From NeilPatel.com: There’s a bit of confusion over SEO and content marketing. The confusion comes over how SEO and content marketing fit together. Do they fit together? Are they at odds with each other? If so, is it possible to force them together?
In a previous post, I explained why SEO and content marketing are like PB&J. They go together. They just fit. They work well together.
Now, I want to share exactly why that is — why SEO is actually all about content marketing, and vice versa.
Before I share the why of this article, let me be clear about the what — the problem I’m addressing.
The Problem: SEO and content marketing are not integrated.
The crux of the problem is that SEO and content marketing are separated, as if they were two very different things. The truth is, however, that they go together, overlap, cohere, blend.
Some people think that content marketing eliminates the need for SEO.
Look at these headlines:
This makes no sense to me.
How can “content marketing overtake SEO completely” when the only way to successful content marketing is to have SEO? How can you tear the two apart like that?
Thankfully, there are voices of reason in the cacophony of confusion (e.g., the smallbusiness.yahoo article above). Careful marketers have observed the disconnect, and are trying to point out that SEO and content marketing go together.
Yet the mistake persists. One of the popular articles that makes this mistake comes from an article in The Guardian, which states: “It looks like Google has tired of its old friend SEO and is instead cosying-up to the new kid on the block, content marketing” [sic].
It’s a cute analogy, but it’s simply not accurate. It’s not as if SEO and content marketing are two different people. To borrow the same metaphor, SEO and content marketing are actually two personalities of the same person.
The problem, then, lies in the disconnect between SEO and content marketing.
It’s time to bring the two back together. This is the only way you’ll be successful in both your SEO and your content marketing.
The Truth: SEO and content marketing overlap. A lot.
When trying to understand the integration of SEO and content marketing, think of it this way.
First, here’s the incorrect view of SEO and content marketing. This is wrong:
Now, here’s the right way to view them:
They overlap.
There are differences between SEO and content marketing.
Yes, SEO and content marketing are distinguished from one another in several critical areas. And while they have points of differentiation, you still can’t separate the two entirely.
Rather than chase down every point of difference between the two, I want to point out this elemental contrast:
- SEO is narrower, and more technical.
- Content marketing is broader and more holistic.
This is the way in which the two converge:
- The way to apply SEO in a broader way is to channel its specific technical endeavors into content marketing.
- Conversely, the only way to ensure the success of content marketing is to apply SEO techniques in its implementation.
Read more: https://neilpatel.com/blog/seo-is-content-marketing/
