Writing is an exacting art. If you’ve ever tried to feign your way through the process of creating content optimized for websites, it can feel a bit like trying to manage a Phillip’s head screw with a flat head screwdriver. Yes, it’s entirely possible to do, but the effort involved requires a painstakingly slow progress. Moreover, all conventional wisdom goes against it. Creativity certainly has its place in content marketing, but it’s also a practice that makes use of fairly well-defined conventions. While there are many in the marketing industry who tend to eschew ideas that depend on preconceived notions, even the most innovative ideas have a basis in practices that are foundational in one way or another. In fact, the constraints of SEO marketing limit the manner in which writers create content. Consequently, one of the basic premises that content writers should keep in mind is packaging the product in a vehicle that suits whatever a company is trying to market or advertise.

Related: Top 3 Tools to Help Bolster Your SEO Strategy

Blogs: Outreach and SEO Tool
Content is truly a resource for companies to educate and engage consumers. But understanding the most compelling packaging is one of the trickier aspects. Is the goal to build a relationship with customers? For the vast majority of companies, the answer is a resounding “Yes,” but it’s also important to remember the essential rules of SEO, meaning your content must be visible for search engines as well.

MarketingSherpa’s case study of an e-commerce website emphasized the importance of not only reaching out to consumers through a platform like a blog but also keeping keywords in mind. The owner of the enterprise used the blog to get consumers to share intimate stories that connected with the products the company sold. In a mutually beneficial relationship, the tool fit the needs of the business and consumers. With greater website traffic, more inbound links and strategic use of keywords, a blog can be incredibly useful for SEO and engaging customers.

Related: How Much Extra Traffic Does Your Blog Bring In?

Challenging the Conventions
Then again, thinking outside the blogosphere, content marketers have pushed the boundaries of what is recognized as advertising. Comics as a vehicle for managing a brand’s message is undoubtedly clever, as the Content Marketing Institute highlighted. They operate on a level comparable to infographics and memes in that they’re more accessible to the target audience and have the potential to go viral. That means:

• Optimize this content so that it can be shared over social media. Networks like Facebook, Pinterest and Twitter are ideal engines that have been the driving force behind the success of memes. If anyone has a Facebook feed that doesn’t have at least one picture of a cat paired with a witty quip, they’ve probably enabled the highest level of privacy settings possible. Even then, there’s no guarantee.
• Don’t forget the keywords. Even though comics are often a light-hearted affair, it’s important not to forget the basic rules of SEO. Given the format, marketers have even more room to be clever in their keyword strategy.

Frequently, the product or, more often, services a company provides can be extremely technical or difficult to explain in laymen’s terms. A well-devised comic as part of the overall content strategy can give an enterprise that otherwise might appear humorless a deft, human touch.

• For example, the technical aspects of advanced manufacturing might be considered a little dry in some circles. However, these companies will likely want to maintain their role as a thought leader and a credible source of information, meaning their comics can be a bit high-brow, but accessible enough so that viewers can relate to the content. Humor can go a long way to build relationships in a social setting and business is no different.

Related: Get help managing your SEO marketing efforts.

Keeping content, purpose and packaging aligned can be a difficult task, but it’s necessary to make SEO marketing work.