Our very own Ella Magee recently took a trip over to Brighton to attend the annual Brighton SEO conference, and she has some key learnings she wants to share... take it away Ella!
Whilst I like to think I know the basics of SEO, I am by no means an expert.
Search Engine Optimisation is a large beast, that takes many tools, keywords, and browser add-ons to tame.
Thankfully, I was able to attend Brighton SEO this year and hear from a number of experts who have tamed the SEO beast, and take home their tips… thanks Clearbox!
As one of the world’s largest search marketing conferences, there was an amazing range of speakers discussing everything from content strategy to the ever-growing world of AI, a concept that both amazes me and keeps me awake at night.
Here’s a quick rundown of my key conference takeaways, for those budding SEO dorks like me.
Fiona Brennan’s take on sustainable content
There are a whopping 1 billion pieces of content created daily, but 50% of that created will have zero engagement. With all the content being created, it doesn’t come as a surprise that 50% of content marketers are burnt out, according to Hootsuite.
Whenever you’re creating any piece of content, have a think if it’s sustainable by focusing on its:
1. Purpose
2. Impact
3. Momentum
4. Profit
Each piece of content created will also increase your carbon footprint, meaning we need to focus on creating sustainable, meaningful content going forward.
Anna Morrish on the importance of micro-moment marketing in an AI dominated world
Two out of three marketers fear AI will take their job in the next few years.
One huge reason is Google Search Generative Experience (Google SGE), an AI powered search. Google SGE will push organic listings down in the search rankings and drop your organic website traffic.
Micro-moments are where we can influence consumer/customer decisions. Micro moments are those crucial moments when people turn to their phones for answers. In content terms, micro-moments tend to happen in FAQ’s, guides, blogs etc and it’s important to consider the context of the micro-moments.
Pushing these micro-moments helps emphasise human connection over AI powered content.
Explaining what you do in 10 sticky memorable words by Charli Hunt
Positioning and key messaging are best friends and should go hand-in-hand with any content you’re creating.
Positioning is knowing who you are, what you do, why you do it and who you do it for. Focus on clarity and direction.
Key messaging creates the strategic narrative to get your positioning across. Think memorability and repeatability.
When thinking of your brand’s memorable words, use concrete words; no fluff allowed! AI tends to be fluffy, so we can avoid this and be clearer and more memorable.
A tip to finding your 10 memorable words is to think of what your clients would have to Google to find a replacement for you – these are your keywords.
To stand out from your competition, think of your brand’s ‘what, how and why.’ You’re likely to attract more clients and talent if you have a different process and way of doing things. This should be reflected in your memorable keywords and used throughout your content.
What is Community Marketing? Michelle Goodall can help us answer
There are 5 P’s where people find their community and why – play, people, place, product and purpose. These 5 P’s bring people together to create insights and build closer relationships with customers and stakeholders etc.
However, the biggest issue facing the marketing community at the minute is the erosion of trust in the government, the media, schools and many other organisations. Hence the importance of community marketing.
Michelle’s top 10 tips for Community Marketing and Content include:
1. Have clear objectives, measures and KPIS – something your community can trust.
2. Community market fit is critical.
3. Your community needs a clear ‘why?’ – why are they supporting you or interested in your content?
4. Big isn’t always better in terms of a community size – a high value community can be smaller.
5. Focus on building a trusted, inclusive space.
6. Resource it properly, have good community management from ‘people to people.’
7. Community is not a broadcast channel, build the conversation with your community naturally.
8. Create consistency and rituals – a reason to come back to your content.
9. Choose the right community platforms – technology should be last. Think about what you need from your community.
10. Community takes time to build, but it has a strong economic value.
We now trust people ‘like us’ and communities we believe to be important, linking with the increase in niche influencer marketing.
Richard George’s tips on developing a killer content strategy
In the new world of AI generated content, is there a role for human content? Yes!
By 2025, 30% of content and marketing messaging will be AI generated. But don’t worry, AI has created opportunities for brands to create content to scale.
Even with the rise of AI, Google still focuses on the quality of your content, not how it’s generated. Create content focusing on your audience and real people, not for the search engine and its needs. Always remember why you are creating the content and keep that as the most important thing.
Remember the humans reading your content, not AI or any search engine. Demonstrate your experience through your content, stand out as an expert and your audience AND Google will see you as an authority and trust you.
I know I’ve just thrown a lot of mini lectures at you, dear blog readers! So, here’s my summary:
Whatever content you’re creating, think about the purpose and impact of it – don’t create content for the sake of it.
In the content you are creating, push micro-moments where you can show human connection and expertise. AI will never be able to do this as well as humans, so let’s keep doing what we’re doing with more focus!
Finding your community in content is key. Appealing to the masses may seem like a great idea, but you’ll get swept away in the masses. Focus on a niche market and somewhere where you can create a smaller, but more impactful community.
Lastly, quality over quantity is key in creating content. I’m not saying write 3 lines of copy and be done with it, but finetune your content so that it is memorable and has a clear direction to the reader. Set yourself apart from the masses and focus on your brand’s niche keywords.
Thanks for coming to my TED Talk.
