How not to write for search engine optimisation A guide to the dos and don'ts of SEO.

Let’s face it — SEO can be tricky. There’s a variety of missteps that can be taken on the road to organic reach. Here are some things you shouldn't do as you embark on a hero’s journey of optimizing your content for search.

Avoid research Hey — you’re smart! You can write compelling content on any topic with your charm and wit alone. Content writing for you is like jazz, so why not improvise? Be-bop-ba-dee-bop — here’s some landing page copy. If only good writing were that easy. No one is doubting your level of intelligence, friend. But if you don’t do any research, your content will suffer. Your beautifully-designed site is A+, but is your content informative? After all, your content is the reason people come to your page — to learn something or to take action. Like giving you money in exchange for a product or service. Don’t let bad content get in the way! Whether you have a lawn care business or you build boutique guitar amplifiers, the writing on your site needs to be well-written and helpful. Bad content, typos, or worse — unreliable information — will erode trust in your brand. Informative content is rich with words and phrases commonly used in your industry or niche. This helps web crawlers sort content so people can find what they’re looking for. So, do your research. Know your subject. Check out competitor sites to see how they talk about your industry.

Ignore your audience

Let’s say you had to prepare two presentations: one for an audience of distinguished socialites and the other for a crowd of science-fiction fans. You wouldn’t use the same tone or language for both presentations — your Klingon joke would slay one audience and fall flat with the other.

If you’re unfamiliar with who you’re writing for, check out competitor content. Watch YouTube videos and seek out other niche media. Get familiar with your audience and the language they use. Look out for common questions people have about your topic.

Think about it: when people use search, they generally type in a question. Create rich content that ranks well by using words and terms that answer those questions. Take the time to understand your audience and what they want and need before you write a single word.

Keep headlines cryptic

‍Dude. What do these headlines even mean?

If you've skipped putting primary keywords in your headlines, you're missing an important part of SEO.

When Google's web crawlers scan through a website's content, they use H1, H2, and H3s to decide what your the content is about. And when humans scan your page (as they do), descriptive headings help them find what they're looking for.

Keywords need to be spread throughout your site, both in headlines and body content. Don't force it, but use them contextually — where it makes sense. Read your content out loud. If it sounds like a spambot wrote it, tweak it to sound human. Then ask someone else to read it.

And remember: the common practice for using H1 tags is only one per page (typically the page title), so make it count.