In an ever-evolving digital marketing landscape, it’s more important than ever to ensure your website is visible on search engines like Google. There are various ways to build your website authority including writing regular blogs using ‘content clusters’. This strategy will help you organise your content and it tells Google that your website is a good resource on certain topics. So, what exactly are content clusters? In this blog, we look at the benefits of this blog strategy.
What are content clusters?
A content cluster is a collection of interlinked blogs centred around a broad subject area. At the heart of this structure lies the ‘pillar page’. This is a piece of long-form content that provides a detailed overview of the main topic. Supporting this longer piece of content are cluster blogs, which delve deeper into subtopics and offer more detailed insights. Each one of these cluster blogs links back to the pillar page.
Let’s look at an example using a legal practice:
A firm of property solicitors might have a pillar article about conveyancing. Their content cluster articles could be a series of smaller blogs about different aspects of conveyancing. These subtopics might include buying freehold, buying leasehold, and types of property searches.
Here’s another example:
A hypnotherapist might have a pillar article about hypnotherapy. Their content cluster articles could be a series of smaller blogs about issues that can be treated with hypnotherapy, These subtopics might include building confidence, overcoming phobias, and dealing with grief.
What are the benefits of content clusters?
There are big benefits to this strategic content marketing approach, as follows:
- Improves your SEO
Firstly, all of those interlinking pages enhances your website’s internal linking structure, helping people to navigate your website, as well as search engine crawlers. The latter are bots sent out by Google to help index your website. It’s important that your website is indexed correctly so it appears in the right search engine list. A well-written website that’s perceived as an authoritative source of information could lead to higher rankings. - Conveys your expertise
Secondly, every time you write an article you are deepening the knowledge and insights available on your website. Content clusters are your opportunity to focus on specific areas, so you can demonstrate the depth and breadth of your professional expertise. Not only does this position you as an expert in your field, but it helps to build trust with online audiences. - Boosts user engagement
Adding lots of fresh and interesting articles will enable your website to become a go-to resource. People are more likely to return to your website to learn more about what you do. And the longer you can keep people scrolling through your website, the more chances they will become paying clients or customers in the future.
How do you identify pillar pages and content clusters?
If you’re looking to create a content cluster strategy for your business, then start by identifying a main topic for your pillar article. This should be based on your key business objectives – for example, a financial planner might want to promote pension advice. Therefore, it might be beneficial for them to write a pillar article such as A Guide to Pensions.
Next, conduct some keyword research. You need to learn what people are interested in before you commit to writing lots of articles. Once you have a clear idea on what people are searching for on Google, you can write a series of articles that matches their interests. Look for long-tailed keywords that match real-life phrases – see the example below:
Main topic: Pensions
Pillar article: A Guide to Pensions
Cluster ideas:
1. Do you need to top up state pension?
2. Should you transfer your final salary pension?
3. What are the benefits of a SIPP (Self-Invested Personal Pension)?
… and so on!
How do you write content clusters?
Based on your keyword research, make a list of all the potential content cluster articles you could write, as above. Then, map these out so you have a clear plan for your chosen topics.
Book some time in your work schedule to write your pillar and cluster blogs. We always recommend writing as much content as you can in one go. Don’t worry about editing your first drafts – just write, write, write! Go back and edit your content a few times before publishing.
Write detailed pillar pages and informative cluster articles, ensuring each piece of content provides real value. Maintain a consistent tone and style across all of your content to reinforce your brand’s voice. Monitor the performance of all your articles and update with new, relevant information, as and when required. By adding new articles, you’ll keep your content fresh.
Remember, Google is looking for quality over quantity, so don’t worry too much about word counts. Although some experts recommend 2,000+ words for long-form content, it’s okay if 800 words seems enough to explain your main topic. Don’t bore your readers with waffle!
Conclusion
Adopting a content cluster strategy will help you organise your website, establish authority in your field, and it will help to enhance your SEO performance. Usually written around a long-form pillar article, content clusters are a group of related content pieces that revolve around a core topic.
Content clusters are also a great way to plan your blogs, as well as aligning your content marketing with your marketing strategy and business goals. The key to your success will lie in the topics you choose, the research carried out, and the quality of the content you write.
Did you know that Bright Owl has written content for over 500 businesses? Many of our blogging clients have been with us for several years. We write our clients’ content with their marketing strategy in mind, and we always include information from authoritative sources. And what makes us different is the fact that every blog we write also includes the metadata. So, your blogs will always be fully optimised for Google with real phrases people are using on search engines.
Bright Owl writes quality content to help you maintain and boost your SEO ranking, using real online search queries. We can write for your company, and we can turn your AI bot words into fully optimised blogs. Get in touch to find out more about our content support.
