Put analytics and SEO together, and you have a great system for figuring out what to write and when. This presentation is from a Wappow talk I gave. It's a step-by-step for making this work.
Put analytics and SEO together, and you have a great system for figuring out what to write and when. This presentation is from a Wappow talk I gave. It's a step-by-step for making this work.
Time for an example. I have this friend who writes a marketing blog. Hey there!copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
He could just look at traffic reports and see how he’s doing...copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
But that breaks both of our laws of analytics. yeah.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Instead, I’ll use analytics to find the best-performing content with potential (opportunity). yeah.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Then we can use that to decide what to write next. yeah.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
If I look at my top content report in Google Analytics: My top 2 pieces of content appeal to nerds and marketers. I need to write more for them.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Or, I can set up a quick filter on my organic search traffic report. That will show me the best-performing topics.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
I’m writing a blog. So I’ll focus on ‘soft’ metrics, like time on site. I want to see phrases that keep people onsite for more than 1.5 minutes - above average for my site...copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
...and I want to see phrases that result in a bounce rate of 80% or less. That’s above average for my blog.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Important finger-wagging interlude #1copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Notice that I’m selecting keywords based on potential and opportunity, not sheer search volume. If you have an established site, you should always start with this.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Why not start by moving up for terms for which you already rank, instead of starting from scratch with new phrases? Huh? Why not?!copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Yep. That’s right. So start with the phrases you’ve already got. Once you’ve topped out the rankings for those, you can move on to new stuff.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
So, where were we? Oh yeah. SEO, analytics and keyword selection.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Run a search in Google Analytics. Find the phrases that send the best-quality traffic.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Now, take a quick look at the top 10. Check the rankings for each phrase.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
I rank #2 for this term. So, I’ll research what it would take to get to #1. And whether it’s worth the effort.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Important finger-wagging interlude #2copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Beware personalization! Google customizes the rankings you see based on your search history, even if you don’t have a Google account.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Which means you can’t trust the rankings you see.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
So, use a proxy tool. My favorite is Proxify.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Here it is:copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Do. not. abuse it. Proxify isn’t there to be your nifty cool hacking tool.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Use it to get accurate rankings. Other people depend on Proxify to protect their identities in places like, oh, Libya. So don’t be a jerk and cause trouble.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
End of finger-wagging interlude #2copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
I’d just discovered that I rank #2 for social media expert. Now, I need to figure out if it’s worth it to work for a #1 ranking.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Meh. SEMRUSH.com search data shows this isn’t the greatest phrase.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
By the way, SEMRUSH rocks. I won’t make money if you sign up. They just have a great toolset.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
So, I’m not thrilled with social media expert as a phrase. I’ll dig a little deeper, though, using Google Suggest.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Go to Google. Start to type in your search phrase. Google will suggest related searches.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Hmmm. Social media policy. That could be a good one.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Ah-HAH. It’s a decent phrase. I don’t rank for it, but competition is low and I rank for related terms.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Now, I’ll take a look at the rankings for social media policy. I need to see if I can compete.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
A quick check on opensiteexplorer.org shows that yes, I can compete. Authority-wise, I match up pretty well.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
(Ian flexes his rippling link muscles)copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Time to look at content.
I don’t have an existingpage that’s relevant tomy target phrase.
So this term will end upon my keyword map andheadline list.
My keyword map is just a list of phrases, how competitive they are, where I currently rank, and whether there’s an existing page on my site that I should optimize for that phrase.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Do I need a new page?copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
My target phrasecopyright 2011 Portent Interactive
The current ranking page on my site, if any.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Current traffic I receive from this phrase.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Potential volume if I hit #1.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Potential volume if I hit #1. This is a very approximate number: 50% of the total search volume, which I average between the Google Adwords keyword tool and SEMRush. Basically, a guess.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Potential volume if I hit #1. Sorry. It’s all I’ve got.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Number of results found if I search for allintitle:social media policy on Googlecopyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Number of results found if I search for allintitle:social media policy on Google You can use the same search to get a rough idea of competition. Go to Google, type in allintitle:your search phrase, then write down the number of results.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
SEMRush’s competition number, for another competition metric.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
There you have it. A keyword map. It can keep you organized and focused on goals.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
I also keep a separate headline list. This is a brainstorming list of headlines based on the keyword map. I can then go through them myself, or assign them to other writers.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Nothing magical here. Just a list to keep me organized.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Every week, check the keyword map and update it. Assign new phrases to the map. And add new headlines to your headline list.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Write content for each headline and post it.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Do all the other proper SEO stuff: A good title tag, great overall writing, smart code, and some smart internal linking.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Go out into the world and tell folks about your great new article/page/ blog post.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Repeat as necessary.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
That’s it. Follow these steps and you can guide your content and SEO strategy with analytics.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
It requires persistence.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
It also works. Really well.copyright 2011 Portent Interactive
Find me @portentint www.conversationmarketing.com www.portent.com
Carter Cole
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