also be able to get a backlink to your website from the linked website in the future – further boosting your industry authority.
  • Google views these back and forth links favorably – enabling you to move up in search rankings.

Linking to other websites is a good blogging practice and will help you better showcase how well researched your content is. Quality links are valuable for your SEO efforts.

Use Social Media Wisely

5 Steps To Make Your Social Content Great [Infographic]

As a business with a blog, you probably use social media sites like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter to get your posts out to as many users as possible. Or if you haven’t done so in the past, it may be time to consider this strategy. Here’s why:

  • Social media has immense power when it comes to an SEO strategy for the blog post because of the potential it has to make any post go viral and reach millions or even billions of readers in a short span of time.
  • Social media enables you to make new connections with potential customers reading your blogs while allowing you to converse better with existing customers through the information you provide.
  • Sharing your blogs on social media enables more shares, which could be viewed positively by search engine bots for higher rankings.

You cannot have a blogging SEO strategy without bringing social media into the mix, so make sure you choose the right platforms based on the nature of your business.

Running a business requires you to have an online strategy to keep up with the digital world. Use these ideas to help you better integrate SEO into your blog posts.