Just because you stand at the podium doesn’t mean that people will listen. In the digital world, everyone has the podium. How do you rise above the noise? You have to position yourself properly and earn the right to be heard. It comes down to three things: searchability, discoverability, and authority.
Searchability
Can people find your content? How likely is your content to show up in a Google search? You don’t need to be a Search Engine Optimization (SEO) expert, but it does help to employ a few simple guidelines:
- Be relevant. Unique, well-written content is the only way to be favored in search. Good content will rise to the top. Period.
- Be dynamic. Fresh content attracts search engines. Use a blogging platform rather than a static personal “portfolio” site. Blogs are better for this because they serve up fresh content regularly. Your content is much more search-friendly on a blog than on an inanimate Web site.
- Use keywords. You need to use keywords—in your post title, in the URL slug, in tags, and throughout the piece. Do not sacrifice good content to stuff your posts with keywords, though. Google won’t like it, and your readers won’t like it either. About 2-3 keyword mentions in the piece itself ought to do it.
- Use images. You can get by without them, but images help attract search engines. Use images where you can, even if they are only decorative. It’s best to use your own photos to avoid any worries about copyright infringement, but there are tons of places where you can find openly licensed images that free and legal to use.
Discoverability
Are people likely to find your content? Will people find it when they need it, even if it’s not what they set out to find? Is your work where the conversation is happening? SEO is the start of this, but there are other things you can do to help your content be discovered:
- Be present. Placement matters. Is your content on the appropriate sites? Link to each of your blog posts in your Facebook stream. Your friends might not be interested, but post it anyway. Once. Then it’s part of your portfolio. The same goes for LinkedIn, Twitter, Google Plus, or wherever you connect with your audience.
- Be feed-friendly. Many people are going to be getting your content via a feed (for example, Digg, Feedly, or Pulse). To capture a reader’s attention, make sure the title is compelling. After that, the content had better be relevant. If you don’t come through on the promise of your title, your reader will leave quickly—and rightfully so. That will disfavor you in search.
- Tag wisely. This is similar to the way you use keywords. Use tags in your blog to help your content function asynchronously. If you are unsure about tag standards, do your research. Search for a tag to see how popular it is. It takes a lot of work and consistency to establish a new tag, so I’d recommend building on the work that others did before you.
- Be remarkable. Recommendations are everything. People are way more likely to read your post if it has been recommended to them. Help your audience bring you more audience. Remember that people will only share things that are remarkable.
Authority
If you are producing consistently relevant content that your audience finds valuable, then your authority is going to rise. The more that you’ve written, the more that you’ve connected, the more people that link to you—all of these are going to elevate your “author rank” on Google. In other words, you are going to appear higher in search results. A few important things to do:
- Declare yourself to Google. Make sure that you are set up properly on Google Authorship so that you are more likely to show up in search results. Page rank is directly correlated to authority, so it helps to strengthen this connection. It takes a few steps, but it’s worth it. Google’s instructions are confusing, but there are other good articles that cover the topic.
- Network your content. Using links effectively can give your authority a boost. First of all, take any relevant opportunity to connect your piece with other pieces that you’ve written. It shows that you’ve written more than just this one piece. As I mentioned in a prior post, provide value by sharing others’ work as well as your own. It may spur links backs to your site as well.
- Participate. Do you have something to add to the conversation? If you’ve written something useful, then continue to share it. Post links to your article when the chance arises. This can be on other blogs, LinkedIn forums, or other relevant sites. Don’t let your content sink into the quicksand of the Web. Blogging doesn’t have to be one-and-done. Keep your content alive and working for you.
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For more about Content Strategy for Authors, please see the “For Authors” section of this site—or follow along with the Glass Box Project, as I write my own book “in the open” to model the process for you.
For more about Content Strategy for Entrepreneurs, please see the “For Entrepreneurs” section.
Photo credit: “Macro – Search Button” by Jixar is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
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