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Google tells you EXACTLY how to rank!
Published about 2 months ago • 4 min read
Hello Reader!
Did you know Google will tell you exactly how to write content that will rank?
Like exactly.
You can use their guidelines to create your strategy, craft your briefs, and inform your content.
Here's the formula for success + tips from Google itself.
1. Focus on people-first content.
Step one is to 100% know your audience.
Who are you writing to?
What do they care about?
What are their pain points?
What/Who influences them?
THIS IS STEP 1 OF ANY CONTENT STRATEGY or WRITING PROJECT.
(Think of it like this: the way you talk to your grandma is different from how you talk to your boss, and how you talk to your bestie is different from how you talk to your bestie.)
2. Source the right experts who add value to the conversation.
You don't have to be an expert on every topic in the world.
But you do have to talk to the top experts.
Craft interview questions + extract insights that pack a punch.
Do you (or the company you work for) have some numbers you can publish?
Cool. Share those numbers in your content.
If you don't have OG research, get some. Run a study. (Emma Siemasko and I did this last year with this report.)
Most top-notch writers also have market research skills. Use them.
4. Focus on quality (there's a lot to this, so keep reading).
It's easy to spin and regurgitate.
It's not easy to combine interviewing, SEO, expertise, content writing skills, data, and creativity to bring...
Educational, innovative, ground-breaking ideas to the table.
But it's worth it.
Google will be impressed. Customers too.
5. SEO is a distribution channel—not your audience.
Google just released another core update.
This update is meant to penalize sites that try to game the system.
Don't ignore SEO. In fact, recent research by SparkToro + Datos shows SEO is very much NOT DEAD:
But treat SEO as a distribution channel—how you get people who searching for what you're writing to see it.
And don't write off AI entirely (it can help speed up processes) — but don't use it to mass-produce crap. THOUSANDS of sites are being taken down post-core-update for this very problem.
6. Get E-E-A-T about it
Experience.
Expertise.
Authoritativeness.
Trustworthiness.
The content world is saturated, but it's possible to stand out, especially in light of this new update.
Lately I've been using Strut. It's a platform that uses AI to support writers (and not replace them)! And guess what: it's pretty good at that! For one, it brings all of my project docs into one place. That's great for organization and keeps me from hopping across docs while writing. It also uses AI in a way that helps me start writing faster. I've been using it to brainstorm, summarize lengthy docs, or create outlines to start writing from. Genuinely useful stuff. It's also free! I'd love to hear what you think (reply back...I read all my emails). Try Strut now!
1. Tell me more about yourself and how you got started with your career. I’m a freelance writer for marketing and SaaS brands with bylines in ClickUp, Zapier, Breadcrumbs, Ranktracker, etc. On the personal forefront, I’m an avid reader, a lover of (chocolate) cakes, and a huge fan of Buzzfeed quizzes.
I started off as a generalist writer (my first assignment was writing for a travel company for $10/piece). I realized travel wasn’t my niche and wanted to explore different niches, topics, and writing styles.
My solution was simple: Working with content marketing agencies and subcontracting under established freelancers to learn their processes and to decide which niche I enjoyed writing for most.
2. What advice do you have for freelancers to land clients? What are some of the best ways they can build their business? Personally, the best thing I did for my business was directly reaching out to editors whose work I really liked (i.e., instead of applying for gigs, I practiced the art of cold DMing).
Again, this was something that worked for me and I’ve seen other freelancers get better success rates from other methodologies.
As for building your business, these are a few tidbits I’d like to share:
1. Editors are a godsend. Try to work with companies that have editors who are genuinely invested in helping you grow (on that note, don’t take their edits too personally!).
2. Invest in your business. Try to buy books, courses, and consulting sessions, and invest time in your growth (I usually set X amount yearly that I can use for business growth).
3. Try to build relationships with other freelancers. I’m not the best at networking or being active on social media either so I’m really a guru on this topic, but if you have something positive to say or helpful to share with another freelancer, let them know!
4. Follow-ups are important in getting work. Oh, and, so are deadlines :)
Subscribe now to grow your content marketing and writing muscles! Each week, you'll get an expert interview from a leading content marketer (free consulting—yay!), quick & actionable writing tips, and content marketing trends you may have missed delivered straight to your inbox. It's an easy decision—join 7000 other content marketers now!
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