Let's Co-Create an SEO-Optimized Blog Post
When it comes to building your brand presence, there’s one thing I simply can't stress enough - having a search engine optimized website. Now, I know what you might be thinking, between trying to navigate the labyrinth of Instagram's algorithm, ensuring your TikTok content could go viral any second, and fretting over likes and engagement rates - there's hardly any time left! I get it, and these are all important considerations, but they shouldn't be everything.
Let's take a moment and imagine - what if you woke up one day and Instagram or TikTok were simply gone? That would be a shocker, right? Bummer to think about, I know, but it's a reminder that those platforms can be transient.
In my humble opinion, there’s a considerable number of influencers and content creators out there missing the number one thing that could be the backbone of their online identity: the website. Sure, you may capture hearts on Instagram or entertain the masses on TikTok but without a solid website, to anchor your online identity, it can mean missed opportunities.
Why? Because when compared to platforms like Instagram or TikTok, your website is yours. You own it, you shape it; it's a platform that you create, not borrowed and subject to the whims of an algorithm change or company decision.
Now, this is not to scare you but to help you think about how diversified and resilient your online presence is. Remember, you are more than your social media accounts. You are a content creator and influencer in your own right, with a unique brand that deserves to be anchored in the solid ground of your own optimized website.
In today’s blog post, I’ll not only emphasize SEO and teach you all there is to it, I’ll also be writing a blog post about my stay at MJ’s Hotel in Malmö, Sweden, showing you how I truly write this blog post and set it up for success.
The Importance of SEO-Optimized Content
SEO is the process of optimizing your website and content in order to increase its visibility in search engines like Google. The higher you rank in search results, the greater the chance that users will click through to your website. In the digital marketing space, visibility is everything. I can't recommend SEO enough when it comes to building your brand and your website. By adopting the best SEO practices, you are laying the foundation for solid and sweet success.
what seo can do for you
Pulls in organic traffic: By optimizing your content for search engines, you're more likely to attract potential customers or readers. Here's a secret - the magic of SEO is that by putting a little effort into all content that you churn out now, you save on worry later. Instead, imagine seeing those organic page views flowing in like sweet rewards. This means you save on paying for ads in the long run and instead, you dedicate your energy into building a brand that stands the test of time.
Adds credibility to your brand: Having a website that shows up on the first page of search results gives your brand instant credibility, increasing your chances of converting visitors into customers. The higher your website ranks in search engine results, the more eyeballs you attract, and the more trustworthy your brand appears.
Cost-effective marketing strategy: Compared to other digital marketing strategies like ads, SEO has a lower cost per acquisition and a higher return on investment over time.
Remember too, that while Instagram, TikTok, and the like are super cool, there's no guarantee they'll stick around forever. In contrast, your website is yours. You own it. It's yours to mold and to shape.
If you're here, reading this now, it means you've taken a step towards investing in your future. If you're eyeing this to be a full-time gig, something that will bring in the dough or rocket you into big projects in the future, you'll thank me one day for putting emphasis on curating an awesome website, posting top-notch content, and following an SEO strategy that backs you up like a supportive best friend.
Consider SEO as a long-term strategy. Yes, it does require an initial investment, but the returns in the long run are worth it. Plus, once you've secured those top spots in search results, you tend to stay there.
So, while those social media stars may flicker and fade, with a thoughtful SEO strategy, your website can shine consistently, guiding you to success.
Now let’s talk keywords.
Keywords are the words or phrases that internet users type in search engines to find information. These words form the backbone of SEO because they create a bridge between your content and your target audience through search engines. By integrating relevant, high-quality keywords into your content, you can rank higher on search engine pages and attract more organic traffic.
Here's why keywords are crucial:
Relevancy: When your content includes the right keywords, search engines view it as more relevant to users, resulting in a higher ranking.
Attracting your target audience: By using keywords that your audience is likely to search for, you increase the likelihood of them finding your website.
Understanding user intent: By analyzing the keywords people search for, you gain insight into their needs and can tailor your content accordingly.
Tools to Find the Most Effective Keywords
Google Keyword Planner: A free, classic tool to find keywords, see search volume data, and understand keyword competition.
SEMRush: A comprehensive SEO tool that allows you to analyze competitors' keywords, perform keyword research, and identify keyword gaps.
Keywords Everywhere: This powerful tool generates keyword suggestions based on your seed keyword and provides useful metrics like search volume, keyword difficulty, and cost per click.
Ubersuggest: A user-friendly tool for generating long-tail keyword ideas, along with their search volume, cost per click data, and competition levels.
AI: Yep! Simply ask ChatGPT for long tail and short tail keywords related to your blog post. This is great, and an easy way to get keywords, however it’s great to use the tools above because it’ll show you the stats you need to see in order to know what you can rank for.
Pictured below is a screenshot from Google Keyword Planner. Because my post is about MJ’s Hotel in Malmö, Sweden, I want to make sure this blog post is ranking for people who are searching up where to go, what to do, where to stay in Malmö, and more. Fortunately, Malmö isn’t as frequently searched as Paris, giving me the opportunity to truly make any blog post that I write about Malmö (beyond my review of MJ’s hotel) stand out. This gives me the opportunity to rank on the first page.
When writing blog posts, it’s great to rank for keywords that have 10k-100k monthly searches. If there were 1,000,000 and more monthly searches, it would be hard to stand out. Honestly, just by looking at this, I have a pretty good idea that I’ll be on the first page.
By the way, it takes at least 3 months to notice your blog post. Once this post goes live, I don’t expect it to be on the first page of Google immediately, but give it a few months to let it marinate, it’ll make it there!
Another way I like to search for keywords is simply doing a Google search and taking advantage of the “People also ask” feature. I implement those into my blog post as well.
AI is a great tool and I’m never going to be opposed to using it, however as you can see here, you can’t see the search volume results. I typically will use this to include in my blog post or use them to name my image files.
where to put keywords
Article Title: The title fundamentally holds clarity about the content's purpose. It's among the first elements observed by both search engine crawlers and users, so placing your keywords here significantly boosts your SEO.
Introductory Paragraph: Particularly, prioritize positioning your keywords within the first 100 words of your article. This area contributes substantial weight to the overall SEO impact of your page because search engine algorithms, like Google's, prioritize early phrases.
Body of The Article: Your primary and secondary keywords should be incorporated throughout the body of your article. However, ensure the placement is natural and helps define the topic without mimicking keyword stuffing, which can negatively impact your SEO.
Article Headings: Use your keywords in your H1, H2, and H3 tags (main heading, subheadings) in the HTML. These constitute critical on-page SEO elements that, when optimized correctly, can help your page rank higher.
URLs: Including keywords in your URLs helps search engines to recognize what the webpage content is about. When possible, match URLs directly with your page's topic or content.
Meta Tags and Meta Descriptions: Insert your keywords in both the meta title and meta description. These are displayed in the search engine results pages (SERPs) and inform both users and search engines about your page content.
Image File Names and Alt Text: When uploading images to your website, it's a good practice to include keywords in the image file name. Additionally, provide 'alt text' (alternative text) containing your keywords for the image. This helps in making your website more accessible, and it is also read by search engines to understand what the image is about.
Anchor Text: This is the readable, clickable text in a hyperlink. Using keywords in anchor texts helps search engines understand the content of the page you're linking to. Maintaining a natural link profile is crucial, though. As such, not all should be target keyword optimized but should include semantically related key phrases.
In conclusion: put these keywords in every single place you can and don’t forget about it. They are crucial in helping your target audience find you!
Keywords in Action
As you can see here, I went ahead and copied and pasted the keywords to name all my image files. You never want to post an image online with IMG_8484.JPG online. Not only do you want your blog posts ad website to be searchable, but you want your images to be searchable as well.
Don’t forget to include keywords in your alt text! Every single detail matters.
The title for this blog post is Unforgettable Stay at MJ's Hotel: A Comprehensive Review of Malmö's Top Boutique Hotel Experience, which includes searchable keywords while also attracting my target audience.
As for the URL slug, I set it to where-to-stay-in-malmo-sweden.
I highly highly highly recommend Yoast SEO. It is by far the most helpful tool for creating an SEO-optimized blog post. I use the free version, and have been for years. With Yoast, you can verify your site's SEO performance, generate XML sitemaps, and implement meta tags.
Furthermore, it offers readability analysis and gives you the ability to set a focus keyphrase (keyword) for each piece of content, ensuring your blog posts are both user and search engine friendly. Yoast even provides SEO page analysis and scores your content on its SEO potential, enabling quick edits and adjustments. For this blog post, my focus keyphrase is “where to stay in Malmö.”
As you can see, it has a terrible rating right now because I still have yet to write the blog post, but as soon as I start writing and fulfilling everything the list provides me, the sad face will turn into a happy face, letting me know that the post is ready to go!
Let’s talk about research
To ensure your content stands apart from other influencers/bloggers and delivers value to your audience and whatever brands you’re mentioning (in this case, it’s MJ’s Hotel), you have to take in the time to do some research. Yep, it’s like we’re back in school again! Only this time, it’s actually fun and you’re researching something you truly love.
Importance of Research in Creating SEO-Optimized Content
SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is like the compass that guides your content to the people who matter the most. Research is crucial to shaping your content in a way that charms both your target audience and search engines.
A robust SEO strategy starts with keyword research. If you couldn’t tell already, keywords are KEY to making sure your blog post and website gets shown on Google results. Understanding what your audience is searching for allows you to tailor your content to respond to those specific needs or questions, making it more likely to get picked up by search engines. Your goal should be creating valuable content—a harmonious blend of relevance, readability, details, and novelty—that adds a unique touch to what's already out there.
When I’m in the middle of doing research, that’s when I’ll start curating a blog outline. I also like to take a look at other blog posts and see how they wrote about the topic that I’m going to write about. To me, it gives me inspiration to see how I can make mine better. Pretentious? No. Consider it: Goal driven.
Identifying Your Target Audience and Understanding Their Behavior
Before you dive into content creation, first identify who your target audience is and understand their behavior patterns. These are the people who are likely to be interested in your content offerings. What do they appreciate most about traveling? Is it to travel luxuriously, use credit card points to get deals, or all inclusive resorts that are family friendly?
Invest time in audience research to gain insights into their preferences, habits, and the keywords they use while searching for travel-related content. Use these insights to shape your content— from the tone and language to the timing of posts.
Researching on hotels/brands/locations and their Unique Selling Points
I know my audience. They are mainly women ages 20-30 looking for a beautiful escape from life. They love boutique hotels (not chains), they have a fine palate for fine cuisine, and they love one of a kind experiences and things that they won’t get anywhere else. They don’t want to do what everyone else is doing.
When I am writing a blog post or posting anything on the internet, I think about my target audience and how it benefits them and sparks excitement/inspiration within them.
So, when I’m writing about a hotel and sharing my insights on this specific hotel, I write to them. No one else is important. My target audience is. You ever heard that saying? If you try to please everyone you please no one. If you try to talk/get along with everyone, you get nowhere.
When writing about a hotel (you can apply this to a location/brand/etc), I take the time to understand the hotel's unique selling points (USPs). If they are renowned for their exceptional service, spa treatments, sustainable practices, location, etc., I highlight that. I set my lens on these aspects and work on content that amplifies them while also tending to my target audience.
When doing research, I take advantage of any available resources— the hotel's website, social media, customer reviews, etc. I even go as far as to making small talk with other guests, seeing how they’re enjoying the property, as well as chatting with the hotel staff. My opinion matters, yes, but to solidify that opinion, I need an outsider’s perspective as well. Your goal is to get the full picture about the hotel's vibe, experience, and offerings, and then transform these insights into compelling marketing messages.
Creating winning content for hotel collaborations isn’t a walk in the park, but armed with research and a keen understanding of SEO, you'll be poised to develop content that inspires your audience, adds value to the hotel brand, and boosts your visibility in the crowded digital space.
Remember, with the right research, every piece of content you create becomes an open door to engaging, educating, and inspiring your audience.
Now let’s get to writing
My favorite part besides creating content and doing the research! When it comes to drafting a captivating blog post for hotel collaborations, strategic placement of keywords, engaging writing, and thorough SEO optimization are paramount. This is where you get to shine. This is where you get to inspire someone and make them want to book the next flight out. This is where you get to take your laptop with you, go to an aesthetic cafe, and start writing away. This part to me is like therapy because I just know someone else is on the other side of the screen waiting to read it and create their own vacation.
What the outline looks like:
Introduction. This is where I’ll talk about my 6-week long travels to Europe over the summer, how much I love Sweden, and how graciously it has swept me off my feet every single day that I’ve been there. This is where I get corny. I talk about my boyfriend and our time together. Then I’ll segue it to the disclaimer, stating that although this was in partnership with the property, I genuinely loved my stay. I’ll also mention that there are affiliate links in case the reader clicks on a link and purchases something. It’s always good to have a disclaimer before the body of the blog post. Also, side note, when creating a blog post, especially when you’re just starting, it’s best to direct every single word you’re writing towards the reader and not say a lot of “I, me, we.” Replace those words with “you” instead. As you start to grow, you’ll start to see more interest in you and who you are, but the world is selfish (as we all know), and we need to cater to the reader first before speaking of ourselves. I did this when I was first starting.
About MJ’s Hotel. This is where I’ll talk about the aesthetic of MJ’s Hotel, the location, the vibes, the service, etc.
MJ’s Restaurant. This is where I’ll get carried away and talk about how amazing the food was.
Room tour. This is where I talk about the room, the amenities, the comfort level, and anything else that caught my eye and I want to bring to attention to the reader. Such as, leaving candy and a card below the bed for weirdos like me, who like to look at what’s underneath the bed at every hotel I stay at.
Conclusion. I’ll discuss my entire experience + if I’d stay again, and talk to the reader and let them know why they should stay there out of all the hotels in Malmö.
Lastly, I will add a WayAway flight checker, because it gives the latest deals on flights and I make a commission every time someone purchases a flight through my link or flight checker widget.
You don’t have to be a stellar writer, but it does help to evoke feeling and inspiration from the reader. It helps to have great grammar and make sure you have 0 typos. In case you’re having a hard time coming up with the words, close your eyes and go back to the place you were.
Remember the sights, the smell, the sounds, the feeling, and everything else that made that place worth remembering and typing about.
Remember the tiny moments that made you super excited to want to share this place with your audience.
Remember the journey to getting there and remember the feeling of leaving, because you knew you’d want to return as soon as you could.
I hope this helped you!
