You learned about the important role of keywords in the previous post so let’s get to the main discussion of content optimization versus search engine optimization in this post. Obviously, none of us is that gullible. We know that every content has a specific cargo and agenda that comes with it. Be it to market the content itself (i.e. content marketing) or to get readers to take a specific action (i.e. copywriting), there’s always a motive behind every publication.
The quality of your content is the integrity of search engines toward their customers.
The question now: are search engines smart enough to find your content?
If you think they are, then all you need to do is pour energy solely on the content. Search engines have special software robots, called spiders. These spiders builds lists of words found on the Web by indexing content, crawling the text of the popular sites and then following each outbound link from those sites to find new words (click here to read more on Web crawling).
Also it’s worth noting that the search engine industry has been striving to create algorithms that mimic human behavior in searches. So this means search engines will continue to improve their algorithms to find the most relevant, credible, reliable, substantial content for what their users are searching. Guess what this also means – the quality of your content is the integrity of search engines toward their customers. That’s why as technology strives to be better in providing service to us, human beings, content matters!
So in this sense, content optimization refers to the optimization of your content’s quality. Of course, the yardstick of this quality corresponds to what kind of content you publish. For instance, if you’re writing reviews on the best laptops 2011 then don’t just write one paragraph of content without detailing the specs, the goods and the bads, and so forth. Write to the extent of your readers having enough information (e.g. use relevant, specific information) to decide whether they want that cargo that you’re writing about or not.
Please hold that thought! In the next post, I’ll continue with my notes on search engine optimization (SEO) and how it’s related with content optimization.
simplykl 
October 24, 2011 at 1:34 AM
Finally, someone who understands quality content is more important than SEO techniques.
Keep to this principle and your site(s) should do well in post Panda 2.5 SERP.
October 24, 2011 at 8:18 AM
Thank you for the feedback, Mike. I believe the best way to work with search engines is to just to think like them. Sticking to their ideals, e.g. striving to be as “human” as possible, is probably our best strategy to survive the ever-changing Panda.
October 24, 2011 at 9:51 AM
DEFINITELY! Excellent Outlook!
October 24, 2011 at 10:24 AM
It’s quite encouraging indeed, just as a feedback to my post, that you’d find my content right after I post it. Mind if I ask, how did you find this post?
October 24, 2011 at 3:22 PM
No secret there KL – WordPress.com Readomatic – my daily reading list. Gets refreshed at intervals; coffee breaks etc.
“Ah, The joy of learning something new everyday”
Mike
By the way, we are both using the same theme – Mystique. I wonder if you’ve seen the latest Atom powered version from Digitalnature for self hosted WordPress sites – it’s really stunning and versatile – I gave it a quick trial on another site I’ve just started working on. Looking forward to building a suitable site using it. Need the options of self hosted WordPress though.
October 25, 2011 at 1:13 PM
Readomatic makes things easier indeed. Thanks!
And no I haven’t seen the latest Atom powered version, but I suppose you have to have a self-hosted WordPress site to view it?