Content Strategy - Writing and SEO For An Image Forward Website

Developing a Website Content Strategy for Portfolio Based Websites

Having a written content strategy is an incredibly important undertaking if your website is primarily images. Written content is the way that you establish your brand, showcase your work, and establish yourself as a thought leader. High-quality, unique content is a critical element when it comes to your search engine ranking and SEO directly affects your ability to attract visitors to your firm's website and most importantly, your portfolio pages. If your website is primarily images and has limited written content, your apt to have a hard time getting found when prospective clients are searching for the services you offer.

Can’t Find Time To Blog? We Can Help!

A well-structured content strategy can improve the efficiency and effectiveness of your content while improving your SEO efforts and SERP rank. A website or blog that is frequently updated with high-quality relevant and informative content offers search engines new updated sources of information to index. To put it in simple terms, if you frequently update your website and blog content with well-written information, search engines will eventually reward your efforts with a higher ranking on search engine results pages.

Here are some of the benefits of a strong website content strategy and the reasons taking the time to create a solid content strategy is worth the investment.

First, What is High-Quality Content?

First, let's take a second to define what we mean when we talk about high-quality content. For this post, we're talking about written website text like blogging, project pages, service pages and the like. However high-quality content can include graphic images, video, and audio provided you have corresponding text to go with these assets.

The content you have may range over several topics and types, but the goal is always the same; promoting brand awareness and engaging your readers through education. Quality blog content is particularly valuable with an estimated 57% of marketers acquiring new leads and sales through blogging and 92% of marketers believing that quality content is beneficial for SEO purposes.

Quality written content has a long shelf life, enhances the user experience, improves usability, increases visitor value, is crucial for converting visitors into leads and leads into sales, can provide competitive differentiation, increases share-ability and of course, enhances your SEO efforts.

The following are in-depth reasons why it's so important to invest in high-quality written content.

Fresh Content = Increased Indexing

While more frequent indexing doesn't necessarily mean a higher page rank, the more frequently you update your content with new pages, blog posts, and downloads, the more frequently your site will be indexed. When search engines index your site more often, you have the opportunity to achieve higher rank based on the content added and its relevance. Remember, more content is not the point, the quality of your content is what matters the most! That said, we recommend writing at least one blog weekly if your website is primarily project images.

High-Quality Written Content Has A Long Shelf Life

If for example, you are a design-build firm, writing quality content about timeless design can provide a decent shelf life. It is whats known as evergreen content. Writing on the quality of kitchen cabinet construction, the benefits of natural stone flooring, or the reasons to upgrade your appliances to pro level, your content can attract prospective clients for years!

To increase shelf life, always use SEO best practices and be forward-thinking when writing. You can also extend the shelf life of your existing content with strategic rewrites to update information. Focus on “evergreen” topics like how to tips and broader topics. This doesn't mean that quality-content like reviews and case studies aren't useful or important. Try to maintain a balance between long shelf life content and current information that may have a shorter useful life.

Quality Content Increases Usability and Provides Visitor's With Value

When it comes to content, usability is a broad term. It can be applied to everything from the navigation of your site to the accessibility of archived blog articles. If you use internal links– and you should–keep your content relevant and make your company's purpose and business philosophy obvious quality content can make navigation easier. If you keep your content clear and concise, readers should be able to navigate your site easily.

Usability can increase content sharing which can drive new traffic. Also, today mobile is the primary method many prospects use to begin their research, so it's important to optimize your content for mobile viewing. This can go a long way toward adding value for your visitors. Quality content can also provide value keeping visitors on your pages longer. Ideally, your content will attract backlinks from reputable websites. This too will increase your page rank. The bottom line is that usability and value increase if you provide quality content that addresses customers specific needs and their pain points, then offers a solution.

Quality Content Helps You Get Found Online

One of the most valuable benefits quality content provides enhanced SEO. The best, most informative content in the world is useless if readers can't find it online. Well written content that incorporates relevant keyword key phrases and long-tail keywords can increase your visibility on Google and the other search engines. Acquiring inbound backlinks and adding internal links are valuable ways to increase usability, add value, and improve SEO. Don't forget social media! As SEO evolves, sharing content via social media channels like Medium, LinkedIn, Facebook, Pinterest and Instagram can also improve traffic and SEO.

Your Content Marketing Strategy

Developing a content creation and delivery strategy can increase the effectiveness and value of your written content. From increasing engagement to SEO high-quality content is an investment that l pay off in more traffic, better conversion rates, increased sales and deepen brand loyalty.

The key to content marketing is to think long-term. A content strategy needs time to develop. While you may gain some initial boost in traffic when you first begin writing targeted keyword rich content, the key is to think long-term. Create “evergreen” content that will provide value, possibly for years. By continuously and regularly publishing new content over time you will improve your SEO and drive new visitors to your website.

Truly effective written content brings value to your visitors, utilizes keywords, long-tail keywords, and keyword phrases, promotes engagement, and drives leads and sales. High-quality content builds trust, authority and has lasting value. It provides a lasting marketing boost for your company and is crucial to your businesses online success! If your an architect, interior designer, design-build contractor or landscape professional, start by writing a blog today that helps potential clients better understand your design process. Stick to using an image or two and write more than 600 words around a longtail keyword. Wash, rinse and repeat weekly.

Advice On Blogging For Business

• Pigeon and Squarespace SEO: Local SEO and Hyperlocal Content

• Business Blogging: Why Blogs Fail to Deliver New Home Design Clients

• Guest Post Blogging Requests Are Filling My Inbox. Do I Accept?

• Squarespace Blog Design: Formatting Blog Articles For Improved SEO

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About Michael Conway

I'm the owner and strategist at Means-of-Production. My firm builds Squarespace websites, Houzz profiles, and content marketing and advertising solutions for architects, interior designers, design-build contractors and landscape design firms. Our all-in-one marketing tactics attract the right clients with exceptional architectural photography and brand messaging that sets you apart from the competition.