Overview
- SEO content is designed to rank well on search engines, attract the right audience, and build long-term visibility.
- The main types include: blog posts, long-form articles, pillar pages, how-to guides, listicles.
- Each type of SEO content serve unique purposes in driving traffic and strengthening visibility.
If you’ve ever searched for something on Google and noticed that some websites seem to keep popping up in the first few blue links you see, that’s no coincidence. That’s a result driven by carefully crafted SEO strategies—and one of the most important factors in that strategy are the different types of SEO content a website posts.
This content is designed not just to inform users, but to rank well, attract the right audience, and build long-term visibility. When executed effectively, it boosts ROI, strengthens credibility, and keeps users coming back to a website.
If you’re looking to achieve similar results for your own website, you’re in the right place. In this article, we’ll explore the top five types of SEO content that consistently perform well in search and help websites grow their traffic over time.
Blog Posts
Blogs are the most common type of SEO content there is. And it’s a go-to for SEOs for a reason. They’re conversational, approachable, and ideal for targeting long-tail keywords—search terms that are specific, lower in competition, and easier to rank for. Blogs are also quick to produce and easy to update, making them a flexible tool for staying visible in search results.
Formats and lengths for blog posts tend to differ depending on the website making them, but they generally range from 1,000 to 1,500 words, and highlight relevant insights while maintaining a narrative, reader-friendly tone.
The goal when making a blog post is to strike a balance between providing value and making the content easy to scan. For example, one of our latest posts, A Guide to Online Visibility for Businesses, is structured just like that – with an overview at the top, key takeaways summarized at the bottom, and paragraphs kept short and skimmable for users.
Long-Form Articles
Long-form articles differ from standard blog posts in both purpose and scope. While blogs are often designed to capture niche searches through long-tail keywords, long-form content aims to position your site as an authority on broad, competitive topics.
These pieces are not primarily about ranking for small, specific queries—they’re about building credibility and visibility around the bigger, more competitive keywords in your industry.
Because of their depth, long-form articles typically run well beyond 1,500 words. They approach a topic from multiple angles and are structured into clear sections and subsections. Strong examples also incorporate citations from studies, expert interviews, or other credible sources, and may include supporting media such as charts, images, videos, or interactive elements to enrich the reading experience.
Making long-form articles is an extensive process, but investing time into making them is beneficial to your website in the long-run, because Google loves them. Why? Because it keeps users on your site longer and provides extensive answers to their questions.
To maximize the effectiveness of long-form articles, ensure they cite relevant research, touch on all related subtopics (even if briefly), and flow naturally from one section to the next.
For example, we covered How AI Mode is changing the SEO landscape the other month, which provides not only how AI Mode works and how it’s different from AI Overview, but also a step-by-step breakdown of early practices for AEO (answer engine optimization). Presenting the topic in a logical “what’s next” progression helps users build a clearer, more complete understanding of the subject.
Pillar Pages and Topic Clusters
Pillar pages are sometimes mistaken for long-form articles, but the two serve different purposes. You use long-form articles to cover a broad, high-level topic in-depth. Pillar pages, on the other hand, are used as a central information hub for a topic.
Think a page covering a guide to on-page SEO, versus a page covering SEO in general – those are long-form articles and pillar pages, respectively.
The pillar page gives a high-level overview of a topic, and has sections covering subtopics. Each section will typically link to supporting content – which further covers those subtopics. This type of SEO content allows you to address users who are looking for an overview of a topic, while also providing further reading material if they want to learn more.
The core feature of a pillar page is how they are built around topic clusters. These are all inter-connected content built around a central pillar page, with internal links to and from topic cluster content to related pillar pages. This structure improves navigation for users, creates a stronger content ecosystem, and signals to Google that your site offers comprehensive coverage of a subject.
A strong pillar page should be content-rich, user-friendly, and updated regularly. One example is this page we made covering On-Page SEO, which covers the basics of the service, and is supported by related blog posts and articles.
How-to Guides and Tutorials
How-to guides and tutorials are powerful because they give users step-by-step instructions on how to solve a problem or complete a task. These guides can take different forms: articles, videos, or even visual walkthroughs–or a combination of any of the three.
The format for this type of SEO content doesn’t matter, so much as what is actually found in the content. The step-by-step instructions tailored to the intended audience, and the value created by the content is key here.
Creating how-to guides and tutorials will help you and your website build trust with your target audience. When users know that you have the information they need to accomplish something, that reinforces the idea that you are an authority on the subject. Guides also tend to attract shares and backlinks because people often bookmark resources that provide practical solutions.
To create an effective how-to guide or tutorial, start with a clear understanding of your audience’s challenges, then break the process into easy-to-follow steps. Structure your guide with logical sections, add expert tips, and ensure it’s scannable.
Our information hub, for example, recently published a series of how-tos for applying schema manually to your website – specifically targeting those with limited website development and coding experience. Each post under this series is easily digestible, and clearly outlines the process from start to finish.
Listicles
Listicles are pages that collate posts covering similar topics, and present those posts in list form, making them easy to scan and quick to consume. This type of SEO content is highly versatile and can cover anything from “best of” collections to actionable tips. Their structure makes them engaging, user-friendly, and naturally optimized for inserting keywords into headings and subheadings.
Because of how listicles are formatted (and are packed with information users are actively searching for), they encourage users to spend more time on your site, while easily finding the information they need. They’re also shareable, which helps attract traffic and backlinks.
Buzzfeed is a strong example of effective listicle use—articles like 16 Things You’ll Only Understand If You Love Dogs blend humor, visuals, and concise lists to keep users entertained.
Key Takeaways
Each of these five types of SEO content plays a distinct role in building your online visibility. Blogs capture long-tail keywords and provide quick wins. Long-form articles target broader topics and build authority. Pillar pages act as central hubs that support topic clusters. How-to guides offer practical value and boost trust. Listicles make information easy to digest and highly shareable.
Together, these content types create a balanced SEO strategy that satisfies both users and search engines. If you keep all of these in mind you’ll be able to get ranked in no time.
But producing this content consistently requires strategy, time, and expertise. That’s why working with an SEO partner that includes content writing services as part of its SEO package can give you the edge.
That’s where we come in. With our experienced team, we can help you create search-optimized content tailored to your audience, creating the foundation you need to rank higher, attract more traffic, and establish lasting authority online. You can contact us here, or get a free website audit from us to get started!
