Google’s Bard’s Recommendation: How To Write And Structure a Blog Post

What happens if you ask Google’s Bard to provide a best practice guide to write and structure a blog post that is specifically formatted for Google? How will the response look compared to responses from ChatGPT and BING?

I use several AI tools in my work. These tools are based on NLP (Natural Language Processing) or LLM (Large Language Models) which is part of a subset of Artificial Intelligence.

When tasked to write a blog post on a topic (before I specify with my own special prompts or instructions) the output from the different tools is quite similar. 

But I did notice something special.
I noticed that Bard is different. 

I have read a lot of content published by Google lately:  Google Core Updates, Google Helpful Content Update, Google Search Console FAQs, Google Analytics articles, etc. 

Based on this, I decided to ask Bing, ChatGPT, and Bard this:

“I want you to write a blog post about how to format and structure a blog post, in the best way possible, according to and taking Google Search best practices into consideration. 

The blog should be based on the latest updates to Google Core and Google Helpful Content.

https://developers.google.com/search/updates/core-updates 
https://developers.google.com/search/updates/helpful-content-update”

Some key questions came to mind!

When I started this, some interesting questions came to mind:

• How well do the answers match Spring Agency's best practices for creating content for our clients today?
• If there is a difference between the tools, and why? And how can we use it? 
• Which of the tools seems to provide the most useful response? 
• What can I bring back to our content team? 

Conclusion v1 - final conclusion at the end! 

There is a significant difference between how the tools responded to an unformatted request of "write a blog about XYZ" for me. When tasked with something more specific, such as in this case, the differences are not that visible. 

If I were to choose a tool, my go-to tool would be Bard, as it seems to create blog posts that are very well structured for optimal Google Search: Short, well structured, bullet points, intro & conclusion, and some additional helpful tips. 

But they obviously need the human hand to make them complete. 

What about our work at Spring Agency?

If we are to trust the answer from all of the tools, we are following all the best practices when it comes to content creation for our clients. We create content that is helpful, engaging, and structured, and we are data-driven. SEO optimization and keywords are, of course, key elements. 

Did we learn something? 

I think there is always something to be learned from testing and playing around with different tools, and responses and matching that with hard data.

Curious to know what? If you want to hear and learn the juicy bits - book a meeting and we can discuss your needs and our findings! 

Let's dig into the responses from Bard, ChatGPT, and Bing: 

• Google’s Bard’s recommendation on how to write and structure a blog based on Google’s guidelines
• OpenAI’s ChatGPT’s recommendation on how to write and structure a blog based on Google’s guidelines.
• Microsoft’s Bing’s recommendation on how to write and structure a blog based on Google’s guidelines.

• How well do the answers match Spring Agency's best practices for creating content for our clients today?
• If there is a difference between the engines, and why? And how can we use it? 

Let's get started with Google:

Bard: How to Write Blog Posts That Are Formatted and Structured According to Google Search Best Practices

Introduction

Google Search is constantly evolving, and its ranking algorithm is becoming increasingly sophisticated. This means that it's more important than ever for bloggers to write and structure their blog posts in a way that is optimized for Google Search.

In this blog post, we'll discuss the latest updates to Google Core and Google Helpful Content update, and provide you with an outline of how to format and structure your blog posts according to Google's best practices.

Google Core Update

The Google Core Update is a broad update to Google's ranking algorithm that happens several times a year. The Core Update is designed to improve the quality of search results by rewarding high-quality content and penalizing low-quality content.

Google Helpful Content Update

The Google Helpful Content Update is a specific update to Google's ranking algorithm that was released in August 2022 (Editor’s comment: There was an update in September 2023, but it does not seem that Bard has caught up with this, or simply just reference the first). The Helpful Content Update is designed to reward content that is written primarily for humans, not search engines.

How to Format and Structure Your Blog Posts for Google Search?

Here is an outline of how to format and structure your blog posts for Google Search:

1. Choose a relevant and targeted keyword. The first step is to choose a relevant and targeted keyword that you want your blog post to rank for. You can use a keyword research tool like Google Keyword Planner to find keywords that are relevant to your topic and have a high search volume.
2. Write a clear and concise title. Your title should be clear, concise, and informative. It should also include your target keyword.
3. Write a compelling introduction. The introduction is your chance to hook your readers and make them want to read more. It should be clear, concise, and interesting.
4. Structure your blog post using headings and subheadings. Headings and subheadings help to organize your content and make it easier for readers to scan. They also help Google understand the structure of your blog post and the main points that you're trying to make.
5. Write informative and engaging content. Your blog post should be informative and engaging. It should be well-written and free of errors. It should also be relevant to your target audience and provide them with value.
6. Use images and videos. Images and videos can help to make your blog post more visually appealing and engaging. They can also help to break up your text and make it easier to read.
7. Write a strong conclusion. The conclusion is your chance to summarize the main points of your blog post and leave your readers with something to think about. It should be clear, concise, and actionable.

Conclusion 

By following these tips, you can write blog posts that are formatted and structured in a way that is optimized for Google Search. This will help you to improve your search engine rankings and reach more readers.

Additional tips for writing blog posts that are formatted and structured for Google Search:

• Use relevant keywords throughout your blog post, including in the title, introduction, headings, subheadings, and body text. However, avoid keyword stuffing, which is the practice of using keywords too often in a way that makes your content sound unnatural.
• Make sure your blog posts are well-written and free of errors. Use a grammar checker to proofread your work before you publish it.
• Link to other relevant and high-quality websites in your blog posts. This helps to show Google that your content is authoritative and trustworthy.
• Promote your blog posts on social media and other websites. This will help to increase traffic to your blog and improve your search engine rankings.

Here are some additional tips that are specifically relevant to the latest updates to Google Core and Google Helpful Content update:

• Focus on writing content that is informative, engaging, and relevant to your target audience.
• Avoid writing content that is primarily for the purpose of ranking in search engines.
• Be honest and transparent about your intentions as a blogger.
• Write content that you are passionate about and that you believe will be helpful to your readers.

By following these tips, you can write blog posts that are optimized for Google Search and that are also helpful to your readers.

Here is ChatGPT’s answer:

ChatGPT: How to Format and Structure a Blog Post: A Guide Based on Google's Latest Updates

Introduction

Creating a blog post that not only engages your audience but also performs well in search engine rankings can be a challenging task. With Google's frequent updates, it's crucial to stay updated on the best practices for blog formatting and structure. This guide will walk you through how to format and structure your blog post effectively, taking into consideration Google's latest Core and Helpful Content updates.

Google Core Updates: What You Need to Know

Google's Core updates focus on delivering helpful and reliable results for searchers. These updates don't target specific pages or sites but aim to improve how Google's systems assess content overall. The updates may cause some pages that were previously under-rewarded to perform better in search results.

Key Takeaways:

• Focus on offering the best content you can.
• Assess your content regularly to ensure it meets Google's guidelines.
• Improvements made are not a guarantee of recovery in rankings.

Google's Helpful Content Updates: A Brief Overview

Google's Helpful Content system aims to reward content that provides a satisfying experience to visitors. The system uses machine learning to automatically identify low-value or unhelpful content. Sites with a high amount of unhelpful content are less likely to perform well in search results.

Key Takeaways:

• Produce helpful content to benefit from this system.
• Remove or fix any content that seems unhelpful.
• The system runs continuously, allowing it to monitor both new and existing sites.

Structuring Your Blog Post

• Introduction: Briefly introduce the topic and what the reader can expect to learn.
• Subheadings: Use descriptive subheadings to break up the text and make it easier to read.
• Body: Use short paragraphs and bullet points to convey information clearly.
• Images and Videos: Incorporate multimedia elements to enhance the post.
• Conclusion: Sum up the key points and encourage reader interaction.

Formatting Tips

• Font and Text Size: Use a readable font and adjust the text size for readability.
• Links: Use internal and external links wisely. Make sure they add value to the reader.
• Meta Descriptions: Write compelling meta descriptions to improve click-through rates.

SEO Best Practices

• Keyword Research: Use relevant keywords naturally throughout the post.
• Alt Text for Images: Always include alt text for images to make your post more accessible.
• Mobile Responsiveness: Ensure your blog is mobile-friendly.

Conclusion

Understanding and implementing Google's latest Core and Helpful Content updates can significantly impact how well your blog post performs in search results. By focusing on creating high-quality, helpful content and structuring it effectively, you can improve your chances of ranking higher in Google Search.

Sources:

Google Search's Core Updates

Google Search's Helpful Content System

Here is the result from Bing:

Microsoft’s Bing’s recommendation on how to write and structure a blog based on Google’s guidelines.

Bing: How to Write a Blog Post According to Google’s Latest Updates

Google’s latest Core (1) and Helpful Content (2) updates have brought significant changes to how content is ranked on search engines. These changes aim to reward high-quality, people-first content that provides value to the reader. Here’s an outline of how you can structure your blog posts according to these updates:

1. Start with Keyword Research

Before you start writing, identify the keywords relevant to your topic (3). These are the words and phrases that people would use to search for your content on Google (4).

2. Craft a Descriptive Title

Your title should include your main keyword and provide a helpful summary of your content (5). It should be engaging and accurately represent what the reader can expect from your post (3).

3. Write an Engaging Introduction

The introduction should hook the reader and provide a brief overview of what the blog post will cover. It’s also a good place to include your main keyword3.

4. Use Subheadings for Structure

Break up your content into sections with descriptive subheadings (6). This makes your content easier to read and helps search engines understand the structure of your page (5).

5. Provide Original, Comprehensive Content

Your content should provide original information, reporting, research, or analysis (5). It should offer a comprehensive description of the topic and go beyond the obvious information (3).

6. Use Images and Alt Text

Images make your post more engaging and can help explain complex topics (6). Be sure to add alt text to your images, which helps search engines understand what the image is about (3).

7. Conclude with a Summary or Call-to-Action

End your post with a summary of the key points or a call-to-action, guiding readers on what they should do next.

8. Optimize for SEO

In addition to including keywords in your title and throughout your content, there are other SEO practices you can follow. These include using meta descriptions, optimizing URL structures, and using internal links (6).

Remember, while these guidelines can help improve your blog’s visibility on search engines, the primary focus should always be on creating high-quality, people-first content (7) (5). Happy blogging!

I hope this blog post helps you understand how to structure and format your blog posts for better visibility on Google Search. If you have any more questions or need further clarification, feel free to ask! 😊

Learn more:

Final conclusion V2

Congratulations on making it all the way to the end! This ended up being a very long blog post, as it contained 3 highly capable AI responses to a blog post request.

My take on the initial question is that it seems that Bard is creating blog posts that are very well structured for optimal Google Search. They are rather short, well structured, using bullet points, and provide the content it needs to be accepted.

However, without proper prompting, the Bard's response seems to be quite short. Perhaps it is a hint that you should take the short outline and use it for your own writing, instead of solely relying on AI. Note that NLP (Natural Language Processing) or LLM (Large Language Models) are subsets of Artificial Intelligence. 

After all, with so much AI-generated content being produced these days (I have seen people talking about creating 500 posts in a month and publishing them automatically…) I think we will inevitably see search engines punish those who do not really add value.