Editing a WordPress Site With Yoast SEO – Essay
Editing
Editing a WordPress site with Yoast SEO is a great way for creative writers to get good ranking with Google and other search engines. Google is not God and Yoast SEO is not the “end all and be all” for sites, however, it is the plug-in we have on The Creative Exiles (TCE), so that is why I am writing this article. Personally I like Yoast SEO and find it easy to work with. I have studied it in great detail and find it is very beneficial for creating good posts.
Editing a WordPress site is not an easy job when there are multiple users, for each author has their own preferences on how and what to edit, so, the editor has to become familiar with each author as to what they want or need. Some people think the editor is stifling their work- only because they do not understand the technical side of editing, and others prefer to have the editor worry about the SEO side. As an editor it is my responsibility to do the best I can to help our authors.
Yoast SEO regulates what each post contains as far as density of keyword or keyword phrases, images, alt text, meta description (snippet), and word count. On a site that has multiple users, such as TCE, it is imperative that an editor reads each post and edits posts that need a better ranking for SEO purposes. An editor should not change any text an author has written, to do so would change the voice of the author and would be unethical – it is a firm policy at TCE to not touch an author’s text without their permission and only for grammar and spelling.
At TCE the editors work on the Yoast SEO technical side, verify that categories are correct, and check to make sure tags are entered. A TCE editor will make sure the post gets as many ‘Good’ points as possible.
The following content analysis tips show what a TCE editor will strive for to assure an author (and the site) receives the best possible ranking in Google, Bing, or other search engines.
The Content Analysis appears under each post in the edit box. Following is a sample from a Green post:
OK SEO score No outbound links appear in this page, consider adding some as appropriate.
Good SEO score This page has 0 nofollowed internal link(s) and 2 normal internal link(s).
Good SEO score The text contains 1198 words. This is more than or equal to the recommended minimum of 300 words.
Good SEO score The length of the meta description is sufficient.
Good SEO score The images on this page contain alt attributes with the focus keyword.
Good SEO score The keyword density is 0.5%, which is great; the focus keyword was found 6 times.
Good SEO score The focus keyword appears in the first paragraph of the copy.
Good SEO score The meta description contains the focus keyword.
Good SEO score The page title has a nice length.
Good SEO score The focus keyword appears in the URL for this page.
Good SEO score You’ve never used this focus keyword before, very good.
TCE has a lot of very good poets, and they know what type of poem they are writing (free verse, sonnet, rhyming verse, etc.), so they know which categories to use. The same is true for our creative writers and fiction writers.
Some of our authors know enough about Yoast SEO to edit the tech side. Some authors prefer to just write and let an editor worry about the SEO tech side. Either choice is fine.
Editing a WordPress site with multiple users is a wonderful and rewarding experience for me.
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© 2017 Phyllis Doyle Burns
I have always liked to write.It is important to me that writing comes from my heart and soul. When writing poetry, if I do not feel a spiritual connection to what I am writing on, I will discard it and go on to something I can connect with on a spiritual level. I live in the moment, I write from the past or beyond the veil. When writing fiction I go with whatever inspires me at the moment - it could be funny, sorrowful, romantic or sometimes done with the use of colloquial language from mountain folk or other cultural regions.
I began writing content online in 2007, starting with BellaOnline - A Voice For Women, where I was the Native American Editor, Folklore & Mythology Editor, and the Appalachian Editor. I also wrote articles forThe Examiner, Daily Two Cents, and Yahoo. I am currently an author on HubPages.
Most of what I write takes a lot of research and I love it. Even if it is a fictional story, I will research for accuracy in whatever it takes to make my characters, their era, their location, etc. become realistic to the reader.
I hope you enjoy my works. Thank you for visiting.
- Ode to Voices in Desert Sands - August 14, 2023
- My Secluded Mountain Forest Nook - July 24, 2023
- My Cozy Log Cabin in the Woods - July 22, 2023
Thanks Phyllis, all this helps. I have a poet friend who has a PHD in creative writing and who lectures at the local university. Went to a gathering the other night and a question was posed about rules in poetry. I loved her answer…..’There are rules in poetry, but we love to break them. But there’s a difference between someone who knows the rules and chooses to break them for a purpose, and someone who just adheres to no rules in the first place. A poignant remark I thought. Cheers!
Thanks, Tony. I do like your friend’s answer, it is very good, so thanks for sharing that.
Thank you for reposting this in a slightly altered form. I recommend that all members read it as it helps to clarify SEO and the editor’s job.
Thank you, John. I appreciate your feedback.
Thanks for posting this Phyllis. I truly appreciate all the work you guys do behind this scenes here, i am glad that i was able to make a home here for my writing.
Thank you, Paul, and you are most welcome. It is good to know the article is helpful. We are glad, too, that you made a home here for your writing. We appreciate you and enjoy your writing.
Thank you, Phyllis. This is a very informative article for all of us. No matter how well someone writes, it won’t get much exposure if the technical issues aren’t applied correctly. Thank you for helping us with your awesome editing skills! It can get really confusing; I get confused with Tags most of all.
Hi Tamara. I a glad you found it helpful. Thank you for the compliment. Tags should be the words you think people will search for. Unlike keywords they are not too prominent in the article, but are important to help people find what they put in search engines. We can always help with tags or any tech issues. Thanks again.