The digital marketing landscape is changing by the day. New technologies and tools are unveiled, innovators reinvent old techniques, and the standard for quality continues to rise as audiences learn to distinguish between helpful content and cheap marketing ploys. However, one thing remains certain with all the change that has transpired over the last few years. Content marketing and SEO are a vital part of marketing strategy. In fact, it is expected that by the year 2021, the industry will be worth $400 billion.
Content is one of the best tools available for brand establishment, trust, site traffic, and lead generation. The brands that understand the power of compelling, SEO-optimized content will set themselves up for success. With that in mind, here are the best SEO-writing tools available today.
 

SEM Rush writing assistant

Sometimes, content marketers, strategists, and marketers find that they have too much content to deal with: Long articles, blog posts, guides, and so on.
SEMRush eases the daily routine. It is a reliable and efficient tool that evaluates content quality before it is published. The SEMRush writing assistant is an extension to Google docs, and it generates notifications from a proprietary SEO content template (SCT) to help guarantee that content is written in SEO-compliant fashion. The recommendations and analyses in the SCT are driven by your top ten rivals in Google’s rankings for a specific keyword.
What you gain, specifically.
The tool measures content performance under the following metrics:

• Overall score; reflects the general quality of the article. It is based on indicators like target keywords, readability, and word count
• Readability; it indicates the recommended readability score for a particular topic
• Target keywords; it offers suggestions based on the specified keywords, their frequency, and their competitiveness.
• Recommended keywords; this offers semantically related keywords that you could add to your content.

Besides the benefits mentioned above, you can download the SCT template. It contains a list of articles the tool has analyzed, as well as tips on meta description, page title, and recommended backlink resources. All the metrics mentioned above are determined by the top ten rivals in Google’s search results.
 

Installation

All you have to do is find the SEO writing assistant in the chrome web store. After clicking the free button, you will be directed to a new Google document where you will need to give your consent before the add-on can run.  To complete the installation process, find the SEO writing assistant in the add-ons tab, then select “show” to see the add-on sidebar to the right. You will then need to connect to your SEMRush account. Next, select “connect SEO content template, and log into SEM rush if necessary. Then give the application access by selecting the green “approve” button.
Pricing: many of the SEM writing assistant’s features are free. However, for expert advice, and in-depth SEO insights, you need a paid plan that goes for $199.5 a month.
 

Yoast Real-Time content Analysis

The Yoast real-time content analysis tool evaluates content under the following key performance indicators

• Readability
• Number of words below each heading
• Paragraph length
• Sentence length
• Transition
• Passive voice misuse.
• The tool also helps with Meta descriptions, link slugs, and SEO titles.

Yoast easily qualifies as the most critical SEO service for WordPress websites right now. Their SEO tools combine both SEO-insights and word-processing features. Like the SEMRush assistant, it is a cloud service, so you can launch it aware and create content.
Unlike the SEM rush writing assistant, however, Yoast gives lots of free SEO recommendations. With the real-time content analysis tool, you can develop perfect Meta descriptions and titles, and immediately see a preview of how they look in search engine results pages. Combined with integrated on-page analysis, it is one of the best tools for cloud-based content analysis and editing.
 

Website Auditor’s Content Editor

The content editor is a tool that helps writers develop SEO-optimized content. All you need to do is describe your topic. The editor will study top contenders in that category, then create a set of SEO guidelines for you to implement.
The recommendations cover the following areas:

• keyword density
• word count
• optimization
• related keywords

With the right guidelines, content creation becomes much more manageable. The editor will inform you of the scope of your article, its core strengths, and the ideas that you can borrow from your rivals. It also follows keyword usage in real-time. So you don’t need to make any guesses.
The content editor is part of the website auditor, a tool meant to crawl websites and find problems with their SEO. So, to launch the tool, you need to access the website auditor. Once there, open the left-side menu, then go to content analysis/content editor. You may use the editor to develop fresh content, optimize an old article, or develop a set of instructions for your writing team. Irrespective of the path you choose, it’s the same workflow: create a new draft, revise the brief, and create/improve the content, then publish it.
Benefits
Competitor management: the tool uses a proprietary algorithm to analyze target keywords for topic competitors, then studies the topic competitors to develop SEO recommendations. To view and edit your competitors, select the cogwheel at the top right corner of the screen, then choose ”manage competitors.”
You’ll be shown a list of the most relevant competitors based on the keywords you’ve provided. The list is usually a few dozen entries long, but only the first ten are considered, to ensure consistency. If you aren’t comfortable with the competitors identified for your topic, then you can substitute them for others.
Word count suggestions: The content editor provides word count recommendations based on the shortest of the selected rival articles. This doesn’t mean that the recommended word count is optimal. It shows the least number of words needed to appear in the top results. If you disagree with the word count recommendation, you can simply select word count and enter your desired value. You may want to do this if you’re going to pass the summary to a writer and want them to know your expectations in terms of word count.
Keyword reviews:  the editor focuses on two types of keywords, mapped and recommended. Mapped Keywords are those you provide when building a draft. They are used to find competitors and create optimization recommendations. Recommended keywords are identified through TF-IDF analysis of your competitors. Most of the keywords will be relevant to the topic. However, it is also possible that a few generic keywords will appear. You may ignore them.
Pricing: The content editor is a module in the website auditor. It is also available in the free version of the software.
 

KW finder

KW finder is a keyword research tool that provides keyword suggestions, in-depth keyword metrics such as search volume, cost per click costs, and the performance of your chosen keywords over time. The tool also offers a preview of the search rankings for your keyword, thereby providing a chance for you to copy the SEO strategies of your rivals.
Pricing:  it costs 49$ for the basic plan, which offers 100 keyword lookups every day. The premium plan is $69 for 500 keywords, and Agency runs for $129 a month. It allows you to evaluate 1,200 keywords a day.
 

Small SEO tools keyword checker

The keyword density checker doesn’t help you correct errors like the other tools do, but it points those mistakes out so you can fix them. You can paste URLs or entire articles into its analysis bar, and then it will show statistics such as the most frequently used phrases, words, and keyword count.
The tool will help you avoid over-optimizing (keyword stuffing) and under optimizing your content. Though there aren’t any explicit guidelines on keyword density, having too many in a piece of content will affect its readability and overall quality. Most digital marketing specialists recommend a 2-3% density for primary keywords and 1-2% for secondary keywords. The keywords used in your article are listed along with their frequency, so you can easily avoid overstuffing. The Small SEO tools keyword density checker is entirely free.
 

Grammarly

You’re likely familiar with Grammarly; considering its popularity, the tool hardly needs an introduction. That said, it would not be fair to leave it out in a discussion on the best tools to help you write SEO content. Though keywords are essential, for content that captures your audience, you need a reliable spell checker, grammar validator, and all-round writing assistant, and grammar is all this and more. Whether you’re creating new content or modifying an existing article, Grammarly will help you improve your text. Pricing
Grammarly has a free version that offers essential grammar correction services. However, for advanced recommendations on how to improve your grammar, you’ll need the premium version. The paid plan also comes with a plagiarism checker so you can verify your work’s authenticity before it is published.
 

Hemmingway editor

The Hemmingway editor identifies common problems that impede clear writing:

• Unnecessarily long sentences.
• Complex phrases and words
• Excessive adverb use
• Passive voice misuse

The editor color-codes each mistake according to the categories mentioned above so you can address each group at one go.
It also suggests simple alternatives to replace complex words. The Hemingway editor allows you to create good content with just one draft. It is indispensable for on-demand writing with short deadlines.  The web-based version of the Hemmingway editor is completely free. The desktop app costs $19.99.
 

Social Animal

Social Animal will help you find new topic ideas for your posts. One of the tool’s primary features is that its recommendations are based the most popular content for your keywords and search queries. You can use its suggestions to build new compelling articles similar to the ones it identified. All you need to do is identify the pages with the most social shares and find what makes them so unique.
Do they offer screenshots, are they detailed how-to guides that describe complex activities, are they enriched with visual media such as video or infographics? After you’ve identified the factors that make the posts so popular, you need to create content that’s similar but better than theirs.
For instance, if the post offers 50 tips on content marketing, then you should offer 55. Or if one of the articles has an exciting infographic, you could hire a graphic designer to create better versions of what the original articles provide.
It doesn’t suffice to write SEO content that conforms to Google’s ranking factors. You also need to give your audience more value than your rivals if you want to come out ahead in the race for search engine dominance, and Social Animal offers the opportunity for you to do so. Social Animal also allows you to build viable backlinks, connect with influencers on social networks, and more. Though the tool doesn’t have a free version, there is a 14-day trial on offer if you need to test its effectiveness.
 

Text metrics

The Yoast plugin works nicely for WordPress websites, but how about SEO content written for a client? What do you do if they don’t use WordPress, or haven’t given you access to their website?
Enter: text metrics
Like Yoast SEO, Textmetetrics allows you to monitor your content’s SEO performance as it is developed. This is ideal if you need to ensure that your copy is SEO-ready before you hand it to your clients. The tool has a WordPress plugin if you need it for a WordPress website.  After you specify the target keyword for your article, the target domain name, and supporting keywords, the tool will automatically track your SEO performance. It eases the optimization process by suggesting a checklist of factors you need to incorporate into your post. However, for best results, you should combine it with other SEO tools to ensure you don’t over-optimize. Textmetrics also evaluates your copy from a reader’s perspective. This way, it gives details on credibility, readability, sentiment, and many others. It is a convenient way to guarantee that you meet your clients’ expectations.
High-quality content is essential for marketing success. As mentioned at the start of this article, it will help your business build trust, increase audience engagement, and gather viable leads. The tools covered in this post will help you improve the quality of your writing, and the effectiveness of your SEO campaigns. They will help you write better articles, and show you how to get them to a broad audience, so you should take them seriously. However, nothing beats the support of a professional. If you do not have a dedicated marketing team, you could consider hiring a third party. There are several agencies you could consult if you need digital marketing services in Uganda. Their expertise will help you avoid the challenges that come with inexperience.