High Quality Writing And Keyword Research Create The Definitive Caribbean by Neil Davidson, 29 January 2007

James Henderson, an award-winning writer and an expert on the Caribbean is also the author of the Cadogan Guide to the Caribbean and The Bahamas, now in its sixth edition. He was in the perfect position to create a content rich site.

James Henderson’s passion for the Caribbean is as strong now as it ever was and he is always looking for new ways to reach new audiences.

The Internet as a travel tool

The rise of the internet as a travel tool sparked an idea in James' head and the idea is now reality. It's called DefinitiveCaribbean.com, an on-line Caribbean travel guide, and it is required reading for anyone considering visiting there. It was something that James felt compelled to do.

"I believed that the Caribbean deserved higher quality writing than anything that I had seen on the net up to that time. I also started to wondered whether quality writing could be delivered in a more appropriate way for people who really wanted to get under the skin of the Caribbean."

The project started with a meeting between James and Feona Gray. She was also an expert on the Caribbean, with high-level experience of working in the travel industry since 1969. Together they made a formidable team. James and Feona talked about the internet as an opportunity, as Feona explains.

"We both saw the limitations of guide books, that they were often held back by restrictions in space and style. Not only that, but they are out of date from the moment they are published, and they can never be as targeted as a website can be. So we stepped boldly into the world of the internet, and I started to learn how to run a website."

Web content strategy

The journey from an idea to a successful website is an education for anyone, but it is particularly interesting for those unaware of what can be achieved by combining great content and the insights available from keyword research data. For DefinitiveCaribbean.com, this was the combination of James Henderson's writing, comprehensive knowledge of their subject and Wordtracker's keyword data.

The inclusion of Wordtracker in the mix was thanks to Alexander Gray, the younger member of the DefinitiveCaribbean.com team. Feona believes that he also had a key role.

"Alexander told us to look at Wordtracker, and we started to see its potential. We signed-up for it that day, and have gone from strength-to-strength ever since. Each of us started to become experts on keyword research, with our own areas of expertise. Alexander makes sure that the information supplied with our pictures on the website is informative and keyword rich."

Over time, the DefinitiveCaribbean.com team established a way of working that fitted what they believed in and allowed the quality of James' writing to shine through. They also learned key lessons along the way:

1. It is possible to grow a website organically, without heavy marketing investment, using keyword research.
2. Great writing and search engine optimization (SEO) can work together, without one stifling the other.
3. A methodical approach to bringing keyword research data and great writing together works best.
4. The SEO job is never done when content goes live, because search engine behavior is constantly changing.

Four steps to keyword rich content

Even with their depth of knowledge of the Caribbean, creating the website content was a huge challenge, especially when working to such high standards. Feona Gray explains the team's approach.

Nothing was given to anyone outside the core team. The content was created page by page, and it still is. It's the only way we can be sure of delivering the thing we really care about, high quality content.

"From the beginning, the content was put together by a small team. Nothing was given to anyone outside the core team. The content was created page by page, and it still is. It's the only way we can be sure of delivering the thing we really care about, high quality content."

When it came to creating the content for each page, the team has developed a four-step process:

1. Keyword phrases are selected for a subject before the content is written.
2. This is given to James Henderson, so that he can keep these in mind when he writes a review.
3. James writes and supplies the piece to the team.
4. The team look at how further keyword phrases can be employed on the page, but without compromising the quality of the content or good internet practice.

It's a process that works well for DefinitiveCaribbean.com, as their success shows. Feona Gray is keen to emphasize that it's a careful balancing act.

"Sometimes tough decisions have to be made, because while a keyword phrase may be popular, it may not fit easily into an article that James writes. For us, it's not worth a small improvement in our search standings if the content reads poorly, especially with the expectations created by a writer of James' standing. Our SEO approach is working and people know the quality of content at DefinitiveCaribbean.com, so it's the right solution for us."

The future is looking bright for DefinitiveCaribbean.com

James Henderson and Feona Gray's instincts seem to have been proven correct so far. DefinitiveCaribbean.com is doing extremely well, and Feona laughingly thinks of herself as a bit of an internet guru now.

"If someone had told me a few years ago that I'd be running a website, never mind such a successful one, I'd have told them they were crazy, but it's true. There are now over a million words on the site, 75 topic areas for each island guide and over a 1,000 pages. We now have over 25,000 unique visitors per month and attract over a million hits a week. One of the reasons that we are where we are today is Wordtracker and the insights it has given us."