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Sarky hot takes about SEO, websites, and content. Want me in the mail? >>Grab Sarah’s Salty Nuggets<<
Rip up the rules of business content and unmask your personality
Business content is, by its nature, businessy. In the serious, grown-up world of business, it’s best to maintain a corporate, AKA professional tone throughout your business content. Or is it? No, it’s not. What fucking year is this?
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E-E-A-T: the SEO principle to feed your website users
In 2022, Google updated E-A-T by adding an extra ‘e’, making it E-E-A-T. Sadly, my previous food puns have been rendered useless. Still, more importantly, the added ‘e’ is kinda nice for your potential clients (wot are looking for you on the interwebs). So, if you’re tantalised, read on.
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How to optimise content for search
The word ‘search’ in this context refers to an internet search. You optimise content for search to make it visible to search engines (Google/Bing/DuckDuckGo, etc.). Search optimised content attracts organic traffic.
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Find long-tail keywords and unlock your traffic potential
Long-tail keywords (LTKs) are specific keyword phrases. For example, you might search for ‘pink rubber inflatable dinghy’—that would be an LTK. You’re probably more familiar with broad, competitive, or head keywords. The kind of industry terms that attract lots of search traffic.
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The Google top spot no longer exists
It’s the Google top spot, Jim, but not as we know it. Ah, the days when bagging the first organic result was all that mattered. SEOs promised it, and businesses expected it, but now, landing numero uno ain’t straightforward.
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Write an SEO-friendly blog that humans love to read
An SEO-friendly blog should be two things: 1) optimised for crawler bots (the digital insects that inspect content for indexing) and 2) interesting enough to be read by humans. In almost every instance, what’s good for the bots is good for the humans.
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Do you have to SEO a business name?
What does that mean, SEO a business name? Adding keywords. Although keywords in your company name are a ranking factor, you can rank without them. So if you’re happy with that answer, feel free to leave. Or, stick around for nuance and a detailed explanation.
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How to start a business blog: 3 must-have fundamentals
How to start a business blog? Start writing, I guess. That seems appropriate and logical, but blogging that way is blogging without a plan, so if starting a business blog is one of your New Year’s business resolutions, read on and make sure you have the three fundamentals covered.
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Qualify web traffic that converts to paying clients
Business websites are supposed to make money. Attracting clients is the number one reason businesses own a website. Money can’t buy you love (allegedly), but love can’t buy you a dream house in rural Kent—that’s what your website is for.
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Smash your keywords with search intent
Keywords have been getting heat from the generative AI crowd. You know the people I’m talking about: AEOs who insist we optimise for LLMs as a standalone practice. Optimising for information retrieval systems, AKA ‘old-fashioned’ search engines, is “not enough”. The same crowd tell us keywords no longer matter.
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Dear potential clients, I don’t want to collaborate
That sounds pretty off-putting to potential clients. Surely you get more flies with honey than with vinegar? (Yes, but who wants flies? I know I don’t.) Before you launch the Freelancer’s Code of Conduct at me, read this latest instalment of Who’s Pissed on Sarah’s Cornflakes Now?
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The best content writing is like the best sex
I think I got so bored writing articles about content writing that I wanted to spice things up a bit. And that incidentally is what some of us do in the bedroom. I say some, most of us are lying back, wondering if we left the oven on.
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SEO agencies are so fucking lame
Hashtag not all SEO agencies are fucking lame, but many are. For genuine SEOs, it’s frustrating coz it makes us and the industry look bad. Decent SEOs spend a lot of time assuaging the fears of business owners who’ve been stung by SEO shysters.
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Update old blog posts (and SEO ’em): an easy-peasy guide
If you’ve been blogging since it was called weblogging, you’ll be chuffed with the burgeoning blogging renaissance (thank you, Substack). If that perfectly describes you, now might be the time for joint supplements but also, it’s time to update old blog posts.
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5 bad client traits and how to deal with them
Awful prospects reveal their bad client traits before you work with them. They don’t bother to hide shitty behaviour because they’re oblivious to it. Like sociopaths, bad clients don’t realise they are one, so it’s on you to make the call.
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