If you are a dealership owner, manager, or marketer, the idea of search engine optimization (SEO) is likely something you’ve heard of. Maybe if you’ve considered implementing SEO to boost your website’s organic search engine ranking, you’ve come across the idea of content writing for SEO. While this may sound a little intimidating or complicated, we have good news for you – if you know how to talk to others about your business and the units you sell, you can easily write content on your website for increased SEO.
As writer and digital marketing expert Neil Patel says on his blog, “SEO content isn’t complicated, once you understand that people come first, before search algorithms.” Content writing for SEO is actually a very simple concept. Search engine algorithms have gotten to the level of intelligence that they can track and favor content that people will understand and benefit from. In other words, search engines no longer favor content that is written in an overly formal or technical way, or that is stuffed with keywords. Algorithms are looking for relevant, high-quality content that is written well but is also written conversationally, because that’s what the reader wants.
Although content writing on any page of a website can contribute to SEO, one of the most effective ways to keep fresh, up-to-date content on a website is through blogging. The most important element is that the writer of those blog posts thoroughly understands the topic, plus and the wants and needs of the customers. Consider the following example:
- Joe works for a store that sells pellet grills. He sells these to customers every day, works with the distributor, and owns one himself. He knows how they work, how certain models compare to others, what kind of recipes to cook on them, and so on. When Joe’s boss asks him to write a blog post for the store website about how to clean a pellet grill, Joe is the perfect guy for the job. He can explain the process in a way that makes sense to the reader, because he talks to customers about this type of stuff every day.
- Joe writes a step-by-step blog post about cleaning a pellet grill and publishes it on the store’s website. He does such a good job that his boss asks him to write a new post each week on a different topic related to pellet grills, and after a few weeks there is already tons of valuable content added to the site.
- Summer is here, and the grilling season is in full swing. Local customers will be searching online and likely typing in search queries that are similar to many of Joe’s blog post topics, such as “how to clean my pellet grill.” It’s likely that most other stores in town don’t have a blog on their websites, so when people search these terms online, Joe’s posts (and therefore his store’s website) will show up first. Not only do these searchers want to click on Joe’s store because it’s the highest ranked, but also because the blog posts show that his company clearly knows what they are talking about when it comes to pellet grills.
The main purpose of content writing for SEO as a business/dealership is to answer questions and help your customers, – exactly what you do every day at work. When brainstorming blog topics, consider the questions customers ask you most often about the units and products you sell. When writing blog content, think about how you would answer that question in person. Approaching content writing/blogging this way can help simplify the process and allow you to go about it in a logical way that will benefit your business.
Blogging is helpful for customers who visit your website, and it could even be the deciding factor for a customer to choose your dealership for their business, because it helps you show your authority and expertise in the industry. Customers will also likely enjoy your content, and it may bring them back to your site more frequently – possibly leading to repeat customers and more sales. And of course, due to the SEO credibility you earn with your content, blogging will help your dealership rank higher in search, bringing more customers to your business in the first place. Should your dealership start a blog? Absolutely.