pub355: seo copywriting

SEO:  Search  Engine  Op/miza/onIs  that  just  wri/ng  spammy  stuff  or  

code  for  the  search  bots?

Monique  SherreAmonique@boxcarmarke/ng.com

SEO  Facts  &  Myths

Tell  me  what  you’ve  heard…

SEO  Facts  &  Myths

So  this  SEO  copywriter  walks  into  a  bar,  grill,  pub,  public  house,  Irish  bar,  bartender,  drinks,  beer,  

wine,  liquor

Don’t  be  that  guy

Things  You  Should  Know  About  Search

(and  therefore  SEO)

SEO  is  CDO

“Content  Discovery  Op/miza/on”  Jesse  McDougall  of  Catalyst  Webworks,  TOC

Social  Cues        External  Cues        On-­‐page  Cues

Computers  Are  Dumb

The  Seman/c  Web

The  Seman/c  Web  describes  the  rela/onships  between  things  (like  A  is  a  part  of  B  and  Y  is  a  member  of  Z)

————— Search EnginesPre-­‐2008

How  Search  Works

Search  Bots  Try  to  Mimic  HumansSocial  Cues• Stars• Reviews• Image,  Video• Social  sharing

+1’dShared  byTweets

• Site  is  crawlable• No  duplicate  content

Origina/ng  source?

• Incoming  links#  of  linksAnchor  textQuality/type:

CommentText  linkYouTubeBlogrollAd

• Page  load  speed• Bounce

External  Cues• Keywords• Title  tag• Meta  descrip/on• Heading  tags• 1st  200  words• Bold• Anchor  text• Image  filename• Internal  links

On-­‐Page  Cues

French  paren/ng  book

French  paren/ng  book

Social  Cues

French  paren/ng  book

Social  CuesExternal  Cues

French  paren/ng  book

Social  CuesExternal  Cues

On-­‐Page  Cues

What  does  the  bot  know?

On-­‐Page  Cues

On-­‐Page  Cues

The  cues  are  missing

“coverimage”  9780143182573H.jpg”265  x  400alt="Image  of  EVERYTHING  WAS  GOOD-­‐BYE">

“authorphoto”2000000469L.jpg

SEO  is  about  Content  DiscoverySocial  Cues• Rich  snippets

StarsReviewsAuthorshipImage,  video

• Social  sharing+1’dShared  byTweets

• Site  is  crawlable• No  duplicate  content

Origina/ng  source?

• Incoming  links#  of  linksAnchor  textQuality/type:

CommentText  linkYouTubeBlogrollAd

• Page  load  speed• Bounce

External  Cues• Keywords• Title  tag• Meta  descrip/on• Heading  tags• 1st  200  words• Bold• Anchor  text• Image  filename• Internal  links

On-­‐Page  Cues

SEO  Factors  within  Your  ControlMarke)ng

• Incoming  links– #  links– Quality/type– Anchor  text

• Image  filename• Social  sharing

– +1’d– Shared  by– Tweets

• Site  is  crawlable• Page  load  speed• Title  tag• Meta  descrip/on• Heading  tag:  H1,  H2• Rich  snippet  code

– Stars– Reviews– Authorship– Image,  video

Technical• Body  copy

– 1st  200  words

• Duplicate  content– Who  gets  what

• Keywords• Bold• Anchor  text• Image  cap/ons• Bounce• Internal  links

Editorial

Roles  are  shiting

• What  is  a  marke/ng  func/on?• What  is  a  IT  func/on?• Where  do  these  func/ons  fall?– Website  design– Website  maintenance– Video,  audio,  ebook,  app  produc/on– Asset  management– ONIX  file  genera/on,  distribu/on– SEO– Domains,  email,  server  setup

Google  vs.  Amazon

Two  Discovery  Channels

Different  Algorithm.  Same  Factors.

Google  Ranking  Factors• Social  Cues

– Reviews  &  Ra/ngs– Sharing

• External  Cues– Endorsements  (links)

• On-­‐Page  Cues– Keywords  in  Copy– Links  to  related  content

Amazon  Ranking  Factors• Social  Cues

– Reviews  &  Ra/ngs– Sharing  (Lists)

• External  Cues– Endorsements  (Co-­‐op,  

Affiliate)

• On-­‐Page  Cues– Keywords  in  Copy– Links  to  related  content

Prisoner  of  Tehran

Your  Publisher-­‐Supplied  Copy  Does  Not  Appear

Social  Cues  get  the  )tle  into  the  recommenda)on  engine  (Amazon  results)On-­‐Page  Cues  get  the  book  page  into  search  results  on  Google

1. 13  customer  reviews.  Like2. Share  your  own  customer  images.3. Frequently  bought  together4. Customers  who  bought  this  item  also  bought5. Average  customer  review6. Bestseller  Rank7. Descrip/ons  from  Reviews8. Tags  customers  associate  with  this  product9. What  other  items  Customers  Buy  Ater  Viewing  this  Item10. Customer  Reviews  (2  columns!)11. Listmania12. Look  for  similar  items  by  category  /  subject13. Con/nue  shopping:  Customers  who  bought  items  in  your  recent  history  also  

bought

Why  does  Amazon  win  vs.  the  Publisher  site?

Because  …

Why  does  Amazon  win?  Goodreads?Raincoast.com        627  wordsAmazon.ca     2,943  wordsGoodreads     3,457  words

Amazon.  Focus  keywords:Beau/ful  Mystery  (13),  Louise  Penny  (14)Gamache  (25),  murder  (8),  mystery  (33),  Suspense  (6),  Fic/on  (8),  detec/ve  (9)

Raincoast.  Beau/ful  Mystery  (2),  Louise  Penny  (3)Gamache  (4),  murder  (2),  mystery  (3),  Suspense  (0),  Fic/on  (2),  detec/ve  (0)

Goodreads.  Beau/ful  Mystery  (14),  Louise  penny  (20)Gamache  (37),  murder  (15),  mystery  (32),  Suspense  (1),  Fic/on  (1),  detec/ve  (1)

Without  Social  Cues  …

The  On-­‐Page  Cues  Are  Cri/cal.

Search  bots  will  try  to  figure  out  the  “theme”  of  a  page’s  content  within  the  first  200  words.  

If  you  only  write  200  word  descrip/ons,  you  beAer  choose  the  right  words.

The  Right  Words  Are  What  I  Mean  By  Keyword  Phrases

Keyword  Phrases

• Keyword  phrases  are  the  words  people  type  into  a  search  engine  in  order  to  find  things  on  the  web.  

French  paren/ng  book

French  paren/ng  bookKeyword  Phrases  appear  in  SERPs  in  bold.  

What  are  the  keyword  phrases?• Headline:  Universal  Orlando  Resort  Celebrates  The  One-­‐Year  

Anniversary  of  The  Wizarding  World  of  Harry  PoAer  

• Summary:  Universal  Orlando  Resort  creates  special  moment  for  guests  celebra/ng  in  Hogsmeade  and  extends  the  virtual  celebra/on  to  the  all-­‐new  "Share  Your  Story"  Facebook  tab  that  allows  guests  to  share  their  favorite  memories  from  this  spectacularly  themed  entertainment  environment.

• Body:  ORLANDO,  Fla.  (June  18,  2011)  -­‐  Today,  Universal  Orlando  Resort  celebrated  the  one-­‐year  anniversary  of  the  most  spectacularly  themed  entertainment  environment  -­‐  The  Wizarding  World  of  Harry  PoAer.  In  live  celebra/ons,  and  virtual  celebra/ons  through  the  resort’s  “Share  Your  Story”  Facebook  tab,  guests  were  invited  to  share  the  wonder,  excitement  and  adventures  of  the  Harry  PoAer  books  and  films  come  to  life.  

Body  Copy  —  1st  200  characters

“most  ambi/ous  and  heartbreaking  work”605  results  for  blogs  in  Canada

If  it’s  good,  people  repeat  it.

The  5  WhysReasons  Why  You  Should  Write  SEO  Copy

1. Because  you  want  people  to  find  your  stuff  when  they  don’t  even  know  they  are  looking  for  it.  (In  the  real  world,  you  make  sure  the  book  is  in  stock.)  

2. Because  the  copy  needs  to  be  a  good  salesperson.  (The  online  sales  funnel  goes  like  this:  you  like  it,  buy  it,  review  it,  recommend  it,  find  more  like  it.)

3. Because  you  want  to  teach  fans  how  to  best  pitch  their  friends.  (1,000  songs  in  your  pocket.)

4. Because  you  don’t  want  to  disappoint  people  who  are  looking  for  it:  

• Bookseller  doing  price  check.  Producer  scou/ng  for  author  interview.  Fan  who  wants  to  pre-­‐order.  Reviewer  who  wants  an  image.  Person  who  wants  to  recommend.  Author.  Agent.  Just  checking.  

5. Because  you  want  to  stack  the  deck.

Because  you  want  to  sell  books.

SEO  Copywri/ng  Resources

• Geek:  SEOmoz.org  &  SEOBook.com• Marketer:  Underwire:  Full  Support  for  Non-­‐Techies• Writer:  Copyblogger.com

Test:  November  30

• In-­‐class  test.  Bring  pen(s),  calculator,  brain.• Week  4  (Sept  28):  How  to  write  a  persona• Week  5  (Oct  5):  How  to  write  a  good  email  subject  line,  a  good  

tweet,  good  press  release  headline,  good  pitch  leAer• Week  6  (Oct  12)  &  Week  11  (Nov  16):  Familiarity  with  online  

tools  and  how  they  could  be  used• Week  7  (Oct  27):  Grid  view  of  a  marke/ng  plan• Week  7  (Oct  27):  Calculate  ecommerce  conversion,  CTR,  CPC,  

know  the  terms  “revenue”  and  “expenses”• Week  12  (Nov  23):  How  to  pick  out  keywords

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