Master The Skill of Writing Articles For The Search Engines

How do you master the skill of writing articles for the search engines? 

Every article that I write, I always keep in mind my readers. My writing should be very conversational, to the point, not rude, sensitive to the feelings of others, not poetic, and very reader-friendly. Being search engine friendly is always last in my list. But being last, does not necessarily mean not important. Needless to say, I put great importance to produce articles that are search engine friendly.

As an article writer, it is only wise that you master the skill needed to produce articles that will rank high in the search engines. How do you come up with articles that the search engines will love? Here are the five tips to mastering the skill to writing articles for the search engines:

1. Do not optimize your article for one-word keywords. I usually optimize for two- to four-word phrases.  The longer the phrase is, the less competitive it becomes. By focusing on keyword phrases, instead of one-word keywords, you will bring targeted traffic to your site. For example, in this article I am optimizing for the keyphrase "articles search engines".
   
2. Use text and not text within Flash or graphical text. Flash is not readable by the search engines. It is ok if you have text within your graphics but make sure you have included your keyword within your article. The Search Engines will love you for that.
3. Use keyword phrases all throughout your article. Search Engines will be able to understand your article better if you sprinkle your article with your targeted keyword phrases. I don't put much emphasis on keyword density, unless I have a tool which computes for the density automatically. Otherwise, I don't much worry about keyword density. One good rule of thumb is to mention the keyword phrase at least once for each paragraph. Once in the introduction, once for each body paragraph, and finally once in the conclusion. If you do this, you can be sure your keyword density is going to be fine.
   
4. Write 300 - 500 word articles. Shorter than 300 words, you run the risk of your article being misunderstood by the Search Engines. If you can help the Search Engine analyze the theme of your article, the better for your article.
   
5. Use synonyms and plurals for your keyword phrase. If you are targeting for the keyword phrase "sms textingr", make sure you also use keywords like "mobile phone texting", cellular phones sms", etc.