Content creation should be centered around building the best information and multimedia possible that is simultaneously relevant to a particular audience. Those who work diligently to improve their content offerings tend to build large, loyal audiences over time, making them truly competitive in whichever niche(s) they’re targeting.

However, anybody who has been blogging, writing, designing or developing for some time knows that search engine visibility is a huge part of that success. After all, if nobody sees your content, does it matter if it’s actually good?

Today, we’ll examine some considerations SEO gurus make when designing their broader content strategies – which will hopefully help you improve your strategy as well.

Outlining and Understanding Goals

In any SEO endeavor, success cannot occur without fist knowing what constitutes success. In creating the best content possible, knowing exactly what desired outcomes are preferred can guide the strategy substantially. Whenever brands are pinging websites with a consistent supply of content, knowing what they want the content to deliver (visitors, sales, rankings, etc) determines the overall approach.

For example, those wishing to improve their presence on social media might opt to utilize a variety of videos and multimedia for increased sharing. When targeting search engines, however, determining exactly who is being targeted and how you wish them to react to the content is the first course of action.

Auditing Past Performance

Once any brand, blog or website has a track record of existence, determining how well existing strategies are working is feasible. Many content gurus understand that evaluating performance of past content is essential in crafting better outcomes in the future.

For example, an content audit may discover whether an audience has a particular preference for specific content formats; some people prefer to listen while others prefer to watch or read. In learning from past efforts, formulating a more effective content strategy with SEO in mind becomes easier.

Whether your blog posts are generating plenty of attention or your video content is failing to deliver can provide an invaluable amount of information on how to proceed.

Surveying the Audience

To really turn up the effectiveness of any SEO content campaign, it is crucial to gauge what audiences want. While auditing past performance can give you a good idea what works and what doesn’t, that is limited to attempts you’ve already made. It doesn’t shed any light on whether a particular new idea would generate success for your brand or not.

As such, many content gurus employ the services of online survey firms and even utilize direct appeals to their audiences for more information. By asking your audience what they’d like to see that hasn’t already been provided, brands can ensure they’re pinging websites with exactly the types of content that delivers results.

Optimizing any content requires a strategy. In developing an effective strategy, it is essential to know what the goals of the campaign are, what the audience wants to see and how the audience has responded to past efforts. With this information in hand, a broader and bigger picture can be painted of what needs to be done – and what needs to be avoided – to produce better results for online brands over the long-term.