How to Measure Your SEO Content Marketing Success
When many companies turn to a content writing company to help them with their search engine optimization (SEO)Â efforts, they sometimes expect to see results right away. However, content marketing is often a long-term process. As you begin working with a content writer, he or she should be upfront with you about the length of time it may take to see any type of results. In general, the article writing service should take at least six months of tracking your bounce rates, keyword searches, number of visitors and time spent on the site.
Do Site Rankings Really Matter?
A good content marketing firm will not place great emphasis on how your site ranks when it comes to tracking your SEO success. Most companies hire a content writing company because they want to rank at the top of the search engine rankings. If you really think about it, though, you are up against a lot of websites in an attempt to reach the top rank on the search engines. Odds are, you will never rank at the top. It is best to aim for the first page of the search rankings.
Even though it isn’t likely for you to rank at the top of the search engines, this doesn’t mean your SEO efforts are a waste of time and money. A good content writer is essential to give you content that is going to draw visitors and keep them coming back to your website. A high ranking may equal greater traffic numbers, but the good news is you don’t need to get all your traffic from search engines. Good quality content will draw traffic from other sources as well, including social media and other places where you can post links to your site.
Rankings Fluctuate
One of the primary reasons why search engine rankings don’t play a significant role in the success of your SEO content marketing is because the rankings fluctuate constantly. From one week to another, it isn’t unusual for a single website to go from a rank of four to a rank of nine and then back again. Just because the ranking drops doesn’t mean the content writing company that is in charge of the website did something to cause the drop. Instead, it simply means that the search engines decided, for whatever reason, that different websites ranked better.
Search Personalization
Today, search engine results work a little differently than they used to. Google in particular pays attention to an individual’s search activity while they are logged into their system. This can have an impact on where certain sites rank when you search for particular keywords. The results can be based on websites you visited in the past. This type of search personalization is designed to give website users the information they are looking for. However, it also means that different sites will rank differently for various users, making the rankings irrelevant to SEO success.
Changing Algorithms
The algorithms also change frequently, which can play a major role in the rankings on any given day. Most people have heard of the Google Panda, Penguin and Hummingbird updates. A good content writer and content writing service will know all about these algorithm changes and what it means for search engine optimization. These are not the only changes the search engines are making, though. Search engines are constantly making minor changes to their algorithms to help individuals find the websites they want to find. This can make it difficult to measure your success effectively through search engine results alone.
If you approach your content marketing plan with the expectation of seeing immediate results or achieving a number one ranking with the search engines, you are going to be disappointed. Instead, you need to understand the various elements that a good content writing service will use to help you determine the success of your SEO. In addition to understanding how your success should be measured, it is also essential to realize that it will likely take about six months to see the beginnings of the results you are looking for. As long as you stay on top of your marketing plan and keep your content fresh, you will see results.
Are you ready to start seeing results from your content marketing plan? Contact us to find out how we can help.
