The Anita Siek Blog

This article is about… *creepy harpsichord music* Search Engine Optimisation *DUN DUN DUN*. 

Have no fear, fam. This copywriting word-wizard has got you. 

Too often, Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is painted as the scary unknown and Google, an iron-fisted dictator. We’re here to show you how totally unscary SEO is and how when used effectively, SEO can supercharge your site.

Buckle up! *vroom vroom*.  

#1 Good SEO is rooted in psychology, not keywords.

SEO isn’t just about keywords, flash websites or specially selected tags. 

Good SEO is steeped in psychology.

Here’s some quick points to help you understand the psychology of search.

• Why search: It’s SOOO important to consider why your audience is searching in the first place. Once you understand the ‘why’ you can structure your content to deliver the right answers. Think about what users are expecting from your site, what actions you want your audience to take, what problem your service/product solves and work backwards from there.
• Psychographic details matter: Develop a clear understanding of your types of customers. This means going beyond demographic info and delving deep into the psychographic details. You can even name your customer personas (we like ‘Hubert’). Once you have built out your customer personas, you can begin empathy mapping exercises. These exercises allow you to enter the mind of your customer and will give invaluable insight into what your customers are looking for and how they’re looking for it. From here, you can create content that matters to them. When it matters to them, it matters to Google too. Easy!

#2 Keywords aren’t something you slap on at the last moment. 

I am a serial plant killer. Honestly, I need only glance in the direction of a succulent for it to shrivel back into the dirt from which it came – they survive the desert, but not my care. Unable to stand the carnage any longer I searched and clicked my way to a blog article promising ten tips for thriving green babies. Just as I was daring to dream of Insta posts featuring billowing ferns, a proposition of contents insurance brought me back to reality.  Wait, what? I had been duped. Lured in with the promise of greener pastures only to be hit with the hard sell just when I started to feel comfortable. Thank you, next.  

Keyword stuffing is jarringly obvious, weirdly uncomfortable and does nothing to instil brand trust. There is a time, place and piece of content for every keyword. Respect your readers by being transparent and true to your words, and in turn earn the respect of the big G. 

#3 Only use meaningful content.

Google awards content that is unique, high-quality and meaningful. 

Connection is more than a bodacious, new media buzzword. It’s that special something that stops your Instagram scrolling finger dead in its tracks, the ingredient that evokes emotion and transforms a like, to a tag, to a share. But how do we bottle this magic time and time again? Heads up, fam – it isn’t the stuff of myth or legend. Use the formula below as a checklist to transform your content from drab to fab. 

• Audience is everything: Know your audience and speak to them. Use tailored doses of humour, humility and history to build rapport and deliver content which demands engagement. You must do more than tug at your audience’s emotions – be ready to lay them on the operating table at a moment’s notice and perform daily heart surgery. PSA – it might get messy.
• Leverage viral trends: Think fast, post faster. When trends take off, be there with your brand to ride the wave in a unique way. Stay on the crest of what’s trending and be bold with your creative spin.
• Find your voice: Once you’re clear on your brand voice, join the conversation. Offering a unique voice doesn’t only distinguish you from the competition, it also wins you points with Google. 

#4 Write for humans.

In October, Google rolled out the biggest update to its search algorithm in the last 5 years. The update, called Bert (adorable, right?) is focused on understanding long-tail search queries.

Bert is a clever little guy. He’s teaching Google the ways of conversational language. Bert’s passionate about prepositions, adverbs and context. Old concepts of SEO being limited to a heavy peppering of “buy *insert item* online now Brisbane Gold Coast” in content where it doesn’t make sense are on the out. THANK GODDD! Be original, be unique and focus on creating something your audience would want to read.

To satisfy Bert – don’t write content for a robot, write for humans.

There you are, fam. 4 easy-peasy tips you can use to have a supermassive impact on your online presence. Not as scary as you thought, huh?

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