The Benefits of Writing On-Topic Content
The Parts are Greater than the Content Whole
Business content writers can rejoice in the far-reaching effects of well-written content based on a single topic. When search engines look for an answer to a search question (query) they now can search within your content for the part of your entire content piece that best answers the question.
As you incorporate relevant subtopics into your content to explain, subtopics and specific bullet lists within your piece may provide the answer to a specific query. This is true even if your content title does not state or address the query topic.
Search engine algorithms connect people to the information they are looking for. That means the more detailed and comprehensive your content, the greater the possibility that one of those details will be just the right information.
The value of your content is its ability to answer a specific question. To do that, the answer is framed in context with the overall topic of the page or article.
Chunks, Blocks, and the Right Answer
The answer to a query can reside inside your main topic. But, the search engines find the answer because now search engines can “skim” your content for what is inside. It’s much like the way a site visitor skims a page to see if the material you have meets their need.
As an example I asked, How often should I brush my cat? The answer came back, but it was not from an article about how often to brush a cat, but one entitled 4 Mistakes You Might Make When Brushing Your Cat.
The search engine optimization (SEO) community has several names for these fragments of information found inside content - chunks, blocks, fragments, and fraggles. The important aspect for writers is that an answer can be anywhere in your content.
Search finds these fragments within the context of your content. This search term for a fragment is an entity. When phrases within your content answer a question, search will deliver the answer.
How To Prepare Phrase-Based Content to Get Better Search Results
Your phrase within the content can be the one puzzle piece that answers a question. This concept is freeing for content writers. It means you can write about a topic using related concepts (phrases) and serve up your answer when it matches a query.
The first step is planning your topic. Choose one topic at a time to create related phrases around that topic.
Establish your subtopics - research related keywords and questions to deepen your content
Organize the flow - Create subheadings, bullet points, and charts to help search engines find your subtopics.
As you organize your thoughts around your content, phrases (clusters, blocks, chunks, fraggles)
will emerge as you create the overall structure. These phrases are related to your major topic. Because they are related to the main topic, they deepen the scope. As a succinct chunk, the pertinent information can show up as the right answer to a specific query.
Creative Freedom for Writers
As you concentrate on the value of your content for a reader, you add depth and breadth to your content. You are no longer constrained by trying to get all of your content to be the one answer. Each of your topics becomes an answer in itself. The context of the related topics (phrases, chunks, blocks, fraggles) allows for other answers within the one content piece.
Now you can focus on presenting the best information to your reader.
Photo by Ryoji Iwata on Unsplash
