Using Content Clusters to Grow your Business
Search engines and social media platforms are changing their algorithms. Instead of the focus on keywords, these search engines now show preferences to clusters of content around particular topics. Marketers are now linking content to form clusters around topics related to their industry.
How to Create Content Clusters
A content cluster structure allows search engines to understand the relationship between different pages and determine which topics your business is an authority on. Start by creating a content pillar page that outlines the topic you want to expand on. As you build your related content, you will always link back to the main topic, or pillar.
The pillars are pages that broadly represent your topic of choice. For example, if you are a company that specializes in pet grooming, your topic should be “pet grooming.” The clusters around the pillars focus on specific keywords such as, “best dog washing in town,” or “where to get your pet groomed.” The pillar links to each of these cluster pages and vice versa. This means that when one page performs well, the entire cluster will get a boost.
Expanding your Reach
The key thing to keep in mind is your target audience. If you do not already know your target audience, identify who they are by examining your analytics, and what content they would like to see and it what context. You should be writing content that users actually need, rather than just trying to hit on keywords. It is also a good idea to keep up with your competitors sites to see which topics they are targeting the most. Every time a customer touches base with your brand, they’ll build up an image of trust.
Longterm Benefits
This will help boost rankings, and ultimately increase organic traffic. This allows relevant users to find you, rather than spam that can come from paid advertising. Topic clusters signal to search engines that you are an expert within that category, making it that much more likely to land your business page on the top page on Google.