Due Date: Tuesday, June 20, 2023 (11:55 pm PST, Moodle)

Submission Format (1 PDF file + 1 Word File for Supporting A.I. Work, if applicable):

●    Use/ follow provided assignment template to submit your work

● Assignment Report must be in PDF format (upload to Moodle).  Deductions for non-PDF files.

● Supporting A.I. work must be in Word format (upload to Moodle using same assignment link)

●   Maximum 4 pages for report (single space, 12 pt. font, page limit does not include cover page, table of content, appendices or reference list)

● ChatGPT Policy: Use of generative artificial intelligence (e.g.,ChatGPT) is permitted for elements of Part B, Step #4 (blog post/ content) only in this assignment with specific instructions// requirements that must be followed.

○    If instructions/ requirements provided in this assignment outline for using generative A.I. such as ChatGPT are not explicitly and clearly followed, a grade of “0” will be assigned  for the entire assignment. Read the assignment outline carefully to understand these     instructions/ requirements for Part B, Step #4 (blog post/ content).  If you are unsure,     please contact Jaime for clarification to avoid “0” .

○   Generative A.I. (e.g., ChatGPT) is not permitted to use for all other parts of the assignment (other than Part B, Step #4 blog post/ content)

● See detailed submission requirements and deductions at the end of this assignment outline

Assignment Objectives

Learn to use SEMrush for:

1.   Conducting keyword research for SEO

2.  Analyzing competitors to further identify keywords that can be used for SEO

3.   Developing an original blog post using strategic keywords and best practices in blog post writing to drive traffic to your team’s website.

First, get your student SEMrush promo code:

You need a promo code from your instructor to get free access to SEMrush’s Guru Package which       gives you full access to its Keyword Magic tool for this assignment.  To qualify for this promo code, you must have registered/ paid for the Stukent Digital Marketing Essentials textbook at the start of the         semester - until you do so, your instructor is unable to get you a code from the publisher.

Next, use promo code to set up SEMrush account and access keyword research tool :

Refer to Moodle > Individual Assignments > under Individual Assignment #2 Resources > “Instructions for Free Student Access to SEMrush” for steps to activate your promo code and set up a SEMrush      account

Assignment Background: What is your objective?

Now that your team has completed the design of your website, you must help to optimize it for search and that the relevant web pages will rank in the Google SERP for the terms used by your target         audiences.  You need to generate awareness and traffic to your site by practicing SEO.

Onsite SEO: An effective strategy for finding good keywords to use on your web pages is to study the keywords your competitors are already ranking for (or not) and as a result, identify keywords that you  could use to compete for SERP rank based on factors such as (but not limited to) volume (traffic) and  competition (keyword difficulty).

Offsite SEO: you also need to create linkable content to generate backlinks to support offsite SEO     (practice content marketing).  Find ways to create better website content than competitors are creating to compete or outrank them.  Content marketing is a type of marketing that involves the creation and   sharing of valuable, relevant, and consistent content, often in the form of videos, blog posts, and social media posts. Content marketing does not involve direct sales pieces (it is not an ad, promotional         message or product page with features/ benefits), but it is intended to stimulate interest from a clearly  defined audience and to reach the ultimate goal of driving traffic and conversions. Click here for a        complete guide on content marketing. For this assignment, your offsite SEO focus will be on generating WEBSITE content (NOT social media).

SECTION 2: Conduct Keyword Gap Analysis vs. Competitors

Section 2 Steps: Continuing from the last step in Part 1 above.

5.   On the left side navigation bar, click on “Keyword Gap”

6.   In the right side of the screen:

○    Enter the URL of the website you chose for this assignment in the top field (this is “you” ) > to the right, make sure “Root domain” is selected > make sure “Organic keywords” is  selected from the drop down menus.

○    Using the list of TOP THREE competitors you identified in Part 1, add each of the three competitors’ websites > make sure “Root domain” is selected > “Organic keywords” is  selected

○    In the bottom right of the list, ensure that “Canada” is the country setting.  Click “Compare” (bottom right of the list of websites)

7.  Analyze the list of “Shared” , “Missing” and “Untapped” keywords using your knowledge of keyword research techniques.

○   You must take a screenshot of your entire “Keyword Gap” overview page (this page shows “Top Opportunities” , “Keyword Overlap” and “All Keyword Details” table).

○   You can place the screenshot in an appendix or report depending on space and page limit.  Please label all appendices/ screenshots clearly and reference it in the report to receive credit.

TIPS:

○   What data can we look at to determine whether a keyword is worth using? We discussed multiple data in class and also refer to your readings.

○   Consider using the filtering features at the top of the page to help you filter the data according to specific data

○    Focus on data for organic keywords (NOT paid)

Section 2 Assignment Tasks/ Question(s). Include the following in your report (follow template):

a)  Based on your analysis of the “Shared” , “Missing” and “Untapped” keywords lists from SEMrush above:

○   Select 5 “Shared” keywords (for your team) and click on “Add to List” button (to add into a keyword manager list).  Explain how your analysis above helped you select these 5    keywords for your team. Why are these words a good idea/ strategy?

○   Select 5 “Missing” keywords (for your team) and “Add to List” .  Explain how your analysis above helped you select these 5 keywords for your team.  Why are these words a good  idea/ strategy?

○   Select 5 “Untapped” keywords (for your team) and “Add to List” . Explain how your           analysis above helped you select these 5 keywords for your team.  Why are these words a good idea/ strategy?

○   On the left navigation bar, go to “Keyword Manager” and click on the SEMrush list you just created to enter the detailed listing.  Take a screenshot of your list (total of 15       keywords chosen with data) and include in your report (or clearly labeled/ referenced  appendix if you wish). Make sure you include your explanations above in the report.

b)  For each of the 15 keywords on your list, make a recommendation to your team for where the keyword should be mapped on YOUR team’s website. Specifically, which webpages on YOUR team’s website?  You may use a table such as the following in your report:

PART B | CONTENT MARKETING FOR OFFSITE SEO

You’ve now conducted keyword research above to help with onsite SEO.  Did you know that you can  use these same keywords when it comes to planning for content marketing and offsite SEO?  Why not ensure that your content designed for offsite SEO also uses competitive keywords that will help the     content rank (in addition to being inspiring and generating backlinks)?

Plan for and write an original blog post for your team’s website using keywords you researched and listed from Part A above:

Part B Steps: Planning and writing an original blog post for your team using SEMrush

1.   Pick a keyword from your master keyword list above (Part A) that you want your content to rank for.

2.   On the left navigation bar, go to “SEMrush Content Marketing” > “SEO Template” > enter the   keyword you chose > click on “Create Content Template” button.  Keep “Canada (Desktop)” as the country and device setting.  However, if you feel that your target audience is more likely to be using mobile, you can change this setting to “Canada (Phone)” .

3.  While you’ re in the “SEO Content Template” , click on “SEO Recommendations” (right side         screen), review “Key Recommendations (based on your Google top 10 rival websites)” and take a screenshot of the entire “Key Recommendations (based on your Google top 10 rival                websites)” section. You can place the screenshot in an appendix or report depending on space  and page limit.  Please label all appendices/ screenshots clearly and reference it in the report to receive credit.  Pay attention to:

○ Semantically related keywords

○ Backlinks

○ Average readability

○ Text length

4. [Generative A.I. permitted under strict instructions below] While you’ re still in the “SEO       Content Template” , click on “Real-time Content Check” > click on “Open in SEO Writing             Assistant” button. Draft an original, inspiring and relevant blog post for one of your team’s target audiences according to SEMrush’s recommendations above and paste into the space provided. Revise your writing to aim for the recommendations SEMrush provided you with in Step 3          above.  Aim for the following:

○    For this assignment, include at least 5 keywords SEMrush suggested (more the better)

○    Reach SEMrush’s average readability recommendation

○    For this assignment, write 500 -1,000 words for text length (1-2 pages single spaced)

○ Consider tone as it relates to your team’s target audience(s)

○    Reach an overall SEMrush score of 8.0 or higher on your written content

○    Include other elements (where features are available in SEMrush) to make your blog     post more engaging for your target audience(s) or to help with overall SEO - think about this carefully.