By its very nature, content marketing is an SEO-heavy marketing exercise. Aside from on-site content, which can be used for a wide variety of purposes and commercial activities, off-site article content is typically used as a direct traffic method. While driving the traffic is not exactly SEO science, getting it often is. With a few quick SEO fixes, a potentially average article can turn into a great one.

Remember, the goal of any online article is not to teach the reader everything they need to know, but to push them further towards a purchase. Sometimes that means informing them of certain characteristics of what you are selling. Other times, it could mean convincing them that the purchase really is worth their time. No matter what your intentions, your content is just one part of the search-read-buy puzzle.

While the content of your article can master the ‘read’, and hopefully the ‘buy’ aspects of article marketing, the structure of your article needs to cover the ’search’. These four tips can help you change your articles from ‘unrankable’ to top-ranking with just a few modifications. Before you start your next SEO-powered article marketing campaign, grab your SEO notebook and jot these content marketing SEO tips down.

1. Keep your major keyword in the article title.
This one change can move your articles from fifth-page to first-page when applied to an article with enough backlinks. Whenever you are writing an article with the goal of targeting a specific keyword, make sure that it features prominently in the title. Sometimes, it is even worthwhile to sacrifice readability slightly to ensure that your primary keyword features dead center in the article’s title. Just make sure that you do not overdo it or your readers will make it a point to avoid you.

2. Shape your entire campaign around keywords, not information.
Remember, you are not writing a feature article for a top magazine. The purpose of your article is not to turn the reader into an educated, well-read conversation starter but to push them towards buying a product. Shape your campaigns around keywords that convert for your products — buying keywords, ‘where can I buy ___’ keywords, and pre-sell keywords. Leave information that teaches to newspapers, and focus on information that search engines love.

3. Back up your primary article with links from secondary ones.
Primary articles are somewhat unknown to beginner internet marketers and content marketing newbies. While most people go into article marketing with the goal of SEO juice from an article to a sales-focused website, some smart marketers have used other articles to superpower their major articles, and in turn deliver even more SEO power to their major websites.

Start by grouping your articles into ‘master’ and ’slave’ categories. Separate them according to quality and popularity, and then link all of your ’slave’ articles to their relatively ‘masters’. With a small amount of work and planning, your articles will soon all pick up more SEO power, leaving your sales-focused websites with significantly higher search rankings.

4. Use your resource box for what it’s made for.
Which is linking, of course. It is depressing to come to the end of a good article only to find that the author has missed their chance to give away a good link. Whenever you get the chance to link back from your articles, take it. Content marketing may be free, but that does not mean that you are free to waste opportunities.

© 2010, Ask Steven Hippe. All rights reserved.