As a writer, I’ve always stood by the tenet that content is king. Yes, promotion is important – if no one knows what you’re creating, they’re not going to see it. But marketing is just the doorway. You’ve got to have something worth directing people to.
IMO, the SEO vs content is moot. It’s not even 50/50. It’s more like 30/70, weighted toward content.
Without good content, you have nothing to point people to.
Without good content, they have no reason to keep coming back.
As Google algorithms grow increasingly sophisticated, cheap white hat tricks are dying. SEO and readability are becoming more synonymous and they aren’t mutually exclusive anymore. Hopefully we’ll see fewer of those dreadful SEO writer gigs for cents around and instead see investment into real writing and quality content. Maybe.
Blast from the past…
One year ago I shared some tech tools I swear by, traditional things I don’t care about, discussed suburb snobbery and what I liked about my then-neighbourhood, plus how driving style reflects your personality.
Two years ago I published one of my most popular posts ever – my opinion on dream jobs/passion jobs, wondered what true employment independence means, tried to express what it’s like to have writing in your blood, the benefits of driving an old car, and tracked how I spent all my time over the course of a week (it’d look different now – I no longer own a guitar and spend more hours working…)
Three years ago I wrote about doing our bit in a fucked up world, whether mystery shopping was worth the time (I tallied up my earnings for the year) and shared some foodie confessions.
And, for a laugh, four years ago I was contemplating facing life after graduation. It turned out okay, 2009 me!
And now, some links I liked this week:
LIFE
Here are some ways to simplify your internet habits from Zen Habits
Yes and Yes on all the ways she’ll know she’s made it . Just another milestone, and another … I can so relate
An amazing story on Grow about becoming homeless and surviving by hustling
MONEY
Thanks to Frugal Portland for including my post on the extra expenses that come with summer in this week’s carnival of personal finance
Small Steps for Big Change now knows first hand the dangers of cosigning a loan
My Broken Coin lists 10 things you’ll gain if you stop being cheap
Mochi and Macarons suggests budgeting yearly for freelancers with variable income
Some tips on creating a realistic travel budget, via She Wears A Red Sox Cap
Wealth Informatics walks us step by step through how to negotiate lower cellphone bills
WORK/CAREER
Been screwed over by your boss? Untemplater considers the best way to handle the situation
From Make a Living Writing, why you need to build your social media audience now
Do you have a job, or a j-o-b? This Redhead Writing post is by far the best thing I came across in the past week.
“For seventeen years, I had a j-o-b. Lots of them, in fact. They each offered me health insurance, 401ks, stock options, paid time off, sick days, and a rock-solid paycheck every two weeks. I went to work, I did my work, and I went home. Oftentimes, the w-o-r-k from the j-o-b followed me home.
“But there was an achy space — I guess to be honest, there were achy spaces. The spaces in between every task. Between my front door and the car door. Between my car and the front door of the office. Between every task throughout the day, that bit of bliss before I had to pick up and do something else for someone else. The spaces between paychecks grew more and more achy.”
Now that is the kind of writing that gives me the shivers.
