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4 Best SEO Reporting Tools (Free & Paid Options)

2025-04-10 20:32:45

SEO reporting transforms raw data into actionable decisions. It shows clients and teams exactly what’s working — and what isn’t.

But here’s the painful truth:

You can waste hours each month collecting data from various platforms. Like copying numbers from Google Analytics, Search Console, and rank trackers into spreadsheets.

Then struggling to make it look presentable.

Oh, and this is for one website. If you’re managing many projects, reporting can get VERY tedious (and costly).

That’s why I’ve handpicked a list of four dedicated SEO reporting tools that:

• Save time by automatically collating data from your favorite SEO and analytics platforms
• Help you build client-ready reports without starting from scratch every time
• Let you track and visualize SEO performance in a way that actually makes sense for you

Here’s a quick rundown of our favorite SEO reporting tools:

1. Google Looker Studio

Best for creating reports from various sources like Google Sheets, Search Console, and APIs

Pricing: Free; Pro plan costs $9 per month with a 30-day free trial.

Google Looker Studio is a free tool that helps you create SEO dashboards that are visually appealing and customizable.

Here’s what I love about Looker Studio:

Connect All Your Data Sources in One Dashboard

One of the biggest advantages of Google Looker Studio is how seamlessly it connects with 1,000+ data sources.

This lets you pull all your SEO, PPC, and marketing data into one clean, interactive dashboard.

Here’s how it works:

Connect your Looker Studio account to Google’s native platforms, including:

• Google Search Console to pull in keyword rankings, impressions, clicks, and click-through rate (CTR)
• YouTube Analytics if you’re reporting on YouTube SEO
• BigQuery, Google Sheets, Google Cloud Storage if you’re managing large datasets
• Google Ads if you want to compare paid and organic performance metrics in one place

These connectors are free to use and only need a few clicks to set up.

Beyond Google’s platforms, Looker Studio also integrates with 1,100+ third-party data sources via partner connectors.

For example, you can connect your Looker Studio to:

• Semrush: Import keyword rankings, domain analytics, and backlink data
• Shopify: Combine ecommerce sales data with SEO performance insights to see how organic traffic impacts your revenue
• Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and TikTok Ads: Combine all your social media ad metrics with SEO results in one report

Report Fast with Templates or Build Custom SEO Dashboards

Looker Studio gives you the flexibility to choose how you want to set up your SEO reports. Whether that’s in a streamlined or more hands-on way.

Here’s how:

If you want a quick start, you can use pre-built templates from the gallery.

For example, you could choose a Google Search Console performance template.

It visualizes impressions, clicks, CTR, and average position:

With this template, you simply need to connect your Search Console account, and you’re good to go.

But if you need something more tailored, you can easily build custom dashboards from scratch in three simple steps:

1. Choose exactly which metrics to show
2. Pull in multiple data sources (Google Analytics, Semrush, Shopify, etc.)
3. Design the layout to fit your team’s or client’s needs

Pros & Cons

2. Semrush

Best for SEO professionals who want an all-in-one solution to track, analyze, and report SEO performance in one place

Pricing: Starts at $139.95 per month; Backlinko-exclusive 14-day free trial available

Semrush’s My Reports lets you build customizable SEO reports. It’s designed to help you merge data from across Semrush’s various tools and present it in an easy-to-understand format.

Here’s what I love about My Reports:

Combine Multiple Semrush Tools in One Report

Semrush’s My Reports tool lets you pull data from across the platform’s entire SEO toolkit and present it in a single, cohesive report.

You can include insights from tools like:

• Position Tracking to highlight keyword performance
• Site Audit to showcase technical SEO health
• Backlink Audit for link profiles

This feature is perfect if you want to avoid bouncing between separate dashboards. Or manually merging data sources.

With everything in one place, it’s also easier to spot patterns and draw connections. Like how ranking improvements might correlate with new backlinks. Or how technical issues could be holding your keyword performance back.

Create SEO Reports from 20+ Marketing Data Sources

You can go beyond just Semrush data by connecting 20+ other marketing data sources to further enhance your reports.

These include Google Search Console, Google Analytics, Google Business Profile, and more.

For example, you can pull keyword rankings and backlink data from Semrush. Then combine it with Google Search Console data to highlight clicks and impressions.

All in one report:

This makes it easier to present a holistic view of your SEO performance. And show not only where you rank but also how those rankings translate into actual search traffic.

Save Time with Ready-Made Templates

If you’re short on time and don’t want to build your SEO reports from scratch, Semrush has you covered with ready-made templates:

These templates help you quickly generate reports for common SEO tasks.

For example, you can select:

• Monthly SEO Reports: Use these to update clients about your SEO performance
• Site Audit: This gives you a quick overview of your domain’s technical health
• Backlink Audit: This lets you analyze your website’s backlink profile and spot new link opportunities

You can use your selected template as is:

Or you can customize it further with the drag-and-drop tools.

Quickly Build SEO Reports with Drag-and-Drop Widgets

Semrush’s drag-and-drop interface makes it easy to build your own custom reports or build on templates.

Just drag the data widgets you need from the left panel and drop them wherever you need them.

Let AI Summarize Your Report

One of the standout features of My Reports is the built-in AI Summary tool.

Once you’ve built your SEO report, you can click “Add AI Summary,” and Semrush will automatically generate a clear, concise overview of the key takeaways:

You can also choose whether you want the AI to generate a brief or detailed summary, depending on your audience:

Pros & Cons

3. AgencyAnalytics

Best for freelancers and SEO agencies to share real-time reporting dashboards with clients

Pricing: Starts at $79 per month; 14-day free trial available

AgencyAnalytics is a reporting platform built specifically for agencies managing SEO and digital marketing clients.

It lets you create customizable SEO reports by pulling data from 80+ tools, including:

• Google Search Console
• Google Analytics
• Semrush
• Moz
• Bing Webmaster Tools

Here’s what I like most about Agency Analytics:

Choose From Four Report Starting Points

AgencyAnalytics gives you four ways to start building a report:

• Blank report: Start fresh and create a fully customized SEO report
• Smart report: Auto-generate a report with your connected integrations (like Semrush, Shopify, Google Search Console, and Salesforce)
• Template: Use a pre-made reporting template
• Clone existing report: Copy any report you’ve already created

If you manage multiple clients or create recurring SEO reports, cloning an existing report is a HUGE time-saver.

You can duplicate the layout, data sources, and widgets from any previous report. This way, you don’t have to start from scratch every time.

And if speed is your priority, the Smart Report option gives you a great baseline. It pulls in data from your connected tools automatically.

But if you’re building something new or one-off, starting with a blank report or a premade template still gives you all the flexibility you need.

Track Your Client’s SEO Goals

AgencyAnalytics lets you set and track specific SEO goals for each client. You can then keep track of the progress in your reports.

Whether it’s hitting a target number of organic sessions, ranking for priority keywords, or increasing revenue, you can define it as a goal.

Simply choose the metric you want to track and set your conditions.

Let’s say your goal is exceeding 100k sessions per month:

You just drag and drop that goal into your report to track it alongside your SEO performance:

And just like that, you can track your goal right next to your current performance.

Have Full Control of How Your Reports Look

AgencyAnalytics also lets you adjust the size and placement of each widget to fit your reporting style.

You can resize and rearrange your charts, tables, and graphs to fit your preferred style and showcase what’s most important to your audience.

This level of granularity lets you fully customize your SEO reports to make them visually appealing and easy to understand.

Give Clients Real-Time Access to SEO Dashboards

AgencyAnalytics also lets you create custom logins for your clients. This gives them real-time access to their SEO dashboards any time they need.

You can also adjust permissions for each user individually to control exactly what each client sees:

This gives clients a transparent view of their performance. And it cuts down on back-and-forth reporting requests.

Pros & Cons

4. DashThis

Best for creating customizable SEO dashboards and helping clients understand what the data means

Pricing: Starts at $49 per month; 15-day free trial available

DashThis lets you create SEO reports fast, or fully customize them when you need more control.

In other words: it’s suitable for those that want a streamlined solution OR a highly tunable one.

You can also pull data from 30+ tools. These include the usuals like Google Analytics, Search Console, and Semrush. But also the likes of Google Ads, CallRail, and YouTube.

Here’s what I love about DashThis:

Build an SEO Report Your Way

DashThis gives you multiple widget types to build exactly the kind of SEO report you want.

Whether you’d like to craft a report quickly or need full control, DashThis gives you this flexibility:

For example:

You can drop in preset widgets that auto-populate common SEO key performance indicators (KPIs):

But if you need something specific, you can use custom widgets to pick your graph type, tweak the settings, and fully control how your data looks:

You can also use static widgets to add context or structure to your report.

For example, you can:

• Add a custom header
• Write comments
• Upload a CSV to add more data to your report
• Manually enter numbers

You can also use widget bundles to quickly add a group of related widgets at once.

For example, you can add a bundle of five related widgets that give you an overview of your image or organic search performance:

This makes it easy to quickly set up important reports.

Leave Notes in Your SEO Dashboards

DashThis lets you add notes right inside your dashboards. This way, you can explain what’s happening without sending a separate email to your client:

You can use notes to:

• Call out key wins
• Clarify sudden traffic drops
• Guide your client through the data

Comments live right next to your charts. So clients can see your notes in context as they review their performance:

Add Formatted Insights

At the end of your report, you can drop in a rich text comment block.

Here, you can write your own notes, style the text, add images, and even structure sections with bullet points:

It’s perfect for:

• Summarizing key takeaways
• Highlighting recommendations
• Making your report easier for clients to act on

Group Dashboards to Stay Organized

If you manage lots of SEO dashboards, you can organize them into groups. These work like folders for easier navigation.

For example, you could create a group for each client (e.g., “Client A — Monthly Reports”).

Or you could create them for different report types. Like “Local SEO” and “Ecommerce SEO.”

Pros & Cons

Ready to Choose Your SEO Reporting Tool?

The best SEO reporting tool for you really comes down to how much flexibility you need, and how quickly you want to get things done.

If you’re comfortable with a bit of setup, Looker Studio gives you endless customization.

But if you prioritize speed and being able to work with just one tool for many key SEO tasks, Semrush’s My Reports is the better option.

The post 4 Best SEO Reporting Tools <br> (Free & Paid Options) appeared first on Backlinko.

10 Ways to Create Helpful Content + Examples and Checklist

2025-04-07 22:33:11

Like it or not, we’re all at the mercy of Google’s ranking systems.

Systems that reward some sites with high rankings.

And wipe others off the SERPs overnight.

But it’s not all doom and gloom.

Google provides fairly detailed guidelines about the type of content it’s looking for: helpful content.

We follow these guidelines here at Backlinko.

For example, our SEO strategy guide dominates the search results.

And ranks for more than 3.2K long tail keywords:

But this wasn’t by luck.

We aim for every article we publish to meet — or exceed — Google’s helpful content standards.

And you can, too.

After reading this article, you’ll have 10 Google-approved strategies for creating people-first content.

You’ll also see examples from real sites that excel at creating helpful content.

Plus, you’ll get a free checklist to ensure your pages meet Google’s quality standards.

Let’s start by understanding what “helpful content” is in Google’s eyes.

What Is Helpful Content?

Helpful content delivers what a searcher needs, whether they’re seeking information, researching options, or ready to buy.

It’s content written for people — not search engines.

But what was the Google Helpful Content Update (HCU)?

First launched in 2022, Google’s helpful content update was designed to reward people-first content while filtering out pages created primarily for search engines.

According to Google, helpful content does the following:

• Provides trustworthy information backed by genuine expertise
• Delivers substantial value compared to competing results
• Demonstrates firsthand experience with the topic
• Creates a satisfying user experience
• Serves a purpose beyond just ranking in search

Google uses a site-wide classifier. It checks your whole domain, not just single pages, for helpfulness.

This means a significant amount of low-quality content can drag down even your best pages.

The biggest changes to this algorithm update took place in late 2023 and early 2024. Some sites lost A LOT of organic traffic.

Google confirms it reduced low-quality content in search results by a staggering 45%.

The sites hit hardest by these updates were:

• Content-only websites with no actual products or services
• Sites creating articles purely for search traffic
• Affiliate sites with thin content and/or a high monetization-to-informational content ratio

The HCU aftermath sparked lots of debate about whether or not these updates were truly “helpful.”

And if the declines and deindexings were warranted.

But the reality remains: Google determines your visibility in search.

And as the makers (and breakers) of rankings, following their guidelines is essential.

As of March 2024, the helpful content update is no longer a thing.

But helpfulness isn’t going away. The HCU is now integrated into Google’s core ranking systems.

Bottom line?

Creating helpful content is vital for your survival in search.

10 Ways to Create Helpful Content That Google Rewards

There’s no sugarcoating it:

Creating exceptional content is hard work.

But it can pay off through high rankings and targeted traffic.

1. Incorporate Firsthand Experiences

Want to instantly make your content more helpful?

Add personal stories and examples (real ones — not AI-generated).

Why?

Because it shows you actually know what you’re talking about — which is exactly what Google’s E-E-A-T guidelines (experience, expertise, authoritativeness, trustworthiness) prioritize.

Google advises against generic, regurgitated advice on its website:

By including personal experiences in your content — including your successes and failures — you’ll create the kind of content search engines reward.

And your target audience wants to read.

Take this backlink guide from Backlinko founder Brian Dean, for example:

Brian didn’t just give generic advice like “create great content” or “reach out to bloggers.”

He shared specific tactics and advice that actually worked for him, including:

• Real email templates he’s used for outreach
• Screenshots showing actual results
• Step-by-step instructions
• Tool recommendations
• Specific case studies with traffic metrics

The result?

Content that feels like you’re learning from someone who’s been there, done that — not canned advice you can find on any site.

No wonder this guide has maintained high rankings for years.

And generated 31.5K backlinks.

2. Add Expert Insights and Quotes

Expert quotes add authority and new perspectives to your content.

They also help you meet Google’s helpful content expectations by providing insights readers can’t find elsewhere.

Even if you have personal experience with a topic, expert opinions add dimension and alternative perspectives that make your content more comprehensive and helpful.

Expert quotes strengthen your content in multiple ways:

• Add credibility to your claims
• Provide unique insights
• Create content that’s difficult for competitors to replicate

For a great example of this in action, look at pet company Chewy.

Their content often contains insights from board-certified veterinarians and animal behaviorists.

This makes it more authoritative and trustworthy.

Source expert insights through:

• Original interviews (via email, phone, or video)
• Reaching out to experts on LinkedIn, X, or industry-specific sites and forums
• Attending industry events and networking for insights
• Using a media outreach platform

As Nate Matherson, head of growth at Numeral, says:

3. Create Content That Meets Search Intent

Understanding and satisfying search intent is fundamental to helpful content.

For example, if someone searches “how to fix a leaky faucet,” they want clear, step-by-step instructions — not a sales page for plumbing services.

Content that addresses their actual goal (fixing the faucet themselves) will be considered more helpful.

But first, you need to understand the four main types of search intent:

• Informational: Seeking knowledge — “how to fix a leaky faucet”
• Navigational: Looking for a specific website — “Home Depot plumbing”
• Commercial: Researching options — “best tankless water heaters”
• Transactional: Ready to buy — “buy Moen touchless kitchen faucet”

Not sure if you’re creating people-first content that meets search intent?

Consider these points from Google:

If the answer to either question is “no,” your content isn’t fully addressing search intent.

To better meet search intent:

• Analyze the current top-ranking pages for your target keywords
• Note what format dominates (guides, lists, videos, etc.)
• Use a keyword research tool to check search intent for each term and identify related questions and topics. Keyword Magic Tool is helpful for this task.
• Use clear headings that answer specific questions
• Include practical next steps or related resources
• Demonstrate topical authority by addressing all relevant subtopics and common pain points in your content

4. Use Reputable Sources

Using high-quality sources (and citing them) is important for all sites.

It signals to readers and search engines that the information you’re sharing is reputable, accurate, and verifiable.

Well+Good, a wellness site, demonstrates this in its article about medication safety:

They support every health claim with information from:

• Board-certified psychiatrists
• Professors of psychiatry and behavioral sciences
• Peer-reviewed medical journals
• Reputable health resources, like .gov sites.

When evaluating sources for your content, follow these best practices:

• Prioritize recognized authorities in the field (major universities, established publications, industry leaders)
• Check publication dates to ensure information is current
• Check that you’re referencing the original source of the information
• Look for potential conflicts of interest or bias in the source’s funding or affiliations

Google’s E-E-A-T guidelines place heavy emphasis on trustworthiness.

And nothing builds trust faster than showing readers you’ve based your information on solid, reputable sources.

5. Hire Writers with Topical Experience

When it comes to helpful content, experience matters.

So, prioritize writers with backgrounds in your niche over generalists.

This will benefit your content in multiple ways:

• More practical, nuanced advice that only comes from hands-on experience
• Insider tips that readers can’t find on other sites
• Real examples and case studies that build immediate trust

For example, Harvard Health Publishing features physicians as their content creators.

These writers have impressive qualifications.

Including clinical experience, research credentials, and specialized knowledge in their medical fields.

This level of expertise is particularly important for Your Money, Your Life (YMYL) topics, where accuracy directly impacts reader well-being.

But experienced writers are valuable across all blog niches, from beauty to travel.

For instance, Family Vacationist, a travel blog, features contributors who have personally visited the destinations they cover.

This is evident by the insider tips they give.

Including advice on the best rides for kids, the tastiest treats in theme parks, and which hotels to stay at and why.

Family Vacationist also highlights its writers’ experience in bios.

Including relevant publications where they’ve been featured.

Even if you already have experienced writers, an expert review process will add another layer of credibility to your content.

• Have subject matter experts fact-check your information
• Include reviewer credentials directly in your content
• Highlight your review process on your editorial standards page

For example, home services company Angi has experts review its content and features them prominently with a byline.

The expert reviewer also gets a bio to highlight their qualifications.

Investing in topic experts signals to readers and search engines that you’re committed to delivering accurate content and genuine value, not just ranking for keywords.

6. Provide an Optimal Page Experience

Page experience is a critical component of helpful content.

If your page loads slowly or is hard to navigate, readers will leave. It doesn’t matter how good your information is.

But as Google states on its website (in slightly different words), doing the bare minimum won’t cut it.

For the best results, cover all aspects of the page experience rather than focusing on isolated elements.

Here’s how:

Analyze Your Current Performance

Use PageSpeed Insights and Google Search Console’s Core Web Vitals report to establish your baseline metrics.

Focus on the following scores:

• Largest Contentful Paint (LCP)
• Interaction to Next Paint (INP)
• Cumulative Layout Shift (CLS)

If your assessment fails, follow the tool’s recommendations to improve these metrics.

Like reducing unused JavaScript and third-party code.

Optimize Images

Compress images without sacrificing quality using tools like TinyPNG, ImageOptim, or built-in CMS optimizers.

This will keep your images from dragging down your page speed.

Test Across All Device Types

Ensure your site has a responsive design that works across desktops, tablets, and various mobile screen sizes.

Use Chrome DevTools or BrowserStack to test how your site performs on popular devices and browsers.

Pay special attention to touch targets on mobile.

Check that buttons and links are easily tappable without accidental clicks.

Improve Security

Use HTTPS across your entire site to build user trust and meet Google’s requirements for secure browsing.

Google Search Console’s HTTPS report will tell you if your pages are secure. (And what to fix if they’re not.)

You’ll also want to configure proper SSL certificates and ensure all resources load securely.

Optimize Above-the-Fold Content

Prioritize loading essential above-the-fold content (aka content that appears on a webpage before scrolling) to capture web visitors’ attention.

And draw them to your most important content or assets.

Minimize unnecessary elements that push key content below the fold, especially on mobile devices.

Balance Monetization with User Experience

If you use display ads, ensure they don’t trigger layout shifts, overwhelm content, or create friction points for readers.

Reserve space for ads in your layout to prevent content jumps when they load.

7. Seek Information Gain (aka Bring Something New to the SERPs)

Google hasn’t said that “information gain” is a ranking factor, but it aligns with their emphasis on adding value to search results.

Information gain means adding something new to the topic. Something readers can’t find anywhere else.

I’ve mentioned some information gain methods already, like firsthand experiences and expert quotes.

But there are other ways to achieve information gain, including the following:

• Original research: Survey your audience or industry and publish the findings
• Proprietary frameworks: Develop your own scoring system or methodology
• Product testing: Go beyond specs to share real-world performance

For example, the finance site NerdWallet goes to great lengths to thoroughly review different financial products.

Like credit cards, savings accounts, and personal loans.

As part of that effort, they created a NerdWallet star rating methodology.

But they don’t use a one-size-fits-all rating system.

They created separate methodologies for each financial product category.

Why?

Because different factors matter for different financial decisions.

They also published detailed explanations of how they weigh different factors in their rating system.

This helps give their star rating system more credibility.

You’ll see these ratings on various NerdWallet reviews to help readers choose the best products for their needs.

Like this one for a credit card:

The key takeaway here?

Information gain often requires a significant upfront investment.

Whether in time, money, or both.

But it leads to something valuable: content that competitors can’t replicate overnight.

8. Refresh Existing Content

Creating new content isn’t always the best strategy.

Sometimes, updating what you already have delivers better results with less effort.

Fresh, comprehensive content shows Google you’re committed to quality and accuracy.

It can also help boost your rankings.

When refreshing content, prioritize these improvements:

• Update statistics and examples with current data
• Enhance visuals and formatting for a better user experience
• Incorporate new expert insights or research
• Fix outdated advice or recommendations
• Target evolving search intent

9. Create Helpful Graphics and Videos

Helpful content doesn’t just mean the words on the page.

Graphics and videos can also be valuable additions that improve reader comprehension and engagement.

When creating visuals for your content:

• Focus on clarifying complex ideas, not just adding decoration
• Create custom graphics rather than using generic stock images
• Ensure videos add unique value beyond what’s in the written content
• Use callout boxes to highlight key takeaways

At Backlinko, we take visual content seriously.

You’ll often see us using screenshots from various analytics programs to highlight results and showcase website performance.

Our custom graphics illustrate key points and make complex topics more digestible.

They also keep readers engaged throughout the article.

We use tables to make data-heavy topics more digestible.

And improve the readability and retention of our content.

We also use callout boxes to break up text and add more value.

Like side notes and pro tips.

Visual elements make your content more appealing and effective at conveying ideas clearly.

They can also help you improve your bounce rate.

10. Be Strategic with AI Writing Tools

AI writing tools can be great assistants, but they shouldn’t replace human writers.

In fact, Google warns against “using extensive automation to produce content on many topics.”

Google’s March 2024 update specifically targeted sites using AI to generate low-quality content at scale.

As a result, many websites with large amounts of AI-generated content saw dramatic ranking and indexing issues.

But if you read its guidelines, you’ll see that Google isn’t technically against using AI.

As they say on their site — they reward high-quality content “however it’s produced.”

This is a little bit of a gray area, though.

Your idea of high-quality, human-edited AI content may not match Google’s.

But overall, avoid using AI to create low-quality, unoriginal content to manipulate rankings:

Including:

• Publishing AI-generated articles without significant human input
• Creating entire pieces with no subject-matter expertise
• Relying on AI for factual claims without verification
• Generating content solely to target keywords with no real value

Luckily, there are plenty of ways to benefit from AI content tools while staying in Google’s good graces.

This includes:

• Summarizing research papers or creating key takeaways
• Suggesting potential structures based on top-ranking content
• Creating (very) rough drafts of blog posts, email marketing, newsletters, and more
• Improving clarity, fixing grammar issues, or suggesting better phrasing
• Generating topic ideas or angles for your content

The key?

Use AI as a foundation, not a final product.

Enhance it with your expertise, personal experiences, and fact-checking to satisfy Google’s E-E-A-T guidelines.

Bonus: Evaluate Your Content’s Helpfulness with Google’s “Who-How-Why” Framework

Want a simple way to assess if your content meets Google’s helpful content standards?

Use their Who-How-Why framework.

Who Created the Content?

The “Who” question focuses on expertise and credibility.

Google wants to see clear information on the team behind your content.

This can be strategists, writers, editors, fact-checkers, and expert reviewers.

• Add detailed author bios that highlight relevant experience and credentials
• Include prominent bylines on all articles where readers would expect them
• Link bylines to author pages with additional background information

For example, the National Council on Aging (NCOA) highlights its writers’ experience and expertise prominently in bios.

Including medical credentials, education, and writing experience.

This transparency builds trust with both readers and search engines.

How Was the Content Created?

The “How” question is all about transparency in your process.

Google wants to know:

• What research or testing methods did you use?
• How thorough was your approach?
• Did you use AI assistance? (If so, how?)

If you conducted product testing, explain your methodology.

Don’t just say, “We tested 10 products.”

Be specific.

For example, the NCOA highlights its testing data on articles.

Including how many hours of research went into their testing.

And how many experts they consulted.

Why Does the Content Exist?

The “Why” question is the most critical — and the one most likely to trigger ranking issues.

Ask yourself:

• Is this content primarily for helping people? (Good)
• Is it primarily for attracting search traffic? (Bad)

If you’re only publishing to rank for keywords without providing unique value, Google will eventually catch on.

Instead, create content that would be valuable even if search engines didn’t exist.

Content that people would seek out directly.

Like this in-depth NCOA guide on respite care that would be valuable to its target audience, whether on- or offline.

Put This Helpful-Content Framework into Action

Want results? Stop creating content just to check an SEO box.

The sites that dominate search results are those that genuinely help their audiences.

With the 10 strategies in this guide, you’ll create content that Google recognizes as truly valuable.

And attracts traffic because it deserves to rank, not because it’s gaming the system.

So, download our Helpful Content Checklist if you haven’t already.

Then, check out our Content Gap Analysis guide to identify untapped opportunities where you can apply these principles.

You’ll discover where to focus your efforts for maximum impact so you stand out on the SERPs — and withstand Google’s next update.

The post 10 Ways to Create Helpful Content + Examples and Checklist appeared first on Backlinko.

How to Use ChatGPT to Get 10X Better Answers

2025-03-31 19:43:41

This guide will show you how to use ChatGPT the right way.

Brand new to using it?

I’ll help you skip the rookie mistakes that leave most beginners frustrated.

Tried it before and had an average experience?

No problem. You’ll learn how to refine your approach to get useful, high-quality responses (finally).

Because here’s the thing:

ChatGPT IS a powerful tool. But only if you know how to use it effectively.

Let’s make that happen.

What is ChatGPT (And What Can It Do)?

ChatGPT is an AI assistant that answers your questions like a human would.

It can also generate ideas and assist with writing, problem-solving, and research tasks.

How does it do this?

It analyzes lots of books, web pages, and conversations — this is its training data.

Then, it predicts the most relevant response.

Think of it as a brilliant researcher who’s read millions of books and the entire internet.

It can recall any facts and instantly connect ideas to generate the most relevant answer.

(We talk more about how generative AI works in this article.)

So, what can ChatGPT do?

A surprising number of things.

It can help you:

• Brainstorm blog post topics
• Plan your content strategy
• Debug code snippets
• Translate marketing copy into multiple languages
• Explain blood test results in simple terms

Plus, depending on the model you’re using (more on that below), it can also:

Generate images using DALL·E:

And handle voice interactions.

ChatGPT Models

OpenAI (the company behind ChatGPT) regularly updates ChatGPT with new training data.

That’s why there are different ChatGPT models.

Each one is optimized for different tasks.

ChatGPT Limitations

It’s no secret.

ChatGPT makes things up sometimes (aka a “hallucination).

It’s not really thinking for itself.

Instead, it predicts words based on patterns in its training data.

And sometimes, those predictions are completely wrong.

For example, Łukasz Białozor, an AI consultant, asked:

Instead of correcting the prompt, ChatGPT named one person—even though 706 people survived.

Bias is another issue.

AI models like ChatGPT reflect societal biases that exist in their training data. Here’s a simple way to see this in action:

Ask it to draw a nurse. You’ll likely get a woman.

Now, ask it to draw a CEO. You’ll probably see a man.

Here’s what I got:

This gender bias isn’t just limited to images. ChatGPT can perpetuate stereotypes and biases around:

• Gender roles and professions
• Cultural perspectives
• Socioeconomic assumptions
• Historical narratives
• Geographic representation

For example, when asked about “traditional family values” or “successful business practices,” ChatGPT might default to Western, male-dominated perspectives without acknowledging other viewpoints.

What does this mean for you?

• Always cross-reference important facts from multiple sources
• Be aware that ChatGPT’s responses may reflect societal biases
• Ask follow-up questions to get different perspectives
• Use ChatGPT as a starting point, not the final authority
• Consider whose viewpoints might be missing from its responses

How to Use ChatGPT: Step-by-Step Beginners Guide

If you’re new to ChatGPT, getting started is easy.

You’ll be using it like a pro in just a few steps.

Step 1: Choose the Right ChatGPT Account Type

There are three ways to access ChatGPT, depending on what you need.

Guest Access

You can try ChatGPT right away with “Guest Access.” No need to sign up.

Just go to chatgpt.com, and start chatting.

It lets you ask questions and even search the web.

But your conversations won’t be saved.

Once you close the page, everything disappears.

If you’re testing it out, “Guest Access” is fine.

But if you want ChatGPT to act like a real assistant, you’ll need an account.

Free Account

A free account gives you more features and better answers.

For example, the “Reason” feature helps it think before answering, so you get sharper, more accurate responses.

You can also upload files like PDFs and spreadsheets, making it easy to work with large documents.

Another benefit?

Your chat history saves.

You can return to past conversations and pick up where you left off.

Another big benefit is that you can customize ChatGPT responses.

(More on that below.)

So, every time it responds to your questions, it answers in a way that matches your style.

How to Sign Up for Free

Go to chatgpt.com. Click “Sign up.”

Enter a valid email address or sign in using Google, Microsoft, or Apple.

Create a password.

Then, add your name and birthday (both are required).

And finally, choose if you want ChatGPT to remember your conversations (you can change this later).

That’s it. You’re set.

Paid Subscription

If you use ChatGPT a lot, consider upgrading to ChatGPT Plus for $20/month.

This gives you access to all ChatGPT models, including the latest and most advanced versions.

You even get 10 “Deep Research” searches per month.

This allows ChatGPT to search multiple web sources in one query.

You give it one prompt, and it’ll independently search websites, read research papers, compare products, and more.

It’s great when you need to research and visit many websites, such as when you’re comparing products before you buy.

Or when you need to go through scientific journals for research.

Oh, and another benefit?

Faster responses, even during peak hours (7 AM to 5 PM ET).

While free users wait, you keep chatting without interruptions.

Step 2: Tweak the Default Settings

ChatGPT works great out of the box, but a few tweaks can make it even better.

ChatGPT Memory: On or Off?

When you first sign up, you’ll be asked if you want to turn memory on.

But you’re not locked into that choice.

You can change this anytime at:

“Profile” (top right) > “Settings” > “Personalization.”

Turn memory on, and ChatGPT will learn from your past conversations.

You won’t have to repeat yourself every time you start a new chat.

Over time, it’ll remember details and give you more relevant responses.

Turn memory off and every session starts fresh.

This is great if you prefer more privacy.

Or don’t want past conversations influencing future replies.

You can also erase stored memories.

Click “Manage memories” in the “Personalization” window.

And you’ll see a new window where you can erase all memories or delete specific ones.

Personalizing ChatGPT: Make It Work Your Way

ChatGPT doesn’t have to sound the same for everyone.

You can easily customize it.

Just go to “Profile” (at the top right) > “Customize ChatGPT.”

Then, enter basic details like your name and profession.

Next, customize ChatGPT’s personality.

You can specify:

• Tone: Friendly, casual, professional?
• Response length: Brief and direct or in-depth?
• Persona: Strategist, a teacher, or something else?

For example, if you want it to write in Backlinko style, you could type:

If you’re not sure what to write, you can ask ChatGPT.

Here’s one way you can do that using your brand’s messaging document.

Upload the brand guide to ChatGPT and write:

The final section in customization is “What should ChatGPT know about you?”

Here, you personalize ChatGPT to your life and work.

What should you add?

Think about how you’ll be using it, then add relevant instructions.

For example, if you’re vegetarian with some dietary restrictions and you often use it for meal planning, you can write:

Here’s another example if you use ChatGPT for work.

Say you have an ecommerce store.

You could add:

Control Your Privacy

By default, OpenAI may use your conversations to improve the model.

If you’d rather keep chats private, you can turn this off.

Go to “Profile” > “Settings” > “Data Controls” and toggle “Improve the model for everyone.”

Once you do this, it won’t use your conversations for training.

And that’s it.

Your AI is now customized for you.

Go test ChatGPT with a few questions.

And see how well it adjusts based on your customizations.

Still not customized the way you want it?

Go back to settings and keep refining.

Step 3: Learn to Write Better Prompts

If you want high-quality answers from ChatGPT, you need to write better prompts.

Bland or generic answers usually mean a prompting problem.

Why?

Because when you give ChatGPT a vague question, it has to fill in the gaps.

And from what I’ve seen, it plays it safe by giving you the most generic explanations.

You don’t want that.

So how do you fix it?

Let’s get Google to help.

In its prompting guide, Google states that a good, detailed prompt includes four elements:

• Task: What you want ChatGPT to do (explain, analyze, compare)
• Context: Relevant background info (who, what, where, why)
• Persona: The role ChatGPT should take (expert, teacher, consultant)
• Format: How the response should be structured (step-by-step, bullet points, examples)

Adding just task + context makes a big difference.

Use all four, and you get much better answers.

Let me show you the difference in answer quality between a basic and an optimized prompt.

A basic prompt:

What do you get?

A generic list that can work for any tour guide anywhere in the world:

Now, add task + specific context:

Since ChatGPT has specific details to work with, the answer is more relevant.

We’re not done yet.

How about using all four elements using this prompt?

That level of detail gives you a more hyper-specific answer:

Step 4: Get Better Results With Frameworks

Frameworks help ChatGPT focus its thinking so its response becomes clearer and more organized.

So, instead of saying, “Give me an SEO strategy,” or “Give me content ideas,” specify a framework.

For example, in the Málaga tour guide prompt above, try using the STP framework (Segmentation, Targeting, Positioning).

You might say:

Much. Better. Answer.

But what if you don’t know any frameworks?

No problem.

Just ask ChatGPT.

All you have to do is choose the best one.

Step 5: Refine ChatGPT’s Responses with Follow-Ups

ChatGPT’s first answer isn’t always the best, especially for complex topics.

How do you improve it?

Keep asking questions.

Here’s what I mean.

Imagine you’re a social media manager launching a smart water bottle that reminds users to drink.

Your first prompt might be:

ChatGPT gives you a list:

It’s a good start.

But it’s not enough to have a clear launch strategy.

So, you dig deeper.

• If the reply is too generic, ask for more details.
• If the answer is too theoretical, ask for clear, actionable steps.

Or you can focus on one thing in the list.

Keep refining your questions until you have everything you need.

By doing this, ChatGPT becomes more of a collaborative partner.

And you get a final output that’s a blend of AI and your knowledge and topical expertise.

Why not add everything in one big prompt?

You could.

But it’s not always the best approach.

Yes, some prompts are simple enough that they don’t need iterative refining.

But for complex ideas, refining step by step gives you more control over the output.

Fun Ways to Use ChatGPT for Life and Work

One of the most powerful things about ChatGPT?

It can take on different roles.

It can be your personal assistant, researcher, strategist, problem-solver, and more.

ChatGPT as 24-7 Personal Assistant

ChatGPT can be your assistant for work and daily life.

Need help with life planning, SEO, or optimizing your habits?

Done.

For example, you can use it to review legal documents.

Upload a PDF, like a client agreement, and ask it to explain the legal jargon. Or point out unfair clauses.

It’s great for mundane tasks, too. Like cleaning up video transcripts.

Paste (or upload) the transcript.

And ask ChatGPT to organize it better.

Saves you so much time.

So, off to ChatGPT I went and wrote this prompt:

This response gave me a solid starting point to structure my folders.

It also saved me time by giving me a clear framework to customize instead of figuring it all out from scratch.

ChatGPT as Your Analyst

ChatGPT is also great for processing and analyzing data.

A few things it can do:

• Clean up raw data
• Identify patterns
• Extract insights

Here’s a great example of how you can use its data analysis capabilities for digital marketing.

Let’s say you run an online store.

You want to analyze your competitor’s Google Shopping Ads using the Product Listing Ads (PLAs) data you got from Semrush.

Do this:

Upload the data to ChatGPT and use this prompt:

Just like that, ChatGPT will identify patterns and trends from the Semrush data:

ChatGPT as a Thought Partner

ChatGPT is great for learning and skill development.

For example, you can use it as a conversation partner when learning a new language.

You can also use ChatGPT to stress-test your thinking.

It can challenge your assumptions and poke holes in your reasoning.

I even use it to analyze my content outlines for writing projects.

Don’t Stop at ChatGPT. Build Your AI Toolkit.

You’re speaking ChatGPT like a native now.

You’ve gone from curious to confident.

Keep using it, the better you’ll get.

But here’s the thing:

ChatGPT isn’t the only AI tool you should master.

Other generative AI platforms excel at different tasks.

Some crush internet research and exploration. And others are great for chatting with real-life characters.

The post How to Use ChatGPT to Get 10X Better Answers appeared first on Backlinko.

What Are Pageviews? (How to Track and Improve Them)

2025-03-27 22:45:07

Pageviews are a web analytics metric that counts each time a visitor loads or reloads a page on your website.

Each instance of a user viewing a page is one pageview, regardless of whether the same user views the same page multiple times.

Tracking pageviews helps you measure traffic volume and understand which content attracts the most attention.

But:

Pageviews are not the most important metric you should track. I’ll explain why below, but first let’s clarify what they are in the context of a few other metrics.

Pageviews vs. Users vs. Sessions

Pageviews represent the total number of times people view your pages. If someone visits your homepage, clicks to your blog, then returns to your homepage, that counts as three pageviews.

Unique pageviews, on the other hand, combine multiple views of the same page during a single session. If that same visitor views your homepage twice in one session, it would count as just one unique pageview.

In the context of analytics tracking tools, unique pageviews were a Universal Analytics metric. Google Analytics 4 (GA4) doesn’t track unique pageviews.

A user is an individual person visiting your site. A session is a group of interactions one user takes on your site within a given time frame.

Here’s an example of how these all tie together:

Imagine someone discovers your site through Google. They land on your homepage, check out your about page, read a blog post, go back to the homepage, then get distracted by a phone call.

Two hours later, they return to your homepage, browse your product page, and then make a purchase through your checkout page.

Here’s how your analytics would count this activity:

• Users: 1
• Sessions: 2 (the initial visit and the return visit)
• Pageviews: 7 (homepage, about page, blog post, homepage, homepage, product page, checkout)
• Unique pageviews: 6 (the double homepage visit in the first session would count as one unique pageview)

Understanding these distinctions helps you interpret your data accurately and make better marketing decisions.

For example, a high pageview-to-user ratio means visitors are exploring multiple pages on your site. This is generally a good sign of engagement.

This is just one reason it’s important to track pageviews alongside other metrics.

Why Pageviews Aren’t the Most Important Metric to Track

Pageviews tell you how many times your pages are being viewed by your audience.

But they don’t tell you:

• If those visitors had a good experience
• If they want more of your content
• If they want to buy from you

That’s why pageviews are sometimes described as a vanity metric.

Sure, it feels great to see that graph trending upward. But more pageviews doesn’t automatically mean more business.

Put it this way:

Would you rather have 100K monthly pageviews with a 0.1% conversion rate, or 10K pageviews with a 3% conversion rate?

The big number is attractive, but the math is clear: the latter gives you 3x as many conversions (300 vs. 100).

But what about 100,000 pageviews and a 0.3% conversion rate? You’re still getting the same number of conversions, and you’re reaching a much bigger audience.

I’d still take the 10K visitors with the 3% conversion rate.

Why?

Two reasons:

1. Higher conversion rate means I’m better catering to what my audience actually wants
2. There’s room to scale that 10K with a high conversion rate for even more conversions

If my realistic target market is 200K people per month, I can only double my audience size with the first example. With a 0.3% conversion rate, that would be a total of 600 conversions each month.

But with the 10K example and a 3% conversion rate, there’s room to potentially scale my audience size by 20x. While obviously a big feat, this could eventually lead to 6,000 new customers each month.

Obviously this is a major simplification. There are factors like marketing fatigue, limits on the number of potential customers that would ever become paying customers, and limits on my own abilities to scale.

But I’d always take a smaller, more engaged audience that converts more often over a larger, less engaged one.

In organic search, this means meeting the search intent. For paid ads, it could be a matter of producing great creatives and landing pages.

Conversion rates aren’t the only metrics to track either. Other important ones include:

• Average order value (AOV)
• Customer acquisition cost
• Customer lifetime value
• Return on ad spend (for paid advertising campaigns)

These metrics tell you how well you’re positioning your products, how targeted your audience is, and how effective your ad campaigns are. Insights you can’t get from pageviews alone.

Pageviews, Cookies, and Bots

There’s another reason you shouldn’t just pay attention to pageviews: you can’t always trust the numbers.

With a focus on privacy, the digital world is trying to move away from tracking measures like third-party cookies.

Tools like Google Analytics rely on cookies and tracking codes to track pageviews, so user consent levels can affect the numbers.

You might have 500 people visit your page in a month. But if 250 of them decline your tracking cookies, your analytics will be off by 50%.

Not only that, but we also can’t ignore the potential for bot traffic. Google Analytics does a reasonable job of filtering these out, but it’s not perfect.

So you can’t always take your pageviews metric at face value.

But which numbers don’t lie?

Your conversions.

Bots don’t tend to buy things, and even if a user denies cookies, they can still sign up to your email list, download a template, or buy your products.

This is why your bottom line metrics are far more important to track than just watching your pageviews number.

With that said, pageviews do matter a lot in certain contexts.

When Pageviews Are Actually Important

Pageviews are an important measure of your overall reach. This in itself is helpful as a site owner.

But pageviews are particularly important in a few other cases.

Display Ads

If you run display ads on your site, pageviews directly impact your bottom line. More eyeballs on your pages typically means more ad impressions and more revenue.

That’s because display ad networks tend to pay on an RPM basis, or revenue per thousand impressions.

This is why news sites and entertainment blogs in particular obsess over pageviews. Their business models depend on it.

Brand Awareness

When you’re trying to grow your brand awareness, getting more pageviews indicates you’re reaching a wider audience.

If your goal is simply to get your brand in front of as many people as possible, it makes sense to focus on pageviews.

How to See Pageviews in Google Analytics

Google Analytics is the interface most people will likely be familiar with when it comes to tracking pageviews. They’re no longer actually called pageviews, and are simply referred to as “views” now.

But for all intents and purposes, they’re the same thing.

How to Find Pageviews in GA4

Google Analytics 4 works differently from Universal Analytics, which it fully replaced in 2024. Instead of focusing on pageviews by default, it’s built around “events,” and pageviews are just one type of event (labeled “page_view”).

You can see your site’s total pageviews on the overview page in your GA4 property. If it doesn’t display by default, just click the drop-down and set it to “Views.”

But to see pageviews by page, first click “Reports” > “Life cycle” > “Engagement” > “Pages and screens.”

You’ll end up on the “Pages and screens” report.

This shows a graph and table of your pages with the most pageviews (again, just called “views” in GA4).

If you scroll down, you’ll see a table with page views, along with other metrics like users and information about engagement.

You can sort by pageviews to quickly see which of your pages are underperforming.

You can also search for specific pages to track their performance:

How to See How Many Pageviews Other Websites Get

Understanding how many pageviews your site gets is clearly useful. But it’s even more useful when you can compare that number to your competitors.

You can get an estimate of how many pageviews a site gets using a traffic checker, like our free traffic checker tool:

However:

There’s no fully accurate way to see how many pageviews another site gets without seeing its analytics dashboard.

Measuring pageviews accurately requires you to have a pixel or code snippet on your site. If it’s not your site, you can’t see how many times that snippet fires.

Other tools simply measure estimates based on various data sources. These could be their own user panels or publicly available data sources.

Their accuracy varies widely depending on the site’s size and industry. They tend to be more accurate for larger sites with more traffic (as they’ll naturally just have more data to use).

So they’re best used for understanding trends, rather than absolute numbers.

Here’s an example:

Imagine you’re the owner of Mountain Bean Coffee, a brand that offers specialty coffee. And let’s imagine you know from GA4 that you get 22K pageviews per month.

You identify a few of your competitors, and you want to compare their pageviews to yours. You know you can’t get 100% accurate numbers. So instead, you look for a trend by entering them all into a traffic checker tool.

You stick your site in, and it tells you that you get 16.4K visits per month.

Even though this is lower than your actual pageview count, this is your baseline that you’ll use to compare to your competitors.

You pop three competitors into the same tool, and it suggests you’re somewhere in the middle when it comes to traffic levels:

• MakersCoffee.com: 4.6K
• PressCoffee.com: 8.2K
• DrinkTrade.com: 303.9K

You can see you’re driving more traffic than some competitors (like Maker’s Coffee). But you’re not at the level of Trade Coffee yet.

You know these aren’t the exact numbers of pageviews they get. But you can use this as a guide going forward.

For example, imagine Press Coffee’s number of visits increased to 20K while yours only rose to 18K.

Their estimated count is still lower than your actual count. But you can probably be quite confident they are now getting more pageviews than you.

Monitor More Than Just Pageviews

While pageviews can be a useful indicator of site traffic and content popularity, they’re just one way to track website performance.

For most businesses, the metrics that matter most are those that directly impact revenue and growth. Like conversion rates, customer acquisition costs, and lifetime value.

The post What Are Pageviews? (How to Track and Improve Them) appeared first on Backlinko.

Top 5 Online Reputation Tools (Tried &amp; Tested)

2025-03-27 01:15:53

What people say about your brand online shapes your reputation. This could be reviews, social mentions, or business listings.

Keeping up with all of them takes A LOT of time and effort.

Online reputation management (ORM) tools help you monitor brand mentions, manage reviews, and keep business details consistent across directories.

But each tool has its specialties.

I researched and tested the best ORM tools available. And found the top five that’ll make your life easier.

Here’s what you’ll find in this guide:

• The best tool for tracking social mentions
• The easiest way to manage and respond to reviews
• A solution that automatically updates your business listings

5 Best Online Reputation Tools Compared

1. Brand24

Best for spotting sudden spikes in mentions and identifying key influencers

Pricing: Starts at $199 per month; 14-day free trial available

Brand24 is an AI-powered media monitoring tool. It lets you track online mentions, analyze sentiment, and spot early signs of PR crises.

This tool stands out by tracking more than social media and news platforms. It also monitors podcasts and influencers, giving you a complete view of your brand.

Here’s what I love about Brand24:

Spot Sudden Spikes in Mentions to Immediately Act on Them

Brand24 uses AI to detect unexpected spikes or drops in brand mentions. It’s marked with an exclamation mark in your dashboard so you don’t miss it:

This is important because online conversations can change fast.

A spike in mentions may mean a PR crisis. A negative review might be going viral, or a complaint is spreading fast.

On the flip side, it could signal an opportunity to capitalize on. Like a post about your brand going viral in a positive way, or an influencer giving you a shoutout.

But how do you know whether the spike is positive or negative?

Brand24 uses AI to analyze the sentiment behind each mention. It checks if the spike is caused by positive buzz, negative feedback, or neutral chatter. This way, you can take the right action fast.

For example, Barbie had a significant spike in mentions in 2024 due to the Golden Globes event:

Brand24 tells you why the spike happened and shows you where it’s coming from. In the screenshot above, you can see it flagged Barbie’s spike due to the Golden Globes event.

It highlights key details like:

• Why the spike occurred (Golden Globes event)
• Which platforms drove the mentions (Instagram, TikTok, YouTube)
• What type of sentiment was detected (positive admiration and awards)

The summary may not explicitly say “positive” or “negative.”

However, you can infer sentiment from the language used (“high admiration,” “winning awards”) and cross-referencing with the Sentiment tab at the top.

Track Podcast Mentions of Your Brand

Brand24 scans thousands of podcasts and alerts you whenever someone mentions your brand in a podcast title or description.

This way, you don’t miss critical conversations happening in the audio space.

You can view podcast mentions in the general Mentions tab. Or filter them by source:

People talk about brands on podcasts all the time. Whether it’s a CEO interview, product review, or deep-dive industry discussion.

But since podcasts aren’t text-based, these mentions are easy to miss.

Podcast tracking helps you:

• See when influencers talk about your brand
• Respond to negative mentions fast
• Use positive mentions in your marketing

Identify Key Brand Influencers

Brand24 helps you find the most influential people talking about your brand. You can rank them based on number of mentions, reach, audience size, and impact:

Here’s why each filter matters and how you can use them:

• Mentions: See how often someone talks about your brand. High mentions mean they’re actively discussing you, whether positive or negative. Use this to engage or address concerns quickly.
• Reach: Shows how many people might see their posts. Use this to prioritize working with influencers with high reach to spread your message.
• Influence score (impact): Shows how persuasive or credible the person is. This helps you spot trustworthy advocates or negative influencers before misinformation spreads.

Make Reports in One Click

Create reports to share insights with your team or clients.

Brand24 supports various formats like email, PDF, and Excel.

You can also create infographics:

Pros & Cons

2. Reviewflowz

Best for collecting reviews on autopilot

Pricing: Starts at $15 per month; 14-day free trial available

Reviewflowz is a powerful review management platform. It helps you collect, keep an eye on, and show customer reviews.

Here’s what I liked about Reviewflowz the most:

Launch Targeted Review Request Campaigns

Reviewflows automates review collection in two ways:

• Email campaigns: Send automated review requests after purchase, with customizable templates and follow-up scheduling
• Magic links: Generate unique URLs that take customers directly to your review form—perfect for adding to receipts or sharing via SMS

Best part?

When you set up an email campaign within Reviewflowz, you can choose when to request reviews:

• Always request reviews from your email list to get as much feedback as possible
• Only request reviews when a star rating drops under a certain threshold (lets you improve your reputation when your review score starts to drop)

Quickly Reply to Your Customer Reviews

Link your channels (like Slack, email, and Microsoft Teams) to get instant alerts for new reviews:

These notifications let you be in the loop and address critical reviews in time.

Once connected:

• Slack: New reviews are sent directly to a public Slack channel in your workspace
• Email: Reviews land in your inbox
• Microsoft Teams: Reviews show up in a designated Teams channel
• Zapier and Webhooks: You can set up automations to trigger custom workflows

You’ll see all reviews in real time. From there, you can decide which ones need immediate attention—whether it’s a low rating, critical feedback, or a chance to thank a happy customer.

Plus, you can use AI to create and send automated replies to happy reviewers that are always within your brand’s tone.

Show Best Reviews on Your Website

Display your best reviews automatically with Reviewflowz’s customizable, mobile-friendly widgets.

Each widget automatically updates with new reviews and lets you filter by rating to showcase your strongest feedback.

Choose from:

• Masonry: A stack of reviews, which turns into a list on mobile
• Slider: An interactive slider that shows up to three reviews horizontally and one on mobile

Then select the review sources, the number of reviews to display, and which reviews to show based on star ratings:

Pros & Cons

3. myPresences

Best for managing brand presence on different platforms and engaging with reviews

Pricing: Starts at $15 per month; 14-day free trial available

myPresences is an all-in-one online presence and reputation management platform.

It helps you appear in business directories, track customer reviews and engage with them.

Plus, you can display feedback on your website.

Here’s what I like about myPresences:

List Your Business Where It Matters Most

Listing your business on every platform takes a lot of time. It’s also prone to mistakes.

And when you update a phone number, move, or change a website URL, fixing it everywhere can take weeks.

myPresences makes it easy to list your business details on more than 2,000 directories.

You enter your business details once. Then, this tool pushes your business info on your chosen platforms.

But why does this matter? Is getting listed on Google not enough?

Not really.

Customers may use many different platforms to find your business, such as local directories and industry platforms.

Or they may check your website on a review site before they buy from you.

If you rely only on Google, you might miss out on potential customers who search elsewhere.

For example:

• If your business is local, you’ll need to be on Yelp, TripAdvisor, and Google Business Profile (GBP)
• If you manage a SaaS brand, being on review sites like G2, Capterra, and Trustpilot is crucial since some consumers go here before making a purchase
• If you provide medical, legal, or real estate services, niche directories matter (Healthgrades, Avvo, or Zillow)

Check and Respond to Reviews Across Platforms

myPresences centralizes reviews from all major review sites. This helps you check and respond efficiently.

You can see a quick overview of your star rating distribution across all platforms in a pie chart:

Additionally, you can automate your responses with AI:

This lets you quickly respond to common reviews while keeping a consistent tone.

Showcase Customer Reviews on Your Website

myPresences allows you to show your best reviews on your website.

You can use customizable widgets for this:

• Popup: Individual reviews appear as a small floating box on each page. They don’t take up much space and can appear sitewide.
• List: A simple, single-column format. It’s ideal if you want them stacked clearly in one spot.
• Grid: A three-column layout for showcasing many reviews at once. It’s great when you want to highlight volume and variety.
• Carousel: A dynamic slider that rotates the reviews for an interactive experience. Perfect if you want to save space and make the page engaging.

You can avoid the task of copying and pasting reviews on your site. myPresences pulls in reviews automatically and updates them in real time.

This gives you fresh and authentic social proof.

Pros & Cons

4. Semrush Local

Best for managing local business reviews in one place and keeping listings accurate

Pricing: $50 per month + the plan you choose ($139.95/mo for Pro)

Semrush Local is a local SEO and reputation management tool.

It keeps your online listings correct across many platforms. It also manages customer reviews and boosts local search visibility.

Here’s how you can manage your brand’s online reputation with Semrush Local:

Track and Respond to Reviews Across Platforms

Semrush’s Review Management tool helps you track reviews from different platforms. All in one spot.

This may include Google reviews, Facebook, Yelp, and more.

You can also respond to all reviews directly from one page:

Here’s what you can do with this tool:

• Respond to all reviews in one place, without logging into each review platform separately
• Use AI to suggest responses and choose to auto-reply to happy customers
• Keep an eye on review trends over time to track customer sentiment

Compare Your Business Reviews to Your Competitors

Customers don’t just check your reviews. They compare you to competitors, too.

Semrush shows how your ratings and sentiment compare to other businesses:

This lets you see your average rating and review trends next to your competitors.

You’ll see how your average rating compares to others. Find what’s working, spot weaknesses, and take action to improve your reputation.

Keep Your Business Info Consistent

Consistent business details make it easier for customers to find and contact you.

And that builds trust.

The Listing Management tool updates your business info to over 150 directories with no extra cost. Like Google, Yelp, and Bing:

This improves reputation and also signals to Google that your business is legitimate and worth showing to searchers.

Pros & Cons

5. Mention

Best for tracking your brand mentions across social media and news platforms

Pricing: Starts at $49 per month; 14-day free trial available

Mention is a social media listening tool that monitors your online presence and analyzes brand mentions.

Let’s take a look at Mention’s key features:

Track Your Brand Mentions Across Channels

Mention tracks more than one billion sources. It checks for real-time brand mentions on social media, news sites, blogs, and forums.

All these are in one dashboard. You can expand each mention and see the preview of the post that includes your business name. And even know the sentiment behind the mention:

Mention also provides a link to each source. This takes you straight to the original post so you can join the conversation directly on the source site.

Create Real-Time, Visual Reports

Mention lets you make reports based on what matters most to you. This helps you analyze your brand’s online presence better.

You can either choose from predefined templates for quick insights:

Or customize reports by selecting the exact data you want to track:

In both cases, reports are real-time and visual.

Mention also creates automatic highlights. Like sudden mention spikes:

This lets you see key trends at a glance, so you don’t have to sift through long reports.

Pros & Cons

FAQs

How Do I Manage My Online Reputation?

Managing your online reputation involves:

• Monitoring brand mentions across social media, news, and review sites
• Responding to customer feedback
• Encouraging happy customers to leave reviews
• Addressing negative content with strategic responses
• Keeping business listings accurate across all platforms

How Long Does It Take to See Results from Reputation Management Tools?

Reputation management tools provide insights immediately. However, improving your reputation by collecting more positive reviews, content, and SEO can take weeks or months, depending on your strategy.

Can Reputation Management Tools Remove Negative Reviews?

No, reputation management tools can’t remove negative reviews. They help you improve sentiment over time, and report false reviews if necessary.

What Metrics Should I Track to Measure Reputation Improvement?

Track the following metrics to improve your reputation:

• Review ratings: Changes in star ratings across platforms
• Brand sentiment: Positive vs. negative mentions over time
• Mentions and reach: How often people discuss your brand online
• Crisis alerts: Any sudden spikes in negative mentions

Ready to Choose Your Online Reputation Management Tool?

The best ORM tool for you depends on what you need most:

• Want to track brand mentions? Brand24 and Mention help you stay on top of conversations.
• Need help collecting reviews? Reviewflowz lets you automate review campaigns.
• Need to manage your business details on business directories? For a local business, use Semrush Local. For a SaaS brand or professional services business, go with myPresences.

After choosing the best tool for your needs, expect the following:

• First month: Set alerts, connect accounts, and test automation
• Second month: Track trends and respond to reviews
• Third month: Improve your strategy and let automation handle more tasks

Want to discover more tools to help with your marketing processes? Check out our article on 33 digital marketing tools that suit various business needs and budgets.

The post Top 5 Online Reputation Tools (Tried & Tested) appeared first on Backlinko.

How to Use AI for Writing Exceptional Content (7 Best Practices)

2025-03-27 01:11:16

If you publish writing, you’d be crazy not to use artificial intelligence.

It’s like telling a carpenter not to use a drill. You can build a deck without one. But why would you?

Writers have always embraced new tools to improve their craft.

The challenge with AI, or any technology, is that we want the easy way out.

We hope the tech will magically automate everything. And for mediocre content, AI is the perfect solution.

But creating exceptional content is HARD. No matter what tool you use.

For example, I used AI extensively to write this article.

Yet, it still took me 40+ hours to produce.

Why?

AI has made me realize how much I can improve my content. And you can, too.

Below are seven timeless writing practices supported by AI.

Let’s start with planning your writing project.

1. Use AI to Define Your Audience

Without a deep understanding of your audience, even brilliant insights can fall flat.

AI makes reader research way easier.

You can analyze thousands of real conversations in minutes. No need to spend weeks on interviews or surveys.

A Faster Way to Do Audience Research

Using this article as an example, I wanted to understand how people felt about using AI for writing.

The best place for unfiltered thoughts? Reddit.

So, I Googled “reddit using ai to write good content” and found dozens of threads.

I gathered a handful of community discussions and exported them as PDFs.

Then I gave Claude the following prompt:

The result was eye-opening.

The analysis revealed patterns I hadn’t considered.

It also included quotes that captured the audience’s raw emotions and language.

This helped me ground my writing in real experiences.

You don’t have to follow my exact process. For instance, Kate Starr, our senior writer, uses various sources for audience research:

The key is to use AI to:

1. Process large amounts of audience data quickly
2. Identify patterns you might miss manually
3. Connect insights to real human experiences through quotes

2. Use AI to Find Your Unique Angle

It’s easy to get inspired by popular content in your field and remix those ideas.

That’s exactly what AI does by default, too.

A better approach?

Find perspectives that other content and most LLMs overlook. This makes your writing fresh and engaging.

Here’s how to do it in three simple steps.

Step 1: Gather Your Source Material

Find the top 3-5 posts for your topic.

You can do this for social media posts, articles, and emails (if you have access).

For instance, I found three posts on AI writing and copied them to a Google Doc before exporting the text file.

Step 2: Get AI to Summarize the Data and Suggest Ideas

Take your source materials from Step 1 and ask AI to create a comprehensive analysis.

Here’s a prompt:

Here’s the output for using AI in writing:

After analyzing, ask the AI for new ideas based on the opportunities it found.

Here’s what Claude came back with for this article:

Step 3 – Analyze and Refine Your Angle

Sometimes, the angles are usable with the first output.

But often, it’s a dance between you and the robot to find something compelling.

Here’s how this process shaped this article:

While plenty of tool comparisons and basic workflows existed, few posts offered strategic frameworks for using AI effectively.

As I dug deeper, I noticed something more fundamental.

Everyone was focused on making writing easier. Tools, prompts, shortcuts.

But they were missing the tough reality:

Creating top-notch content is difficult. With AI or not.

That became my angle: How to use AI thoughtfully while embracing the necessary work of writing great content.

3. Use AI to Create An Outline

Nearly every exceptional piece of content starts with a detailed plan. But many writers skip this step.

You risk wasting hours writing in circles or missing the brief entirely.

That’s why our team never writes a draft without a thorough outline.

With AI, creating that outline just got a lot easier.

Strengthen Your Draft Outline Through Collaboration

It’s tempting to ask AI to create your entire outline (losing your unique perspective). Or ignore AI completely (missing valuable insights).

A better approach?

Treat AI as a thoughtful discussion partner.

Our senior editor, Chris Shirlow, emphasizes using AI strategically during outlining:

The key is to start with your own research. This ensures the foundation reflects real expertise. Then, use AI to refine and expand your thinking.

With this article, for example, I started with some loose structural notes:

1. Demand
2. Audience
3. Angle
4. Structure
5. Research
6. Writing
7. Visuals
8. Enhancements
9. Editing

Then, I prompted Claude with some attached reference material.

Claude’s analysis (I’ve summarized the output):

From the AI’s first output, we started our collaboration.

Claude helped me name each element “practices” instead of “tips.

We challenged each other on the substructure of each practice.

Then it suggested H2s—many of which I didn’t like.

Through a LONG chat and many pauses of me returning to my document, we landed on an outline.

Here’s how the structure evolved through discussion:

This iterative process helped me:

1. Make headings more action-oriented
2. Create a consistent pattern (“Use AI to…”), which also helps for search engine optimization

Let’s look at how AI can help you turn this outline into content through research.

4. Use AI to Research Your Topic

Research has always been the foundation of excellent writing.

Pre-internet, research meant hours in libraries digging through catalogs, journals, and textbooks.

Then, digital changed everything. But it created a new problem:

Information overload.

Now you have instant access to millions of sources.

Blog posts. Academic papers. Community discussions. Expert interviews. Analytics data.

But do you have time to process it all?

That’s where AI shines.

It can scan thousands of sources in seconds, helping you catch insights you might miss.

Let’s explore how to use it effectively.

Using AI for Primary Research

When you do interviews, gather raw data, or run surveys, you create unique content that’s hard to copy.

The trick is to use AI throughout the research process—not just for analysis.

Planning Better Research Questions

The quality of your research depends on asking the right questions.

For example, when writing this article, I initially planned to use only my own AI experiences as examples. But something felt missing.

So, I started a discussion with Claude:

With Claude’s validation, I developed survey questions through an iterative process.

If you want to try this approach, here’s a template to get started:

Then, the research questions:

Finally, test your questions:

Example:

After several rounds with AI, my original idea of “let’s survey the team” changed to:

• A focused survey using conditional logic
• Clear examples of what I needed
• A friendly, collaborative introduction
• Specific prompts for AI usage

The result? Rich insights from the team that enhanced this article.

Getting More from Expert Interviews

Want to fully engage with your interview subjects while capturing all the details? AI can help.

Start by recording your conversations (with permission, of course). Have a real dialogue. Follow interesting threads. Then, let AI help you extract every valuable insight.

Here are some simple prompts:

Prepare your interview.

Process the recording.

Validate insights.

Making Sense of Raw Data

The challenge of research isn’t gathering data—it’s finding the story in it.

When our editorial team finished the AI usage survey, I faced this exact situation.

I wanted to process the responses quickly, but also to capture every valuable insight.

Here’s how AI helped me analyze the responses:

Get a high-level overview.

Drill down to the specifics.

Extract supporting material.

This analysis revealed that our team uses AI differently for each practice. Some excel at research, others at editing.

For instance, everyone stressed the need to use AI carefully. And not fully depend on it.

Using AI for Secondary Research

Secondary research meant spending hours reading papers, reports, and discussions.

Not anymore.

AI reshapes how we process existing content.

Let’s look at some use cases.

Extracting Audio and Video Content for Gems

Some of the best insights are buried in hour-long podcasts and conference talks.

Founders share behind-the-scenes stories. Experts reveal their frameworks. And industry veterans discuss trends they haven’t written about yet.

But watching hours of video isn’t always practical.

AI can save time here.

Here’s how I used AI to extract powerful insights from founder interviews for my ecommerce growth strategies article:

First, I found a podcast where Who Is Elijah’s founders shared their journey to $20M in revenue.

Then, I used Rev AI to transcribe the full interview.

Instead of reading through 19,000 words of transcript, I had Claude analyze the conversation with this prompt:

The analysis revealed a fascinating story about operational efficiency:

• They cut their team from 44 to 21 people
• Shifted from full-time specialists to agency partnerships
• Rebuilt their systems from scratch
• Turned unprofitable (-60%) campaigns into winners

This single podcast gave me both a compelling case study and practical lessons readers could apply.

Synthesizing Complex Documents

Academic papers and industry reports contain valuable data. But they’re often dense, jargony, and hard to apply practically.

Shreelekha Singh, our senior writer, uses detailed context to get better research results from AI.

Another example:

When writing an article about information gain, I needed to wrap my head around Google’s patent application.

But it’s written in technical language that would make your eyes glaze over.

Instead of getting overwhelmed, I used AI to help me interpret this complex material.

I uploaded the patent application to Claude and asked about information gain signals.

Claude helped identify and explain relevant metrics like “UserActionSignals” and “ClickSatisfaction” in plain language.

I quickly learned Google’s process for evaluating and testing new information.

The same approach works for:

• Academic papers and studies
• Technical documentation
• Industry reports
• Legal documents
• Research data

The takeaway?

Think of AI as your study partner. One that can read a 100-page document in seconds and explain the key points in plain English.

5. Use AI to Write Engaging Content

LLMs generate pretty good output with minimal prompting.

But producing engaging writing in your authentic voice? That’s where AI can be rather underwhelming.

I’ve been trying to write with AI since 2021, and I’m convinced the models have a default writing style.

AI LOVES writing in contrasting pairs: “Not this. But that.”

It also enjoys phrases like “transform,” “game-changing,” “leverage,” and “optimize.” (Not that there’s anything wrong with these words.)

And if AI could write your entire project in a list, it would.

If you’re often dissatisfied with the output, let me show you how to get better results.

Create Excellent Reference Materials

The more specific context you can give AI, the better the output matches your style.

This means defining your writing style clearly.

How?

Create detailed guidelines, including:

• Reader personas
• Target grade level
• Headline formulas
• Tonality
• Examples
• Opening hooks

In addition to your guidelines, make it your mission to create the perfect article or chapter to use as a writing sample.

Once you have your guidelines and examples, you’ll be more satisfied with the AI output.

For example, I’ve created a dedicated project in Claude for Backlinko. It has over 20k words of reference materials.

Every time I start a new conversation, Claude has this context readily available.

There’s no need to explain our style requirements over and over.

Build Progressive Context

Your conversation with AI should evolve as your content develops.

Take this article section as an example. I started a dedicated chat on “Using AI for Writing.” I shared:

• The outline
• The article draft so far
• Team survey responses
• My goals for this section

When I write the next section about supporting elements, I’ll start a new chat. But I’ll include this completed section as reference material.

This progressive approach helps AI maintain consistency while adapting to each section’s unique needs.

Shreelekha uses a similar method.

Depending on your LLM, this sectional approach will help manage your daily credits as long chats burn through your usage.

Embrace Messy Collaboration with AI

The best AI writing output happens through conversation.

Share your half-formed ideas. Question its suggestions. Challenge it to think deeper.

For instance, when writing this section, I asked AI to expand on my outline. But I didn’t just accept the first response.

Instead of settling for general advice about “prompting for a specific tone,” I asked for concrete examples of how AI’s default writing differs from Backlinko’s style.

This led to identifying specific phrases and patterns.

For instance, here’s how my opening hook evolved through AI collaboration:

You might go sentence for sentence, idea for idea, until you strike gold.

It can be tedious, but it’s better than doing it alone.

Find Perfect Examples (When You Need Them)

LLMs excel at suggesting relevant examples and case studies to strengthen your writing.

Shreelekha uses AI to brainstorm examples when she’s stuck:

Chris Shirlow emphasizes this balanced approach:

6. Use AI to Create Content Assets

Content assets like checklists, calculators, and infographics turn your writing into practical tools for readers.

The right asset can clarify complex concepts, aid learning, or guide important decisions.

Creating these resources once required designers and developers.

AI makes it possible to create without these skills.

Create Visual Assets

Many readers don’t consume every word you write.

They scan. They skim. They look for visual anchors to guide them through your ideas.

A study by MIT found that the human brain can process images in as little as 13 milliseconds. That’s up to 600 times faster than text.

But creating professional graphics used to mean:

• Learning design software
• Understanding design principles
• Spending hours on each visual
• Hiring expensive designers

Not anymore.

AI can help you create compelling visuals in seconds.

For example, in our 4 P’s of Marketing article, our senior writer, Yongi Barnard, used a graphic to explain why personalization matters.

The visual tells a compelling story at a glance.

To recreate this, gather your data.

Then, give AI parameters:

Then, you just need to refine the finishing touches (colors, spacing, etc.).

Our senior editor, Chris Hanna, puts it well:

Create Smart Checklists

Converting processes into checklists makes your content more actionable.

But creating an effective checklist isn’t as simple as writing bullet points. You need to:

• Break down complex processes
• Put steps in the optimal order
• Include validation checks
• Add resource links
• Consider different user scenarios

This is where AI can help.

The key is to prompt AI after you’ve written your draft.

This way, the LLM will have full context for your content and can create more detailed, relevant checklists.

For example, our senior editor, Shannon Willoby, made a 12-month checklist to help with her article on starting a blog.

She prompted AI to create the checklist based on her article content. Pretty simple but effective.

Here’s a template to get started:

Build Interactive Tools

Interactive tools like calculators, analyzers, and decision trees turn your knowledge into useful solutions. Readers can use these tools right away.

There are many opportunities, regardless of your industry:

Say you write about productivity. You could create a workload capacity analyzer that helps readers balance their projects.

If you’re a wellness writer, you might develop a habit-stacking planner to help people create healthy routines.

Or, if you’re a gardening expert, you could create a seasonal planting calculator.

For my ecommerce growth strategies article, I used AI to build an interactive profitability calculator.

Instead of explaining formulas, readers can explore different scenarios to understand how variables like cost of goods sold (COGS), shipping, and marketing expenses impact their bottom line.

The best part?

You can bring these AI-designed tools to life using no-code platforms like Calculator Studio. Here’s how:

1. Identify calculation needs in your content
2. Ask AI to help structure the logic and formulas
3. Design the user interface (AI can mock this up)
4. Build it in your no-code tool of choice

For instance, when building the profitability calculator, I prompted AI with:

Start simple.

A basic calculator that solves one specific problem well is better than a complex tool that confuses users.

7. Use AI to Edit Your Draft

Editing is the difference between good content and exceptional content.

But getting quality edits can be expensive and slow. You either:

• Pay editors by the hour
• Lose billable time as a freelancer
• Wait through lengthy review cycles
• Miss issues when editing your own work

AI changes this dynamic.

You can get quick, unbiased feedback and try different versions before your editor reviews a draft.

Let me show you how to do this effectively.

Get Strategic Input First

It’s tempting to jump right into line editing—fixing grammar and polishing sentences.

But start with the big picture.

Here’s how Chris Hanna uses AI for strategic editing:

AI can help by:

• Comparing your piece against successful examples
• Identifying patterns and gaps
• Suggesting structural improvements

This approach saves revision time. Why polish paragraphs you might cut or rewrite anyway?

Create Quick Quality Checks

Once you have your structure solid, create systematic quality checks.

You want to verify your content hits key engagement metrics.

At Backlinko, we track three readability metrics:

1. Single-Sentence Paragraph Percentage: The ratio of paragraphs with just one sentence.
2. Visual Break Density: Number of visual elements per 1,000 words. Higher density means better scannability.
3. Grade Level: We target Grade 7 or below for accessibility.

AI can calculate these instantly and suggest specific fixes. Here’s how:

1. Share your metrics targets with AI
2. Paste in a section of your content
3. Ask for both analysis and specific fixes

Beyond metrics, use AI to check for:

• Redundant ideas and phrases
• Passive voice overuse
• Transition effectiveness
• Brand voice consistency
• Technical accuracy

Test Critical Elements

Some parts of your content matter more than others.

Your headline determines whether people click.

Your introduction decides if they stay.

Your calls-to-action influence if they convert.

These elements deserve extra attention.

Using headlines as an example, I note 3-5 potential titles.

I Google the topic I’m writing about and screenshot the search results.

I upload the screenshot to Claude. Then, I ask how my title ideas compare to the top articles.

Claude will make suggestions based on our title guidance, best practices, and differentiators.

Yongi uses a similar process for introductions:

You can also test:

• Section transitions
• Examples
• Proof point placement
• Technical explanations
• Closing arguments

Balance AI and Human Editing

AI accelerates the editing process, but human judgment remains essential.

Here’s how to make this work:

1. Start with AI for broad analysis and quick fixes
2. Apply your judgment to AI’s suggestions
3. Test variations of important elements
4. Verify technical accuracy independently
5. Maintain your unique voice and perspective

Chris Shirlow supports this balance:

Start Writing Smarter, Not Harder

Pick one project you need to write this week.

Apply just one of these practices—maybe getting AI’s help with audience research or outlining.

That’s all you need to do to start seeing results.

Ready to put these practices to work? Check out our guide on how to write a blog post.

You’ll see how to combine these AI techniques with proven writing principles to create content that ranks and converts.

The post How to Use AI for Writing Exceptional Content (7 Best Practices) appeared first on Backlinko.