You need a search engine optimisation (SEO) strategy if you want your web content to rank on search engines like Google. In this guide, we're going to help you make your web content more search-engine friendly through SEO-optimised keyword content briefs. This way, your website can gain the exposure it deserves, leading to better web traffic and, hopefully, more sales. Let's get started!

What is a content brief?

A content brief is a documented set of instructions and requirements used in content for marketing. It's given to writers as a guide while writing specific types of write-ups, i.e. blogs, articles, case studies, etc. The requirements usually included in these briefs are:

• Word count
• Title
• Rough outline
• Topic
• Headings
• Writing tone
• Linking requirements
• Visual elements requirements
• Info about the target audience
• Suggested keywords.
  

Most importantly, this brief provides an idea of the goal of the overall content for the target audience. By having this initial documented reference before writing, writers can stay on the path and avoid rewrites.

Types of content briefs

Several types of content briefs exist for various types of write-ups. Here are the different types of content briefs and where they're used:

• SEO article brief: Used in creating SEO-friendly web content
• White paper brief: Long-form document discussing a specific topic along with its problems
• Creative content brief: Used in the creatives department; contains the summarisation of a certain advertising project
• Video production brief: Includes information that should be included in the video output
• Product page brief: A brief given to the product team that contains essential details such as goals, direction and specifications of an upcoming feature or a new product
• Local SEO optimisation brief: Used to create SEO-friendly content for brands with physical locations. The brand will improve visibility in local Google search results when followed correctly.
• Existing content optimisation brief: Used to update existing content to make it more optimised for search engines.

What is an SEO content brief?

From the name itself, an SEO article brief helps writers create blogs and articles that eventually rank well on search engines such as Google once posted on your website. These briefs are provided before the writing process, and everything the content must have to rank. This way, everyone involved in the blog will know what to include in the write-up.

You can also define this type the same as a normal content brief, with the difference being that SEO briefs are targeted towards answering a specific query. This makes sense, considering that Google uses Natural Language Processing (NLP) to interpret search queries and find the relevant results to provide to the user. For it to become optimised, a typical SEO article brief should contain details such as the following:

• Keyword analysis (Primary and secondary)
• Important questions to answer
• Headings (H2s, H3s, etc.)
• Semantic search terms
• Topics and subtopics
• Purpose of the writing piece
• Target audience
• Tone and voice
• Entities
• Target word count.
  

From there, the creator of the content brief should make a rough outline of what the eventual content would look like while these requirements are met.

Why create an SEO content brief?

Among the objectives of creating a search engine optimisation brief, ranking high on the search engine results page (SERP) is the most important. That's because achieving high rankings means that your website will have higher visibility, get the most clicks from users and thus, experience more web traffic.

This is because users looking for answers to their questions online tend to view the links on the first page as having topic authority. These pages are instantly regarded as reputable sources, and that's what SEO content briefs help you achieve.

You can think of this brief as your content plan, which contains the guidelines the writer/s must follow to achieve your blog's overall goal. Aside from that, it also contains the content format, making the structure easier for search engines to crawl.

An SEO content brief also includes the keywords that writers need to include in the blog. These keywords are generated through top SEO tools your business needs, such as Ahrefs, which detects your topic's relevant and related terms and phrases.

What are the benefits of using SEO content briefs?

Creating SEO content briefs before writing content for your website provides various advantages, such as impressive and consistent quality content. Learn more about this and other benefits in this section:

1. Cheaper content production costs

Without a content brief, your writers may produce an underwhelming output that's not up to your standards. Eventually, you'd likely have to pay additional to have it fixed. Having content briefs remove this tedious back and forth because these serve as guides for the people responsible for the project. 

2. Consistent quality content

One of the most critical factors online users look for in content is consistency. That's why you want your brand to have a single voice, tone and quality across your content as much as possible. To achieve this, you need to create content briefs. This way, the quality of your content won't depend on the writer, regardless of who will be assigned to complete a certain task since they will be following your brief.

By providing helpful content with topical relevance, you can start establishing your online presence as a site that people could rely on when searching for answers to their queries.

3. Improve your content’s search rankings

An SEO content brief provides the relevant keywords your content should have. Once Google sees that your page contains these specific words and phrases, it will see it as a prospect and display it high on its results page.

How to write an SEO brief

To help your writer create the perfect blog that will garner the most clicks for your website, here's a step-by-step guide on how to write an SEO content brief:

1. Nail down the topics you want to cover

The first step in creating an SEO content brief is nailing down a specific topic or search query that you want to write about. From there, you can list down the subtopics you want your writer to go through in the content. At first glance, it may not be much, but including these crucial points in your SEO content brief can grow your organic search traffic.

2. Include and define your target market

Knowing and defining your content's target audience is vital as it helps you adjust your writing process to fit their needs. For instance, if your topic is about 'how to write SEO content briefs', your primary target audience may be industry beginners looking to learn this subject. Once you find out your target audience, you can begin creating a rough draft of what your content will look like when it's finished.

3. Do some competitor analysis

One of the goals of content planning is to outrank other pages that solve the same query as you. That's where competitor analysis comes in. To define your competitors, you must search your keyword or query on Google and look at the top three displayed pages. 

Analyse them and make the necessary adjustments to your content to find out how you can beat their rankings on the results page. For example, if their answers don't directly address the user's question, you can make your page unique by providing a straightforward solution. 

For more thorough research, you can also use SEO tools like Ahrefs to find organic competitors. But to do this efficiently, you'll need the complete guide to competitor link analysis and follow it seamlessly.

4. Use SEO tools for keyword research

One of the most important things you need to include in your content brief is the set of keywords (KWs) related to your topic. There are two types of keywords that you should include in your brief: short-tail and long-tail. The former pertains to the ones that consist of 1 to 3 words while the latter are those that are longer and more specific. You need short-tail keywords for your casino content because they're the general words or phrases online users search for. They cast a wide net online and attract many users. 

On the other hand, long-tail keywords matter for your casino since they delve into more specific inquiries only a niche target audience searches for. Using these in your web content increases your brand's topic authority and overall online relevance.

To determine these specific terms and phrases, you can use SEO tools such as Semrush, AlsoAsked, Keyword Surfer and more. Once you've identified all your keywords, you can list the semantic keywords, which are also terms and phrases related to your main KW. 

5. Identify the search intent

The search intent pertains to why the target audience searches for their queries online in the first place. You can identify the search intent for your specific topic by typing it on Google and checking the SERP. By checking out the pages Google displays on its SERP, you can tell which types of content it tends to display. The 'People also ask' portion on the SERP also gives an insight into what users want to know about the topic. These include at least four related questions that can guide your content brief creation.

6. Include entities

Over the past couple of years, the method of searching queries on the internet has changed into a much more conversational type. Back then, keywords were strictly used, but now, search engines like Google need to understand the context of the searcher's query. This is where entities come in. Unlike keywords which are specific words and phrases, entities are defined as expressions that search engines can understand.

Some examples of entities include:

• Name
• Concept
• Event
• Numerical expressions
• Place
• Location
• Object.
  

You can think of these entities as puzzle pieces that search engines piece together to understand the searcher's intent. For instance, if the searcher types' the cheapest gaming laptops in Malaysia', here's how a search engine may understand it: 

• Object: Laptop
• Numerical expressions: Cheapest
• Location: Malaysia.
  

SEO content brief template: What it looks like

SEO content briefs are essential as they serve as guides for your content. To help you create your content brief, we've provided a template you can use to base your documents on. 

Here is the basic information a content brief should have:

Topic	The main focus of the articleSuggested anglesPotential title
Word count	500 words/1,500 words, 2,000 words, etc.
Competitor analysis	Links to the competitor’s pages
Keywords	Primary KeywordSecondary Keywords
Target audience	Who are you writing this for?
Topics and subtopics	Use H2s and H3s
Goal	What are you trying to achieve with the article?
Linking requirements	Links to other articles that need to be interlinked in the content

This SEO brief template contains all the information you need to create these briefs so you can use them as references whenever you need to. 

SEO Content Brief Example

Here's a sample of a content brief that follows this template. Below is a snippet of a keyword research sheet showing all keywords ranked according to their search volume, difficulty and traffic potential. 

Below is a sample of an SEO brief outlining the content's body, including the word count, headings and entities:

What to include in your SEO content brief

To ensure best practice in creating content briefs, make sure to include the following essential details:

1. Searcher’s intent

Since one of your main goals in posting articles online is to educate your readers, you need to consider your searcher's intent before writing anything. One great way to find the answer is by simply typing the search query on Google and seeing how the search engine interprets it. When people see that their query will be answered on your page, they'll read the entire content. Once you nail down the searcher's intent for their query, you can document it in your content brief so the writer will know the right way to approach the blog.

2. Format

One of the most important things you need to improve on your content is its crawlability which pertains to how well search engines like Google analyse and read your page. If Google can quickly scan your page, it will rank it high on its results page. Thus, you should follow a nicely-formatted structure that correctly uses headings (H2s, H3s, etc.) to improve your page's crawlability. This way, your readers and search engines can skim your page easily.

3. Topics to tackle

Of course, you must include the topics you want the writer to tackle throughout your content. These will make up most of the body of your content and should be useful in answering the searcher's queries. That's why these topics aren't random and should be formulated once you figure out your searcher's intent. This ensures that you won't veer away from what the searcher is trying to answer when they initially went to Google for their queries. As previously mentioned, you can arrange all the topics/subtopics you want your writer to go through using headers.

4. Target audience

You have to establish early on for whom you're writing the content. Once again, intent plays a huge role in this point, as knowing your target audience makes it easier for you to define what they're searching for.

5. Keywords

Keywords are specific words and phrases that should be included in the content to increase your page's visibility. As with the topics, these aren't random but are formulated through keyword research.

Keyword research is finding out which specific words and phrases are typed by users on the search bar when searching for answers to their queries. Once you've discovered these keywords, you can include them in your content brief so the writer/s will know what to insert into the blog seamlessly. Once Google sees that your content contains these specific words and phrases, it will display your page high on the results page. 

6. Word count

Your content's word count or overall length matters since Google and other search engines tend to rank long-form content higher on their results page. Though Google confirmed that word count doesn't affect the ranking of a specific page, its algorithm has an easier time identifying what's written in your content if it's longer. It can be determined by many factors, namely your competitor's word count, the performance of your past posts, keyword research, etc. Consider these when making your content brief.

7. Content

The content itself should be included in this brief. This will make up the entire blog which is why the writer should be briefed about what should and shouldn't be included in the write-up.

8. Competitor

One way to get an idea of how to rank high on search engines is by looking at the potential competitors that are out to answer the same query as you. That's why we recommend including your competitors in your content brief for your writers to consider when writing.

To do this step, type your keyword or query on Google and check out the top three results it displays. Click on these pages and analyse their content, as they're the ones you need to beat. You can also go out of your way and research your competitors' content yourself. This way, you can directly add notes to the brief on what they do that you need to do better to rank higher on Google.

9. Brand

To make all the content consistent within a single client, they must provide a content brief that tackle's the brand's identity. From its tone to its voice and more, all these should be documented in the brief so the writers can shift their writing style accordingly.

10. Entities

As previously stated, entities should be included in the content brief because they help Google understand your content better.

11. Links

A great way to improve your content's SEO is by interlinking. That's why it's essential to indicate in the content brief the number of links you want to be included in the blog.

12. Score

Finally, you need to include a FLESCH score goal for your writers to ensure that the content's readability is good. The higher your FLESCH score is, the easier it will be to read for your readers.

13. Call to action (CTA)

A great way to cap off your content is by adding a call to action, or CTA for short. These are usually inserted in the conclusion section, and their purpose is to urge your readers to take action related to your content.

What the SEO content creation process all boils down to

SEO content briefs optimise your content, so your page can rank well on Google and other search engines. By having these set requirements and recommendations before producing your content, the people involved in the project can stay on track and help achieve your brand's goal. Moreover, this will help lessen frustrating rewrites, and all you have to worry about will be slight tweaks that will improve your content.

That's what you can expect from us here at QWERTYlabs. Trust us to deliver the all-inclusive quality SEO aid you need, from efficient content creation to tested brand protection services. Feel free to contact us and get a quote anytime.

Frequently asked questions on SEO content briefs

Why are content briefs important for marketing?

Content briefs align your web content with users' queries. By using SEO tools and determining target keywords, search intent and other factors to create a content brief, you can ensure that your content has all the relevant information users are looking for. This can rank you higher on SERPs, increase your visibility and generate more clicks and conversions.

What to avoid when writing SEO-focused content briefs?

When writing SEO-focused content briefs, try to avoid the following:

• Unclear instructions
• Vague goals and objectives
• Confusing topics and subtopics arrangements
• Lack of critical information
• Not considering the target audience
• Not including keyword suggestions.

Making niche content is how you can engage with your established audience but expanding it is also important. To do so, you need to widen the scope of your content by using commonly used statements or talking about popular topics. Using short-tail keywords is the best way to do that. You can mention certain topics so long as they are relevant to your main subject or use them in a variety of ways to expand on your point.

Many content creators already use short-tail keywords in blogs, articles, and social media posts. However, it is best used in practice with a thorough understanding of the subject. If you want to learn how to use short-tail keywords effectively, this guide from QWERTYLABS is for you.

What is a short-tail keyword?

To better understand what short-tailed keywords are, it's important to learn etymology. A standard search engine optimisation (SEO) practice is to group keywords by search volume and conversion rate. 

Search volume refers to the number of times people have searched for certain words or phrases. Conversion rate is the frequency users clicked on a link provided as a result of their search query. 

The graph above shows that many keywords are searched (y-axis), but some don't generate a large number in conversion. Keywords on the left are called 'short-tail' because their queries are high but have low demand, resulting in minimal conversion. The opposite is the long tail which refers to more specific query phrases. Their specificity results in low search volumes, but they have high conversion rates. 

Short-tail keywords are search queries that can be described as 'broad' or 'generic' because they lack focus. Hence, they yield many search results, and the user only looks for one specific type of content. 

Importance of short-tail keywords 

Any online business prefers high conversion rates because it's the statistic that generates traffic. However, short-tail keywords are vital to any content marketing strategy. They are the foundation of any topic, and using them can rank your content higher on topical queries. Here's a run-down of the importance of short-tail keywords both for generic uses and for casinos specifically:

Short-tail keywords' importance in general

Using short-tail keywords lets you join the large list of results from as many queries as possible. It is used as the starting point of research, perfect for attracting users who are still finding their way around the topic. If your content has a strong-enough topical background, it's bound to get clicked by anyone going down the rabbit hole. 

Short-tail keywords' importance for online casino platforms

The online casino industry is already a niche topic with short-tail keywords rooting from 'casino', 'crypto game', and 'casino bonus'. Potential customers are more likely to use short phrases or single words when looking for a new game or service they'd like to try, and that's the market you need to grab. 

Millions of gamblers will simply type 'casino', and your goal is to have links leading to your webpage appear on the first page of the search results. Besides having links leading to your online casino, you can also establish backlinks on content that can score high as well. Putting ads on blogs featuring casino games or explaining online gambling topics is a great way to benefit from other people's use of short-tail keywords. 

Examples of short-tail keywords

Short-tail keywords with QWERTYLABS can generate strong traffic. The secret lies in how the words and phrases are applied in every content, which Google can recognise and score accordingly. Tools like Google Analytics and Ahrefs can help show how well a content will score in a search and the criteria include how they would look in a given content. Here are a few examples of how QWERTYLABS use short-tail keywords for casino content:

Online casino content in general

Short-tail keywords for casino-related topics can start with a word as simple as 'casino'. Search results can be popular gambling sites in the user's region and the most-featured bonuses among related pages. Here are three more short-tail keywords but with more specific scopes that your target audience tends to use:

Online casino

People searching for 'online casinos' are typically looking for new gambling platforms to try. It can be further specified what kind of gambling service they are looking for. A few more examples would be 'browser casino' and 'mobile casino app'. They can also be looking for gambling sites that accept a specific currency. Thus, they would use keywords like 'crypto casino' for cryptocurrency traders or add Tether (USDT) or Bitcoin (BTC) to narrow their options. Consider using these if your online casino can satisfy any of them. 

Casino Bonuses

Search results for 'casino bonus' will typically showcase available offers at various gambling sites. You can attract certain users by showcasing what kind of promotions you offer. This is why different kinds of deals are put into categories such as the following:

• Welcome bonus
• No deposit bonus
• Match deposit bonus
• Free spins bonus 
• VIP and/or loyalty bonus
• Cashback bonus
• Referral bonus
• Reload bonus

Users can also add what type of currency they prefer. Most users will find suggestions of the types of bonuses they are looking for in their local currencies. Some bonuses can be exclusive to the United States dollar (USD), Euro (EUR), and cryptocurrencies like BTC and USDT, which will yield fewer results unless included in the query. 

Online sports/esports betting 

Searches for short-tail keywords for online casinos will typically stay within casino games. Thus, people who plan on betting for competitive sports or esports will need to use different queries. This includes 'sports betting', 'sportsbook', or 'online bookmaker'. 

Many users will search for the name of the sport, video game, or league followed by the word 'betting' to be more specific. Such queries are still counted as short-tail keywords. They become too specific if the search includes the bookmaker's name and the teams/players in a match. 

Specific casino games

Online casinos have thousands of games available, all of which can fall into a handful of categories. The traditional list revolves around titles inspired by brick-and-mortar gambling houses. Here are some examples of short-tail keywords for specific categories:

Slots

Gamblers can also refer to slots as 'online slots' or 'online slot games'. This is the category for games with reels operated by random number generators (RNG). Titles under this can also be grouped into what game mechanics they have in common. Many of them are named like the following:

• Jackpot slots
• Progressive jackpot slots
• Megaway slots
• Buy-in bonus games
• Cascade/avalanche slots
• Scatter reels

Most gamblers don't search for these specific keywords and would usually settle for 'slots'. However, they are great foundations for casino content exploring different online game mechanics for new gamblers. QWERTYLABS has created a lot of content revolving around each one of these and you can use them as backlinks for your games, too. 

Table games

Table games are the second major category of online casino games next to slots but the number of titles in it usually only reaches up to a hundred. What it lacks in quantity it makes up for in the strength of the identity of its varieties. They are more often searched in their specific sub-categories like the following:

• Online roulette
• Online baccarat
• Online blackjack
• Online casino poker
• Online sic bo
• Online andar bahar
• Online craps

Adding the word 'online' is often essential to differentiate it from its brick-and-mortar counterparts. Your casino can offer other niche table games, like backgammon and dominoes, which you can also use to attract potential customers. Likewise, users can also be broader and simply type short-tail keywords like 'card games' or 'dice games'. 

Sports and esports betting

Betting on competitive games is often considered separate gambling from casino games, but most gaming websites offer both services nowadays. Many of these have partnered with QWERTYLABS to find their respective target audiences. The popular short-tail keywords on this topic often include leagues, clubs, and athlete names. 

Most bookmakers also identify sports and esports betting, but both are on the same platform. Thus, much casino-related content about 'sports betting' also applies to esports.

Games and leagues

The importance of short-tail keywords in sports betting revolves around separating different sports or games from each other. Football fans, for example, need to use 'football betting' or 'soccer betting' to find pages and bonuses dedicated to them. The same is true for video game fans who have to type the title of the game they want to bet on. 

Typing the league name like 'English Premier League' can be specific, but it's still considered a short-tail keyword because it's still a broad query. It yields results covering various aspects like the latest updates, current standings, best websites for betting, and fan discussions of the topic. However, adding 'sports betting' with it will make it a long-tail keyword because it shows results specifically leading to sportsbooks. The same happens when you add the year of the league. 

Clubs and teams

Looking up clubs or teams is much more sensitive in search queries because any additional description will count as a long-tail keyword. For example, looking up 'Arsenal' in football or 'Evil Geniuses' in Counter-Strike: Global Offensive (CS:GO) count as short-tail. Adding their respective leagues or the year will count as a long-tail keyword. Keep the short-tail keywords as much as possible when making content that is not specific to any season or news. 

Athlete and player names

Queries about athlete or player names fall into the same situation as searches for clubs and teams. A name like 'Lionel Messi' is considered a short-tail keyword because searches can yield news, statistics, and biographical information about the person. Any word to add to this like their team name or any year number will make it a long-tail keyword yielding results of his performance.

Ways to apply short-tail keywords 

The examples of short-tail keywords are vast, but their applications are easy. QWERTYLABS is known for masterfully using search queries in simple yet effective ways. Google prefers content where keywords are used a lot but not too much. Just keep their use concise and organic because SEO scores can decrease when used in excess. Here are three places where you should put short-tail keywords for the best score on search engines:

Page headlines and talking points

The page headline can be your content's title or the meta title of the link leading to it. Use the main keyword once to show what the page is about. It can be a form of a statement encompassing the content, usually for advertising casino bonuses. Likewise, it can also be a question that the content aims to answer, which can take the user to your casino's frequently asked questions (FAQs) page. 

If the page contains an article or blog, you may apply short-tail keywords to its talking points or subtitles. Each heading can explore different topics related to the keyword in question. It's a great idea to attract various users to one page. Google also likes highlighting a sentence or two that answers specific queries containing the keyword. 

Page meta description

The meta description is the short one or two-sentence description by the link leading to your page in Google search results. Just add one short-tailed keyword to establish further what the page is about to attract users into clicking on it. Short-tail keywords are great in this part of the content because it is only up to 150 characters long. Simply mention the topic, then add a call to action, encouraging the reader to check the rest of the content. 

Body of most talking points

The body is where readers expect to see answers to their queries, and you have to add short-tail keywords on several areas to keep them focused on the topic. It is complex in practice because using too little can confuse, while too much can make it prone to misuse.

The best way to keep keyword use in a proper amount is to practise moderation. Never fluff for the sake of adding it into sentences that are part of a paragraph where it's already mentioned. Also, for clarity, use them in proper contexts, such as when explaining what they mean or when comparing them to another topic. 

What to avoid when using short-tail keywords

Just as there is a proper way to use short-tail keywords, there are also many mistakes that a writer can make. QWERTYLABS has a long history in content creation and is wary of these pitfalls, and it takes years of specialisation in SEO to avoid them efficiently. Here are crucial mistakes to avoid in using short-tail keywords:

Neglecting the relevancy of the talking point

Content creators with no knowledge of SEO will think that rambling about any topic related to the keyword will suffice, but this can do more harm than good. Google can scan and score content based on what kind of answer it is trying to provide or how well a reader can jump from one topic to another. It's an easy mistake to make because a short-tail keyword is broad. The best way to keep content revolving around a single topic is to focus on answering one question at a time. 

Not focusing on the user's query

The point of using short-tail keywords is to attract search engine users to your blog, but you have the duty to provide what it is they are looking for. Don't add it in content focused on a different topic. This mistake can happen when the writer mentions a keyword in passing despite most of the paragraph being dedicated to a different one. 

Keyword stuffing

Keyword stuffing is the excessive use of the same short-tail keyword within the content. It's better to mention it once as a noun and then refer to it in succeeding sentences in pronouns. Keywords can be used again at the beginning of every paragraph but keep each one into three to four sentences long. 

Level up your casino content with QWERTYLABS!

Making casino-related content using short-tail keywords is easy if you have a strong network of backlinks to back up every page. QWERTYLABS can help you build it from the ground up with help from a high-calibre team of content creators. We offer every SEO and content creation service you need to reach your target audiences. Contact us now to work together to establish your casino platform as a leading brand in the industry. 

Long-tail keywords are a type of SEO keyword structured as a long phrase or a question. They're typically the questions users make at the last stage of their buyer's journey, making them a useful tool to improve your casino site's lead conversion rates. However, how can you use it to improve your platform's online performance and boost your conversion rates? QWERTYLABS is here to help you achieve this by helping you learn all you need to know about long-tail keywords.

What are long-tail keywords?

Long-tail keywords, as the name suggests, are keywords that come in phrases used for queries. They're often used to find answers to specific questions when looking for in-depth information. When talking about search engine results, these keywords generally get less traffic but higher conversion rates. This is because most people use long-tail keywords at the last steps of purchasing a product or service.

Importance of long-tail keywords

Maximising long-tail keywords means understanding their benefits compared to short-tail ones. To give you a further idea, we've listed the top benefits of long-tail keywords below.

1. Long-tail keywords have less competition

Long-tail keywords typically have lower ranking competition since the phrases tend to be more niche-specific, unlike short-tail keywords, which can be used for general searches. For example, say you're a new casino brand looking to improve your SEO and want to know what casino backlinks are; the simplest way to find out is by inputting 'casino backlinks' on search engines and reading the top answers.

While most searches typically end there, people interested in the topic will likely conduct further research. If you want to leverage casino backlinks to improve your site's online performance, a possible search would be 'where to buy casino backlinks?'. As a casino site, it's your responsibility to take advantage of such opportunities to drive bigger traffic back to your website. That's why you need to intersperse short-tail and long-tail keywords since it leads to better chances of high traffic and conversion.

2. Long-tail keywords can be used for more content

Long-tail keywords often come in the form of questions and phrases that encourage a reply. This is a prime opportunity to create keyword-centred content since they'll have better reach. Additionally, using long-tailed keywords in headers such as H2 or H3 goes a long way in content optimisation since it appears as snippets on sites like Google. Typically, this benefits from optimised headers and answers within 50 to 60 characters. 

By keeping this in mind, you can use long-tail keywords in your content to ensure it comes up as a featured snippet. Optimising your content with this type of keywords signals to search engine algorithms that you're a credible site, leading to higher traffic.

3. Targeted traffic

When it comes to SEO, one of your biggest goals is to increase your site traffic or people who visit your site. More than that, however, you want these site visitors to be interested in what you're promoting. 

Using long-tail keywords is useful in helping your casino site reach the audience targeted for your offered services. For example, a short-tail structured search would be 'casino slots', 'online casino', or live dealer'.However, by using long-tail keywords such as 'how to play online casino slots', 'what is the best online casino', or 'best live dealer games to play', you can structure your content in a way that segues your content into promotion.

Using the 'how to play online casino slots' keyword as an example, the best way to take advantage of this search is by providing your answer as accurately as possible. Additionally, this also adds more in-depth information relating to different components of slot games, different types you can play, and more. While providing this information, interlink the available resources within your platform for further reading or to encourage your audience to engage. 

4. Helps you rank for short-tail keywords

Optimising your content for search engines requires using as many keywords as possible to lessen the risk of over-stuffing your article. When choosing, be sure to choose high-ranking keywords and support them with related long-tail ones. Although content with short-tail keywords is challenging to rank in search engines, using long-tail can help in the process.

5. They’re optimised for voice search 

According to reports from Google, 27% of the global population uses voice search on mobile devices. Calculating that percentage amounts to roughly a billion or two of the total human population. With that in mind, taking advantage of the opportunities to improve your site's performance is important. Thankfully, using long-tail keywords helps since most voice searches are structured similarly. That means that by using long-tail keywords, you're already taking the step in voice search optimisation, which ranks in mobile voice search.

How to research long-tail keywords

Most keyword research tools are designed to provide users with short-tail keywords. This makes it difficult for some to find long-tail ones they can use for their content. As difficult as it may feel, finding the right keywords is pretty easy. Learn more about it below.

1. Google search engine

The most straightforward way to find long-tail keywords is through Google's search engine. Usually, you'll encounter their autocomplete function, which shows the most common searches related to the topic you're searching for. For example, when you type in a query starting with 'best casino slots', the top results you'll find include:

• Best casino slots to play
• Best casino slots online
• Best casino slots with bonus games
• Best casino slots app for android
• Best casino slots to win money.

As you can see, you can create good content using these top autocomplete results. By creating content related to these queries, you can target the most asked questions on Google concerning the topic. 

2. Google’s related searches

Another good way to find long-tail keywords on Google is by perusing the 'people also ask' section. You'll typically find this after the top-ranking result, which has more or less similar questions that people commonly search for. For example, continuing the query from the previous point, we'll use the 'best casino slots' query again. When you enter this into Google's search engine, the two questions you'll find in the people also ask section are:

• Which slot machines pay the best?
• What slots are easiest to win?

3. Online forums

Online forums are another great resource for finding long-tail keywords. Websites like Reddit or Quora are platforms people go to when they have queries. As a content provider, you can use and maximise these platforms to find useful topics to cover and possible long-tail keywords to use. 

If you search the keyword' live dealer' on Quora's search engine, some of the top queries you'll find are:

• Are live dealers in online casinos live?
• Can you play blackjack online against a live dealer?
• How does a  live dealer work in an online casino?
• What are the pros of live dealer games?
• Which live dealer games are the most popular?

Answering diverse queries allows you to dedicate different articles to answer each of them and provide readers with specific answers. To find additional related questions, click on the particular question you found to discover related questions listed at the bottom of the page.

How to properly use long-tail keywords and maximise them

Finding long-tail keywords is not enough; it is crucial to learn how to incorporate them properly into your content. To give you a better understanding to maximise this, we've listed the best ways to add long-tail keywords in your content below:

1. Place them strategically

One of the most common mistakes to avoid in casino content writing is keyword stuffing since this is easily detectable by search engine algorithms. If you're caught doing this in Google, you'll be penalised, and your site ranking can decrease or get de-indexed. 

Remember, when using keywords, place them strategically within your content and space them to prevent cramming. It's also important to make sure they work well in the section you put them in so the readers won't be confused. Additionally, you can use them as anchor texts, also known as clickable texts, to link to other content on your platform. Not only is this a good way to use long-tail keywords, but it also provides the added benefit of redirecting traffic to more content on your website.

2. Place them as H2 and H3 titles

In relation to the previous points, one good strategy when adding keywords to your content is to use them in your H2 or H3 tags. This works well with long-tail keywords since they're typically structured as phrases or questions. For example, when you're writing a beginner's guide to online slots, some of the headers you might use include the following:

• What are online slots?
• What are the different types of online slots?
• What are the best online slots?
• What are the best online slot providers?

By using these as headers, you're ensuring that the structure of your content flows smoothly while also maximising the opportunity to rank in these different long-tail keywords.

3. Aim to be a featured snippet

Although SEO strategies focus on ranking on the first page of Google, with added attention to ranking as the first result, it has become more important to rank for Google's featured snippets. If you didn't know, Google's featured snippets are the excerpts that typically appear as a top result on searches. They are often a paragraph with 50 to 60 characters that provide a quick answer to the searched query. This gives readers quick answers that encourage them to click on the linked source for further reading.

Since most platforms now understand the benefits of ranking as a featured snippet, this is one of the top SEO trends in 2023 for your casino to take advantage of. To achieve this, you need to optimise your content by understanding search intent, formatting your content, keeping an optimal word count, and more.

4. Use the keyword organically

When creating content, readers can always tell when you're forcing a keyword within a sentence, especially when they are structured badly. However, you must avoid using these keywords too often since they can offend your readers. The best way to use keywords is to place them organically within your content. That's one of the main reasons you need to use keywords related to the topic being covered.

Optimise content using long-tail keywords with QWERTYLABS

There are many intricacies when it comes to search engine optimisation. Among them is understanding the right keywords to use. Though you'll often come across short-tail keywords when researching the best ones to use for your content, it's important that you also pay attention to long-tail keywords.

These keywords allow you to target consumers seeking specific information about your niche. Optimising your content to provide them with answers allows your platform to gain decent traffic and even better lead conversion rates. Unfortunately, this is a task that's easier said than done. To achieve such feats, you need an in-depth understanding of the complex nature of SEO and the right set of skills to develop content that leverage the right optimisation strategies.

If you're unfamiliar with this area of content marketing, then QWERTYLABS can help you with it. As a digital platform with years of experience in SEO and the iGaming industry, you're in good hands in turning your online casino platform into a leading brand. Ready to up your SEO game? Achieve a successful keyword strategy with QWERTYLABS by reading our list of services and contacting us.

It's no easy feat to appear on the first page of Google. One of the best ways for you to rank on SERPs is to have as many backlinks as possible. Backlinks are a vote of confidence for your website. Other websites would link to your page to vouch for your site's authenticity. But the question is, how do you get backlinks? One of the ways you can do so is by looking at your competitors and the backlinks that they have. 

In the digital marketing sphere, especially within the niche of the casino industry, you have to keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Looking at your competitors' backlinks provides you with a foundation on how to build your own and gives you valuable information on how to do so successfully. 

Building backlinks for your casino brand is more manageable by checking out what the competitors are doing. For one, a limited number of websites are willing to link to a casino brand, so your sources are sparse. Finding out which websites are linked to your competitors gives you knowledge about who to reach out to when creating backlinks for your site. Moreover, it provides insight into your competitors' backlink strategy. This gives you an advantage and an opportunity to build yours based on what they are missing. 

However, building backlinks and knowing how to analyse competitor links is not a walk in the park. You need to be equipped with the right skills, knowledge and tools to build a strategy that will fit your brand. Luckily, QWERTYLABS is here to guide you through the process and give you more info about competitor backlink analysis as you browse through the sections below. 

What is a competitor backlink analysis?

A competitor backlink analysis also called a link gap analysis, is the process of identifying websites and pages linked to other websites similar to your brand. This is an assessment of the link profiles of your major competitors, where you get insights about how they created their link-building strategies that you can apply to your website. 

When you perform this analysis, you find sites that commonly link to websites in your niche. Look at well-ranking competitors and find out if they have the same links. If so, these links are helping them rank on Google's SERP. 

Backlinks are essential for ranking since Google takes this as a vouch for your website authority. However, it's hard to get a good backlink for your website for several reasons. For one, you have to prove to the site that your content and products offered are worthy of being featured. Moreover, as a casino site, only a few sites are willing to link your brand to their pages. Looking at the websites already linked to your competitors is a step forward to establishing your backlinking strategy. That's because these linked websites are interested in your brand's niche and topic. Now, you have to show that you've created superior and more valuable content for your audience so they would also link to your site. Fortunately, you can create valuable content with QWERTYLABS. Here, we'll help you create evergreen content perfect for your niche to establish your authority online.

The two types of backlink research you can perform

Two types of backlink research can help you figure out how to implement your strategy. The first one is domain-level competitor research, which requires you to search for the backlink profile of competing brands. Initially, you'd want to do this type of research so you can identify top-ranking websites in the industry. Once you've found them, you can identify domains linked to these websites. These domains are those you can reach out to for backlinks. 

The second type of research is page-level competitor research, which looks at the backlinks of a specific page. With this, you'll look for the top pages that are ranking for your keywords and from there, you can trace back to competing sites you'll have to go against in building your strategy. 

Taking a look at basic auditing: How to perform competitor analysis

The hard part of creating your backlink strategy is to perform a comprehensive competitor link analysis. You can rely on QWERTYLABS to get this done for you, but if you want a closer look at the process, check the sections below:

1. Choose competitive analysis tools

Advanced tools are needed for competitor backlink analysis, such as Ahrefs, Majestic, and SEMrush automate data collection. You can easily determine your top competitors, their best backlinks and the links they have that you don't have with just a few clicks. You should also use more than one tool for backlinking purposes. Using multiple tools provides a more detailed analysis of the competitor's backlinks. 

Here are some of the tools you can use:

Ahrefs

When it comes to building backlinks, it's hard not to take notice of Ahrefs. It has everything you need and expects from an SEO tool, such as more than 200 million vetted domains and more than 400 billion pages in its backlink index. Using this tool will likely find almost all backlinks that point to a site. The tool also has powerful filtering options that help make the backlinks analysis process easier.

Majestic

Majestic is another backlink checker tool that functions similarly to Ahrefs. This tool is popular due to its Flow Metric Score. This helps determine the most authoritative domains based on their trust and citation flows. It also has a Link Context feature that identifies each link it finds. This is helpful when deciding which type of backlinks you will pursue, depending on its difficulty. 

SEMrush

Another backlinks checker tool to watch out for is SEMrush. It can provide you with competitor backlinks that can be filtered based on set criteria. Aside from backlinks, this tool can also help in social media, market research and advertising efforts. 

2. Check your website’s backlink health

Before digging into your competitors, you must first assess your profile, specifically your website's domain authority. Your site's domain authority is a comparative metric when you start investigating your true competitors. This provides a self-evaluation of your metrics and what you can do to improve your strategies. 

You can easily check your backlink health through the Domain Authority tool by Moz.com. Just enter your domain name and click on Check Authority to continue. Statistics of your top pages by links and top linking domains will appear to show where you're performing well. This can help you gauge the performance of your website and the effectiveness of the backlinks you already have

3. Identify competitors

If you already know who your competitors are, then it'll be easier to find their backlinks. But if you're yet to see the full picture of your competitors, Ahrefs can help you find out which websites compete with yours. Check out the organic competitors' page of Ahrefs Site Explorer to find those ranking for the same keywords as you. 

4. Find common links

After finding out who your competitors are, take that list and input them in the Link Intersect report in Ahrefs' Site Explorer. This provides you with a list of your competitors' referring domains and the number of competitors that have links from those sites. Click on the numbers under each domain to see what kind of content these links are. 

5. Identify competitor strategies

With this data, you can identify the strategy of your competitors and build your own from the ground up. You can look for common links your competitors have that you don't and work your way through them. Moreover, you can also look for patterns in the data to see the type of sites competitors gets their links from. This way, you'll find out whether the links are from niche sites, local listings, or other websites. 

Referring domains for websites and pages

Search engines like Google look for links from different domains when deciding whether or not to rank your website. You can't just have one domain linking to your website even though you have thousands of links since that's counted as one link. Looking for the referring domains that each competitor has will be the prospect backlinks that can help you rank on Google SERP. There are two ways to do this, through a domain level or a page level. 

1. Find referring domains for websites

Using Site Explorer, enter the domain URL of your competitor on the search bar, then click on backlink profiles. You'll find referring domains under the subcategories, which show the complete list of backlinks pointing to your competitor from different domains. 

On a domain level, you'll find all backlinks pointing to different pages on the competitor's site, sorted by highest to lowest domain rating (DR). If the website has a lot of links coming from high-quality sites, then the DR should be high. This isn't the only thing you must consider when looking for referring domains on a website. You'll also need to consider the traffic that each domain receives in 30 days. The traffic proves the legitimacy of the site. A site can have high DR but low traffic, which means it's spam or part of a private blog network (PBN) which you should steer clear of.  

2. Find referring domains for pages

Searching for backlinks on a page level is ideal if you want to rank for a certain keyword. Using Ahrefs Keyword Explorer, enter the keyword you want to target and rank for. Scroll down to the SERP overview section to see the top 10 pages on Google. Keep your focus on the URL rating (UR) and the domains column. The UR refers to the page authority of a certain website determined by the number and quality of the referring domains pointing to that specific page. Take note of those pages with the highest UR and linking domains since these pages have the best-referring domains you'd want to get links from.  

Get the most out of your link-building efforts and look at the keywords and top keywords columns for ideas on what anchor texts to use when getting a link from the referring domains.

Determining how to acquire links from the domains

Identifying the referring domains is only half the battle. You must also figure out how to acquire those links from the domains. The first thing you should do is analyse the referral domain of your competitor on Ahrefs. Check out the link to the target column and click on the drop-down menu for each linking domain and the number of links your competitor has. Through this, you'll find the page on the referring domain where the link appeared, the anchor text used for linking and other information about the referring domain, such as the DR, UR, ranking keywords, and the domain and traffic page. You'll also see the type of backlink your competitor has for the domain. 

All this information can help you decipher what kind of backlink was negotiated by your competitor to the referring page, where competitor link analysis with QWERTYLABS comes in handy. Not only will we run an analysis of your competitors for you, but we'll also be contacting the referring domains that can help your casino brand rank on Google's SERP. We'll do the heavy lifting of negotiating link placement for you so you won't have to. 

Let QWERTYLABS help you acquire backlinks for your casino brand

Competitor link analysis is necessary for acquiring backlinks for your casino website. Without it, you won't find trusted and high-quality referring domains that can point back to your website and help you rank on Google's SERP. Get your trusted competitor link analysis with QWERTYLABS! We have an SEO team dedicated to this service, so you wouldn't have to do it independently. Couple this with high-quality content creation, and your website will rank in Google in no time. This is an opportunity to work with only the best in the industry. Contact us today and find out how you can make the most of competitor link analysis strategies.