What is Content Relevance?
Content relevance is one of the key factors that help you make your optimization better. Although it is one of many parameters that improve SEO, it is equally important to consider.
It typically reflects the amount of correspondence between a website’s page content and users’ queries. Simply put, the more the page’s content relates to the query, the more relevance it can gain.
As a result of it, that webpage will get a better ranking.
One crucial point is that this factor may keep on varying with time or place.
For example, if your blog or website is about the latest fashion trends and you are missing out on a certain updated piece of information, it might not be relevant.
For this, you must go over and regularly revise the content you present to the public.
Importance in SEO
Relevance is synonymous with better optimization or ranking. More relevant content is always likely to get ranked.
SEO is about improving user experience and relevance is a vital part of it. Google is aware of what users want and it will increase or decrease your visibility likewise.
Eventually, you will have more traffic if the search engine finds you suitable for more visibility.
Relevance also plays a role in making backlinks. Backlinks or incoming links are the links from one website to a page on another website.
They ensure that a particular website with backlinks has reliable information. This way, webpages will secure a good position in search engine result pages.
How to gauge relevance?
Certain points help you gauge the relevance of the content. Your content is relevant if it:
Answers a query
If a searcher is looking for some information related to a particular subject, he/she might have certain questions about it in mind.
This query narrows down the topic and makes it more specific. In that case, a searcher will only rely on the information that gives a satisfactory answer to their query.
Corresponds to targeted keywords
Content is relevant if it is based on targeted keyword research. This research refers to finding all the popular search terms at a certain point.
Webmasters or SEO experts use tools for searching perfect keywords that meet the requirements of a user, searching a query. A thorough keyword research can help you find a targeted keyword thereby finding your targeted audience.
Another important point is the proper use of these keywords. For instance, if you have found a targeted keyword and stuffed it mindlessly into the web page's content, your targeted audience will not reach you.
Instead of it, try using them moderately throughout the content e.g. title, subheadings, and body.
Accords well with time and place
Information should not clash with timing. For instance, a blog on football must contain the latest information about who won, who was runner-up, who performed badly, etc.
If you fail to do it, there are so many places users can go to get the hotly debated news when it is the centre of attention.
Another thing to consider is that if the information pertains to a particular place, you must do location-based optimization. For this, you can search location-specific keywords to put them wisely in the content.
Speaks to a targeted audience
Content that communicates directly with the reader can be more engaging and relevant.
Even if the content answers the reader's initial question, they may leave the page if the writing style doesn't speak to them.
To keep readers interested, the content should aim to solve their problems, discuss topics they care about, or teach them something new.
Simply providing information isn't always enough - the content needs to connect with the reader and feel like a two-way conversation.
Areas to consider while making your content relevant
Title tag
Title tags describe the content you put into your webpage. Therefore, it is necessary to have relevant title tags with the correct description of the page.
This HTML element has a great impact on optimization only if it is relevant to the users’ queries.
You might get into trouble when Google does not show marked tags of HTML that you want it to use. It occurs due to several reasons like length, keyword stuffing, or irrelevance. You need to be careful while selecting tags.
Meta description
A meta description is another HTML element that gives an idea about the content of the page.
Users can read meta descriptions on search engine result pages and determine whether the content is relevant to their query or not.
Again, it also depends on keyword research. Choosing good keywords to include in the meta description is important so visitors know what the page covers.
Images and videos
Almost every webmaster has this fundamental concept of using images and videos that accord with information.
However, alt tags of the images can make or break the search engine’s decision to rank your webpage. For this, try creating corresponding alt tags.
What can you do to improve relevance?
As a website owner, you can do a few small but very important things to improve the relevance of your content.
Engage the audience with attractive headings
The heading is the first thing that the user notices. In some instances, the user will only go through the headings and jump to another page if the previous one was not engaging.
Headings must cover all the dimensions of the query that a user was looking for.
Add FAQs
FAQs are Frequently Asked Questions that users have in mind. You can add them to the content and help users read that specific question only.
Moreover, in the flow of the content, they might not understand the idea you were trying to give to the users. Therefore, using plain language and keeping the answers to the point is the key.
Target audience and search engines
We might only focus on users while considering relevance. Search engines are equally important because they are the mediators that convey your message or information to the audience.
Without their attention to your web pages, it is impossible to connect to the users.
Use relevant terms
Relevant terms or keywords are a focal point for search engines and users. They must be relevant to your topic and the searcher’s query.
Missing out on keywords while writing your content can have a major impact on ranking. Also, readers will not enjoy reading your posts.
The bottom line
On-page SEO requires your content to be appropriately relevant to search queries. However, several other factors go side by side, one example is page load time.
For instance, if a user has to wait for too long for a page to load, he might jump over to another page even if the content is relevant. Therefore, you must not neglect other aspects along with relevance.
Furthermore, building authority is a crucial step in having better optimization by search engines. Authority depends largely on the relevance of the content. Once you gain it, you will be reliable for search engines.
Every factor regarding relevance should be employed wisely. If you look over it altogether, any other attempt will be unsuccessful.