Copywriting vs SEO Copywriting

The perfect copy is worthless if nobody sees it. Copywriting has a new reality — a digital reality. Search Engine Optimization puts websites in front of people who are ready to transact, and copywriting is about persuading people to make a transaction in the first place.

When both transaction and visibility are combined, you get SEO copywriting.

SEO Copywriting = Transactional Visibility.

How is SEO Copywriting Different From Regular Copywriting?

The difference between the two is 3 letters:

• S: Search
• E: Engine
• O: Optimization

This means that while copywriting by itself is created for people, SEO copywriting is also created for the search engines people use. Interestingly enough, Google has made it clear that creating content for search engines does not rank well; in fact, it insists that content be created with a people-first focus. So, although both are about the people, SEO copywriting is about proving that this is the case to search engines. This means that, in addition to helpful writing, SEO copy is about:

• Creating helpful content that can be indexed on Google
• Using keywords that establish the correct search intent
• Taking care of technical SEO aspects such as site speed and URL links

Key Differences: Copywriting vs SEO Copywriting

SEO is Essential For Copywriting

In this day and age, it’s very hard to separate SEO from copywriting because all information — including the ads which copywriting creates — flow through an algorithm that make products or services visible online. In the pre-internet era, copywriting was about persuading people to make purchases. Now, it is about making sure that people see the ad so that they can be persuaded to purchase in the first place.

Therein is the importance of SEO.

The world is filled with a billions of ads and websites. Competition is fierce, information—even false information—is rampant, and is being accelerated by AI. The difference between SEO copywriting and regular copywriting is the difference between the pre-digital age and the digital age.

• Copywriting: A persuasive page among billions of others, showcasing a product or service that the creator may value, but which other people may never find.
• SEO Copywriting: A persuasive page among billions of others, showcasing a product or service that search engines value, and that it places in view of others.

Copywriting on Its Own Wont Drive Organic Search Traffic

The importance of SEO copywriting lies in its ability to drive targeted organic search traffic toward a website. Copywriting alone without Search Engine Optimization is the equivalent to what advertising was like before everyone started using the internet. Back then, you would watch commercials and ads on the television screen, regardless of whether you were looking for thing you had been shown. The chances that someone was looking for what a commercial was advertising was low, but it didn’t matter, because if the ad was shown to millions, then at least thousands would eventually purchase.

The only time you can really benefit from copywriting without SEO is if you already have all the visibility you need to make a profit.

SEO Copywriting Increases Profit

SEO copywriting is the equivalent to what it would be like to instantly show an ad to a person the second they thought about it in 90s. Search engines connect users with what they want, and SEO copywriting helps connects users with the websites that provide what they want. This is the definition of targeting, and because SEO is targeted, it’s very likely that users are ready to transact.

Therefor, another very important difference between copywriting and SEO copywriting is that the latter generates much more revenue. It’s the better option because an increase in organic search traffic can lead to an increase in profit. Profit is the very goal of marketing itself, which is why SEO copywriting has the ability to ignite the entire marketing engine in a way that copy on its own can’t.

Copywriting Strengthens SEO

Advertising is as old as paper money. Copywriting is a form of advertising that evolved to adopt Search Engine Optimization, but staying true to quality ad copy strengthens SEO in two ways:

1. Helps inspire more purchases which signals authority and experience to search engines
2. Helps rank pages that lead to purchases in the first place

Clicks don’t necessarily mean profit, and without profit, Search Engine Optimization won’t generate a Return on Investment. Quality copywriting bridges this gap because it helps turn more clicks into clients and customers.

Quality Content is a Top Ranking Factor

In essence, ranking begins and ends with quality copywriting. The first and last part of the sales funnel (the path people take from first discovery to purchase), goes like this:

• Awareness: Google ranking provides visibility which creates awareness
• Conversion: Copywriting inspires users to purchase from pages they have found on Google

Google will not rank pages it deems as low-quality, and most people won’t purchase from websites if the copy is not helpful. Therefor, quality copy is the key to both ranking and conversions. That is precisely why Google uses the term “Helpful Content” to describe its quality rater guide.

Google’s Search Quality Rater Guidelines are the criteria it uses to determine the rank-worthiness of pages.

SEO copywriting is a progression of traditional copywriting. Everything that it is, is just an addition to what copy was before the digital age. For example, copywriting will always be about sparking the interest of people so that they take action and make a some form of purchase. Search Engine Optimization makes that possible by providing search engine visibility.