There’s a reasonable chance that you arrived here at Tech Write looking for SEO copywriting services. There’s a slim chance that you may have even been sent here by Google after searching “SEO copywriting”. Because once upon a time everyone wanted SEO-optimised text. And I was more than happy to oblige.
But the fact is that I don’t do SEO copywriting any more.
Why not?
The answer is simple – the days of keyword stuffing, grammar mangling and Google-manipulation are over. For quite some time in fact. I could still produce something that would have suited the search engine optimisation techniques of old.
But I won’t.
Not only would I be robbing you of your marketing budget, but the results would be of limited success too. Even more importantly though, this kind of text does nothing but annoy your potential customers.
As marketers we’ve all been using the Internet long enough to spot over-engineered search engine-oriented crap. But so too have our customers. When they click through a search result, they expect to find top quality, engaging and illuminating content that answers their questions and helps them find the information they need to make a purchasing decision. They typed that query into Google for a reason, not to land on a page stuffed with meaningless keywords. They don’t want some poorly engineered text that is aimed at Google, not them.
People don’t want to read that junk. Google won’t index that rubbish. And honestly I don’t really want to write it either.
Matt Cutts – Google’s Chief Crap-Catcher and hater of poor quality web content
So I won’t.
The Internet has changed nothing
People have always demanded that writing be informative and entertaining, that content actually engages their interest. So why would the invention of a global network of computers have changed that?
Great content holds the reader’s attention. The Internet then encourages them to share that information. It’s also less likely to be categorised as crap spam by Google.
“So if you are not ranking as highly as you were in the past, overall, it’s always a good idea to think about, OK, can I look at the quality of the content on my site? Is there stuff that’s derivative, or scraped, or duplicate, and just not as useful?” Google’s own chief crap-catcher Matt Cutts was quoted as saying.
He could have made simpler still:
“Crap quality content = crap. Good quality content = good.“
Genius.
Besides, robots don’t yet earn or spend money, so why target them with SEO copywriting?
An ethical stand for quality copywriting
When I say I don’t do SEO copywriting any more, it’s an ethical stand for me and for you. I don’t like to disappoint your customers, and I don’t like to disappoint you. In the post-Panda world, SEO copywriting invariably disappoints.
Instead I always focus on creating well-researched, detailed articles and documents that answer customer questions and needs. The sort of content they want. The sort of content they share. The sort of content that makes customers love you.
And if they love you, they will buy from you too.
So if you want some generic, vomit-inducing SEO articles written, drop me an email and I’ll pass you on to some helpful, yet disreputable copywriter sweatshops. They will happily take you and your reputation down the drain.
If on the other hand you actually care what your customers think, you can still drop me a line. Only this time we’ll talk about the value of great research, targeted articles and the way in which we can engage your customers for profit. I know which I’d choose.
