Google recently announced a change in one of their ranking algorithms that will promote people-first content. This is one of many developments they have made to ensure better search results for users. But what is people-first content, exactly, and how does it impact marketing for your small business?
People first, then bots
People-first content is, essentially, content that people will find helpful. It means you should write for humans instead of Google’s bots. Don’t stuff your content with keywords or post duplicate pages with slight changes to see if one ranks higher than the other. It means you should set up your site’s navigation in a way that’s easily understood. Make your menu options clear and provide important information (like your contact info) in logical locations. It means providing expert content that will help users to learn more and receive satisfying answers to the questions they have. Don’t fall into the trap of copying content from another website, tweaking it, and adding no value to it. It’s okay to do research and cite other sources, but you should avoid regurgitating someone else’s content.
SEO and your small business
We’ve talked about SEO before and we highly recommend using it to help your small business. People-first content does not mean you should stop optimizing your site. Google actually recommends creating people-first content that follows best practices for SEO. A people-first approach will help businesses in the long run. As Google’s algorithms begin to lower the rank of unhelpful and spammy websites, it will create more space for legitimate businesses (like yours) to rise toward the top. The better your content, the more people will see it. The more people see it, the more likely they are to do business with you.
In conclusion
For help with creating optimized, people-first content, call us. Bold River Marketing can help you set up and manage your website, write blog posts, and help you promote your business on Google.