Obsessed With SEO?
I write for people.
I do NOT write for search engines, nor do I write for social media sites.
MomGrind is decidedly written with no conscious efforts at getting a better Google PageRank and without much regard to Search Engine Optimization. I almost never try to write posts that would land the front pages of Stumbleupon or Digg. When my post on women in the media landed the front page of Stumbleupon (Thank you Scott McIntyre for the stumble!), I couldn’t have been more surprised. I was just writing from my heart about what I saw as the outrageous manipulation of women by the media.
It’s not that I don’t want search engine traffic or a high PageRank. Of course I do. I want MomGrind to grow as much as possible. I check my stats periodically (OK, daily) just like everyone else, hoping for GROWTH: more traffic, a better Technorati rank, more subscribers. I do appreciate, and am very grateful for, the incredible spike in traffic that a social media site can generate.
But these are not my first priorities. My first priority is to write engaging content that would be fun for me to write and interesting for people to read. Writing with constant awareness for using the right keywords, or constructing my posts so that they’ll have a better chance of succeeding in social media sites, would frankly bore me to death.
Want specific examples of writing that is interesting to people yet BAD for search engines? Take a look at the title of a couple of posts on MomGrind:
Powerful Men, Half-Naked Women
Wealthy Men, Sexy Girls
Let me assure you that any search engine traffic that I get from these posts is the WRONG kind of traffic. I do not want the readers that are searching for “naked woman on top of man” nor do those readers want to read MomGrind. Both titles are great examples of how NOT to write for a search engine, yet I chose those titles because they seemed very relevant when writing for people.
I rest my case.
Before I wrap up this post, I should probably add three things:
1. Obviously, there’s a big difference between a personal blog like MomGrind, where my top priority is to have fun and the business side - although important - is secondary, and blogs that are the sole, or a major, income source for their authors. So, when the very talented Caroline Middlebrook writes about Crunching Some Adsense Numbers, a post that focuses a great deal on keywords and SEO, it is totally relevant and makes perfect sense, because Caroline’s online ventures are her only source of income.
2. I did install the Wordpress SEO Plugin, and I try to remember to add a meta title when I suspect that the original post title is going to generate unwanted traffic, like in the examples above. It’s a highly recommended plugin, so if you use Wordpress, and haven’t installed it already, you probably should.
3. [Whispering] MAYBE, just maybe, when I wrote my post on top 10 fashion mistakes, I WAS aiming A LITTLE at social media success. 
What about you? Do you write with search engines or social media sites in mind? And when you read a blog, are you bothered by posts that are obviously written for search engines or for social media, or do you accept it as part of the business of blogging?
This post was inspired by a recent discussion on Cath Lawson’s blog. Monika Mundell of The Writer’s Manifesto Blog observed that linking needs to be done correctly, in order to maximize search engine results. The discussion heated up a little, which is a good thing in my opinion, and then Hunter Nuttall observed that writing for search engines often conflicts with writing for people. This got me thinking about my own approach to writing this blog. Hunter further elaborated on the topic in his excellent post Is Writing For Search Engines Killing The Web?
Image credit: ByronShell
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Cath Lawson responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 1:26 am →
Hi Vered - I know what you mean about those post titles. I will sometimes choose those type of titles to attract subscribers who are browsing their reader, but they have the potential to attract all kinds of weirdos through search engines.
I don’t optimize my blog enough. Sometimes - I will write a post particularly targetted at either social networks, subscribers or search engines. But a lot of the time - I don’t give these any thought at all. I think this is careless of me, as it doesn’t do a lot to build my readership - but when I first began blogging, it really was just a hobby.
I think there’s a common misconception that writing for search engines is about keyword stuffing (probably because a lot of people do just that). But we need to bear in mind that if we’re writing for Google - we’re still writing for people. If we land on the front of Google for a particular keyphrase, the description has to be appealing to real people, or they won’t click on it.
Jens Dalsgaard responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 2:02 am →
Blogging is a hobby to me. I would love to earn thousand of advertising dollars, but that won’t happen. Trying too hard to please someone (Digg etc.) or something (Google etc.) would only lead to less valuable posts. As English is not my native language, my few writings are mostly lessons in the written language. I only convey what I find valuable, and I might be the only one that thinks that it is.
Dr. Cason responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 3:21 am →
Tough questions huh?
We can write and write but if no one reads it then we might as well be writing in a journal tucked away in our nightstand.
I’m just discovering the power of social media and find it intriguing- OK fascinating and addictive. I haven’t found a balance yet.
Great post!
Dr. Cason’s last blog post..The Last Days of Summer
MizFit responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 3:27 am →
I love my nightstand.
and my journal.
MizFit’s last blog post..A little bit o’link love.
Scott McIntyre responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 3:33 am →
It always intrigues me when you mention some of the saucy search terms momgrind is found under, Vered!
You do seem to attract more than your fair of voyeuristic visitors- who, I’m sure are devastated by what they find here.
You make interesting points about SEO, an area I am gradually learning about. I agree that readability of an article must always be the top priority. It is obvious when you read content that is constructed with keywords as the main focus.
That said, creative and judicious sprinkling of attractive search terms can add value to any text you’d like people to read- and, after all, which blogger doesn’t want this?
This is because it allows non-bloggers and those who don’t use social media, the chance to discover your writing. Many surfers still travel the internet via search engines… and there are those who never journey the blogosphere.
So, an awareness of SEO can be a useful tool in a blogger’s kitbox. But it should be used to enhance what is written, not dictate it.
Indeed, the keyword here is ‘balance’
Lance responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 3:35 am →
This is an interesting topic Vered. I think that I write for the content I feel passionate about, regardless of the “social effects” of it. However, I, as well, am excited when I see a spike in traffic due to a “digg” or a “stumble”. So this is a tough balance for me. It is the social aspect of blogging that makes it all worth it to me. But in that, I mean that in the sense of community going on at my blog and the blog I visit. I’m more excited by new people commenting at my blog than I am by new visitors who have just increased by hit count. It’s the meaningful conversations going on that make this so powerful for me.
Lance’s last blog post..Sometimes You Just Have to Take That Leap
Max Forlani responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 4:00 am →
Yes and no! For Istanbul Trails I tend to keep an eye on SEO optimalisation, since the audience is by default not a loyal one. For Istanbul Trails 95% of the visitors come to the site based on a search result, simply because they probably plan a trip to Istanbul in the (near) future.
As for my personal blog The Forlanis, I obviously don’t care too much about it. I still didn’t even come up with a regular post schedule. I sometimes post 5 times a week, sometimes only once. While we’re on that subject, this will change soon though. Starting September, I’ll post 3 per week.
Anyway, The Forlanis is just like yours Vered, a place where I write for the fun of it, keeping friends and relatives up to date and hopefully provide them with some sort of entertainment/pleasure. And if I get some new friends or loyal readers along the way, that’s a big and very satisfactory bonus.
Cheers,
Max
Max Forlani’s last blog post..Ground Control to Major Forlani
Mikey responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 5:51 am →
On a personal blog you’d expect the blogger not to care much and more focus on friends and family that have access to it rather than a wider audience right? meh
If it’s a business blog or you plan to make some $$ off it then sure, seo the cr*p out of every post I say
Writer Dad responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 6:21 am →
Vered,
Yay. I’ve been excited to read your SEO post since you first mentioned it. I wrote for SEO for maybe one post that never got published. It’s just not me. The main reason I started doing this was to practice my writing, for humans though, not robots (or googlebots, whatever). I don’t want to have to worry about keywords or tags or any of that. Here’s how I post: I have a general idea, or main thing I want to say. I just start writing. I say way too much, take away about half, and then look at my work to see what keywords I can acknowledge. I’ll have projects in the future where SEO will have to play a bigger role, simply because you need traffic to make a business work. But with Writer Dad, I want people there for my thoughts, not my keywords.
Writer Dad’s last blog post..The Truth in Our Make-Believe
Al at 7P responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 6:39 am →
SEO is just one of those things that I would do if I had more time, but there’s so many other things ahead of it on my to-do list that for practical purposes, I’m never going to do it. More power though to those who know how to do it and do it well!
Al at 7P’s last blog post..Why Should I Help You?
Dot H. responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 6:41 am →
I write for people. I’m just starting out and I don’t even know how to write for Google. The social media don’t turn me on, so it seems phony to join just to advertise. They seem to me to be geared towards extraverts, not introverts like myself. That doesn’t mean I won’t do it, if I think it will draw in like-minded people to form a community around my blog. I do want to find readers. In fact, the big question in my mind is, will people respond to my writing or am I just too weird? (A little of my baggage is peeking out there.) I’ve had plenty of proof that my writing skills are good from the print world, but will people respond to my own thoughts, ideas and emotions, when I’m not writing for money? I don’t think it’s highly like that, given my choice of subject matter, I could earn a living from my blog, but it is my secret hope.
It’s a bit painful when I find I’m reading a blog that’s a marketing manager’s delight, and I usually feel resentful and “used.” Kind of like landing on one of those affiliate-generated websites with a small amount of information that is designed to target you towards a specific product. I’m glad that people can earn money from blogs and websites, but at least make it worth my while!
The Financial Philosopher responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 7:10 am →
Vered:
Thanks for this post. If you are not in search of SEO, then you are not a “blogger wanna be!” You are source of useful and entertaining information who happens to write in a blog!
I believe it to be quite difficult, if not impossible, to aspire to be “a blogger” and simultaneously succeed at providing useful information for readers. To attract readers and social sites, it is no secret in the blog world that the use of lists and catchy titles capture, or “steal,” attention. Any “list” pretending to deliver “50 Ways to Find Happiness” should begin with this as #1: Stop reading this list and go find yourself!
In fact, it would be quite refreshing to see a “blogger” tell their readers that blogs may be more counter-productive than productive. People need to find their own path — not be distracted from it with “media noise.”
Blogs can be quite entertaining but at the same time they can be quite harmful because they steal our attention and occupy our mind — which leads to the unintended consequences of distraction and the ultimate shrinking of the mind.
“… in an information-rich world, the wealth of information means a dearth of something else: a scarcity of whatever it is that information consumes. What information consumes is rather obvious: it consumes the attention of its recipients. Hence a wealth of information creates a poverty of attention and a need to allocate that attention efficiently among the overabundance of information sources that might consume it.” ~ Herbert Simon
The Financial Philosopher’s last blog post..Thinking Outside of ‘The Game’
Chase March responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 8:01 am →
I agree with you 100%. I could care less about SEO. I just want to write things that are of interest to me. I want to write with a passion that shines through my writing. And if people discover me, they do. For now, I just want to write and experience the blogging community.
I like open and honest blogs that discuss things of importance. Sometimes I can tell a blog is written mainly for SEO. I think they need to write for people and not search engines.
Chase March’s last blog post..Inconsiderate of Those Who Come Behind
Lucrecia responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 8:06 am →
Very thought provoking, especially as a newer blogger and long time blog reader.
I’ve seen more and more blogs that I’m unsubscribing to because they are lacking in heart. I’m all for a blogger making a profit for their time. However, it seems many people are only blogging for the profit and to heck with the content. I’m even reading product reviews lately that are poorly written and you leave with the sense the writer really knew nothing of the product but they just threw the post up there for some self serving reason. I have limited blog reading time - I want to spend that time reading something that gives me a little chuckle, some thought provoking questions or really useful information.
Lucrecia’s last blog post..4 years ago
Becky responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 8:29 am →
I’ve never even thought of thought of blogging for anything other than myself. Seriously now.
Hunter Nuttall responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 8:40 am →
OK, a lot of different thoughts here:
- I’m cracking up at The Financial Philosopher’s “50 Ways to Find Happiness.” If CommentLuv works, look at my latest headline!
- There’s a front page on StumbleUpon? How did I not know that? Why don’t people talk about it? And how do you know if you get there?
- Ironically, you do have a high PageRank. It used to be 5, now it’s 4 with the latest Google shakeup. Even Steve Pavlina is a 4 now, and he was a 7 at one point.
- I try to make my headlines interesting, but I’m really not a fan of the Cosmo type headlines, e.g., “10 Sexy Plugins You’ll Drool Over.” There are always tradeoffs. I’ve had people complain that I had a headline that was too boring for social media success, yet it was great for SEO. I’ve had people complain that my headlines were too controversial, but they did great on StumbleUpon, etc.
- I will occasionally write something specifically meant as link bait, Digg bait, Stumble bait, etc., but I still try to make it something useful. Though my latest post is a counterexample, aside from the shock value!
- Thanks for the link!
MomGrind responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 10:49 am →
@ Cath: “if we’re writing for Google - we’re still writing for people.” I think this is a good point. Still, the very notion of writing around certain keywords seems to be limiting to a writer (and I am slowly beginning to consider myself as a writer).
@ Jens: I love your integrity! English is not my native language either, so I know what you mean.
@ Dr. Cason: I fully admit that social media is addictive. It’s a goal of mine NOT to construct all my posts around social media success. I think if I did that, I would just lose interest after a few weeks. I want to write this blog long-term. It’s a good outlet for me.
@ MizFit: Have I ever told you that I love your sense of humor? I did? Well, I’ll say it again. I love your sense of humor.
@ Scott: I laughed at “I’m sure are devastated by what they find here.” I’m sure they are!
“So, an awareness of SEO can be a useful tool in a blogger’s kitbox. But it should be used to enhance what is written, not dictate it.” This statement is very true. You just said it perfectly. You have a way with words, Mr. McIntyre!
@ Lance: “It’s the meaningful conversations going on that make this so powerful for me.” I agree. It’s the same for me. I LOVE my readers. I love having these discussions.
@ Max: I think that 3 posts per week is an excellent schedule for a personal blog. Not that a personal blog NEEDS a schedule, but I do believe that it’s good for a writer to have a regular writing schedule. I am actually playing with the idea of twice per week. I remember reading somewhere that if everyone on the blogosphere wrote just once a week and made it meaningful, instead of people feeling pressured to publish every day whether they have something to say or not, we would all benefit. I tend to agree.
@ Mikey: This is very true, though often it’s hard to decide whether a blog is “personal” or not. I mean, MomGrind is a personal blog. It is centered on me and on my thoughts rather than on a topic (such as self-improvement or finance). I don’t aspire to make serious money from it, although I do monetize it as best as I can. Still, it’s not personal in the sense of something small and intimate that only a few close friends read. I guess many blogs are a mix of personal and business.
@ Writer Dad: Reading about your writing process was interesting! Thank you for sharing it. I agree that there’s a difference between a blog like Writer Dad and projects that are pure business.
@ Al: It’s true that it’s also a matter of time, and priorities. There are so many things to do around promoting a blog, that most of us have to concentrate on a few and let the others go.
@ Dot H.: We are all weird.
And, you’d be surprised to know that plenty of social media magnets are introverts.
@ The Financial Philosopher: You are raising interesting questions about the usefulness of reading blogs, and especially self-help and personal development blogs. I wonder of the same is true for self-help books?
@ Chase: I like honesty and openness too, but I can’t really blame anyone for trying to promote themselves or make money from blogging (as unlikely as that is). I wonder if it’s possible to write quality online content that also makes money. I think ProBlogger is pretty good at that.
@ Lucrecia: Product reviews are often very problematic. Personally, I don’t do them. But I do have ads, which several readers have already complained about.
@ Becky: I believe you!
@ Hunter: Commentluv didn’t work – here is Hunter’s latest post:
1000 ways to be happy
Re SU, I don’t know if it’s technically “front page”, but usually I get hundreds of pageviews from SU. When I get thousands, I assume it reached some kind of a front page or something. I have no idea!
Scott McIntyre responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 11:03 am →
@ Hunter & Vered In SU, if you click on ‘Websites’ in your tabs at the top of your profile page, it’ll take you to what is, effectively a ‘Front Page’. In addition, each category has a similar ‘Front Page’.
The ‘Front Page’ brings extra visitors because they are associated with RSS feeds.
I hope this helps.
Jamie | WiredParentPad responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 11:19 am →
I agree with the concept of having a balance. I decided to start my blog for a few reasons: i enjoy writing, I have first-hand knowledge that can be valuable to others, I wanted to start a website, and maybe even make a little extra money.
When I write, I write with the audience in mind, not a search engine. However, I do have the Wordpress SEO Pack installed and I do do some keyword research in hopes of driving some organic traffic my way.
As a technical person with an inherit love for the web, I may be a bit of an oddity - the SEO aspects of the web intrigue me, so I find myself researching and learning more all the time. In terms of how I actually write my posts and choose the words I chose, I don’t even think of it (with the exception of the title).
Jamie | WiredParentPad’s last blog post..Do You Use Text Messaging to Stay Connected with Your Teens?
zoe responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 11:38 am →
On my personal blog, no I don’t write for SEO. I write that blog for my enjoyment and to interact with the small community of bloggers who I’ve come to know and love. I wouldn’t mind if my blog had more readers, but it would make it more difficult to interact with everyone on a more personal level.
When I write for BlogHer I’m supposed to write my post titles, and posts really, with SEO in mind. But, depending on the topic it isn’t always easy.
zoe’s last blog post..Don’t Quote Me On That, #2
Shelley responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 11:48 am →
I have to agree with you and am glad to see you bring this up. One of my favorite blogs to read has absolutely no ads, no buttons, no fluff. She has around 300 or more comments every day, and I believe it’s because she has captured the hearts of her readers. I don’t believe she’s doing anything to monetize her blog, and maybe that’s another reason she’s so well loved. She has recently begun receiving speaking requests, something at which I’m sure she will excel.
For a while, I have been trying out blogging with prompts (like Thursday 13, or Wordless Wednesday). But I feel like I’m back in writing class in elementary school when I do them. They are not exactly uninspiring, but more under-inspiring, if you know what I’m saying. I don’t want to lose myself in all this.
And the Financial Philosopher is right. You can waste your life away blogging…whether it’s writing or reading. If I weren’t so dern busy with my 15 kids, I’d probably be guilty of just that!
Shelley’s last blog post..Coming out
Kristi responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 12:06 pm →
I typically write what I want to share with readers first. Then, once I have it written, I take a look at it and do what I can to make it SEO/social media friendly. It does not involve changing the content, but just adding keywords, categories, and maybe adding a link back to a previous post if applicable. But my blog is content first, promotion second.
Suzie responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 12:17 pm →
i try to write for me. But I do find myself writing with an audence in mind but I do nto write for search engines
Suzie’s last blog post..And the Winner is…..
Barbara Swafford responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 1:25 pm →
Hi Vered,
I think for business blogs, it becomes essential to write for search engines. After all, they want their businesses to be found so they can make money, sell products, gain recognition, etc.
But I laugh. On my blog, I try to teach new bloggers what’s important, and even though the conversations are often about SEO, I rarely use it. It completely changes the way we write, and that can also change the “heart” of a blog. I have better luck with catchy titles, visiting other sites, and providing what I hope is quality content that makes my readers think.
MomGrind responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 1:31 pm →
@ Scott: Thanks! This explains a lot. Gosh, you’re such an expert on social media.
@ Jamie: “In terms of how I actually write my posts and choose the words I chose, I don’t even think of it (with the exception of the title).” – this is pretty much what I do. Except that I still craft titles that are fun to me, then add a meta title that is more search-engine friendly.
@ zoe: “When I write for BlogHer I’m supposed to write my post titles, and posts really, with SEO in mind.” – same goes for me when I write the UpToUs blog. It’s not easy to keep it interesting AND search engine friendly, that’s for sure.
@ Shelley: “You can waste your life away blogging…whether it’s writing or reading.” Very true. Re: blogging themes, I do Wordless Wednesdays because they give me a nice break from writing (although I do find myself writing even on Wordless Wednesdays..). I don’t do writing prompts. I don’t really mind ads in blogs – just ignore them – the only thing that bothers me is paid reviews, when the blogger is not upfront about it being a paid review, and even then I “forgive” bloggers that I like because generally I believe that blog monetization is legit.
@ Kristi: “I typically write what I want to share with readers first. Then, once I have it written, I take a look at it and do what I can to make it SEO/social media friendly.” I think this is a great system. I might just try to do it too in the future.
@ Suzie: Well, when we blog, we do write for an audience – otherwise we would just write a private journal.
@ Barbara: Concentrating on SEO-friendly titles is actually a great way to write as you wish, yet enjoy search engine attention. While researching for this post, I read that post titles are the most important thing as far as SEO goes.
Sarah responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 1:37 pm →
Nah, I rarely think about it.
I just write what I am inspired to write. I suppose this might hurt my blog’s growth, but I figure that subscriber count it more important (to me) and if someone likes my blog enough to subscribe and I can keep them long term, that means more to me than getting tons of traffic. I find social networking to be most effective to get traffic anyway, esp in a tiny niche like mine. 
Sarah’s last blog post..I Can’t Keep Up Anymore!
Marelisa responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 3:17 pm →
I have a squidoo lens about creating a list of 100 things to do before you die which gets a lot of traffic every day from google and other search engines (about 140 people a day from search engines, more from other sources). So I can see how powerful having the right keywords is. I get very few visitors to my blog from google. I would like to tweak my articles so that they contain a few good keywords to get more search engine traffic, but at the end of the day my main focus is providing quality, well-written content.
Marelisa’s last blog post..Five Simple Ways to Create Passive Income
Rita responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 3:30 pm →
Vered,
WAY out of the way here…I’d like to leave a comment on what you said in Tim’s comments today. Those with a physical (like myself) or mental handicap MUST think differently. However, you don’t necessarily lose choice - your choices change, and you need to be amenable to that, or lead a horrible life.
I DID like the way you phrased your comments - and stood behind them. Nice job!
Rita
Rita’s last blog post..Rest In Peace, Dear Joey G. – Your Damn Dad Molested Me
Ellen Wilson responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 3:49 pm →
Noticed you put up your RSS button. Let us know if it increases your readership.
Yeah, I know all about SEO. It is boring boring and more boring. Hunter wrote a funny post about it.
I don’t know what Technorati is. There are things I would rather just be naive about right now.
Of course you know I dig a good debate. I’ll see what’s going on at Monika’s.
Have a good weekend. E
Ellen Wilson’s last blog post..The Forward Momentum of Bloggery (continued)
Cath Lawson responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 3:50 pm →
Hi Vered - sometimes I find it easier to write, then change the phrase for a more popular one afterwards. Trouble is - afterwards doesn’t always come, as writing is more exciting than researching popular keyphrases.
Cath Lawson’s last blog post..The Dirty Word In The Blogosphere
MomGrind responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 4:10 pm →
@ Sarah: I agree that regular readers are more important than traffic, although for advertisers, supposedly traffic is more important.
@ Marelisa: “at the end of the day my main focus is providing quality, well-written content.” And it shows! This is my main focus too.
@ Rita: I emailed you.
@ Ellen: “Noticed you put up your RSS button. Let us know if it increases your readership.” So far, not at all. Subscriber count was 329 when I put it up, then went down to 318 (yesterday) and today it shows 304. If this trend of losing about 10 subscribers per day continues, I’ll be left with no subscribers at all in about a month.
Anyway, I plan to keep it up for a while and I also plan to write a post about it soon.
@ Cath: Writing first, then making it more SE friendly might work for me.
Andy responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 4:23 pm →
No matter how much I read on SEO I never understood how it works. I just write about my life experiences as a 16 year old minor, and all the troubled antics me and my friends get into. I feel, even if I can entertain 1 person, I’m happy. But it would be nice to get an ad click here and there… but I never do. I guess if you want to be an ad type person, you are going to have to give what readers want… and not what you want to give.
Rita responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 5:00 pm →
Vered,
You must think I’m following you around, but I just left a message at Barb’s site for you.
And for clarification to all: Vered made that comment to which I referred on Tim’s blog on June 21st. I should have been clearer, and I apologize. Nonetheless, the comment deserves its due, as it is perceptive and profound. I just needed to read that post at Tim’s today…and I couldn’t help noticing Vered’s second (I believe) commentl I believe the name of the post was “Watch Your Language.”
Tim’s post that (and other) day was wonderful, and was illucidated by Vered’s perceptive comment.
My apologies for not being clearer,
Rita
Sara at On Simplicity responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 5:23 pm →
I’m in agreement with you. I write for readers on purpose and ignore SEO for the most part. I could do more, and probably should, but I’d like to focus my limited attention on interesting ideas and engaging writing. It’s proven easy for me to get sucked into the SEO black hole, since there’s such vast quantities of information out there. It’s actually pretty fascinating, and too much of a temptation for me.
Oh, and that Fashion Mistakes post totally did the trick! I absolutely Stumbled it, so whatever your strategy was, it worked.
Sara at On Simplicity’s last blog post..Three Things You Wish You’d Known at 20
Chris responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 5:38 pm →
I write for people also…If you noticed on my site, I’m trying to draw people out to comment while at the same time stay honest with my thoughts. Besides, I don’t really have the time to worry about SEO.
Chris’s last blog post..It Is In The Eyes of The Beholder
Bamboo Forest responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 6:32 pm →
“What about you? Do you write with search engines or social media sites in mind?”
Yes and no. Indeed, like you - I don’t really pay attention to SEO. I just don’t.
But, to the question of do I write for social media success - in a way. Because often social media does honor good material. And I’m always trying to write material readers will appreciate.
That being said, lots of what I do write will not do well with SU and the like. And I wouldn’t change it one bit - because like you - my readers are my priority.
Bamboo Forest’s last blog post..Why Having to Say Hello Twice can Be So Awkward
Urban Panther responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 9:33 pm →
First I write for myself and my readers. No contraints, no forced wording. Then, in my tags I put relevant keywords. I wasn’t very good at coming up with relevant keywords in the beginning. The Lion, however, has experience in another blog life (helping someone else) and taught me ‘how to think’. It’s a lot easier now coming up with keywords, but they must be DIRECTLY RELEVANT. For example, on my vasectomy post I wrote men’s health, birth control, planned parenting. I refused to write down descriptive, yet dubious, words describing that part of the male’s anatomy. Like you said, the readers who pick up on those words, aren’t interested in what I have to say.
Urban Panther’s last blog post..The Samson Factor
MomGrind responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 9:50 pm →
@ Andy: You are 16! Oh my, that’s young. Welcome to MomGrind! I think it’s fine to just write about your experiences. Lots of people do that.
@ Rita: Thank you! No need to apologize.
@ Sara: I agree that there’s a limit to what we can do. It’s a matter of priorities. Thank you for the stumble… much appreciated.
@ Chris: “I’m trying to draw people out to comment while at the same time stay honest with my thoughts” – I really like that. It makes people WANT to join the discussion.
@ Bamboo Forest: I think it’s about finding balance. As long as we don’t try to turn ALL our posts into social-media-material, it’s fine to do it once in a while. After all, it’s fun!
@ Urban Panther: I like your system. It makes a lot of sense to write first, then add appropriate tags.
J.D. Meier responds:
Posted: August 22nd, 2008 at 10:27 pm →
I agree. Write for humans, then optimize for SEO.
Sadly, it’s tough to cut through what matters with SEO unless you have the tools, experience, and know the right people. I wasted a lot of energy to find out what matters, so I’ll share lessons learned in a future post. For now, here’s one quick tip about optimizing your SEO for humans …
If you google your blog and you don’t like the description that people see, set the meta description tag (otherwise it’s a scraping from your main page). Remember that just showing up in search results isn’t enough. A human has to want to click your link so your description should be relevant and compelling. I hit this when my google search description was a really bad mash up of pieces from my main page.
On a good note, in general your results are more about what you do outside your blog than in it (guest posting on authority sites, articles, links from authority sites, … etc.)
J.D. Meier’s last blog post..10 Years Younger
Kelly@SHE-POWER responds:
Posted: August 23rd, 2008 at 2:08 am →
I see I’m late to the party here, but I’ll give my 10 cents worth anyway. Since I don’t even have a niche, I think it’s safe to assume I write for me and anyone who’s interested in having a chat and a laugh about life. I have had quite a bit of success on StumbleUpon but only one of those posts did I ever think would do well.
After spending years honing my writing to be on marketing message for my work, I actually find myself resistant to applying that promotional thinking to my blog. SHE-POWER is about my unique writing voice and communicating my ideas and feelings to others. If I deliberately warp it to be popular, then it’d be like changing my personality and style to fit in more. As I get older I’m trying to embrace MORE of my individuality, not less.
I’m not saying I think people who write for Digg or StumbleUpon or search engines are doing the wrong thing, it’s just not something I’m interested in right now. Who knows, this could always change.
On a side note, I do get a decent amount of traffic from people looking for smut. I don’t know why, except maybe SHE-POWER and tags like “women” just deliver those kind of people.
Kelly
Monika Mundell responds:
Posted: August 23rd, 2008 at 7:12 am →
Hi Vered,
I’m also late to the party. Your post is an interesting take at the views from the other side. Let me explain what I mean. In our great discussion on Cath’s blog I did mention that I write for people and I stand by that. I do, always have, always will. My business is my passion and I’m living my passion by writing my blog.
As it happens, my Manifesto blog is also my business blog in some ways. I suppose it is part personal, because I write about my journey, but it is also geared at business because it is in the freelance writing niche. I hope that makes sense.
When I write my posts I do it with my heart, but sometimes I am purposely optimizing them for SEO. The reason being, is that I am trying to rank well in my industry eventually. I need to do this in order to be found which increases the chances of potential clients finding me too.
My blog is actually the single biggest reason I have been able to work my freelance writing business full time since the beginning of this year. Therefore it is important for me to do both. Since my primary goal has always been to help others who are new in the industry I have to keep writing for people, but at the same time I also have to optimize my posts on occasions.
This is perhaps my biggest challenge.
So while it is noble to say I don’t write for search engines, many do and their income depends on it. I happen to know a lot about SEO because I have been doing a lot of work for clients in this field. Contrary to some of your readers here I don’t find SEO nasty, bad, wrong or boring. In fact it is a different ball game that is exciting to learn and beat.
As far as writing for social networks goes, I clearly suck at that.
Monika Mundell’s last blog post..Blog Communications
Andre Kibbe responds:
Posted: August 23rd, 2008 at 9:13 am →
Like you, I write for humans, not bots. I’m willing to study SEO to find out if there are any tips that are applicable without having to with self-consciously with keywords in mind. It doesn’t look like much is applicable after all
Thanks for the tip about the Wordpress All-in-One SEO Plugin!
Andre Kibbe’s last blog post..Seven Problems with a Someday/Maybe List — and Ways to Correct Them
MomGrind responds:
Posted: August 23rd, 2008 at 9:26 am →
@ J.D.: Thanks for the tip! I do perform a Google search for my blog’s name as well as my full name once in a while, and am happy with the results so far.
@ Kelly: “I’m not saying I think people who write for Digg or StumbleUpon or search engines are doing the wrong thing, it’s just not something I’m interested in right now.” I agree. Although, as I said in the post, once in a while I do craft a post that is aimed at social media success.
Smut. That’s funny. “maybe SHE-POWER and tags like “women” just deliver those kind of people.” – probably.
@ Monika: I agree that SEO shouldn’t be a dirty word. Personally, what I’m taking away from this discussion is that it makes sense to write a post, then go over it and optimize. It seems to me that this approach would work well for me.
“In fact it is a different ball game that is exciting to learn and beat.” – I totally get it. The same is true for social media. Writing in a way that gets you to the front page of a social media site and watching the WAVES of visitors (thousands and tens of thousands for a blog that usually gets up to a thousand page views per day) is super exciting. I just don’t want it to ONLY be about that, because I believe that ultimately it will hurt the quality of my blog.
@ Andre: I really liked the solution that several readers suggested here – write as usual, then go over the post and edit for SEO. Glad you are going to use the plugin – I’m no expert but it seems to be a good idea to install it, especially for writers that don’t want to be bothered too much with SEO.
Christina responds:
Posted: August 23rd, 2008 at 1:24 pm →
VERED!! You do whatever you want! (As long as you love what you’re doing!)
Christina’s last blog post..Fix A Broken Heart [pic]
Shilpan | successsoul.com responds:
Posted: August 23rd, 2008 at 1:31 pm →
Vered - This is an important topic to discuss as I’m seeing more focus around the blogoshpere on writing with SEO in mind. For our niche, it’s as fake as Hugh Hefner choosing to have more Viagra in his body than blood to prove his manliness at his age. Let’s write for the real people with real voice and trash SEO-cratic thoughts.
Shilpan
Shilpan | successsoul.com’s last blog post..An Interview with Tim Brownson
Cath Lawson responds:
Posted: August 23rd, 2008 at 6:49 pm →
@ Shilpan - As you know, I love the stuff you write. And you do write for people. But you also seem to be an active Digg user and you do seem to write posts that Digg users like.
While there’s nothing wrong with that - and they are excellent posts, I don’t think it’s fair to trash people who optimize posts for search engines.
Cath Lawson’s last blog post..Internet Popularity - Are You Faking It?
Evelyn Lim responds:
Posted: August 24th, 2008 at 2:41 am →
Personally I don’t think that there is anything wrong with writing for SEO but the thing is to make sure that the content is readable. I use google search a lot and it’s always nice to be able to find the info that I need in a single page that provides me with the answers.
From the perspective of a webmaster, writing for SEO can help us attract new readers. It is a technique that uses the lure of targeted content to get targeted customers. Of course…I have to admit that it will be boring for existing readers if all the articles on my blog look the standard keyword optimised ones. It’ll be a great idea to have a mix of both - some for creating conversation and some for SEO purposes.
Evelyn Lim’s last blog post..Guest Post: 7 Tips On How To Handle Rejection In Life
Tom Volkar / Delightful Work responds:
Posted: August 24th, 2008 at 7:48 am →
Vered I love this discussion. Thanks for this post because I originally missed Cath’s post and got the change to read it. How the hell do you guys stay abreast of so much? Whew! Well that’s another topic.
I understand both sides of this equation and it’s only laziness in learning them that stops me from understand and using SEO strategies more.
Like Monika I get most of my coaching clients from my blog now and that’s a true blessing. Blogging for me is a kind of conversational marketing that gives great added value and gives me the opportunity to create community. What a blessing it is!
Tom Volkar / Delightful Work’s last blog post..Everything Counts So Make It Count
betsy responds:
Posted: August 24th, 2008 at 11:26 am →
Hmm. Never gave either one a thought. Call me old fashioned, but I write to know I exist. That and to free us some space in my head now and then. Boy do I have a lot to learn. Maybe tomorrow.
betsy’s last blog post..not too cool for school after all
MomGrind responds:
Posted: August 24th, 2008 at 1:31 pm →
@ Christine: I think doing whatever I want is an excellent idea.
@ Shilpan & Cath: I guess it’s a matter of finding a balance. I really like the idea of writing as usual, then editing fro SEO. I also like the idea of writing a social-media=optimized post once in a while and asking one’s social media network to help get it to the front page. The key words here (no pun intended): once in a while. Definitely not for every post.
@ Evelyn: “It’ll be a great idea to have a mix of both - some for creating conversation and some for SEO purposes.” Very true. Also agree that SEO does help readers find targeted material. It’s not a BAD thing, as long as it’s not a writer’s only focus.
@ Tom: Definitely, for a blog like yours, or Monika’s, it makes a lot of sense to be aware of SEO. After all, you want the right people to find your blog.
@ Betsy: “I write to know I exist”. I LOVE this statement.
Ellen Wilson responds:
Posted: August 24th, 2008 at 2:28 pm →
This just makes me wonder about RSS. How many people are actually cleaning out their feeds regularly like that? And since Google owns RSS now, apparently we have days with no subscribers.
I remember firing up the blog and seeing I had no subscribers. That was trippy. I thought someone had hijacked my account. Then they came back.
I’m also wondering how to check on people’s RSS numbers to see if they’re bogus or not. Some of them I just don’t believe. I do think it’s misleading advertising. But there are no RSS police running around, and the Web is like the Wild West.
Ellen Wilson’s last blog post..The Forward Momentum of Bloggery (continued)
MomGrind responds:
Posted: August 24th, 2008 at 3:04 pm →
@ Ellen: I know. The entire thing is weird. The best way I found to check how many subscribers a blog has is to click the “show details” link in Google Reader. It’s only a percentage of total subscribers, and I’m sure it’s not 100% accurate, but as far as I know, unlike feedburner stats, it can’t be tinkered with.
So if for me it shows around 110 subscribers, I know that blogs that have around 100 Google Reader subscribers are about the same size as MomGrind. It also seems like the total number of subscribers, for many blogs, tends to be roughly 3 times the number that Google Reader shows.
Any blog that displays much more than that (as in, 10 or more times the Google Reader number) in their feedburner button, or any blog where the subscriber base miraculously grew from a few hundreds to a few thousands in a very short time, is a bit suspicious, although I would be VERY careful before openly accusing anyone of lying.
Kelly@SHE-POWER responds:
Posted: August 24th, 2008 at 9:40 pm →
I have followed this thread and read Cath’s article about faking RSS susbcribers and I think it all depends on your audience. People with certain niches attract bloggers and they use readers and they may also feel the need to have high RSS numbers.
I have hardly any Google Reader subscribers and half my subscribers come via email so I’m thinking this means I have lots of non-blogging readers. If you applied that 3X rule to me I’d have a total of 30 readers, and believe me after a year of blogging I’d give up if that’s all the people I had coming back to SHE-POWER. Feedburner said I have 187 subscribers a week ago and that’s okay, though it would be nice if my subscribers matched my traffic numbers, which are much higher
You know the funny thing? When I looked through my email list before writing to you, I noticed that a lot of my blogging friends and regular commentors read me via email. Isn’t that strange. You’d think they would get the feed. Maybe I have an email kind of vibe…
Kelly
Kelly@SHE-POWER’s last blog post..An Extract From My Novel, “Running With The Dead”
MomGrind responds:
Posted: August 24th, 2008 at 9:53 pm →
@ Kelly: I’m glad you told me that the X3 rule does not necessarily apply. I’m working on a post on the subject and I was wondering if I could include this “rule” in the post. I wouldn’t want to imply that people have fewer subscribers than they actually have. I will edit it out. Thank you.
Davina responds:
Posted: August 24th, 2008 at 10:14 pm →
Hi Vered. I felt like copying and pasting Chase’s comment word for word. I too have no interest in SEO. I just like to write and am actually getting tired of checking my stats. My creative part is getting squashed as I try to write what I think I should write. I’m losing sight of why I started to blog in the first place — because I love to write! Great post!
Davina’s last blog post..My Turn To Be Seen
Natural responds:
Posted: August 25th, 2008 at 2:55 am →
nope, i don’t write for search engines…don’t want to be bothered. the minute i start writing for someone else it will be called work and i better be getting paid.
not checking stats, not using keywords, don’t care about SEO or page rank, but like you of course i want my blog to get traffic and while some blogs and businesses may need to use these things, i don’t have to. i don’t want to turn it into anything other than what it is….fun.
Natural’s last blog post..Doggone, Grandma
Monika Mundell responds:
Posted: August 25th, 2008 at 3:23 am →
@ Vered: I loved the way you said the following: “I just don’t want it to ONLY be about that, because I believe that ultimately it will hurt the quality of my blog. ”
This is so true and like you stated later in a comment to Cath and Shilpan, it is the balance that matters most. I agree because sometimes we have to tip the scales one way or another. In the end, if the balance is right this never matters.
@ Shilpan: I hear you, but I think you can actually do both. Write for people and do SEO. No need to trash anybody.
@ Evelyn: Great point, - the content has to be readable. I so agree with that one. I also think in the end it comes down to the personal pride of bloggers and how they write for SEO. I have friends who write crappy articles, only to rank well and cash in some dollars. Now, while there is nothing wrong with cashing in, I don’t agree with having to limit our pride when it comes to writing. By keeping the end user in mind, SEO written posts can both be effective and great to read.
@ Tom: Isn’t it awesome too?
I honestly get a kick out of anybody that contacts me and says I helped them with my blog. It is so powerful I sometimes even squash the odd tear, but enough of that. Helping others is one of the most fulfilling things we can do, regardless how.
@ Ellen: If you right click on the feedburner graphic in a blog (you know, where you see the actual subscriber number displayed), you will see a link that says properties, click on that. If the link of the image is the actual link of the blog’s feed - which can be easily verified, then the number is correct.
Hope this helps.
Monika Mundell’s last blog post..The Dark Side Of Writing
Anthony a.k.a. OldSchoolSEO responds:
Posted: August 25th, 2008 at 11:13 am →
Vered, you are doing the right thing by being yourself and connecting with your community. People sense when bloggers are genuine, and it helps to foster community and build your following. If you do the right thing, the traffic will follow. If you obsess about traffic and gaming social media, it can backfire, or just end up in worthless traffic. I would rather have 500 people connect with me that are interested in being a part of my online community, rather than a “social media windfall” of 10,000 visitors to a blog post if only 5 of them ever came back to my site.
Anthony a.k.a. OldSchoolSEO’s last blog post..A Tribute to LeRoi Moore of Dave Matthews Band
MomGrind responds:
Posted: August 25th, 2008 at 2:02 pm →
@ Davina: “My creative part is getting squashed as I try to write what I think I should write.” I can relate. I started blogging because I was curious about the medium. I wasn’t even sure why. But it was lots of fun – until I started focusing so much on technicalities.
@ Natural: You make two statements that I very much relate to:
“the minute i start writing for someone else it will be called work and i better be getting paid.”
And: “i don’t want to turn it into anything other than what it is….fun.”
I think once I realized that my blog was really growing, once I had over 100 subscribers (which I NEVER thought would happen), I started pushing myself a little too hard.
@ Monika: The idea that appeals to me most, and what I am likely to take from this discussion, is writing first, then editing for SEO.
Re Feedburner, those numbers can be faked WITHIN Feedburner. Problogger wrote about it a few weeks ago.
@ Anthony: I would rather have 500 people connect with me that are interested in being a part of my online community, rather than a “social media windfall” of 10,000 visitors to a blog post if only 5 of them ever came back to my site. I agree!
Shamelle - TheEnhanceLife responds:
Posted: August 26th, 2008 at 4:07 am →
HI Vered,
You raised from interesting points.
I used a mix, of writing for SEO and “just being” me. The issue with me is that I want people to read what I write. I spend about 7-10 hours on each post and if a few people read it, I don’t feel motivate to put that much effort into my writing.
Shamelle
Shamelle - TheEnhanceLife’s last blog post..8 Skinny Habits To Lose Weight Naturally
MomGrind responds:
Posted: August 26th, 2008 at 11:40 am →
@ Shamelle: “I spend about 7-10 hours on each post”. Wow. That’s a lot. It makes sense that you would want people to read if you put so much work into each post!
Zandria responds:
Posted: August 26th, 2008 at 7:37 pm →
Write for yourself, and then you won’t regret it — that’s what I always tell myself.
Zandria’s last blog post..Does Astrology Play a Role in Romantic Compatibility?
MomGrind responds:
Posted: August 26th, 2008 at 8:14 pm →
@ Zandria: I agree!
Ricardo Bueno responds:
Posted: August 27th, 2008 at 10:15 pm →
I write for “community.” Even when you are blogging for business, you need to understand how to build and manage a community ‘first.’ SEO is great, but if you don’t know how to manage your customer interactions, what’s the point?
Ricardo Bueno’s last blog post..[Repost] "Inbox Taming for Busy People"
hank responds:
Posted: August 29th, 2008 at 11:56 am →
At first I started writing thinking about the overall picture - google search, pagerank, etc. How else would I get people to come to my site? I think it is a good way to START out, but as your blog grows, you’ve got a steady base of readers, and you don’t need to go out and attract new people as much. You’ve GOT your people. Once I got a few people that were actually interested in what I had to say, I figured they liked what I was doing and could just write “from the hip”.
I like the “from the hip” approach as we’ve actually discussed before, put it on and let people discuss as they’d like. Ultimately, it’s their decision to stay or go, and if they’re staying when you’re “from the hip”, I think you’ve found the niche.
hank’s last blog post..Would You Rather Have a Higher Pay “Ceiling” Or Just a Higher Pay? Easy, Right? Well…
MomGrind responds:
Posted: August 29th, 2008 at 1:14 pm →
@ Ricardo:: I agree.
@ Hank:: “if they’re staying when you’re “from the hip”, I think you’ve found the niche.” That’s reassuring… I’ve been writing about whatever I want to, and it seems like SOMEONE is interested in reading.
RC responds:
Posted: August 29th, 2008 at 8:15 pm →
I write for me.
No money being made for having people read it. No manipulating of numbers.
When stats go up, I do get excited - especially when it has to do with something that we are going through, and I realize millions of others have the same issues. I also like knowing that people enjoy my writing and the pictures.
But the blog, it is for me. It is for my family. It is allows me to take care of the little portion of me that is an attention-whore. It allows me to brag about my exceptionally bright and handsome toddler (since all moms think our children are above average in many ways) and it just lets me write. Something I need to do.
That is my blog.
p.s. Okay, a few of my titles were picked, as not only did they fit, I knew they would make people want to look. It is only good journalism, right?
p.p.s. And I hate posts that appear to just be written for search engines, or ones that are ads in disguise. Yuck. If you found a great product, share - but there just comes a point when…
RC’s last blog post..Devilish Duo
MomGrind responds:
Posted: August 29th, 2008 at 9:43 pm →
@ RC: “It is allows me to take care of the little portion of me that is an attention-whore. ” I’ll admit that this is a big part of blogging.
How To Lose 100 Subscribers in 4 Days | MomGrind responds:
Posted: September 2nd, 2008 at 1:01 am →
[…] of a blog’s total subscriber count, and I’m sure it’s not always accurate (see this comment by Kelly of She-Power), but as far as I know, it can’t be tinkered with. So, by comparing […]
What’s in a Number? responds:
Posted: October 17th, 2008 at 7:04 am →
[…] on numbers when it comes to blogging is it can have a negative impact on your blog. If you’re obsessed with SEO (ie ranking highly on Google), you’re articles can start to sound awkward and uninspired as […]
How To Get More Blog Subscribers | responds:
Posted: November 4th, 2008 at 8:37 pm →
[…] some basic SEO techniques and install the Wordpres SEO plugin. Yes, I said a few weeks ago that SEO is a waste of time. I’m an idiot. Of course it’s not a waste of time. While SEO shouldn’t take over […]