I’ve said it many times on this blog, but I don’t think anyone really needs reminding: The world is going mobile and it’s happening very quickly. We are becoming increasingly conditioned to getting and sharing information on the small screen. This is why so many websites now feature simple homepages and large buttons and fonts, and the word “click” is rapidly being replaced with a call to action to “tap to learn more.”
As responsible marketers, it is our job to not only understand this truth but also build content around it. How we present our content will have a direct impact on how it is received and, in this new era of mobile-dominated messaging, the pressure to get it right the first time is high.
Since Beez is a predominantly copywriting agency, my comments are going to all relate to how words (and how you use them) play into content presentation on the small screen. There is no more important element to good design and SEO than well-written content; it’s what the search engines notice first, so it has to be the best. Working with a copywriting company like Beez can help you achieve superior results in that arena and we welcome the opportunity to show you how.
Considering the Big Picture
Today, I want to look at all the elements of responsive content and how they work together to fortify your messaging. We’re going to take a closer look at several key areas, so you know how to create and present the best content possible. Let’s start off with your website in general since that is the biggest “big picture” subject when it comes to content marketing.
Like I said, words are the most important aspect of any SEO strategy, but it’s not just about presenting intelligent content with the right keyword density. The size of the text, the formatting, and overall ease of navigation are all important considerations. Great writing will only get you so far if your presentation is off. Protect your investment in good copy and present it in a way that attracts attention.
I’ve done plenty of articles on proper formatting for SEO, and many of the same rules apply to good overall presentation so I’ll just give you a quick bullet list:
• Don’t decrease fonts below 10-point (12-point is better).
• Short, short, short paragraphs – anything over 3 sentences will look like a brick.
• Break long articles up into separate pages.
• Don’t over-seed with ads.
• Compress all images and video for faster load times.
• No images over 600×400.
• No videos over 720p (you can provide downloads to larger file formats).
• No gratuitous keywords (there’s no such thing as “life insurance New Haven”).
• No clickbait in your ads (consistency in messaging is crucial).
I do, however, want to examine a few of the above items in greater detail, particularly the ones that are most often neglected, so let’s get right to it.
Presenting Long-Form Content
Long-form content is great for SEO, but the constant scrolling can take a toll on the reader. This is why I say you should paginate your articles. It gives the reader something to do and provides you with the opportunity to create questions or build up anticipation that motivates the reader to click through to the next page.
Try setting a 5-paragraph limit per page for long-form content, two or three for shorter articles (under 1500 words). This will also give you the opportunity to post more ads without having them become too intrusive. That brings me to my next point…
Ads
Ads are becoming less and less friendly to mobile content and they are becoming more intrusive. This is why I feel it’s important to do two things when placing ads on your blog or on web pages: use ads sparingly and use the right ad network. You might find it hard to believe, but there are other ad networks out there that can actually be more effective than AdSense in the context of your business or niche.
Images and Videos
All visuals need to jibe with your brand message and should be text-tagged for SEO (sooner or later, it all comes back around to good writing). Even though I’ve said it before, it bears repeating: Great written content is built around your visuals. This is true whether you’re producing your own images and video or using stock. The former is a bit more effective, but the latter can work well, too, if you build your copy off it.
Keywords
Haphazard and gratuitous placement of keywords will stop an interested reader in his or her tracks. Repeat after me: “Connecting words are OK… connecting words are OK…” Please don’t write an article on HVAC services Jacksonville. You aren’t Jacksonville, you’re in Jacksonville, so please just say that. Google gets it (and so do the other major search platforms). You can get away with using more longtail keywords if yours is a traditional business serving a specific area, but you still don’t want to over-do it.
Present Content with Integrity
As a final note, it is important to decide what you want your content message to be and build on that. If all you want is to drive site traffic, then feel free to use baiting and misleading messaging in your ads, subject lines, and headlines. Your bounce rate will be through the roof, but your site will get lots of hits.
Ideally, you want the user experience to be as genuine as possible so that when people visit your site, they want to stick around. The key to achieving that is consistency in messaging and presenting your messaging in a way that tells site visitors that your primary concern is solving whatever problem brought them there. It isn’t about getting them to just click on an ad so be sure you keep your focus where it belongs: on the quality of the message.
