How to Create a User-Intent SEO Strategy

Behind every Google search, there is an intention. People are looking for something in particular when they’re searching the web — the answers to their problems, information about the services available to them or sources for the product they want. If you want your business to be discovered by users on the web, your content needs to be optimized for user intent.

Since Google can recognize user intent, it displays pages in search results that are most relevant to what the user is looking for. Because of this, understanding user intent and creating content with the user’s intent in mind is essential to improving the relevance of your website pages and improving SEO.

If you want to drive more relevant traffic to your site and increase conversions, here’s how to create a user-intent SEO strategy.

Understand the different types of user intent.

In order to create a user-intent SEO strategy for your content, you first need to understand the different types of user intent. Start by heading over to Google. Enter the search terms your audience would be looking for; and, based on what turns up, you’ll easily be able to identify what type of content users want at each different stage of user intent. In the example below, I used Google search results to demonstrate the three stages of user intent.

1. Informational search queries

In the informational search queries stage, the user is trying to gather more information about a particular topic or product, but he or she is not ready to buy. For example, the user might search for “how to edit photos.”

Notice how all the results for that Google search are informational, like how-to blog posts and tutorials. There are no ads on the page because users are only searching for information and not a particular product they want to buy.

2. Navigational search queries

In the navigational search queries stage, the user is looking for a specific type of content to help him or her consider their options, but is still not quite ready to buy. The user will search, for example, for “What is the best photo editing software?”

In this stage of user intent, the results are lists for the top 10 photo editing software and similar comparison blog posts that help users make a decision. The options may contain links to buy, but the sites aren’t pushing the purchase too hard.

3. Transactional search queries

In this stage of user intent — transactional search queries — the user is ready to buy. He or she has got a credit card in hand ready to make a purchase. The user might then search “Where can I buy photo editing software?”

Most of the search results that show up with this query are from online stores that are selling the product the consumer wants to buy. The sites aren’t presenting informative blog posts, but product pages.

Now that you understand the different stages of user intent, you can see what types of content you need to provide for users and what types of key phrases you should be optimizing your content for in order to enhance the relevance of your posts and improve your rankings.

Determine if your existing content supports user intent.

Next, you need to determine if your existing content matches the needs of your audience. To do this simply, go to Google Analytics, and check out your top-performing keywords. If you find that your top-performing keyword phase, “buy hand-knit sweaters,” which is transactional, leads to a page with a blog post that provides tips for people who want to learn how to knit, you’re not giving users what they want.

In this instance, you should switch up your strategy so that users who search for “buy hand-knit sweaters” are led to a product page instead of an informative blog post. That way your users get what they’re looking for — and you get more conversions. Take a look at your other blog posts. If they aren’t being seen by users, incorporate more informational keywords. If your product pages aren’t showing up in transactional search results, sprinkle in some transactional keywords in order to improve your rankings for that type of user intent.

Create content for user intent.

Keywords are not the only thing you need to consider when you create a user-intent SEO strategy. You have to craft your content with user intent in mind. Since Google is capable of understanding intent, if your content doesn’t match your keyword, you won’t rank for it.

For example, if you’re targeting the long-tail keyword phrase “how to bake an apple pie,” but the blog post you write for it veers off in another direction and ends up being more about how to grow your own apple tree, you won’t show up in the search results related to baking. Instead, you’ll show up in search results related to gardening. You’ve got to make sure your content is crafted with user intent in mind. Otherwise, you’ll end up getting a bunch of traffic from users who aren’t interested in your business.

Additionally, you’ll want to make sure you plan content for each type of user intent. This will help guide users through each stage of the buyer’s journey. That way, when users in the informational stage discover you, then move on to the next stage, they’ll find helpful content from you again — and you can lead them all the way to buying your product.

Knowing the intent of users will skyrocket the success of your SEO strategy. If you follow these easy tips, the useful content you provide will be found by loads of people, who will return to your site time after time because they know that your business cares about its customers. In no time, they’ll become customers too.

Syed Balkhi on Entrepreneur.com  

Post Tags:#seo#seo strategy#TRW Consult#user-intent

7 Social Media Tips for Authors

 

Social media writer’s block. It’s a thing! You have no problem hammering away at an 80,000 word novel, but when it comes to a 140 character tweet? Forget about it! You end up posting about what you had for dinner or what you did during the day, and nobody seems to be listening . . . or following. If that sounds like you, then these seven social media marketing tips are just what you need.

Who Are You Writing For?

Before you think too hard about what you’ll say, consider who you’ll say it to. You don’t start any social network with followers, after all. So where do you find your audience? Start by following people you actually want to follow. Don’t follow 5,000 people just so they’ll maybe follow you back. Follow people you genuinely want to interact with—and people who would actually interact with you. You could follow Bill Clinton because you happen to like what he says, for example—but don’t expect him to interact with you. Once you are following them, show you have interest in what they’re saying by responding to their tweets and engaging in conversations. Never forget, social media marketing is a two-way street.

Facebook and Twitter . . . Basically the Same Thing, Right?

There are a lot of ways to be lazy with your social media marketing. One way: posting the same content on Twitter and Facebook. Is that so bad? In a word: Yes! Your message on each network should change—people who regularly use Twitter are a different audience from people who use Facebook . . . so your message needs to be altered.

People tend to spend less time on Twitter than Facebook. That doesn’t mean Facebook is more important because when you look at the demographics, people on Twitter tend to be younger, college educated, and earn more money. They’re a completely different group of people, so of course you’ll want to have a different tone when engaging with them. Facebook is more about engagement. Use Twitter to talk to your fans—it’s engagement, but it tends to be more informal engagement; use Facebook to engage with them—create content they’ll absolutely want to share and like.

Twitter is in real-time. What do I mean by that? Twitter tends to be about what’s going on in the day—it’s very casual. You may talk about what you’re writing or getting ready for. Your fans tend to see you in a much more personal and intimate way. Time usually doesn’t matter on Facebook—if someone reads it today or next week, it wouldn’t really matter.

Voice Matters

You’re a writer, so you probably know all about your writing voice. That voice should carry over to social media as well. Don’t post uninspired tweets—show that you really enjoy doing this and you aren’t doing it because someone is twisting your arm.

Who Cares?

Before tweeting or posting something on Facebook, ask yourself if someone would actually care: will it benefit them in any way? Nobody will care that you had a tuna sandwich for lunch, unless you could make that sandwich a little more interesting . . . taking a picture of the sandwich, for instance, and then giving a recipe that shows why this sandwich is truly unique.

To Share or Not to Share

Sharing interesting articles is another popular thing you can tweet for engagement. But try and think of articles people may not actually have heard of. Don’t tweet an article about who won the presidential race . . . tweet an article about something a little smaller, but that needs to be read.

Don’t Talk, Converse

As you grow and start to get followers, start thinking about ways to make them get engaged with your message. Charities are one place to start. Who doesn’t want to help people? But instead of saying “here’s a great charity that helps kids read,” say “millions of kids can’t read. Here’s a charity that helps. Please retweet.” In the second example you’re asking your readers to actually respond to what you’re saying. As an author you’ll obviously want to make your message somewhat book inspired. You can do this by posting book recommendations or asking people what’s on their reading list. But you can also occasionally promote other authors. Helping other writers will help yourself in the long term.

Hashtag It!

Hashtags are one of the easiest ways to get followers quick, if you use them right. On Twitter, a hashtag is something that starts with a # sign. When a person clicks on the word after it, they see other people talking about that topic. So, for example, if you are talking about politics you might end your tweet with #politics.

Here’s a few things to remember about hashtags:

• First: don’t hashtag everything. Use them when they seem relevant, but every post doesn’t need nor should have a hashtag.
• Second: don’t be generic; posting a tweet about how happy you are about something with #excited will not find you any followers.
• Third: use hashtags relevant to your followers—if you are at a writers conference, for example, and there’s a hashtag for that conference, use it. This will connect you with other people at that same conference.
• Last: think of hashtags that build into your brand—unique hashtags that only you use. So, for example, you might have a hashtag for the book you are working on, and whenever a reader clicks on it, they can see all the tweets about that particular book; or you may ask readers and influencers to use a certain hashtag whenever they talk about your book.

You don’t grow your social network overnight; you don’t grow it over a few weeks. It’s a long process. It’s something you should be working on as you write your book—not as you prepare to release it. Be persistent, and don’t give up when it’s not growing as fast as you want it to.

Scott La Counte is the CEO of BuzzTrace, which helps authors and publishers discover new readers and sell more books. He has over 15 years experience in publishing as both an author and publisher. Writing under the name Scott Douglas, he has had several bestselling books.

3 Mistakes Screenwriters Make in Their First Acts

 

What are some of the most common mistakes screenwriters make in the first acts of their screenplays?

Hollywood script consultant and story expert Michael Hauge cover three of those problems that screenwriters struggle with:

1. Characters with Lack of Outer Motivation

“If you’re having story problems, all roads lead to the hero’s outer motivation. Because one of the biggest issues, one of the most difficult things for writers to really embrace, is this idea that at the very foundation of any story is a visible goal that the hero wants to cross at the end of the story.”

He goes on to say that so many screenwriters get so caught up in the depth of the character and their inner journey, the themes, and the plotting of a strong premise, that they lose the story by adding so many other elements and concepts to deliver those themes, plot points, and inner character developments.

“If you think about it, most Hollywood movies, in particular, are based on very simple story ideas.” 

He chooses what many would think is a very complicated story as an example — Inception. While it comes off initially as being a very complicated premise, it’s actually very simple.

“It’s very core. it’s very simple. A group of people wants to penetrate a person’s dreams down to a layer where they can change his behavior without him knowing it. That’s it… everything is built on that goal.”

When you have that simple, single goal and communicate that to the audience early on in the script, everything is built on that foundation. Most screenplays out there don’t have that.

He goes on to point out that it’s understandable why this is lost. Screenwriters want to stand out. They want to be original. They want to explore those character depths. But they lose sight of the fact that it all needs to start with a straightforward goal.

Another example would be Raiders of the Lost Ark. Now, a lot of stuff happens within that cinematic story. But the simple goal mentioned early on in the script is, “Find the Ark. Get it before the Nazis do.”

In the first act, screenwriters need to present a simple goal and finish point that everyone can see and envision, whether they read the script or watch the movie.

2. Not Showing the Character’s World Before the Story Begins 

“We have to have a setup. It can be very brief — or a character can be on the move, so to speak, they can have just arrived in a town, and we see them going to a meeting or going to meet a hitman, or whatever it might be — but nonetheless, it has to convey [that] this is who this character has been for some time and it has to create empathy.”

Another example is First Blood.

The premise of the screenplay doesn’t begin at Page 1. We first meet John Rambo as he hitchhikes to one of his Vietnam buddy’s farm, hoping to reunite with him. He sadly finds out that his friend has died due to complications from cancer.

During the exchange between Rambo and his friend’s family, we see a fun, loving, and peaceful side of Rambo — not the warrior we will eventually see wreaking havoc on a police force that wronged him. That creates empathy.

If that film had started with a vagrant disobeying a direct order to leave the town, the audience wouldn’t have empathy for the character and wouldn’t be as invested in his story and circumstances.

“That empathy must occur immediately. We have to empathize before we start seeing what the flaws of the character are. Before we start recognizing what this inner conflict is or what this identity is, or what dark places they might go. First, we just have to connect with them emotionally.”

3. Jumping From the Setup Right to the Outer Motivation

“I think because screenwriters are inundated with the idea that you gotta grab the reader right away, and you gotta get things going, and so on. All of that is true, but it doesn’t mean that you rush the story. What it means is that you start building in conflict as soon as you can. But you don’t rush the story. It’s going to take all of Act I to get your hero to the point where they really begin pursuing that visible finish line. And if you start on page 10, with them pursuing the goal, your script is going to die around Page 70.”

Yes, you do need to introduce your concept as early as possible, but that visible finish line — the protagonist’s goal — still has time to develop within the next ten pages or so.

You have to build up to that goal by showing the character in their world. Present some conflict, and let them discover what goal it is that they have to accomplish.

 

Culled from The Script Lab

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5 Tips for Writing About Politics in Fiction

Some say the key to keeping any social gathering cordial is not to talk about politics or religion. I think that’s probably very true. And I also think: Well, thank God at least there’s no religion in my new book!

My novel Campaign Widows—about a group of friends left behind in Washington, DC, when their significant others are out on the campaign trail—was sparked by my own experience as a “campaign widow.”

Over the years, my husband, a longtime Senate staffer on Capitol Hill, has shipped out to various cities to work on campaigns. I didn’t know anything about this world when he joined his first campaign a million years ago and moved to New Orleans to help reelect a Louisiana senator. This new development in our relationship got me thinking that what seemed so exotic to me—him uprooting to a place he’d never been, leaving me behind for several months—was just business as usual for so many folks in DC.

 

I mention this as a long way of saying the idea kicked around in my head for ages—while I wrote other books, worked on other projects—before I finally got around to starting the manuscript… in January of 2016.

Yep, 2016. So while our own bizarre real-life election—stranger than anything in fiction—played out, I toiled, trying to keep my book as far-removed from reality as possible. Between starting the book and its publication now, only two years later, the entire political landscape, the way we talk about politics, the emotions it sparks, everything about how we engage with the political world, feels like it’s changed.

But we can’t let all that keep us from writing about politics in fiction, can we? There’s a way to do it, and here’s my best advice for giving it a shot:

Tip #1: Figure out what your book is (really) about.

The funny thing about my novel is that I never really considered it to be about politics at all. In my mind it’s always been about friendship: The political aspect is just the backdrop for the story of an unlikely group of friends bonded by the shared experience of being left behind.

Even a work of fiction that might address politics more directly than mine is still, at heart, going to be about people, relationships, friends or enemies. Books about politics can still be universal, so always keep that emotional core in mind as you write.

Tip #2: Be clear about what purpose politics will serve in your book.

Are you writing 1984 or Primary Colors or The Handmaid’s Tale or Election? What is your novel’s attitude toward the political world? I knew from the start that I wasn’t writing satire or something dark or dystopian. I wanted my book to be fun and escapist, and the campaign in my book to be its own zany character. I wanted the campaign, essentially, to be the villain: something so wild and over-the-top that it throws all the other characters’ lives into disarray.

Once I sorted out this dynamic, I realized I could get away with a lot. For instance, I didn’t need to identify any political parties, and no one in my book even needed to talk about pesky things like the issues. I was more concerned with the energy and spirit of the candidates in my election and about contrasting their different approaches, attitudes and personalities.

 

Tip #3: You don’t have to chase the headlines (unless you really want to).

Here’s where my advice gets very Choose Your Own Adventure:

• If you’re not writing about what’s happening in the news right now: skip to Tip #4
• If you are writing about the news but you’re extremely gutsy and/or you’re Sean Penn (i.e.: Bob Honey Who Just Do Stuff): skip to Tip #5
• If you are writing about the news and you’re moderately gutsy, continue reading Tip #3:

I probably don’t have to tell you this option isn’t the easiest, but I admire your fortitude! The political world moves at lightning speed (especially these days!) and writing about what’s in the news can make things extra sticky, so you’ll have to buckle up and take a deep breath if you’re tackling real-life.

Ask yourself these questions: What will be my balance of fact and fiction? How wedded am I to the headlines? How long a leash will I allow myself when fictionalizing it all? It might help to set some parameters around certain events, a time period, one character, one aspect of the bigger picture so you don’t feel like the story is forever changing (because it is forever changing and I imagine overwhelming to try to write about while it’s unfolding in real-time). No matter how much you’re incorporating reality and which lens you’re viewing it through, remember your novel is still going to come down to that winning ticket of strong characters and killer story. Now jump to the all-important Tip #5!

Tip #4: Make your characters and events as different from the news as possible.

I wanted my book to feel escapist so I knew from the get-go that I wasn’t going to model the events of my novel or my characters or their appearances or their actions on anyone or anything actually going on at the time. I wanted the freedom to create everything from scratch. Of course, that doesn’t mean that readers won’t try to draw parallels anyway. Which brings us to, the most vital…

Tip #5: Accept that you’re not going to please everyone.

I am not a gutsy person. (Seriously, I don’t even ride rollercoasters.) So having a book set in the political world and hitting shelves in this particular… climate… is probably the riskiest thing I’ve ever done. Even if you’ve gone the route of Tip #4, like I did, readers are always going to draw comparisons to real-life, who could blame them? And some may even discount a novel for political reasons alone. In these contentious days, with emotions running high and the world of politics as divisive as ever, it can feel plenty intimidating to center a novel in this circus. Sure.

But, here’s the thing: No matter what you write about, there will always be someone who doesn’t love it. That’s just how it goes. So be fearless, write the book you want to write, and make it the best you can.

If your book has your vote and you believe in it, then it will find its staunch supporters.

 

A former “campaign widow,” Aimee Agresti is the author of the Gilded Wings trilogy for young adults. She’s also an entertainment journalist—who’s interviewed everyone from George Clooney to Angelina Jolie—and a former staff writer for Us Weekly, where she penned the coffee table book Inside Hollywood and continues to contribute to the magazine’s series of stand-alone collector’s issues on stars ranging from Taylor Swift to Princess Diana. In addition to Us, her work has appeared in People, Premiere, DC magazine, Capitol File, the Washington Post, Washingtonian, the Washington City Paper, Boston magazine, Women’s Health and the New York Observer. Aimee has made countless TV and radio appearances dishing about celebrities on the likes of Access Hollywood, Entertainment Tonight, E!, The Insider, Extra, VH1, MSNBC, Fox News Channel and Headline News. She graduated from Northwestern University with a degree in journalism and lives with her husband and two sons in the Washington, DC, area.

 

Credit: WriterDigest

10 Top Writing Tips

 

There are plenty of folks happy to tell you how to write better, just as any doctor will tell you to “eat right and exercise.” But changing your writing (or eating) habits only happens when you understand why you do what you do. I can help you with that. 

That proposal or email you wrote must now compete for attention with Facebook and the Huffington Post. Here’s how to compete more effectively, and why you’re not doing it already.

1. Write shorter

Why it matters. Readers are impatient and will give up on your blog post, email, or document before you’ve made your point. Every extra word makes readers antsy.

How to fix it. Edit. Delete your “warming up” text and start with the main point. Cull extraneous detail and repetition. Work as if each word you eventually publish or send will cost you $10.

 

2. Shorten your sentences

Why it matters. Long sentences make readers work too hard to figure out your meaning.

How to fix it. Break sentences down into bite-size ideas. Then delete what you don’t need. Think Hemingway, not Dickens.

 

3. Rewrite passive voice

Why it matters. Passive voice sentences conceal who is acting and create uneasiness.

How to fix it. Figure out who the actor in the sentence is and make it the subject.

 

4. Eliminate weasel words

Why it matters. Words like “generally” and “most” make your writing sound weak and equivocal.

How to fix it. Delete the weasel words, then read the resulting statement. If it’s too bold, write the strongest, clearest statement you can to take its place. (If no bold statement applies, you have nothing to say, so delete the sentence.)

 

5. Replace jargon with clarity

Why it matters. Jargon makes your reader feel stupid. Unless they’re an insider, they can’t figure out your meaning.

How to fix it. Imagine you’re talking to your mom (unless your mom is an expert in your subject; if so, imagine you’re talking to your high school history teacher). Explain what you mean in plain English. If using a technical term would actually make things clearer or shorter, define it first.

 

6. Cite numbers effectively.

Why it matters. Used properly, statistics can back up your point.

How to fix it. When citing a statistic, include the context (compared to what?). And statistics shorn of sources are meaningless; “It is estimated that” might as well say “I made this number up.” Here’s a proper way to use a statistic: “Forrester Research estimates that by 2017, 2.4 billion people will own smartphones, or around one third of the world’s population.”

 

7. Use “I,” “we,” and “you.”

Why it matters. Taken together, these pronouns create a relationship between the writer (“I”), his organization (“we”), and the reader (“you.”)

How to fix it. Imagine the reader. Then rewrite using the word “you.”

 

8. Move key insights up

Why it matters. You only have a few sentences to get the reader’s attention. If you boldly state your key point at or near the top, they’ll stick around to see if you can prove it.

How to fix it. Force yourself to start with a bold statement. If you just can’t get in this habit, write whatever you need to warm up to stating your thesis, then delete the warmup.

 

9. Cite examples

Why it matters. Text without examples is dull and not credible. Text with examples comes alive.

How to fix it. For a piece of any length, plan to spend half the writing time doing research first.

 

10. Give us some signposts

Why it matters. If you’re writing anything longer than a page, people want to know what they’re in for.

How to fix it. After you’ve stated your main thesis, write this: “Here’s how I’ll explain this.” Then include a few short sentences or a numbered list. It’s that easy!

 

The Ready Writers can help you with your writing tasks. Contact us right now to get started!

 

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How to Engage Readers with Emotionally Charged Writing

 In fiction and poetry, one of the greatest skills that a writer can possess is the ability to make the reader feel. If you can engage readers on an emotional level, you’ll have them hooked.

Think about it. Most of the books, poems, movies, and TV shows that you love best are the ones with which you forged an emotional connection. You felt like the characters were your friends, so you felt for them. You felt with them.

Sounds easy, but emotionally effective writing can be a complex and difficult endeavour. Let’s look at a few simple guidelines you can use to produce emotionally compelling creative writing.

Rules of the Road

To engage a reader, we have to create scenes that are so vivid they seem real, even if they are not. Through scenes, imagery, and dialogue, writers can emotionally engage readers with what’s happening on the page.

 

Show, Don’t Tell

The best writing shows readers what’s going on instead of telling them. If a character is sad, you don’t write, Kate was sad. You write, Kate lowered her eyes and swallowed hard, choking back a sob and blinking away the tears that were welling up in her eyes.

 

Use Imagery

Using imagery goes hand in hand with showing rather than telling. Instead of writing something like Jack’s heart was broken, use a compelling image to show the reader that Jack has a broken heart: Jack stood in the street with his hands clenched at his sides, and he watched her walk away. She didn’t care anymore. His entire body shook as tears streamed down his face. She had betrayed him and now he was all alone. It was over.

Try Dialogue

Feelings can be revealed through dialogue, and dialogue can also incorporate imagery. When you use imagery and dialogue together to show (rather than tell) the reader what is happening and to reveal the emotional aspect of the situation, the reader visualizes the action and becomes a part of it, often experiencing the characters’ emotions right along with them.

It’s a lot easier to tell readers what’s happening. Kate’s sad. Jack has a broken heart because Kate left him. But when you show readers what’s happening through imagery and dialogue, they can enter the scene and become part of it. This makes reading an experience, and it helps readers connect on an emotional level.

 

Getting Emotional

Readers who are emotionally invested in a piece of writing are more likely to keep turning pages, to tell their friends about it, and to read more of your work. It doesn’t matter which emotions you engage; make readers feel something — anything — and they will reward you, because the experience you gave them was rewarded.

 

Do you incorporate emotions into your writing? Do you use imagery and dialogue to do it? What techniques and methods have you used to help readers connect emotionally with your work? Share your thoughts and experiences by leaving a comment, and keep writing.

 

Source: Writing Forward

Melissa Donovan is a website designer and copywriter. She writes fiction and poetry and is the founder and editor of Writing Forward, a blog packed with creative writing tips and ideas.