Are you clueless on how to blog for SEO? This beginner’s guide will take you through simple steps on how to get your blog posts in tip top shape for when the search bots come crawling.

Why Blog for SEO?

There’s two very good reasons you should do this, which lead me to put together this beginner’s guide on how to blog for SEO.

1. Since you’re already taking the time to write the blog, so you might as well know how to blog for SEO.

2. It will help drive extra traffic to your blog in the long term – which is why you’re blogging right?

How to Blog for SEO

First you should plan out your blog post. It might seem like extra work, but believe me it will make the whole process a lot easier. You can download the plan I used to prepare this blog for SEO here.

Topic – First you’ll need to decide on the topic you’ll be blogging about. Ideally it should be a trending topic or something you know is popular with your target audience. There’s no point writing about something no one’s interested in.

Keywords – Probably the most important consideration when tailoring your blog for seo is the keywords you’ll use. Once you’ve decided on your topic, the best way to select keywords is to head on over to the google keyword tool, which will show you a bunch of suggestions for the topic you enter. Ideally try to choose 2 or 3 phrases which have high search traffic and low competition. If you downloaded the plan I used for this post, you’ll see that the phrases I’ve selected are ‘blog for seo’, ‘how to blog’ and ‘beginner’s guide’, which all have low competition and searches in the thousands.

Outline – Next you should come up with the outline for your article which should look something like the below. By creating a good outline all you’ll need to do when it comes to writing the article is fill in the blank. It will also help with keyword placement.

Main Idea

• supporting detail

• supporting detail

• supporting detail

Main Idea 2

• supporting detail

• supporting detail

• supporting detail

Main Idea 3

• supporting detail

• supporting detail

• supporting detail

Tailoring the Blog for SEO

Okay now you’ve got the plan and outline sorted, it’s time to think about how to blog.

Title – First up you need the title, this is probably the most important thing from the SERP point of view. Try to have your primary keyword as close as you can to the beginning; mine is ‘blog for seo’. If you can work a secondary keyword into the title, then have at it. I’ve managed to squeeze in two secondary keywords ‘how to blog’ and ‘beginners guide’. Don’t make your title all about keywords though, remember it still needs to be intriguing and memorable to your target audience.

Subtitles – it wouldn’t be a beginners guide if I didn’t mention subtitles. There are so many bloggers out there who show their clear lack of understanding on how to blog by churning out massive chunks of text and paragraphs with no subtitles. Subtitles make your blog posts heaps easier for the reader to absorb and it also helps prepare your blog for seo by helping the bots understand what your article is about.

Introduction – Your intro should be a stripped down, bare bones account of what the reader can expect from the rest of the article. Try to have your primary keyword as close to the beginning of the first sentence as possible, and ideally keep it to 70 words or less.

Body – Here’s some simple tips to follow when writing the article body:

• Keep your paragraphs focussed, and concentrate on one topic at a time. Make sure each paragraph is under 100 words.

• Use your primary keyword once every 100 words or so

• Stick to your outline! Have you ever read a blog post that made you feel like you were being pulled in 8 different directions? Fair chance they didn’t use an outline. Articles that use an outline are always more organised and compelling than those that don’t.

Conclusion 

If you’re taking the time to learn how to blog for seo, then there’s a high chance you also want your post to convert, i.e. lead the reader to some form of action. For a blog post to convert successfully, the body should compel the reader toward a powerful conclusion which will drive home what the post has offered and convince them they must take action now.

Although this is just a beginners guide on how to blog for seo – following these steps diligently and persistently will no doubt have a big impact on your blog traffic. And unless your blog is a personal diary, traffic is the point of it right?

What other SEO tips have worked for your blogs?  Please comment below!

Guest Author:  Daniel Smith, the founder of Propaganda House, has over a decade of marketing experience, and as a Social Media Consultant, runs courses and individually consults business’ on how they can grow through the effective use of Social Media Marketing techniques. You can tweet Daniel @propagandahouse or email him here.

I am a natural born writer, so writing has always come easy to me. But, when I had to start writing articles everyday for my blog, for my newsletter and for article submission – I quickly ran out of article topics.

Then one day as I was reviewing all of my articles, I realized that there was a structure and a formula behind each article I wrote. By recognizing these formulas I’m able to write an unlimited amount of articles – and write them in record time. And, If you want to overcome writer’s block and start writing articles faster, then you want to model proven article writing formats.

Here Are 10 Different Blog Post Templates That Will Help You Overcome Writer’s Block So You Can Write Articles Faster…

1. Myth Buster Article Template — With this template, you crush your prospects’ preconceived thoughts and notions about a subject. Take 3 myths people have about your industry. Explain to people why it’s a myth. And, then show them what can happen if they clear this myth from their mind.

2. Top 10 Article Template – Have you ever seen a Jay Leno, David Letterman or any other late night television show that doesn’t have a “Top 10″ segment? Well, neither have I! It’s because people love top 10 lists. So give readers and prospects what they want.

3. How-To Article Template – It’s no secret that “how-to” articles and blog posts are some of the most sought after, linked to and bookmarked content online. People want useful information and they’ll reward you by promoting it to others when you provide it. It’s also one of the easiest articles to write.

4. Step-by-Step Article Template – If you think writing a how-to article is easy especially if you’re using article templates, then you’ll think the step-by-step article template is a cinch. In how-to articles I start off with the problem or pain that my prospects are experiencing. Then I give them a solution and end with the results. In a step-by-step article, I like to sell the dream. I want to instantly connect with my prospects’ desires, wishes and needs. So, I explain the results up front that can happen if you follow my advice that I give in the article.

5. Quiz Article Template – Why do you think magazines publish quizzes all the time? Why do you think the quizzes you find on Facebook are so popular? It’s because people love taking quizzes, unless it’s a pop quiz in school. So, why not use a quiz format for your articles that will enable you to do a soft, pre-sell for your products and services. When readers answer “NO” to your questions, you’re implanting thoughts of “Maybe, we should be doing this.”

6. 3 Mistakes Article Template – When you mention mistakes within your title and throughout your article, you will automatically grab attention. People will think in their minds, “Am I doing this right? I better find out!”

7. The Why Article Template – How-to articles are great. And, as I said before, it’s the most popular article template. But sometimes, when you give too much of the “HOW,” you give prospects no reason to go to your website for more information. So, why not write an article that focuses on the “WHY” and give prospects a reason to visit your website and join your list.

8. Differentiate Yourself Article Template – I created an article entitled “How to Choose an Article Submission Service.” Within this article, I created 10 questions that prospects should ask. Now these questions were designed to show everything that my service includes that no one else offers. It educated prospects and at the same time, it pre-sold my article submission services.

9. Failure to Success Article Template – Did you ever notice how speakers (especially those who sell from the stage) would always tell you about their hardships? Why do speakers do this? Because we want you to connect with us. We want to show you that if we can achieve success, so can you. By opening up and revealing your failures or your scars, you add realness to your written words. People will look up to you and they will want your guidance.

10. What I Learned From Article Template — Through my years as the article marketing expert, I’ve learned that I can connect almost anything – no matter how unrelated it may seem – to various secrets that I teach my clients, subscribers and readers. For example, I’ve written articles such as “7 Article Marketing Lessons I Learned From Being a Martial Arts Champion,” 3 Lessons I Learned From the Mother of a Fearless PR LEADER,” and “5 Relationship Building Lessons I Learned From My Parents.”

Guest Author: Article Marketing Expert Eric Gruber uses the power of articles to create online opportunities for Internet marketers, small business owners, authors, entrepreneurs and speakers who want more publicity, prospects and profits. Now, you can get 3 of his favorite his instant article writing templates that will help you overcome writer’s block and write your articles in 30 minutes or less. Get your free article templates now: http://www.TryMyFreeArticleTemplates.com