A question we sometimes get from people who want to automate writing is, “Will the content I generate with Wordsmith hurt my SEO?” The answer is no. Here’s why.
When you sit down to write copy the traditional way, you instinctively make thousands of decisions about word choice and sentence structure. As you edit, you make another series of decisions that shape the final content and ensure that it’s as reader-friendly as possible.
When you make content that users like, it makes search engines like Google happy, too. In fact, this is one principle of Google’s Webmaster Guidelines: “Make pages primarily for users, not for search engines.”
The Wordsmith platform allows you to codify your decision process so that you can automate your writing, producing high volumes of high quality content that work well for both readers and search engines. The choices you need to make are built right into the Wordsmith platform, which is designed to let you build incredible variability into each narrative you generate.
How Wordsmith Helps SEO
With Wordsmith, a simple sentence like the one above can be written in at least 72 different ways.
For example, here are two product descriptions generated via Wordsmith from the same template.
(Think of a template as the marriage between a narrative structure and data set.)
Description 1
The N46N by Sharp comes with a massive 55-inch 2160p LED display. Don’t forget to grab a few pairs of 3D glasses, as the N46N is fully loaded with 3D functionality. With four HDMI ports, the N46N by Sharp gives you many options for connecting gaming systems, stereo systems, DVD/Blu-ray players, and more.
Description 2
With built-in WiFi, a 35-inch LCD screen, and 1080p resolution, Vizio designed a great TV with the release of the B48W83. Integrating an additional device with the B48W83 is made easy when using its HDMI port.
How can these narratives be so different? When you build rules around your data in Wordsmith, it automatically makes the same decisions that you would make.
The rules you assign propagate across all of your narratives, making each and every one of them unique while adhering to your own best practices.
Nearly 140,000 variations can be automatically generated from only 3 sentences.
Here’s an in-depth illustration of how Wordsmith can help you achieve nearly 140,000 variations from a simple three-sentence narrative.
The sentences we’re automating:
“The E24-C1 by Vizio boasts a whopping 50-inch 1080p LED display and built-in WiFi connectivity. Make sure to pick up some 3D glasses as well, as the E24-C1 comes standard with 3D capabilities. With 3 HDMI ports, the E24-C1 by Vizio is great for connecting other home-entertainment systems.”
After we insert data variables to describe each TV, we build in rules called “branches” that tell Wordsmith what to say in different circumstances. This is known as conditional logic.
For instance, we can tell Wordsmith to use the word “whopping” when a TV screen size is greater than 45 inches, “compact” if less than 25 inches, or “nice” if in between those two.
Total variations = 3
Next, we can give Wordsmith the option of writing “and built-in WiFi connectivity” if the TV has WiFi, and writing nothing if it doesn’t. This gives our narrative twice as many possibilities.
Total variations = 6 (3 x 2)
Next, we can add a second sentence to the narrative if the TV has 3D capability: “Make sure to pick up some 3D glasses as well, as the E24-C1 comes standard with 3D compatibility.”
The alternative is for Wordsmith to write nothing. With these two options, we’re doubling the possible variations yet again.
Total variations = 12 (3 x 2 x 2)
Lastly, we’ll build in logic that for a third sentence. This one will have three different options to account for 0 HDMI ports, 1 HDMI port, or 2 or more HDMI ports.
Total variations = 36 (3 x 2 x 2 x 3)
With our branches built, we can add synonyms to exponentially increase variability. Let’s start with the first sentence.
For the word “whopping”, we can add “massive”, “enormous”, and “impressive”. Now we’ve got four options instead of just one, quadrupling our total number of variations.
Total variations = 144 (3 x 2 x 2 x 3 x 4)
For “boast”, we add “comes with” and “has”. Variations triple.
Total variations = 432 (3 x 2 x 2 x 3 x 4 x 3)
For “Make sure to pick up some 3D glasses as well”, we add “Don’t forget to grab a few pairs of 3D glasses” and “3D glasses are a must-have”. Another tripling.
Total variations = 1,296 (3 x 2 x 2 x 3 x 4 x 3 x 3)
For “comes standard with 3D capabilities”, we add “is fully loaded with 3D functionality” and “comes with 3D viewing abilities”. Tripled again.
Total variations = 3,888 (3 x 2 x 2 x 3 x 4 x 3 x 3 x 3)
For “is great for connecting other home-entertainment systems”, we add these synonymous phrases: “makes it easy to integrate any of your devices” and “gives you many options for connecting game systems, stereo systems, DVD/Blu-ray players, and more.” And once more, we’ve tripled our total variations.
Total variations = 11,664 (3 x 2 x 2 x 3 x 4 x 3 x 3 x 3 x 3)
Lastly, we can create a synonym for entire first sentence, “The E24-C1 by Vizio boasts a whopping 50-inch 1080p LED display and built-in WiFi connectivity,” so that the structure changes but the overall meaning does not. The new sentence would look like this:
“With built-in WiFi, a 50-inch LED screen, and 1080p resolution, Vizio is upping their game with the release of the E24-C1.”
The number of variations double.
Total variations = 23,328 (3 x 2 x 2 x 3 x 4 x 3 x 3 x 3 x 3 x 2)
We’ll need to account WiFi in the new version of the sentence we just made. If there is no WiFi, we’ll just write “With a 50-inch LED screen and 1080p resolution”.
Total variations = 46,656 (3 x 2 x 2 x 3 x 4 x 3 x 3 x 3 x 3 x 2 x 2)
Finally, we’ll add a few synonyms for the phrase “is upping their game”: “built a TV that anyone would enjoy” and “designed a great TV”. The number of total variations are now well into the six digits.
Total variations = 139,968 (3 x 2 x 2 x 3 x 4 x 3 x 3 x 3 x 3 x 2 x 2 x 3)
Behind these calculations are highly variable, human-friendly narratives that any search engine is sure to love. In fact, with the right branches and synonyms in your narratives, your search ranking can improve.
Request a demo today to see just how effective your content can be.
Learn more: Wordsmith & SEO: How Does Google Treat Automated Content?