1. Identify the primary keyword and secondary keywords to use to support the topic
2. Identify the search volume and CPC value of each keyword (also user interest and conversion value) so that we know which keyword has priority in the heading format and supporting content. [1]
3. Identify the user type (beginner, intermediate or advanced) to plan the style, quality and quantity and reading level required of content. [2]
4. Structure the keywords to use into headings of priority based on the factors mentioned above
5. Structure the content types and quantity required to support the headings, into:
- Paragraphs
- Bullet points – rule of thumb try keep it more than 7 so that if/when it is featured in the serps we get the link to the article
- Comparison tables,
- Other media types (images, Video, pdfs)
- A link(s) to the page the article is supporting.
- CTA if applicable
- Links to other related articles which you user may want to read more about related to the topic
- H1 can be used ONLY once. Supporting text should follow.
- H2 can be used more than once provided it has supporting H3 tags. Else use only once. Supporting text should follow
- H3 can be use as many times as you want and should be the choice of all secondary keywords / headings. Supporting text should follow
6. Gather supporting information for the content – Look at top 5 competitors of the keyword(s) in the serps
- What keywords and related /topics they mention and in which format, and how detailed the information provided
- The word count of the article.
- Try provide better, detailed information than the competitor.
7. Answer questions user have on the topic: What, how, when, why, vs and related questions [3]
8. With the information mentioned above collected, create the supporting content under the headings.
- With the content research you should have a fair amount of content to write about and clear guidelines of what to write and focus on.
- Which should surmount to a piece of content at least 800 words.
9. Keep in mind when writing the article your objective: for filling the user’s intent of reading the article.
10. Once the article is theoretically complete test the keyword density and relevancy of other keywords in the web app [2] To:
- Make further adjustment or tweaks to the keywords to match the optimal 3-4% keyword density
- Check the word count to be more than 800 words
- Check the Reading level to insure the language used is for the intended user type mentioned in factor 3.
- Update the content accordingly
11. Provide and list the primary and secondary keywords
12. Provide the category or section of where the article should be published in
13. Suggest metadata (title, meta description and keyword) for the article. [4]
- a. Title not more than 60 characters also bear in mind the standard suffix:
- b. Meta description Not more than 150 character
14. Factors to bear in mind when creating meta data
- The title should NOT be identical to the H1 tag
- The meta description should prompt / entice, encourage the users to click the link in the serps, and be a clear description, representation of the content on the page.
Tools to assess your content before publishing https://wordcounter.net/