A Guide to SEO Copywriting from Different Perspectives
SEO-friendly copywriting is more than just stuffing the right keywords into a paragraph and calling it a day. Behind every search term is a real person, and behind that person is someone from a different background, a different business with different needs. Great content comes from stepping outside the usual lens and asking: what perspective have we been ignoring? That’s where the magic happens. The clicks don’t hurt, either.
Don’t get me wrong, there are levels to achieving effective SEO copywriting - the concrete slab and timber framing must-haves that form the foundation to rank well - but walking in someone else’s shoes, or typing on someone else’s computer is, ironically, how that you take the next step towards getting your website’s content to rank better.
To start you off on the right foot, this guide covers the SEO foundations you can’t skip, then takes things further by showing you how to approach copywriting from fresh perspectives. What’s the end goal, you ask? Content that isn’t just SEO optimised, but people-optimised, too. Here's what I'll cover:
- The Pillars to Achieving SEO-Friendly Copywriting
- How Perspective Affects SEO Copywriting
- Combining Perspectives to Correctly Execute SEO Copywriting
The Pillars to Achieving SEO-Friendly Copywriting
Think of these as the non-negotiables. The cornerstones that hold your SEO copy upright. Skip them and your foundation wobbles; weave them in properly and you’ve got content built to stand tall and climb those rankings. Win-win!
Keyword Research Is Essential
If you’re an avid reader of the StudioHawk blogs, you’re probably sick of seeing “keyword” and “research” in the same sentence. But here’s the thing: if it weren’t important, we wouldn’t preach it.
Putting yourself in your audience’s shoes (and using smart keyword tracking tools like Semrush and Ahrefs) gives you the best shot at ranking well for the terms and queries that actually matter to your business.
First things first: think like your target audience. Consider the exact phrases and questions people might search when looking for what your business offers. Then, cross-check those ideas against the tracking tools aforementioned. That way, you’re backing up your instincts with data to lock onto the most relevant, high-volume keywords, instead of just guessing.
Keep keyword difficulty in mind, though, especially if you’re a smaller or newer business trying to claw your way into top 10 SERP territory.
Content Structure Matters
You’d be surprised how many key service or collection pages exist without a single H1 heading. Picture a quaint street in the middle of autumn after a windy day-beautiful, crispy, red and yellow leaves scattered everywhere. That’s Google search results: plenty of pages floating around, but without H1s to anchor them. The point I’m trying to convey is that every important page needs a clear H1. From there, keep your structure logical: H1 for the main heading, H2s for subtopics, H3s for sub-subtopics, and so on. Simple, consistent and crucial for both SEO and readability.
User Intent
User search intent tends to blend into keyword research, kind of like how my whites mysteriously blend into slightly different off-whites when I’m doing laundry (any help here would be much appreciated). At its core, it goes back to borrowing your user’s mind to predict what they’re going to search for. Are their queries informational, commercial, transactional, or navigational? If you’re unfamiliar with these terms, our blog on search intent breaks them down and explains why they matter for business.
The point is, understanding the why behind a search-and which intent matters most to your site-is key to knowing your target audience and creating content that actually resonates.
Natural Keyword Integration
Long gone are the days of ‘SEO copywriting’ in the form of keyword stuffing, and I’d like to think that any modern form of aggressive keyword integration is accidental, but a gentle reminder is always good.
Your goal is to weave primary and secondary keywords in as naturally as possible. If the term fits and the sentence flows, great. Perfect. That’s what we want. If you’re twisting words just to cram that keyword in, though, take a step back. Effective SEO copy should highlight keywords without making them stick out like a sore thumb.
Strong Introductions
A killer intro is clickbait’s smarter, better-looking cousin. Google and your readers have one thing in common: they judge you instantly, and nothing screams “bounce rate” louder than an intro that sounds like it’s been written by an accountant on a Monday morning.
Google has hinted that packing useful, comprehensive information into your opening, above-the-fold content, first paragraph-or however else you label it-boosts your chances of snagging featured snippets in SERPs.
When I say “comprehensive,” I’m referring to answering questions directly and providing concise, useful summaries; exactly the kind of content Google nods to in its own Search Central document.
Internal Linking Is Important
Not only does internal linking provide an immediate gateway to another area on your site that’s maybe two, three, four or even five clicks away, when done right, it also serves as a highlighter to Google.The topic of internal linking could fill an entire blog itself (and it has, check out our internal linking strategies guide for the deep dive). But in the spirit of practising what we preach, here’s the quick-hit version:
- Anchor Text Relevance: A link’s anchor text tells Google what the linked page is about; using clear, keyword-rich text boosts relevance for both search engines and users.
- Content Context and Relevance: Internal links connect related topics, helping Google comprehend page relationships and improve content relevance in search results.
- Building Topic Clusters: Linking related pages creates topic clusters, signalling to Google that your site covers a subject comprehensively and thus, improves rankings. Woo!
- Link Depth and Page Importance: The more internal links there are to a page there are, the more important Google thinks it is.
- Crawling Efficiency: Internal links help Googlebot find, crawl and index your deeper pages faster.
- User Engagement Signals: Internal links guide visitors to relevant content, reducing bounce rates, increasing time on site, and boosting rankings through positive user signals.
- Keyword Optimisation: Internal links allow you to target different keywords by linking to relevant content, expanding keyword coverage across your site.
- Distribute Link Equity and Authority: Linking from high-authority pages passes "link equity," boosting the rankings of linked pages and distributing SEO value.
Content Must Be Easy to Read
Nothing kills good writing faster than clunky readability. It’s like listening to your favourite artist mid-flow state, only to have the track pause every 10 seconds. Sure, you can hit play again, but the vibe is gone.
The same goes for content. If readers have to re-read your sentences just to “get it”, they’ll tune it out. So, what are the usual culprits that ruin readability and ultimately steer you away from creating SEO-friendly copywriting? Keyword stuffing, blatant, robotic AI copy and sloppy punctuation or grammar.
The fix is simple: keep it clear, keep it human and keep it flowing. If it feels easier said than done, StudioHawk offers bespoke content marketing strategies that make your copy effortless to read and powerful enough to drive growth long-term.
Focus on User Experience (UX)
Four words: Put. The. User. First.
Google’s been shouting it from the rooftops for years. The better the experience, the better your chances of ranking.
When we talk UX in content, we’re talking about revisiting how to best structure content for the user, sure, but we’re also expanding on it. That means thinking about the little details that make navigation effortless and the overall experience more enjoyable. Think about it for a sec: what kind of page elements would make you keep scrolling?
Chances are, it’s something like a table of contents that lets you jump back to the good stuff, a ‘back to top’ button for when you’ve scrolled too far, or a relevant video that breaks up a wall of text. Even simple touches like clear internal links or interactive widgets can make the difference between someone skimming and someone sticking around. Not only do they follow SEO copywriting best practices, but they also enhance user experience.
Clear CTAs (Call to Actions)
CTAs are what turn readers into customers, so they need to be impossible to miss, both visually and in the copy itself. The trick is balance: your CTAs should feel obvious without being pushy. It’s kinda like a road trip. The path you’re on is fine, but a well-placed sign saying “next exit: hidden gem” makes you want to pull over and explore.
For long-form content, always wrap up with a closing CTA. It ties everything together in a neat little bow. It’s another SEO copywriting best practice that reinforces earlier prompts or CTAs and leaves the reader with something to think about.
How Perspective Affects SEO Copywriting
One thing I’ve learnt from working in SEO is that perspective is everything. There are countless moving parts that feed into it—from the industry your site operates in, to the state of that market, to web development, copywriting, and marketing … just to name a few. With this in mind, touching on different perspectives when it comes to effective SEO copywriting isn’t talked about nearly enough, and I believe it has real value.
For context, my background is in SEO, with a strong focus on writing. While I’ve done my research into other areas I’ll touch on below, I’m not claiming to be an expert in all of them. Instead, think of this as a curated point of view; an SEO practitioner’s lens with supporting insights from beyond my lane.
In-House/Freelance Content/Copywriters
For content or copywriters, everything begins with the written word. The perfect “writer” might not exist, but perfect sentences do, and every writer is chasing them. They’re constantly striving to improve their work, and the goal is always the same: create content that’s digestible, fluent, and memorable.
It’s no surprise that job boards are full of listings for SEO Content Writers and SEO Copywriters—and for good reason, too! They’re the ones creating compelling copy that connects with readers and search engines alike.
Yes, I hear you: well, what about AI? What about it? Yeah, okay, AI has infiltrated industries left, right, and centre. And sure, it can spit out a blog in sections, which makes generating content technically easier than ever, but you know what’s even easier? Spotting the difference between throwaway filler and content with meaning. This is why qualified human-generated content is worth its weight in gold.
Ultimately, content/copywriters are excellently equipped to tackle SEO copywriting. The only roadblocks they really need to face are grappling with and grasping the intricacies of different industries (if they freelance) and adjusting their writing methods to accommodate keyword implementation and other SEO aspects (if they’re in-house).
Business Owner
Stating that business owners are the beating heart of their company is no exaggeration. They know the company inside and out, back to front, and top to bottom—which is why when it comes to SEO copywriting, taking it upon yourself is certainly a viable option. After all, Google’s mission is to deliver the best answers to specific queries, and business owners share that same mission: to give customers the best possible experience.Your insider knowledge is gold. It’s what allows you to highlight the unique selling points (USPs) that trump your competitors. With that in mind, here are a couple of SEO copywriting tips for business owners looking to take their website’s content into their own hands:
- Avoid using AI to generate content where possible. Unless you have a personalised AI bot accustomed to your business’s brand and tone of voice, Google is well-equipped to weed out AI-generated content. If you’re concerned about the quality of writing, run it through a grammar checker or consider hiring a freelance or in-house writer or editor.
- Embed keywords where possible. It’s easy to get caught up in just writing about the business, but it’s pivotal that any keywords you’ve identified or that you’ve been assigned are implemented.
Marketing/Social Media Roles
Marketing and social media assistants, execs or coordinators are often tasked with writing SEO-friendly content. On one hand, they’re already plugged into the brand and understand the audience, which makes them well-positioned to produce SEO content that feels authentic. On the other, writing for SEO requires specific skills—from keyword integration to structuring copy for search engines—that may fall outside their wheelhouse.Marketing Roles
SEO is a hyper-focused brand of digital marketing, so for the most part, anyone operating within business marketing is already well-equipped to handle it. Marketing gurus understand how content supports bigger marketing goals, often work with detailed buyer personas, have a strong grasp of keyword research, and lean on performance data to guide decisions. All of this makes them sharp content planners who can naturally align SEO content with email, paid ads, and social media for greater reach.However, time and priorities are the catch here. They’re often juggling campaigns and deadlines, which can leave SEO copy feeling rushed. There’s also the risk of leaning too heavily into branding, resulting in content that looks good but isn’t always keyword-targeted or structured for search engines.
Social Media Roles
Social media professionals live and breathe brand voice and audience engagement, which makes them valuable contributors to SEO content. They know what resonates, how to craft compelling messages, and how to repurpose content to boost traffic and visibility across an array of platforms.Their focus on short-form, engagement-driven content, however, can make it challenging to produce structured, keyword-optimised copy. With limited SEO training and priorities centred on immediacy and virality, their content may lack the depth or strategy required for strong search performance.
Interns/Junior Staff
Interns and junior staff are often handed content responsibilities, especially when teams are stretched thin. The upside is that they typically bring a fresh perspective, loads of enthusiasm and a willingness to learn. They’re usually eager to bring creativity to SEO writing, will happily follow SEO guidelines and experiment with optimisation techniques.That said, their lack of experience can lead to content that’s either overly rigid or misaligned with brand tone and search intent. StudioHawk is always happy to provide guidance from an SEO perspective, and as all great businesses do, we suggest assisting where you can in relation to the brand’s messaging. Who knows? This might foster a junior content writer with experience in SEO copywriting.
Combining Perspectives to Correctly Execute SEO Copywriting
There’s no shortage of perspectives to consider when it comes to SEO copywriting, which is why it pays to step back and focus on what actually makes content effective.Blending vocational perspectives with the pillars of SEO copywriting is the recipe for creating fluent, well-written, engaging and brand-driven content that highlights your USPs. It reads well, and it ranks.
If you’d like to explore how SEO copywriting works in practice, our specialists can help. Give us a call or contact us today to get your content soaring and your pages nesting high on SERPs.
Need more convincing? StudioHawk recently worked with WhichCar? to improve their organic performance by conducting a comprehensive content audit, refining existing articles, and expanding their keyword strategy. They worked with the team to implement SEO best practices, which led to better content structure and targeting, and resulted in significant gains in organic traffic and keyword visibility. For a content strategy you won’t regret, reach out today.
