So, you want to get higher search engine ranking? Here’s a tool to help.

Google is offering a great tool to help you determine what new content to write about on your website and blog. The tool is called Hot Trends, and it allows you to see a snapshot of what’s on the public’s collective mind by viewing the fastest-rising searches for different points of time. In other words, Hot Trends lets you see what terms are being searched right now!

Hot Trends Today:

At present (June 9, 2007), it appears that many people are searching for “trees with purple flowers” (#5 search term out of the 100 most popular terms) and “Spanish port” (#14 search term).

1. Tree with Purple Flowers: Since I’m here in Michigan, I don’t currently have the joy of seeing the Jacaranda tree blooming in California, but I’m guessing that it’s a top search term because it’s currently in bloom on the west coast and dropping purple petals all over the lawns of California. This tree sounds amazing - it survives in extremely hot climates and needs only 6.5 inches of water per year.

2. Spanish Port: Spanish Port could be a top search term for a few reasons. Here’s one possibility - Today there are two American treasure-hunting ships in Gibraltar carrying a disputed undersea trove of gold and silver valued at $500m. Reports say that Spain may seize these ships if they enter Spanish waters. Here’s an even better possibility - People are finally realizing that Port Wine (originally from Portugal) is dang good stuff. I’m particularly fond of the tawny variety, especially when it’s accompanied by some decadent tiramisu.

OK, it’s true - neither of these terms has much to do with the overall purpose of this blog. We’re not tree/flower experts, and while we may enjoy a good desert wine, we’re not food/wine critics. However, the point of this post is to show you that you should use online trends as well as your own website’s statistics to determine what to write about on your website and/or blog. When you write about the topics that people care about, your site is RELEVANT and it bumps up in the search engine rankings.

I’ll do a follow up blog entry to let you know how much this post boosts our site traffic and search engine placement. In the meantime, please feel free to send me some purple flowers and a nice, old tawny port.

The following are seven tips for writing compelling website content. For a more comprehensive “how to” guide, watch for our new workbook about developing better web content.

1. Know your audience- their needs. worries, stresses, goals, ideas, etc.- and write content that addresses your audience members’ concerns in a way that is relevant, helpful, non-preachy, and logical.

2. Stop sounding like your competitors! If you want people to choose your products or services, show them that you are different from and better than your competition. Make sure that the features and benefits you list on your website address your potential customers’ needs and speak in their own common language. Offer your customers something that they can’t get anywhere else.

3. Avoid common content mistakes- such as rambling text that requires scrolling, techie talk or industry jargon, or a lack of a clear focuses message.

4. Make sure the first 25 words on each page include keywords. Use keywords and keyphrases (the common words and phrases that people type into search engines when looking for a product or service like yours) throughout your website content with the most specific terms in the first 25 words. Avoid keyword spamming (over-stuffing keywords into your content to try to increase your search engine rank).

5. Allow easy visual scanning. Make sure your content is easy for visitors to quickly scan by using clear headings, short sentences and paragraphs, bulleted lists, obvious calls to action, inverted pyramids, and error-free content.

6. Keep it current! Make sure you update your website content as often as possible to ensure that your users will continue to visit your website. Fresh content also invites search engine spiders to re-index your website and increase your chances of higher rankings.

7. Invite your visitors to participate. Use a “call to action” to inspire users to call you, purchase products, contribute to your blog, and sign up for your mailing list. If you want your visitors to act in a certain way (such as purchasing your service), then make sure your text effectively guides them toward the appropriate action.