This post is the third post in my series on SEO for Rookies.

SEO writing is NOT the writing you learned in high school. In fact, you don’t even have to write in complete sentences; bullet points are just fine.

If you use an SEO agency, the writing you give to them to create articles for you does not need to be polished. If you’re writing the posts yourself, start with an outline like the one below.

Start with an outline: list the stuff you know that someone outside your industry might not know about a subject.  

For example, because I love to do laundry, here’s a bulleted list I could use for a blog post about laundry:

• Only use 2 teaspoons of detergent in the washer. Anything more will leave soap on your clothes. I use any detergent on sale.

• Use 3 tablespoons of vinegar in the fabric softener dispenser. This will soften your clothes and get any extra soap out of them.

• Extra soap in your clothes makes them stiff.

• Use 2/3 of a cup of sodium percarbonate inside the washer. This powder is used in home brewing, removing stains and leaving clothes smelling fresh. You can get 10 lbs on Amazon for $40.

• Use warm water, even for colors.

• Use a short cycle (30 minutes) so your clothes aren’t over-mangled in the washer.

Notice how the above bullets:

• Reflect the point of view of someone who KNOWS how to do laundry.

• It introduces terms that a true laundry lover would know. For example, I bet you’ve never heard of Sodium Percarbonate!

• It would give my SEO agency a lot of great information that may not already be available on other websites.

With the above bullet points you a writer can now take your “insider information” and craft a nice 300-400 word post.  

See?

“But I know myself… I’ll never do this.”

If you know you’ll absolutely never write for your website, here are a few options:

• Have your staff who are close to your customers and know their questions write bullet points. Answer questions that customers most often ask with nuanced insider information that’s not widely available on the web.

• Ask your staff – someone you employ might like writing. Make them in charge of “collecting bullet points” for you.
• If you have a “slow season,” write up 12 rough drafts and give them to your SEO vendor to post each month. You provide them with the info and ideas – they polish and post them.

• Hire a freelancer (or high schooler).

Remember, pleasing Google is easier than pleasing your high school English teacher. Google rewards clear, concise, and “industry insider” information.

Read all my other “SEO for Rookies” posts here.

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