Mark Armstrong Illustration Specializing In Content Marketing Advertising Editorial Infographics Animation Videos and Social Media

I contributed to a comprehensive post on SEO strategies. Lots of good tips, and you can read the entire post here.

This was my tip:

The usual advice re search engine optimization goes something like this:

Write for your target audience.

Use targeted keywords (= the words people would use to search for your product or service).

Come up with a clever headline.

Write “best answer” content that’s so good people will stay on your site, reading and reading, logging a “dwell time” that impresses Mr. Google so much, he awards you extra SEO points.

But if you’re a content creator, you already know all that— I hope!

But one thing’s always glossed over: How can you be sure
what people are going to type in when they do a search for your product or service?

You can’t be sure. You have to make some educated guesses.

So here’s my tip: turn off all your insider knowledge and be your ideal customer.

Be your ideal prospect. Don’t just pretend in a half-hearted way. Be that person.

Put everything you know about your business— your insider knowledge– out of your mind.

Be the person who sort of knows what they want, but can’t state it as clearly as an insider could.

Get in that zone and jot down the questions they’d type into a search engine. Those will be your targeted keywords.

Don’t drop them in every other sentence. Don’t force them where they don’t want to go. Google recognizes keyword stuffing and penalizes you for it.

Write best answer content that’s clear, engaging, and helpful, and drop in the keywords where they’re a natural fit for the context.

Visuals make everything more fun to read, so here’s all the above in a slideshow:

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About Mark: I’m an illustrator specializing in marketing, branding, and visual communication. My images are different, like your brand needs to be.

You can view my portfolio, and connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn.

Questions? Send me an email.

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