Checking the competition is one of the best ways to find out what’s going on in the industry you’re involved with. What kinds of things are your competitors doing? What are they talking about? What are their worries and fears? If you know these things, you can use them to your advantage by telling your clients why your company is not worried about the fears of your competitors or why you can offer more than your competition can. Don’t just rely on your competition, though. Check unexpected places for sources, like the library. The internet is an incestuous place for information, because so many people borrow easy data from other sources. That’s why you can really bring something to the table by injecting new statistics and new lines of thought than what’s currently available.

You never know what you might find until you look. You might locate something that your competition didn’t bother to look for or locate. That could really make a difference in your SEO content research, what keywords you use, and how you present your company to potential clients. Be sure to use your newfound information to tell your clients and potential clients why what you offer is better than what others offer. It can be very difficult for some people to tell what’s different about one company’s product or service versus the product or service of another company. Don’t wait for them to figure it out. Tell them, instead.

Remember, if you don’t tell them why your company’s offerings are better than those that the competition has, your competitors will step in and explain why theirs are better. You don’t want to give them a chance to do that, and you want to be sure to counter anything that they’ve already said about their products with your own information about your products. If you’re offering a service, you can do the same thing – tell why yours is better, more reliable, less expensive, etc. Be creative with it. Consumers don’t want to read the same old boring things about company A, B, and C. They want to be entertained and enlightened at the same time, and you can give them that with good SEO writing and proper research.

Don’t slam another company if you find research that says it has done something wrong. Attacking your competitors isn’t the way to go. Instead, just show how your product or service is higher quality and/or better in some other way. You can’t always do that without solid research, but if you look around and make sure that you’ve gotten a great grasp of your competition’s offerings and the state of your industry, you can impress your clients and potential clients with a lot of interesting knowledge and get sales in the process.

Take a moment to check out some of the content that is currently on the internet. There are several excellent article resources like Ezine that online business owners use in their article marketing.  After reading just a few, you are likely to begin to notice the difference between quality copy, and downright horrible copy. This difference occurs for several reasons:  the author of a poor article is either not trained in SEO copywriting or does not speak English as a native language. The good copy is easy to read and conversational in tone. In fact, you are unlikely to even realize just what keywords the article is based on. This is the type of content you should include on your site. It takes a talented SEO copywriter, skilled in the art of content writing to create this sort of content.

While there are literally thousands of copywriters available on the internet, many of them are not qualified to write SEO copy.  When searching for a copywriter, consider a few important facts:

1. English must be their native language. Unfortunately, in most cases, English written by those who have learned it as a second language is often stilted and difficult to read. Even native level English may not be enough, however. If, for example, your audience is chiefly in the United States, British English and punctuation may be distracting to readers.
2. A complete understanding of keywords and keyword density is a must. It isn’t enough to simply sprinkle an article with keywords. Your SEO copywriter will be able to research relevant keywords and select unique words and phrases that will help drive traffic to you.
3. Engaging style and tone will make for better copy. Read several pieces written by a potential copywriter. The more engaging their style, the better.
4. Proper grammar and spelling is a must.

Many online business owners are hesitant to hire a ‘lay’ person to write their copy.  It is a mistake to think that only an expert in your particular field can write your copy. SEO copywriters will research a subject and break it down into common language that anyone can understand. You will find that it actually works to your benefit to hire an SEO consultant. Their ability to write for the masses can make even the most complex subject easily understood.

At its heart, SEO copywriting is based on science. Understanding how spiders crawl content and how people will search for you is all information that can be researched and proven. Truly great copy is more than just research. It is creative, thoughtful, engaging and easy to read. Finding a copywriter that can write copy that meets these criteria will make you and your company stand out from the crowd.

Many online business owners get stuck on the first step of content creation:  what type of content to include. The truth is that all content is good – as long as it is properly written, keyword rich and relevant. Topics should be closely related to your product or service. It should be fresh, professionally written and include keywords that are both relevant and unique.

You may choose from several different types of content, each equally valid. Blogs are a popular addition. Easy to write, personal and a favorite hunting ground for spiders, blogs can be an excellent addition to almost any website. Another option is SEO articles. Unlike article marketing, an SEO tactic in which articles are posted to various directories for increased visibility, placing articles directly on your website gives you a chance to educate your client base, present yourself as an authority and increase your rankings.

If we have learned that the type of content we include on our website really doesn’t matter, we should also know that the form of the written content does. In order to obtain maximum benefits, you must tailor your content to appeal to both human readers and spiders. When writing or proofreading content for your site keep in mind the differences.

Content for Spiders

This content must be keyword rich. Focus on 2 – 3 keywords per page and mind your density. Keyword density, or the number of times a keyword is used compared to the total amount of text, should be between 3 and 5%.  Spiders also like fresh content, so be sure to plan on updating your website regularly.

Content for Humans

Humans don’t read articles like spiders – we look at more than how many times a given word or phrase is included in a piece of text. For this reason, your content should be easy to read. Here is how:

• Use bullets or numbering to make important facts stand out
• Write short paragraphs of less than 10 sentences
• Use shorter sentences
• Use flawless grammar and spelling

Always remember it is less about the type of content that you include and more about how you create it. Be sure to keep your content clear and concise. If writing isn’t your strong suit, you may want to find a qualified SEO copywriter to work with. There are many professionally trained companies dedicated to providing businesses with the best possible content.

Unnecessary wordiness. “A designer knows he has achieved perfection not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.” French writer Antoine de Saint-Exupery knew the value of a succinct writing style. If you feel like the writer is still talking, but not telling you anything new, you know that the piece has a problem. See also: using “to be” (or is, are, were, was) too much and general overuse of the passive voice.

No direction to the work. The level of involvement for every client/writer is different. Some clients want to simply be able to pass on a list of keywords, and get back useful articles. Make it clear that you expect your writers to develop the topic further. If you give them the keyword “Bandsaw,” make sure that they know you expect something with the title “How to use a bandsaw to build furniture.” Sometimes communication can make the difference between a good writer, and a bad one. Just make sure your SEO writer is both willing and able to develop your topics fully. If they can’t, it’s time to send them packing.

Failure to understand the purpose of the piece. You can waste a lot of money on copywriters if you’re dealing with ‘artists’ rather than commercial writers who understand your goals and objectives. If you need an article on the benefits of Vitamin B for an affiliate marketing site, and you get an article that says Vitamin B is useless, it won’t matter how well it’s written. If your writers don’t understand what the purpose of the piece is, then they’re not helping you.

Obvious grammar, spelling, and word choice mistakes. The good writer is constantly self-editing and striving to create the perfect sentence that communicates his or her ideas exactly. The bad writer does not reflect on their writing during composition nor does he or she comprehensively edit after writing. This is the sloppiness that creates bad writing. While even the best writers occasionally have a typo, consistent errors are a big red flag.

Figuring out whether what you are reading is “good” is a little more complicated. Bad writing loudly declares itself within a sentence or two, but often a work has to be read for a page or more before the reader can really discern whether it is quality writing.

However, there are a few important elements that are often present in good writing. A great piece of copywriting should not only be to the point, but have a clear point, and it should make that point with well organized, logical ideas. The reader should be able to read the work in the writer’s “voice,” which must be distinct and apparent. A good writer uses correct grammar and a varied vocabulary. Finally, and most importantly, good writing is interesting. The reader wants to read it – reading a well written piece is never work.

However, there is a fatal flaw in the lack of a freelance writer’s ability to self-edit. As with any art, it can be exceedingly difficult to appropriately criticize your own work. Typographical and grammatical errors are easy to miss when reading your own writing, and there is no voice to tell a writer when they’re missing the mark.

When companies use several freelance writers at once, the result is an inconsistent mix of personalities, diction levels, quality, and tone. It can be a real mess for a blog owner who needs articles that are ready to be posted immediately.

That’s where companies are missing out – the editing process. The New York Times would never release an article for publication without first checking it. Not only do they look for errors, but they’ll ensure that the facts are accurate. They’ll check to make sure that the writer’s ideas are consistent with the views of the magazine. They’ll remove text that doesn’t engage readers, and order revision after revision. Why should your site be any different? Without a skilled eye to control the work of the writers, you’re only capable of producing raw text that may not accomplish your goals.

Every company needs a dedicated editor who is interested in the long-term goals of the business. Writers are fickle. They’re late with work, or they procrastinate, and turn in rushed work that needs incredible amounts of polish to become presentable. Few companies, however, have the budget for a skilled staff member like this.

That’s where a copywriting company comes in. While most copywriting companies use contract writers, what they offer is copy management. They can perform the editing process to the fullest extent, and they can monitor writers to stay on topic, and on deadline. They will ensure that not only is the content grammatically perfect, but that it elicits the response it was intended to. A freelance writer alone can only do the job of a freelance writer, but a copy writing company can deliver copy that is publication ready.

If you’re worried about the ability of your freelance writers to meet your content goals, you should consider a copywriting company who not only has top-notch talent, but can direct that talent so that it’s always providing the best work possible. The cost of a copywriting company won’t be very different from the cost of a freelance writer, but you will have the peace of mind in knowing that all your copy has been evaluated for you, by a qualified editor who has your goals in mind.

The ability to write well for the Internet is not as easy or instantaneous as it may sometimes seem. Creating thorough, relevant, and engaging copy requires a unique combination of skill, talent, and interest. As more sites and online articles compete for valuable reader attention, a growing number of SEO business and website owners are realizing the value of hiring blog content writers to produce accurate, timely and memorable copy.

So just how do these writers-for-hire create so many first-rate articles on such a broad range of subjects? Being curious, informed and resourceful are just of the few key qualities of an effective online wordsmith.

Be curious

Curiosity is essential for almost any writer, but it’s especially important for those who specialize in creating copy for blogs. Information is constantly being added, processed and updated online. In order to create the most accurate and up-to-date article, blog content writers must have the latest information on the subject they’re writing about for a client. This frequently requires research, even if it’s a topic a writer is already familiar with. Curiosity can help drive a writer to dig for as much data as is required to produce a fresh and timely article that meets the client’s needs.

Stay informed

Successful blog content writers also stay well-informed on a variety of topics. Many are avid readers of numerous blogs, online newspapers and magazines, and social networking sites. A number of content writers also routinely check the most current headlines and stories featured on television and radio news. Keeping informed helps writers produce relevant copy for clients more efficiently. One reason is that many of the sites and services that specialize in news can also be valuable sources of information on a variety of topics writers are asked to write about.

Be resourceful

Effective blog content writers are also resourceful. Often times writers are asked to produce content on a wide variety of topics in a short amount of times. Accomplishing this successfully may require them to rely on an arsenal of tools and resources; whether it’s a handful of trusted online resources, a collection of reference materials or trade publications, or a professional source or associate. Like journalists, skilled content writers must be efficient gathers and processors of information. Being resourceful can help them obtain greater access to the facts, figures and data on broad range subjects.

The key ingredients to successful blog content

Your blog can convey a great deal in a short amount of time. With more online content competing for readers with shorter attention spans, it’s more important than ever to have fresh, accurate, and polished copy. Whether you need a quick paragraph on diet tips or a page on smart phone functionality, a professional content writer can create a well-crafted and accessible article that makes the most of your online real estate.