content jam 2016: seo masterclass with andy crestodina and ryan erwin

Wine & Web

Masterclass: Search Engine OptimizationAndy Crestodina@crestodina | #ContentJam

Ryan Erwin@ryanerwin33 | #ContentJam

(Almost) All Things Organic Search

@crestodina#ContentJam

Technical AuthorityRelevanceInternal LinkingSemantic SEOAnalytics for higher rankingsUser Interaction SignalsBuilding an SEO report

64% of website visits start with search


source: Conductor

Google Market Share(desktop)


source: Search Engine Land

Google Market Share(mobile)


source: Search Engine Land

Click through rate by search position


source: https://www.advancedwebranking.com/ctrstudy/

Click through rate by search position


source: https://www.advancedwebranking.com/ctrstudy/

wedding dresses


wedding dresses


lace wedding dresses


lace wedding dresses


modern wedding dresses


modern wedding dresses


Search fills the funnel


Social

Email

Search


Social

Email

Search


Social

Email

Search



Traffic flowingthrough a search optimized site

The spike and the long tail


Initial spike from email and social(one week)Daily visits from organic search(months or years)

Social Media vs. Search Traffic










1Technical SEO

Technical SEO


URLs ...vs. tabs, popups, separate domainsDiscoverable, crawl-ablesitemap.xml, robots.txtDuplicatesSite speedErrorsSitelinks

sitemap.xml


sitemap.xml


robots.txt


Tells search engines what they should and shouldnt crawl

Set it up carefully, to give search engines good instructions

Disallow: / = no crawl!!

robots.txt


robots.txt


robots.txt






Pages, tabs, topics and URLs





Imagesvs. text


Imagesvs. text


Imagesvs. text


Snippets vs. rich snippets




The difference is schema

Schema.org and structured markup


ProductLocationOrganizationRecipeReviews



Schema standards for recipes


source: schema.org

Does your website have it? Schema Tools


Googles Structured Data TesterSchema CreatorSchema.org

Universal search results


source: MOZ

Sitelinks


Sitelinks


Domain Strategy: Where to blog?






...good







...better!







...bad

URL Structure Best Practices


Short Few slashes Includes target phrase


2Authority

How Google Works


Links are authority



Source: MOZ Search Ranking Factors 2015The correlation between links and rankings

more links = more authority


links from authoritative websites = much more authority



Many outgoing links =less authority per link



Source: Open Site ExplorerLink popularity and domain authority


Checking keyword difficultySource: MOZ Keyword Explorer


If your authority is greater than the difficulty,youve got a chance...

@crestodina

Know your Domain Authority

Dont expect to rank for a phrase if its way outside of your league!

ACTION: Understand authority and competition

More here: How to increase your Domain Authority



Words and phrases used as text in the links to a websiteAnchor Text


The text in the links to your website


The text in the links to your website


Its good when a link includesthe target keyphrase


Source: AhrefsPartial / exact match of anchor text and keyphrase(% of all referring domains)


Source: AhrefsReferring domains with partial/exact match of anchor text and keyphrase


Its bad if all the links includethe target keyphrase


Buttons vs. text links


3Relevance


Which topics have a natural advantage in search?Topics


The Two MostPowerful TopicsMore on this tomorrow...

Original research

Strong opinion

The two types of content that get links and shares

source: MOZ, Buzzsumo


source: Moz, BuzzSumo


source: Moz, BuzzSumo



...if you want to create content that achieves a high level of both shares and links then you should concentrate on opinion forming, authoritative content... or well researched and evidenced content.


Do people search for it?Do I have a chance of ranking for it?Choosing Keyphrases


source: Determining the informational, navigational and transactional intent of Web queries Bernard Jansen, et alOnline searches by typeInformational

Transactional

Navigational


source: Determining the informational, navigational and transactional intent of Web queries Bernard Jansen, et alOnline searches by typeInformational

Transactional

Navigational?$brand

Two types of visitors.Two types of phrases.Two types of pages.Two types of conversions.


Keyphrases = CompetitionsPages = Competitors

Topics and website structure


CENTRAL HUBMain topic, business categoryRELATED SUB-TOPICSAnswers to the main questions, how to articlesSUPPORTIVE BASEBroad range of helpful, related topics

Keyphrases and website structure


PRIMARY KEYPHRASEHome page targets the most competitive phrase

SECONDARY KEYPHRASESproduct categories, services pages

TERTIARY KEYPHRASESPhrases related to the problem, not the solution

$$?

PopularityPeople are searching for it

CompetitionWe have a chance of ranking for it (competition)

RelevanceIf someone searches for it and finds us, theyll be happy!

Three criteria for choosing keyphrases



source: Google Keyword PlannerGoogle KeywordPlanner

Google KeywordPlanner


source: Google Keyword Planner


Google Suggest


Google Suggestkeywordtool.io


Google Trends


Confirm that there is some demand for the phrase

Target phrases only if your authority is in the same range as the other high ranking pages

ACTION: Keyword Research


@ryanerwin33KEYWORD ACTIVITY

Ask yourself: Q1: What keywords are my target audience searching for when looking for my business?Part 2:Take one of those keywords and call it H1Q2: What are the H2, H3, & H4 on that page?

#ContentJam

@ryanerwin33Debrief: Keyword Activity

Every webpage should have (one) H1H1 ThesisH2 Main Supporting TopicsH3+ Supporting detailsNOTE: H2+ secondary related keywords

#ContentJam

Your homepage H1 should tell me:- Who you are- What you do- Where you are (if applicable)

@ryanerwin33On Page Keyword Usage

H tags - organize page informationH1+ hierarchyUtilize Primary and Secondary Keywords in meta tags and descriptionAlt tags keyword opportunityOptimize images-Use keywords in image files namesHappy Medium avoid keyword stuffing#ContentJam

Think of your Heading Tags as a page outline

@ryanerwin33

#ContentJam


Indicate the relevanceUsing keyphrases

Use the target keyphrase once in the beginning of the title tag

Use the target keyphrase once in the header

Body textUse the phrase 2-4 times for each 500 words

Visible = important


Meta descriptionURLsAlt textFile namesMeta keywordsEtc.

Less visible = less important


Once in the


and its often the link in Google search results!Its above the address bar in your browser

Home

Once in the header

Template for search-friendly headlines


Web Content Checklist: 21 ways to publish better content

Template for search-friendly headlines


Web Content Checklist: 21 ways to publish better content

(keyword + colon + number + headline with benefit)

In the body text


4Internal Linking

@ryanerwin33Internal Linking

Building page authority using internal linksTechnique: 1. site: keyword2. Identify page tolink from3. Anchor text link tobuild page authority#ContentJam

search your site using site: keyword for ranking pages on your site utilizing that keyword.First result should have a high page authority, which you can check in Moz OSE to verify good page authorityKeyword Explorer to look for difficulty score to be a lower number than page authorityThen youve identified a good page to link toThen use an anchor text link on the high authority page to link to a relevant internal page

@crestodina

#ContentJam Images go here!

Using Search ConsoleTalk about digital sales funnelDriving visitors down a path from landing page to conversionBlog, content page, testimonial, product page etc

@ryanerwin33Internal Linking contd

One step further on Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO)As the authority and relevance flows- Blog post to internal content page or Old blog to updated post- Digital Funneling conversion (form/call/purchase)- Off Page : Social/Email/Referral Post Content PageChoreograph user experience from landing to Conversion#ContentJam

Build Page Authority from your existing Link Juice

@ryanerwin33

#ContentJam


5The Joys of Guest Blogging

WHERE to publish


YOUR SITE

OTHER SITES

WHO does the writing


CREATED BY YOU

CO-CREATED WITH INFLUENCERS

Blogging vs. Guest Blogging


Content = 2Links = 0Friends = 0Content = 3Links = 1Friends = 2



Content = 4Links = 0Friends = 0Content = 6Links = 2Friends = 4(better links + real connections)



Nice blog, butThis is what great content marketing looks like.



6Semantic SEOTarget the topic, not the phrase


Weve been working on an intelligent model... that understands real-world entities and their relationships to one another: things, not strings.

Amit SinghalGoogle









Semantic connections to footer designwebsite copyright copyright textwebsite footer examplesheader and footerwebsite footer definitionat the bottom of the pagedesigning a website footerfat footerguidelinesstandardsbest practicesusabilitycontentideas inspirationlinks SEOsitemapsocial medianavigationpurpose of responsivetemplate


Semantic connections to footer design

website copyright copyright textwebsite footer examplesheader and footerwebsite footer definitionat the bottom of the pagedesigning a website footerfat footerguidelinesstandardsbest practicesusabilitycontentideas inspirationlinks SEOsitemapsocial medianavigationpurpose of responsivetemplate


Rankings climb for website footer design


What was the search volume?


And finally, the traffic...


Best of all?Its attractedlinks


ACTION: Indicate the relevance

Use the target phrase in the title, header and body text

Find and use the words and phrases that are semantically connected to the phrase youre targeting


Which keywords are helpful?Which links are helpful?Lets Review


blog postguest postresearchpost on another sitekeyphrasekeyphrase







Which of these links and keywords affect your rankings?



Which of these links and keywords affect your rankings?






7LengthA measure of quality?

Long content gets shared more


source: BuzzSumo dataset: OrbitMedia.com

Long content attracts more links


source: Hubspot

> 25002250 25002000 22491750 19991500 17491250 14991000 1249750 999500 749250 4990 - 249

Length, links and shares


source: MOZ, BuzzsumoArticle LengthAvg SharesAvg Referring Links< 1,0002,8233.471 - 2,0003.4566.922 3,0004,2548.813 10,000+5,88311.07

n = 489,128 articles (over 85% had less than 1,000 words)

Long content correlates with high rankings


source: CoSchedule

Long content generates more leads


source: Curata


ACTION: Write long?

Cover the subject in a detailed, thorough way

Answer all of the related questions

Make it the best page on the internet for the topic

Answer all the related questions


source: answerthepublic.com



11 answers4 images3 quotes2100+ wordsComplete!







8Using Analytics for Better SEO


Find the low hanging fruitWhich posts have ranking potential?


How can we make more of these?

Initial spike from email and social(one week)Daily visits from organic search(months or years)


Acquisition > Search Console > Queries










SEMrush


How high are we ranking?


How high are we ranking?

Current rankingfor phrase: #9


ACTION: Optimize the almost high-ranking pages

Search for the phrase. Find the page. Confirm the rank.

Improve the page by adding detail, keywords, examples, images, video, internal linking, etc.


This really works...


How is your website unsatisfying?The Report of Broken Dreams


Behavior > Site Search > Search Terms












ACTION: Insights from the Site Search report

Dont have a page on the topic? Make one!

Have a page that doesnt appear for the keyphrase?Optimize your content to rank in your search tool.


9User Interaction Signals


User Interaction Signals ...and RankBrain

Click through rate from search results pages

Bounce Rate

Time on page


Evidence that these are ranking factors

source: How Google Works: A Ranking Engineers Perspective, Paul Haar (slide 30)


Time on page correlation


Time on page correlation


The Short Click vs. The Long Click


ACTION: Keep your visitors on your page

Format for ScannersAdd Multiple ImagesAdd VideoInternal LinkingGo Deep!



Avoid long, blockyparagraphs


Your readers are scanners

source: How Little to Users Read? NN GroupUsers have time to read at most 28% of the words during an average visit. 20% is more likely.


Add multiple images

source: 2015 Blogger Survey


10Building an SEO Report

@ryanerwin33Components of an SEO Report

Keyword RankingsClick Through Rate (CTR)Goal Conversions Google AnalyticsLinksSite TrafficPaid Insights

#ContentJam

Keyword Rankingscurrent and previous ranking to show Deltacompetitor rankings on critical keywords

Click Through Rate (CTR)

Goal Conversions Google Analyticsone step further than CTRLinksin bound links

Site TrafficBreakdown of new vs returningDirect vs referral sourceTrending up/down

Competitor traffic volume

@ryanerwin33Keyword Rankings

#ContentJam

Search rankingTrend up/downDifficultyCPC (Paid)Landing Page

@ryanerwin33Keyword Rankings

Awesome - #1Great - #2-3Very Good #4-9 (page 1)No Good - everything else #ContentJam

How many people search past page 1 besides us SEO people???Less than 10% of people advance to Page 2 of the SERPs

@ryanerwin33Click Through Rates (CTR)

Be SearchableAttract ClicksDrives CTR Conversion#ContentJam

@ryanerwin33Goals

Shows ConversionsGoal FunnelAssign $ to KPIs#ContentJam

@ryanerwin33Inbound Links / backlinks

QuantityDiversity Relevance#ContentJam

All know content is KingLinks are the basis of Page Rank, the foundation of the google search algorythmQuality how much authority, edu, gov, high trafficed authoritative sitesDiversityRelevanceFind and Identify InfluenceIndustry PublicationsRelevant Bloggers.edu and .gov linksMajor Publications

@ryanerwin33Backlinks Quantity, Diversity

Browser ToolbarDomain/Page AuthLink Buying Bad

#ContentJam

@ryanerwin33Backlinks Relevance

DoctorHigh ValueHigh AuthorityRelevant Link

#ContentJam

@ryanerwin33Backlinks Measurement

MOZ OSEIdentifyValueTiming#ContentJam

@ryanerwin33Activity

What kinds of websites would you want to link to you?

Authoritative

Brand Appropriate#ContentJam

Make a short list then call on a few. What do you do, who do want to have link to?

@ryanerwin33Organic Traffic Analytics

Growth in organic traffic

Behavior of organic visitors

Goal Completions

#ContentJam

Paid Search Equivalent value for captured trafficKPIs put a price on goals. What is a lead worth to you?

@ryanerwin33Paid Search Equivalents

#ContentJam

@ryanerwin33Paid Search Equivalents

22 X $2.26 = $49.72 organic payoffin September for car wraps #ContentJam

@ryanerwin33Paid Search Equivalent

Determine how much you are spending now (or could be spending) on paid search:What KWs are most expensive?What KWs have the most clicks?What KWs have the highest CTR?#ContentJam

Great Insight into getting into PPC.


xExample: Lead Generation Best Practices


Add it up...

500 Pageviews/month$45 per Pageview$22,500 / month in free traffic


Four questions to put things in context...The Mindset of Search

@ryanerwin33

#ContentJam

People looking for me are searching for what?

@ryanerwin33

#ContentJam

Which page on my website is relevant to that phrase?

@ryanerwin33

#ContentJam

Is this page one of the top 10 pages on the internet for this phrase?

@ryanerwin33

#ContentJam

Will people who searched for this phrasebe happy to have found this page?


The Bottom Line

Thank you!Andy Crestodina@crestodina | #ContentJam


XHow does social media affect SEO?


Everything in marketing isbased on relationships.

lead

leadtrafficconversions

leadtrafficconversionssearchemailsocial

leadtrafficconversionssearch

leadtrafficconversionsrank

leadtrafficconversionsrankcontentlinks

leadtrafficconversionsrankcontentlinkscontentrelationships


The social sharing, ranking correlation

Source: MOZ Search Ranking Factors 2013


Number of people who drown in swimming poolsNumber of films Nicolas Cage appeared insources: CDC, IMDB and tylervigen.com


How Social Media Affects Rankings


Social actions, search outcomes


Social actions, search outcomes


There are two kinds of people on the internet

CreatorsContributors and lurkers


Who makes content?

JournalistsAuthorsPodcastersAcademic ResearchersEvent Producers

And of course...Bloggers and blog editors


There are two types of social media






How to connect withcontent creators


Social media is the worlds greatest phonebook.




Build a list


Ninja Outreach


Social targeting is a fun way to drive traffic, too.


Step One: Listen

Subscribed to blog by feed / emailUse Talkwalker, Newsle and Brand24Google+: Add to circleTwitter: FollowTwitter: Add to a radar list




Step Two: Engage

Favorite their tweets+1 their postsLike comments on other blogsComment on their blogs



Step Three: Connect

Connect on LinkedInLike LinkedIn posts, mention themEndorse on LinkedInWrite a recommendation on LinkedInSend friend request on FacebookLike Facebook posts, mention them


Step Four: The Extra Mile

Follow on Quora, Medium, Instagram, Yelp, MeetUp, Storify, Listly, CourseraFollow on apps like Spotify, Runkeeper, FitBit, etc.*REVIEW PODCAST on iTunes*REVIEW BOOK on Amazon


Take... your... time...


Cross the streamsThe strength of weak connections!

Who shared itOn Twitter?


Say thank you on LinkedIn



Step Five: Collaborate

Mention them in your contentGet a contributor quoteInclude them in an expert roundupDeep dive interview


Step Six: Friendship!

Phone call, Skype or Google+ HangoutFace-to-face meetingMastermind GroupHand-written thank you note


If youre not making friends,youre doing it wrong


XWriting for Natural Language Search


ACTION: Write for natural language search

Use sentences that include the complete meaning

Include full questions and full answers


XGoogles Quality Rater Guidelines


Googles Search Quality Guidelines

source: Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines


3 Ways to Meet Googles Guidelines

source: Search Quality Evaluator GuidelinesContent is Front and CenterEAT: Expert, Authoritative, TrustworthyHighly Meets vs. Fails to Meet


Content is Front and Center

source: Search Quality Evaluator GuidelinesIs the content is at the top of the page?

Put information high on the page, so visitors can read without scrolling.


E-A-T the Results

source: Search Quality Evaluator Guidelines"Can you trust the source of this content?

ExpertiseAuthoritativenessTrustworthiness

Prove that youre an expert, or "borrow" authority by citing sources and other experts.


Highly Meets vs. Fails to Meet

source: Search Quality Evaluator GuidelinesDoes the content succeed at meeting the goals of the visitor?

Page should provide a comprehensive answer, truly meeting the visitors needs.

Create long, in-depth content that covers every angle of your topic.


XCommon Myths

content jam 2016: seo masterclass with andy crestodina and ryan erwin

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