Having great content on your website is essential. There should be no question in your mind; you can’t slack off with content. Not only is it important to your customers, who expect readability, clarity and information, but it will also help your website to rank, allowing those customers to find you in the first place.

While there isn’t a special formula for creating content that will keep your website at the top of the search engine rankings and convert all visitors to your site to immediate sales, there are a few key things you should look out for. If you aren’t the most talented writer, you should employ one. Many online marketing companies, like Platinum Passport Marketing in Spokane, Washington, have excellent writers on staff to create premium content for your website. Having quality content is well worth the investment – you will quickly see the improvements in search engine rankings, sales and customer satisfaction.

Your content must be 100% original. If you copy someone else’s content, use an article that is published elsewhere or possibly worst of all, have a bot write content for you, your site will negatively affected when it comes to search engine rankings. Good content is hard to find and, like everything in life, you get what you pay for. Make sure that you are hiring quality writers, who are fluent in the language they are writing in. It will show in the final product and no one wants to struggle through a poorly written article by someone who doesn’t understand the language.

Make sure your readers know what to do with the information you’ve provided them. If it’s a description of your product or service, let them know how or where they can buy – bonus points if they can place an order right there on your website. If it’s advice, show them how they can apply it to their life. Don’t treat your audience as if they are stupid, but it helps to nudge them in the right direction.

Why do people turn to search engines? It’s because they are looking for answers. The questions they ask can be as varied as the people asking them, but if you want to have happy customers, you need to provide the answers to those questions. People should be able to find the information they’re looking for on your site in a way that is fast, easy to understand and provides avenues for them to pursue further information if they need it.

When people arrive on your website, they want to be sure they can trust the information that is provided. Make sure that your content is well researched and accurate. Providing links to outside sources of information is one of the ways to build and establish that trust – it also helps search engines to know how to categorize the content on your page. Make sure that the sources you link to are also reputable and accurate. The last thing you want is for an article to go viral with bad or incomplete information, ultimately making your company look bad.

You want your customers to actually read the content you publish, so make sure that it is engaging. Publish pieces that open up a discussion, create a stir (in a positive way) or encourage others to share their stories. A post that is shared widely and commented on will rank much better in the search engines than one that doesn’t generate any discussion at all.

Don’t be afraid to be human, either. People love to hear personal stories. Tell the story of your company in a way that highlights the people who have built it. Show the ways that your business has impacted your local community, or the global one, if you’re big enough.

The jury is out on whether people and search engines like long form or short content. To play it safe, make use of a combination of both types. Have some content that is over 1,000 words, and some posts that are around 350 words. Don’t just add words for the sake of it though! Your content should always be as concise as possible.

In today’s world it is imperative that a company’s website has a blog and that they make good use of it. Your blog can cover all sorts of things; what your company is doing, new innovations in your field, things that are happening in your community, etc. The important part is that you have a blog and post relevant information on it. Search engines prefer sites that are updated frequently, so make sure your blog is updated at least twice per week.

As you can see here, content creation can make or break your company’s website. If you have regular updates of quality content, you will keep both the search engines and your customers happy. Outsourcing content creation to a company that specializes in it may be your best bet – that way you can ensure a steady stream of quality content with minimal effort on your part.