How to write for the most important reader of all
"You are all in the business of online marketing now," I like to say portenteously to anyone who comes to one of my self-publishing seminars. And just because I say it in grandly doesn't make it less true.
Whatever business you're in — whether it's self-publishing or embalming — you need people to be able to find you and the way they do that these days is through Google. That means you need at least some understanding of search engine optimisation (SEO). The good news is that it isn't that difficult.
At its simplest "search engine optimisation" is a way of saying: "Writing content that's good enough for people to link to; and clear enough that Google understands what it's about so it can direct people to it when it's relevant to their search".
Do you want people to find your website?
Does it matter to you whether people find your website? And, if it does, does it matter what they do when they get there, i.e. are you happy for them to read and go away or do you want them to do something (call you? buy something? download a sample?).
Hint: The answer should be Yes! And that's why it's worth taking 10 minutes to understand how searching online works. Why do some sites show up higher in Google than others?
Brian Clark from Copyblogger is probably one of the most-stolen-from experts in this field because he has a knack for making SEO simple. Here's an example from his free SEO report:
A good copywriter needs to have a flair for writing content that's inviting to share and to link to. She needs to have top-notch skills to optimize the page, so search engines know what it's about and who might want to read it. And she needs to know how to write copy that converts readers to buyers.
In the report Brian goes on to break down:
How search engines work
Why search engines need "spoon feeding"
The important factors that happen off your website and what you can do to influence them
What people say about you is more important than what you say about yourself.
So what do you need to do to get people to say the right things?
Writing content like a mind-reader
Learning a bit about SEO teaches you about more than search engines: it teaches you how to understand your potential readers better. By understanding what they're searching for, you get to look into their minds and find out what they're interested in. If you know what they're interested in, you can work on persuading them that you're it.
I'm not perfect in this regard and having re-read the report, got a kick up the backside in particular from the section on the 5 essential elements of keyword research.
The stuff Brian covers is an important part of learning how to turn your writing into a self-publishing business. The report is free and you can download it here.
