What Really Is a "Quality" Post?

[AdamMcDonald]

Let me start by stating that I am a newbie into this whole online writing arena. I have seen countless articles on SEO that very specifically ask us to write 'quality' articles for the long term benefits. That's fine. But what really is a quality article?

Is it SEO-wise qualitative?

A few guidelines I follow when writing are the tips given by Yoast on Wordpress.

- 300 or more words
- images with alt tags
- headings with keyword included
- title with keyword
- first paragraph with keyword
- meta description with keyword
- slug short and sweet, with keyword
- keyword density less than 4% (i think)
- outbound links

So getting these things right makes it a 'quality' article? or are there any other things to look for?

I think this will be a very important thread for all the newbies, so pro-users please chip in. Thanks in advance!

 

[Brad100]

A good article can be what you've stated above. But I think an effective article for SEO shouldn't be any shorter than 500 words. And yeah, keyword density of <4 is good.

 

[White Night]

here you go: " http://www.blackhatworld.com/blackh...xcellent-content-ranks-pictures-included.html "

 

[sashablack]

Looks good And also make sure the article is easy to read, thats very important

-Sasha

 

[rankspire]

Well pointed out. This is something which every marketer and writer should read and implement on their projects. This is why BHW is such a worthy place.

here you go: " http://www.blackhatworld.com/blackh...xcellent-content-ranks-pictures-included.html "

 

[mschum]

For money site articles I would keep it 500 words or greater

 

[Zwielicht]

Let me start by stating that I am a newbie into this whole online writing arena. I have seen countless articles on SEO that very specifically ask us to write 'quality' articles for the long term benefits. That's fine. But what really is a quality article?

Is it SEO-wise qualitative?

A few guidelines I follow when writing are the tips given by Yoast on Wordpress.

- 300 or more words
- images with alt tags
- headings with keyword included
- title with keyword
- first paragraph with keyword
- meta description with keyword
- slug short and sweet, with keyword
- keyword density less than 4% (i think)
- outbound links

So getting these things right makes it a 'quality' article? or are there any other things to look for?

I think this will be a very important thread for all the newbies, so pro-users please chip in. Thanks in advance!

You're bound to receive different answers to this question, although in my opinion, I would define a quality post as a post with the following attributes:

• Clearly communicates the message to the target audience.
• Excellent spelling.
• Excellent grammar.
• Relevant images that support the article.
• An article written for (or mostly for) the reader, not for search engines.
• A keyword density that isn't too high or too low (I prefer to keep mine between 1% and 3%)
• Optimised tags, titles, and headings that include your targeted keyword
• LSI keywords to avoid redundancy in longer articles.

 

[AdamMcDonald]

A good article can be what you've stated above. But I think an effective article for SEO shouldn't be any shorter than 500 words. And yeah, keyword density of <4 is good.

Ok 500 words. Noted.

 

[AdamMcDonald]

here you go: " http://www.blackhatworld.com/blackh...xcellent-content-ranks-pictures-included.html "

Thanks. This was really helpful.

 

[Aty]

What I call a quality article has 2000+ words.

 

[mickyfu]

You want to know what real quality posts are, take a look through my profile.

 

[KHer0]

For me, Quality articles are the ones who will make the user do what I want

In Amazon websites, All I want is the users to leave my website as soon as they can and jump to Amazon

In the old days people use to make pages with Ads only, or Banners above the fold ... etc ! Why? Because it will get them the best conversion

So, before answering your question about Quality article, I will Ask You...

Quality Article for What ?!

 

[Conor]

The article could be a whole bunch of "Lorem Ipsum" with a few keywords sprinkled in, and it would still tick all the boxes OP mentioned.

Make the article interesting to read first, then go ahead and optimise it. That's a "Quality Post" in my opinion.

 

[srb888]

Add:

It should be
Tantalizing
Thought-provoking
Tempting
Targeted
Tasteful
Tying till the end
And tormenting till the next part comes out!

 

[djw1606]

OP - Your post describes an SEO optimized post. While that is important for the post, it is not a sign of quality. You can optimize garbage.

For me, a quality article should:

1 - engage the reader
2 - build trust with the author
3 - position the site as an authority on the subject

On top of that, you then need to get the reader to take the action that you desire, such as sign-up to your list or buy a product; but that is more to do with writing sales copy.

 

[content plaza]

somewhere 500 words articles are useful. For education sites more than 500 words.. Overall article should be easy to understand and on the topic.

 

[mickyfu]

I see loads of keywords ranking in the casino niche with very little wordage on page, in fact I was just going through some keywords and the whole top 15 had between 50 - 100 words at the most, repetitive keyword stuffed shit too.

 

[AdamMcDonald]

Thanks to all of you. This has been really helpful.

Now I know 'quality' is not about the metrics. It's about achieving what you want to achieve with the article. Thank you all for the excellent replies.

 

[letsmakesomemoneynow]

I think it depends on who you are writing for. Some places don't want articles full of key words. I think the most important thing is good grammar and spelling. And the number one important thing is targeting your market, which can be the hardest. You need to study the site you want to get published in. You must read their rules, and what they are looking for. You need to see if there is already a site out there that is publishing in the style you usually write. Then you have to make sure that what ever you are writing about, is a subject that has not already been written about on that site. If so, then you have to put a different twist to it, and look at it in a different way. It is best to go for the upfront payment sites, not the pay per view.

 

[Nivlak]

OP - Your post describes an SEO optimized post. While that is important for the post, it is not a sign of quality. You can optimize garbage.

For me, a quality article should:

1 - engage the reader
2 - build trust with the author
3 - position the site as an authority on the subject

On top of that, you then need to get the reader to take the action that you desire, such as sign-up to your list or buy a product; but that is more to do with writing sales copy.

I thought this was obvious by 2015, but apparently people forget that other people will read the post, not only the search engine =p