You already know you need content for your website, and that it needs to be high quality. But did you know your content structure matters for your SEO strategy? Especially now that search engine algorithms are shifting to scanning content more like humans. In SEO terms this is defined as readability. I’ll explain why and how it works below so you can start creating content with proper structure in mind.
Content Structure Matters to Search Engines
Ah, the mysterious workings of algorithms. It almost seems like they’re designed to be confusing. Well, it’s because they are. But explaining that is for another article. What the experts do know, by studying how these algorithms behave, is that content structure matters for SEO.
To put it as simply as possible, search engines work like this:
- They crawl the web for content(this is why those little bots are often called spiders).
- Next, they index this content. Meaning, it’s put into order for further sorting.
- Finally, the algorithm’s mysterious process decides how relevant this content is and if they should make it available to those of us trying to find content online.
Because the search engine’s job is to help us humans find the content we’re looking for, they’re being programmed to ‘think’ more like we do. This is why keywords and phrases and metadata are important for your SEO strategy. But it’s also why the quality and structure(aka readability) of your content is very important and becoming more so every day as the algorithms become more advanced.
Humans Read Online Content in a Very Specific Way
When we go online looking for information on something specific, we put in search terms and then scan the results. We click on results based on their titles. Then we scan those articles or even website content to see if they hold the answers we’re seeking. Search engine algorithms scan too. Then they decipher how the content is related, and if the keywords makes sense, etc. This is how they decide the relevancy of the content to someone searching online.
Because of this, content structure matters for SEO. Those algorithms I mentioned are learning to ‘read’ content more like we do. They’ve known for a while that we seek high-quality, relevant content, and now they know that when we read online content we want it to be easy. This doesn’t mean dumbed-down. This simply means we want it to be clear and efficient and easy to digest. What does this mean, exactly? Well it means that content structure matters.
What Does Good Content Structure Look Like?
Now that you know that your content structure matters to search engines because they’ve learned how we read online, you probably want to know how to make your content more readable, right? Well, the good news is that it’s not some totally new and complicated way to write. The basics of this structure already exist.
Remember back in elementary school when you first learned to write an essay? In its basic form, an essay must include:
- An introduction
- A Body
- And a conclusion
Good content structure follows these same basic principles. Are you wondering why this is a tried and true method to get your point across and understood? Because that’s how human brains work. The folks that made up the rules knew this, good writers still know this, and copywriters like myself know this and use it in our daily work. Now search engines know this.
Writing structure is essential because we can’t just put a bunch of words on a page and expect it to make sense. Human brains don’t process information that way and neither do search engines.
Of course, for online content(and all other writing) it’s more than just that very basic structure. Kind of a lot more. But you just need a few more tricks to start improving your content structure and get the attention of search engines.
We Scan Online, So Content Structure Matters for Readability
Have you ever just wanted to glean some specific information really quickly and find what you’re looking for? You’re not alone. Most people are seeking to do just that online. That’s what makes your website content different from reading a book, or a magazine article or essay.
Though your website content can contain personal blogs and your newsletter may be in essay form, when you’re wanting to rank high in online search results content structure matters.
This means you write online content as part of your SEO strategy differently. No one wants to see a wall of text, or poetic ramblings when they come to your website or blog for information, or even when reading for pleasure for that matter.
This is why beyond the Introduction, the Body and the Conclusion you want to make sure your basic content structure includes the following:
Headings and Subheadings: These break up your content into smaller bits and let the reader know exactly what is in each section.
Bullet Points and Lists: These make it easier to condense information and give the reader’s eyes a break. It also makes it easier to scan the page, like headings and subheadings do.
Word Economy and Spacing: Each section should contain paragraph breaks when appropriate. Every section within a heading or subheading should be about the same length and less than 350 words. Also, you want to break up sentence length. Some should be long, but mostly they should be shorter.
Keywords of Course: Yes, you should use your keywords or phrases evenly and throughout. And in your headings, title and subheadings. But not too much! Only where they make sense. Otherwise your text sounds awkward and clunky and search engines recognize this as keyword stuffing which it translates as low quality content.
Although this is a beginner’s overview for understanding why content structure matters, it may seem like a lot of information. But if you try this formula out on your next blog post you’ll see how it makes sense. Make an outline. Do a little content planning and make it clear, easy to read, and relevant. Soon, good content structure will become a habit.
If you found this helpful, or have questions and want to know more details about how you can improve your writing for SEO let me know in the comments and I’ll start writing more about it for you here or on my own website blog!
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