DMOZ or the world before Google
Before there was Google, DMOZ was used to find content on the web.
The older generation will probably remember it.
It was a kind of yellow pages for websites.
So, you had a category, that you clicked on
and then the addresses of the websites were listed.
The keyword period
Around 1998, everything started
to revolve around SEO optimisation,
but not around the content of websites.
It was important to include the keyword
as many times as possible in the content itself.
In a few relatively short paragraphs
you could have a keyword written 30, 40 times.
But even more importantly,
you had to include it more times than your competitor.
So you're basically...
That's how your website ranked higher than those of your competition.
Are keywords still the number one thing when it comes to content?
I regret to say that I still see this mentality
in my work today.
People think that it is still necessary
to include a lot of these keywords in web content.
The quality of the content itself loses its importance, you see.
I know that I have done reviews for some clients,
and they used the same keyword
maybe 10, 15 times in five sentences.
This is called "spam".
So if you are still doing it, stop doing it
because Google has been penalising websites like that since 2003
and you will lose some credibility in terms of your positions.
Who are Panda and Penguin?
Whereas before, content was kind of lagging
behind all that optimisation and likeability,
in 2011 and 2012, Google became our ally.
It introduced its two big algorithms, Panda and Penguin.
These two animals continue to influence
how content is created and still influence
whether our website will be rewarded with high positions
or whether, in fact, the content will have a negative impact
on the position of the website.
How has Google Panda changed the content of websites?
Panda is all about the quality of the content itself.
In fact, with the Panda algorithm Google started
and wanted to distinguish between pages that had high quality content
and those that neglected it.
Behind the algorithm, it started to ask:
Is the author of the content credible?
Have they included multiple perspectives in the content itself?
And basically, how many textual errors are there in the content?
Would you share that content with your friends?
Would you trust that content?
Would you give your credit card to an online shop, for example?
And there were absolutely many more such questions,
I’ve named just a few of them.
You can guess, what happened.
There was a literal collapse even here in Slovenia.
What does this mean?
Overnight, websites lost visits, lost traffic.
Why? As I said before,
because for almost decades all that mattered was some keywords
that were put in and external links,
and nobody focused on the quality of the content itself.
How will communication shape the success of companies?
I see the future in a personalised content,
in some kind of genuine emotional connections.
And not just on websites or social media,
but also when someone calls support,
in what way will they get an answer?
When someone writes an email, what kind of reply do they get?
Meaning that companies need to start looking strategically
at what content they are going to give to the user
who needs them at that moment.
Some have already made a start, and I have to say
that they are leaving the competition behind.
Web content is more than just text!
I have to say that the content of websites is improving every year.
It is changing, adapting to trends.
I’m particularly pleased that companies have started to look for experts
to help them write or design web content.
And that content is not just text.
Content is video, audio, charts, GIFs.
And it doesn't have to be all text,
let's have some data, for example, that have been collected,
turned into charts.
When to bring in a web content expert on the project?
There is some advantage in having a designer and a content designer
working together before the actual website is built.
Because, unfortunately, many times it is still the case
that the designer creates a design
and then we, the content designers, have to adapt the content on the basis of that.
We can't say everything we want to,
and sometimes important pieces of information are cut.
Companies that bring together the designer and the content designer
will win.
When evaluating the projects for Netko I have also seen
that many companies have refreshed their websites
in terms of design, but not in terms of content.
And then this website looks like it is made of two parts.
Content and design don't work together.
They look as if they are in fact two separate things.
Which content on websites needs the most attention?
Where else do I see room for improvement?
Especially in the content for children and young people.
Not enough attention is paid to them.
I can understand why, though.
Because they are very difficult to describe.
You might ask, how come?
At the end of the day, content is content. But it's not true, right?
This content for children and adolescents must first be adapted to the child,
to give them some information that they will like.
Secondly, it's necessary to convince the parent of this content.
Only information that is truly verified should be provided.
Content must include all perspectives.
These can, of course, be positive, but they can also be negative.
And these negative perspectives must be delivered with sensitivity.
Because too much content is negative and critical,
which we all know can affect our children's mental health.
Advice from a web content expert
As I mentioned, review your website content.
Turn a text into video or charts.
Call your designer and content designer.
Get them at the same table and come up with a concept.
Focus essentially on quality, not solely on volume.
It's perfectly clear to me that you need to write news, articles, blogs,
just find a balance that is appropriate for you,
so that it doesn't all become spam, intrusive.
My biggest piece of advice to you as content creators is
that every project you get,
you should create content for as if it were your dream project.
It's as if the company, the brand, depends on your content.
Content is power.
After all, what good is having a beautiful shell,
a gorgeous armour, if there is no pearl inside.
Technologies that will affect the development of web content...
That which will shape some content trends
will definitely be artificial intelligence
enabling easier and faster content processing,
and the so-called "voice search".
We are already seeing this emerging in the English-speaking markets.
It has not yet happened here,
but I think it’s going to some time in the future.