Unique Content & SEO

So you have a website, YAY! Now you are faced with the task of writing content for the page. Whether or not you are a skilled wordsmith, I think we can agree that it is best to create unique and relevant content for your particular site. So often i see pages that are basically a copy/paste of Wikipedia or some such informational site and it is my belief that this can hurt your site very much. If your site contains duplicate content, not only will it hurt your site's credibility, but you might get a nasty note from whoever wrote the content in the first place. Remember, if you are selling or advertising a product it should not be hard for you to prove your expertise on whatever it is. Who better than you to provide unique insight and background into your chosen market? Nobody! Right! So how to go about this task?

1. Think of informing people who know nothing about your chosen market. Make the content informative, thought-provoking and intelligent without sounding too elitist. Remember, if people are at your site, then they are interested in what you have to offer. It is your info that will likely prove to be the make or break in terms of conversions.

2. Break it down. What is essential information and what is filler? There is a delicate balance between too much info and not enough info. If you ask yourself "what would i need to know if i came to this site?" If there is allot, try breaking it into several pages and link to it from the main page. This not only helps to increase the informational impact of the site but makes it easier to read and easier to navigate.

3. Prove your authority. If necessary or possible, cite some sources (make sure you credit them properly) Additional sources can further your credibility and make your market/product that much more attractive.

4. The visual element. There is something to be said for arriving at a well designed site that features well written and thoughtful content.

5. SEO Aspects. Now that you have some good content, how to arrange it so that it is noticed by the search engines? As I have stated in previous posts, building symmetry on page is an excellent way to go. By this i mean the synchronicity of page titles and H1's H2's etc. Beware of sketchy SEO tactics that "promise" high rank immediately. Avoid keyword stuffing, same color text/background antics and other "Black Hat" practices that will get you banned by the engines quickly. Search engine friendly SEO is definitely the way to go.

Well...there are a few more tips (IMO strictly) as usual i will expound more when the mood takes me!