Writing for the Web: Before the writing is after the writing

First plan and organize, then you can start writing. "How do I conquer the World Wide Web with my content?", "How do I write for my target group?" or "How do I get to the top of Google?" - Such questions still seem to preoccupy the content management community - or more than ever. In practice, I often find that people like to write whatever they can: Because "there simply isn't enough time to prepare for writing"- they say.Yet good preparation is much more efficient than no preparation. It saves a lot of time and money. But how do you prepare well for successful writing on the web?Preparation in 3 steps: How and what do I write for the websiteIn the following, we will focus primarily on writing search engine optimized content for websites. Here you will find answers to the most important questions from the writing start and reach your goal in just three steps.Step 1: Thinking about the concept before writing for websitesIf you have not yet practiced writing texts for the web, "concept thinking" could be very helpful. After all, a concept usually provides the framework for the "red thread". Concepts can look different in detail, depending on which specialist area of marketing we are in. However, the rough framework and the beginning of a concept are almost always the same.1. initial situation (briefing, research, analysis)2. objectives and target group3. positioning. PositioningA good preparation for writing includes clarity about who we are, what our mission is and where we get our information for the web content. Once the initial situation is clear, the next step is to define the goals and the target group that we want to reach with our writing or with our website.In practice, I notice time and again that these two phases are completely forgotten or omitted - and often the planning of measures is started straight away. However, since the first two phases are so fundamental to a successful text, I would like to focus on them. Experience has shown that the rest comes almost automatically.Step 2: Write web content for your target group - for no one elseIf you want to be found in the Google search engine, you should write your content in a search engine optimized (SEO) way. If you take the word "search engine optimized" apart, confusion can certainly arise. This is because the term actually implies that web content should be for the search engine is optimized. But that is wrong. It is not Google that sees our texts and is "interested" in them, but our actual target group. Google only uses the "relevance" factor to decide whether our content could be of interest to the target group - or not. I have already written a short article about this with the following title: "Google is like an excellent journalist - only less corruptible!"However, according to Google, there are around 200 factors that need to be taken into account in order to get everything more or less right in terms of SEO. Unfortunately, we don't know all of them, but there is hope, because: If you are aware of your target group and don't write your web content for anyone other than this target group, you are intuitively doing most things right.Step 3: When writing, "the goal is the path" - and not the other way aroundOnce the initial situation has been determined and the target group clearly defined, it must be clear what goal we want to achieve with our content. When writing web content, for example, there is a huge difference between whether I want to inform someone or entertain them; whether I want someone to give me the coordinates or whether I want to directly encourage them to buy a product.An example: You sell cookbooks online and your typical clientele corresponds to the following persona: Mr. Searchmeister is 34 years old, romantically inclined, can't cook well, but wants to learn. In order for him to surprise his new girlfriend with a home-made dinner deluxe, he needs a "cookbook for beginners", so if I have the target group in mind and I visualize Mr. Searchmeister sitting in front of the Google search engine, I need to be able to answer the following questions before writing the web content:- Which keyword would Mr. Searchmeister enter in the situation described above? Which search result would appeal to him so that he ends up on your website and not the website of a competitor?- What should he then find first on your website?- And, if at all: What should he ultimately do on this page? Should Mr. Searchmeister share your blog article on social media channels? Should he leave you his e-mail address? Should he call you or order your product directly online? - How do I ultimately measure whether I have achieved my goal - or not?ConclusionSo if you are clear about your starting position, your target group and your goals, you have already paid half the rent. And always keep this in mind: You are not writing for yourself or for Google, but for the user. The search masters will thank you for it.