Two or three years ago, a lot of online marketers thought they had the SEO game cornered. 
They'd found enough cracks and flaws in Google's ranking system that they could reliably push terrible websites to the top of certain keyword searches. You can still find them today, but the technique seems to be migrating towards solely the lower end of Internet marketing.
Otherwise, however, things are much different. Starting last year, Google began to actively crack down on deliberate attempts to “game” their search results, using the seemingly cute codenames Panda and Penguin for their projects. The targets were all forms of black hat SEO, content spamming, auto-spinning, link-buying, and any other trick Google knew of for tricking the search results.
No one who honestly wants to succeed in SEO can afford to coast by on recycled, spammy, or all-but-stolen content. You need fresh, original, custom web content that keeps attracting more visitors.
Original Web Content Brings You The Visitors Today
After all, from Google's point of view Panda and Penguin performed quite well. A large number of sites which had been cheating in some way or another got properly penalized, and Google made clear some issues such as their intolerance for link-buying in any form. There are always bound to be mistakes, but Google maintains a team that takes a personal look at any penalization which is contested by the users.
Either way, in the span of only six months or so, the paradigm shifted yet again. Google has forced SEO firms to stop playing numbers games and try to create good original website content instead. In the process, Google has also begun to place more emphasis on the User Experience (UX) as well.
In short, Google has decided to take their role as Internet gatekeepers seriously. They have the power to force people to put better content online, at least if they want good search ratings, and that's exactly what they're going.
Custom Web Content That Gets You Noticed
The basic message is, it's not enough just to coast by. People who want high rankings within Google's searches have to earn them. You need good content that people want to read, and to share with their friends.
An expert in custom web content marketing knows how to write so that Google recognizes when good writing is on display. Here are a few tips content experts have picked up in the last few months.
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Rather than hammering on the same keyword over and over, use natural variations on it, as you would if you were discussing the subject normally in real life. Complete overuse of a keyword might even get you penalized for writing “splogs” (spam blogs), although I can't recall hearing any confirmed reports of anyone being mistakenly penalized.
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As Google's heuristic analysis and real English comprehension gets better, it may become increasingly unnecessary to mention specific keywords at all. Some blogs have done experiments targeting only one, or even no mentions at all of a target keyword.
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Social media outreach is perfect for complementing your link-building strategies. Make contacts on social media, especially LinkedIn or Twitter, who you believe would honestly like your blogs and pass them along to others. But be discriminating: Especially in the case of LinkedIn, you'll get penalized if you spam requests for connections which are refused.
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Add Content. Even if you're posting a completely standard “My Industry 101” post for the newcomers, look for something new to add to it. Whatever you add is what's going to make you stand out from the millions of other people all talking about the same news item. Add something of value to it, so your version of the story speaks to more people and spreads further.
If you have any questions about how you can get custom web content for your site, or would like to discuss outsourcing your writing, just request a free consultation!
