Optimizing blog content for search engines has always been a moving target.  One constant in this evolution of how Google ranks content has been the keyword.  The rules governing how Google views keywords in posts has changed, but consistently the search giant has used keywords as one of its top signals for what a piece of content is about, and how it will rank against other forms of similar content.

Perhaps the best advice for how to stay ahead of the frequent changes Google makes to its algorithms is to write for humans, not search engines.  This means optimize your content first for humans, and if the content is useful for your readers, it will be shared and engaged with, which will signal to Google that it is useful content, and that will push it higher in the search results.

But having said that, keywords still matter.  They matter to Google, they matter to your readers, and perhaps most importantly, they matter to you.  I’ve written before about ‘owning’ or planting your flag on certain keywords.  So if you want to know what role keywords play in your optimizing your content for search, here’s the deal: It’s not about using the right keywords in your posts and content.  It’s about deciding what keywords you want to be known for and then creating useful content around those keywords.

The useful content helps establish your expertise around these topic for both your readers, and Google.  But perhaps more importantly, it gives your content strategy focus.  It also gives you direction and keeps you focused on serving YOUR audience.

Think of the 3-5 keywords that you want to be associated with your brand.  If someone were to ask you what your brand stands for or why it is unique, think about the keywords or keyword phrases you would use to describe your brand and why it matters to people.

Those are the 3-5 keywords that you want to own with your content.  This also helps bring clarity to your content strategy because now you have a better idea of the content you should be creating.  Your content flow should go through those 3-5 keywords that you are focusing on, and if you that, the search results will follow.

Here’s an example.  A few years ago while I was preparing to write my book Think Like a Rock Star, I realized that I needed to shift my content to focus more on topics like ‘brand ambassadors’ and ‘brand advocacy’.  Specifically, I wanted to work with companies that needed help in designing a brand ambassador program.  So I wanted to create content that would focus on those keywords, but that was also useful to readers, because I knew if it wasn’t useful to readers that it wouldn’t matter how many keywords were stuffed in it.

So instead of simply writing a short ‘here’s what a brand ambassador program is’ type post, I wrote a thorough post that was aimed at helping companies that were ready to commit to launching a brand ambassador program.  The result was a 1,200 word post ‘10 Things to Remember When Creating a Brand Ambassador Program‘.  Thanks to this one post, here’s how I currently rank in Google for the following search terms:

Brand ambassador program – 13

Brand ambassadors – 21

Brand ambassador – 28

That’s not bad for just one post.  A side benefit of this is that since that post was published I’ve gotten probably 100 email leads from companies that found the post by doing a search for brand ambassador programs or a similar keyword phrase. All because I focused on creating useful content that would help my audience.

So if you want to rev up your search rankings, focus on just a few keywords that are core to your business, say 3-5, and focus on relentlessly creating useful content around those keywords.  Not promotional content, that’s what most businesses do and that’s why they don’t tend to rank well for those keywords.  But instead you want to create content that helps your audience with its current business problems.  Do that, and the search rankings will follow.

One of the great allures of using social media is the promise that it gives companies a cheap and easy way to raise awareness for the company, as well as its products and services.

But that phrase, ‘raise awareness’ is often assumed by companies to mean ‘free advertising’.  Too many companies believe that they should start using social media tools, especially blogs, as a way to raise awareness or advertise the company as well as its products and services.  So they turn their blogs and other social media channels into brochureware, creating digital advertisements that often miss the mark and leave the company shaking its fists at the thought leaders that convinced them that social media was the silver bullet that they needed.

Blogs and social media can very effectively raise awareness but you also have to consider if your audience is receptive to your message.  Sometimes it pays to raise awareness of an idea or theme that relates to your products and services, instead of focusing directly on the products and services.

Let me give you a hypothetical example.  Let’s say that tomorrow I decide to launch my first blog to raise awareness of my social media and digital marketing consulting services.  So I start writing blog posts that describe in great detail the consulting services that I offer.  Because this is why we blog, right?  To leverage our blog to raise awareness of our products and services.

Here’s the problem: If a CMO reads my blog, and he sees it is about my consulting services, he thinks “Well we are already working with an agency that performs these services for us.”  So my post on my services is immediately dismissed as being a waste of this CMO’s time.

But let’s say that instead of blogging about my services, I blog about the impact my services can have on clients.  I talk about how a content strategy could help this CMO see better results from its company’s digital marketing efforts.  I talk about ways to  leverage social media to better connect with customers, and how to create content that leads to sales.

The CMO is intrigued, and asks his agency why they aren’t using these same tactics.  Or better yet, he contacts me directly to learn more about my services and if I can help teach his company how to improve its own digital marketing efforts.  The point is that you shouldn’t directly promote your products and services unless your customers are ready to buy and need that information to make a final decision.  But if you are trying to leverage social media as a channel to raise awareness of your business, then your intended audience is very likely not ready to buy.  So if you create content that focuses on selling to them, they will tune that content out.

Instead, you want to focus on creating content that creates value for your intended customers.  You do this by focusing on how your product or services relate to your customer instead of focusing directly on the product or service.

Here’s a few examples from the product side:

If you are selling products to rid a lawn of pests, focus your content on creating a healthy lawn and landscaping

If you are selling cameras, focus your content on teaching customers how to take better pictures

If you are selling cooking utensils, create content that teaches your customers how to be better cooks

If you are selling luggage for business travelers, create content that focuses on business traveling

While your intended customers may not be aware of your products, they are aware of the topics that relate to your products.  A potential customer may have never heard of your pots and pans, but that potential customer is a novice cook.  So you should create content that helps her become a better cook.  If you can show her how to become a better cook, that makes her aware of your cooking utensils. At that point, she’s interested in buying, and she can get more information on your products and order them, either on the blog itself, or by visiting your website.

The point is that your content can’t covert into a sale if your audience isn’t ready to buy.

Create content that informs them or helps them become better at some skill or technique that relates to your product or service, then they will pay attention to your product or service.

Then you can generate sales.