Content writers have always had a great appetite for learning. Adding more texture, improving tone, storytelling techniques, and so on. There are endless discussions about these concepts. And the writers love them too.

However, as soon as it comes to learning SEO strategies, the perceptions seem to divide. For starters, not many content writers are aware of the fact that Google does not actually penalize you for duplicate content. As long as it is marked up as ‘canonical’ on the copy.

That being said, the question still remains astounding – should content writers learn SEO?

Straightforward answer – ‘YES’.

Search Algorithms Are Smart Enough

To begin with, let’s debunk one of the biggest myths in the world of SEO – ‘duplicate content would hurt you.’ Here’s what Google has to say about it – “ Duplicate content on a site is not grounds for action on that site unless it appears that the intent of the duplicate content is to be deceptive and manipulate search engine results.”

Now, as a content writer, you might always be creating fresh pieces of content. Indeed, it is the best strategy, but at times, you might also need to take up an old approach. For instance, your content promotion strategies for 2021 can include republishing old content with fresh updates. Notably, search algorithms are smart enough to differentiate between duplicate content and an updated piece of content.

Content Is About Connection

One of the key strategies that you’d already been following is making your content relevant to your audience. However, the audience is becoming smarter every day. And not to mention the search engines are taking note of it too.

The content you create shouldn’t only be about connecting with the audience. As long as it cannot satisfy the search engine, it won’t even reach your audience. For you, the most important task should be about including the search queries in your content. Not the queries you’d like to answer, but the queries that your audience might be asking. This should serve you dual-purpose – meet search engine’s needs and also connect with your audience.

Authority Does Not Concern Webmasters Only

As a matter of fact, most content writers believe that authority concerns the webmasters or the websites only. But, this is not entirely true. Ask yourself – would you be considering the advice coming from a reliable source or any other?

When you’re creating content you’re not only helping the website grow its domain authority but also building your own authority as a writer online. Following the latest SEO tips for 2021, your content should be about showing your expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness (EAT). As a result, your content should receive more encouragement online and thus more traffic.

Being content writers, we have a huge responsibility on our shoulders. We have to help webmasters with their SEO while also keeping the focus on the target audience. It is indeed a careful balance between both that helps in improving the overall visibility of a website online. Thus, ignoring the importance of SEO in writing won’t do any good but only build up faults over time.