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Optimize Your Content for Today's Real-Time Web

Today's web is different from what it was, even five years ago. According to some estimates, "internet [today] is comprised of an estimated 215 million websites and 152 million blogs." The biggest surprise to many of you may be that second number. Anyone today who has access to a computer, or in some cases a phone, contributes to web's content, hence deemed "content creators."

From the largest newspapers and publications to the amateur fashion blogger, everyone is allowed to contribute. Everyone is also trying to stay ahead of the curve and find a way to be stand out in today's "cluttered" web. So what can you do to ensure that your content is ever seen? These 10 tips from Search Engine Watch can help:

  1. Keep good track of real time data, on and off your site. Stay on top of Twitter trends, keyword searches and other on-site analytics you have available. This is, perhaps, the most important rule. Keep track of your stuff! See what works and what doesn't.
  2. Share these results with the actual content creators to show them how their content is being used, shared and searched.
  3. Get creative with sharing your content through social networks. It's the most active way to share your content, by bringing the news to "them" instead of the other way around.
  4. Create "Search Personas" by putting yourself in your customers' shoes. Try and visualize what they see and how they would search your site for what they need.
  5. Use on-site related content and internal links to submerge your visitors with more and more information about your company and your news and see those 'Time-on-site' numbers soar!
  6. Keep that old content updated and fresh and searchable, so that not only your top, or most recent content is searchable.
  7. Create and publish brand new content and news article instead of just updating old ones. But remember, relate all your old stuff to the new! (See step 5)
  8. Don't be dull, content doesn't just have to be text. Engage your audiences with images, video and even live social media feeds to capture and keep their attention.
  9. Get creative with your titles or headlines. Keep them short but concise, and always leave something for the imagination. Practice on Twitter. Their 140 characters or less requirement will help you get creative in your announcements.
  10. Keep a simple URL structure. It's easy to remember website.com/news instead of website.com/hl=en&tab=wl=news.
So what do you think of this list? You may have already heard of many of these, or maybe even all of them. Heck, they may even seem outright obvious. But perhaps the reason they may seem obvious is because they are used so often, and they actually work! But many people don't always follow through on all of them, and therin lies the problem.

So the next time you are in need of a content revamping, take a quick look a these steps, make sure you see the metrics, analize what works and get creative in the ways you share they news with your audiences.

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