August 17, 2021 •DJ Team
Good content doesn’t come out of thin air. All good website content has been edited, proofread, and reviewed multiple times. If you’re creating a website, you’ve probably Googled the question, “What should I check before launching a website?” to make sure all your content is in tip-top shape before sending it out into the internet universe.
The method of reviewing content—known as a website content review—is the process of identifying all content currently live on your website, or that is about to be published, to make sure it stands up to the standards needed to compete in the ranks of search engines.
Through a website content review, each piece of content is looked at under a magnifying glass to see what needs to be updated, deleted, or created. Let’s review a checklist of what every website needs to accomplish in order to succeed and get top rankings.
Content Writing Checklist
Have you been asking “How do I create a website checklist?” Well, look no further—we’ve created one for you.
Here are six items to check off your list while performing a content review or before publishing new content.
Are your blogs the right length?
When writing content, it’s all about quality over quantity, but there are some general guidelines to keep in mind. People often search the internet for quick, easy answers, but they also want to feel confident in the information they are reading. The goal is to give them enough information to get them to want to read more.
For a blog post, you’ll want to shoot for somewhere between 600 and 1500 words. This is long enough to provide the information readers need, but short enough to hold people’s attention.
Are your pages optimized for SEO?
When it comes to SEO strategy, the structure of your blog is just as important as the content. Search engines rely on key structural elements like the page title, headers, URL, meta description, and content titles to determine what your content is about, and when to show it to searchers.
It’s best practice to include your focus keywords naturally throughout the body of your content, but it is especially important to include them in the H1, H2, text, and meta descriptions. This will let readers and search engines know exactly what to expect from each section.
Make sure you only have one H1 per content piece and use H2s and H3s for any relevant subheadings.
Are you using simple vocabulary?
When creating content that you want your audience to connect with, it's best to keep things clear. Avoid overcomplicating things and instead stick to plain, simple language.
Aside from making content easily digestible for your readers, it can also help search engines understand and distribute your content marketing more effectively.
Are your sentences and paragraphs short?
Going back to the importance of the structure, you’ll want to utilize white space and short sentences and paragraphs to improve the readability of your content.
Writing short sentences is another way to improve the readability and SEO value of your content. Long sentences can ramble on forever, and readers can have a hard time understanding what you’re trying to say when your sentence goes on and on without end. Instead, break down complex thoughts or ideas into shorter sentences and connect them using transition words.
It is the same with paragraphs. Even if you have a lot to say, short paragraphs are easier to read. Lots of white space on the page makes it easier on the eyes and keeps people scrolling.
Are your focus keywords in your title, subheadings, and throughout your text?
Every blog or article you create should focus on a target keyword or keyword phrase that you are trying to rank for. Make sure to include your focus keyword in the article’s title, subheadings, and throughout the text.
This helps with SEO by letting search engines know what the article is focusing on and what your article is talking about.
Maximize external and internal links
There are two kinds of links that you’ll want to include throughout your content—internal links and external links. Internal links include hyperlinks back to related posts or service pages from your own domain. Linking related content on your website using clear anchor text can help Google understand the interconnections of your site's content and key topics.
External links are the links that go to websites outside your domain. When giving your readers a statistic or credible source to dive deeper into a topic, it’s good to link to the credible source. Google actually rewards sites that link to quality, authoritative sources.
Keep in mind, you’ll definitely want to avoid linking to direct competitors.
Write Good Website Content with DemandJump
Developing website content that checks everything off this list can seem stressful, but it doesn’t have to be. With DemandJump, you can write faster and rank better. DemandJump assembles the world’s data to tell you exactly what content to write, what keywords to include, what videos to produce, and more. Gone are the days of guessing what your audience wants or needs - we have automated that process!
With DemandJump, you know exactly what content to write and with one-click SEO content briefs you know exactly how to write it. If you’re ready to create content that ranks on the first page, get started today for free!
