If you want your content to make an impact, your audience needs to be able to find it. And for that, search engines need to be able to not only crawl it but also understand and trust it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That\u2019s where content hubs come in. With a content hub, you can structure your content so it\u2019s easy to find by humans and crawlers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A content hub is a collection of related content about a particular topic. It consists of the hub (main) page and related subpages. The main page establishes the groundwork for the deeper dives that the subpages offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For example, if you want to create a content hub about digital marketing, you could have a hub page that explains what digital marketing is, why it is important, and what are the main types of digital marketing channels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then, you could have subpages that dive deeper into each channel, such as SEO, PPC, email marketing, social media marketing, etc. Each subpage would link back to the hub page, and the hub page would link to all the subpages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Let\u2019s say you work in immigration law. You want to connect with more potential clients through educational content about how to become a permanent resident of the United States. Unfortunately, your best keyword, \u201cgreen cards,\u201d is quite difficult to rank for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This hub page not only ranks in the top 10 for that oh-so-competitive target keyword (green cards) but also for tons of other, more specific keywords (long-tail keywords).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Creating a highly targeted yet in-depth overview, answering all of their audience\u2019s basic questions about green cards<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Creating structure by linking all of this content together so their users could easily find it<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And those resources the hub page links to? They also rank well. For example, their page on marriage-based green cards ranks first for most of its target keywords.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Topic clusters like the example above act as concentrated buckets of relevance. When structured thoughtfully as a content hub, search engines can more easily understand the context of each page and how they relate to one another in a hierarchy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All of this makes it easier for search engines to determine a page\u2019s relevance and confidently deliver it to users in search.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now that we understand what content hubs are and why they\u2019re so important, it\u2019s time to start building one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It may sound obvious, but if you want to create a content hub on your site, you first need to know what it will cover.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
First, start with a brainstorming session to identify the key themes you need to cover. You can get ideas from:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Your sales teams: What questions and pain points have your customers expressed to your sales teams? What type of content would help the teams make more sales?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Your feedback: What common themes have been mentioned in reviews or to your customer support team? What about your social mentions?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Your competition: Which competitor content resonates with your target audience? Are there any gaps in their strategy?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Which ones seem the most promising? You can vet these by checking them in the Keyword Overview tool . Look for:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In our example above, \u201cgreen cards\u201d met these criteria. Why? It\u2019s a complex topic, which users need to educate themselves about in order to immigrate. It\u2019s also a competitive keyword with lots of related yet complex subtopics\u2014meaning lots of potential content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Start by researching a few of your most promising themes. Then, pick the one that shows the most potential using the criteria above.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Start by entering a high-level topic relevant to your industry. For example, \u201cvegan food\u201d for a producer of vegan products.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then, explore subtopics suggested by the tool and filter them by their search topic efficiency (a combination of high search volume and low-ranking difficulty).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now that you\u2019ve identified your content hub\u2019s main topic, it\u2019s time to identify the subtopics that will support it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Have a reasonably high level of interest (in other words, they might be easier to rank for than your primary topic, but readers are still looking for them)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For instance, if you picked \u201cVegan food list for beginners\u201d as your topic in the previous step, click on \u201cGet ideas on this topic\u201d and the tool will generate another list of content ideas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once you\u2019ve made a list of subtopics to write about, the next step is to audit your current content library to find out what you\u2019ve already covered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This way, you can place existing content into your content hub and focus your efforts on filling the gaps.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Depending on how broad your main topic is (and how much content you already have), this could be a complex process. But here are the basics:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Make a list of all the content you have that falls under the umbrella of your main topic<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Weed out any content you don\u2019t want to include (for example, old or outdated content you don\u2019t plan to update)<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once you\u2019ve done this, you should have a pretty good idea of what you\u2019ve already covered and what type of content you still need to create.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
There\u2019s no right or wrong way to organize your content hub. Just make sure the system you choose:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As long as you follow those principles, you have a lot of freedom and flexibility in how you choose to accomplish it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Who are you creating content for? For example, if this hub is aimed at a certain customer type, you\u2019ll want to focus on moving them along their buying journey so that it\u2019s easy for them to convert.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What is your content hub about? For example, if you\u2019re covering a complex topic, you might need to structure your content hub with beginner-friendly pieces showing up first, so that the advanced topics make more sense later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What types of content do you have? Is it all written content, like blog posts, articles, and ebooks? Or will you be integrating video, audio, or infographics?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Use all of this information to choose (or create!) the content hub format that best presents your content to your audience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Below, we\u2019ll explore the five most popular formats used to organize content hubs\u2014with examples to illustrate\u2014and why you might want to use each one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Choose the best one for your site, or combine a few to create your own format.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once you\u2019ve identified the perfect system, start building the page. Then add links to each piece of supporting content when you\u2019re ready.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The most traditional content hub model, not to mention the one most people are familiar with, the hub and spoke content hub consists of one pillar page (the hub) and a host of supporting content exploring a variety of subtopics (the spokes).<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This is the best approach to take if most of your content is evergreen and won\u2019t require a lot of major overhauls.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
CoinTelegraph, a cryptocurrency news website, uses the hub and spoke model in its education section. Each of the major currencies (e.g., Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple) has its own hub supported by a collection of evergreen content:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The content library is a more complex cousin to the hub and spoke model. It works by listing your various topic categories on your hub page, which then link off to their own subtopic pages. From there, readers can access individual pages and articles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you publish content across a wide variety of categories (as is usually the case for blogs or media publications), then the content library format can not only help you organize it, but also help your readers find what they need.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Career advice website CareerAddict has a good example of this, showing posts by category on their hub page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The topic gateway format takes a deep dive into one topic. Typically, the hub itself acts as an extended overview of the topic. Then, the page links off to many different supporting pieces, all focused on more granular subtopics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In this way, there\u2019s very little difference between a topic gateway and a mammoth \u201cUltimate Guide to Topic X\u201d-type post.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Topic gateways are an ideal content hub model if you aim to teach beginners about a new topic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
DietDoctor\u2019s \u201cKeto for Beginners\u201d guide is a good example of the topic gateway format. It covers every conceivable subtopic that a Keto beginner would be interested in and links out to a range of supporting pieces.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This format generally works best for directories or glossaries, where you have a large number of pages that cannot be practically listed in an article or on a traditional hub page.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you run a blog and have published a large number of reviews on individual products<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you run a fitness website and have written hundreds of articles, each detailing how to perform a particular exercise<\/p>\n\n\n\n
If you run an interior design website and want to showcase a large number of your previous projects<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Audubon\u2019s \u201cGuide to North American Birds\u201d hub page is an excellent example of a content database hub format, with each supporting piece of content linking to articles about the selected bird.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A topic matrix aligns closely with how you set up your website and URL structure. It prioritizes clear navigation and access to information over being aesthetically creative. As such, it works well for informational content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This content hub type is not often used, because it can be a little overwhelming visually. However, it\u2019s a good option if your content needs to be categorized in a very specific way.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Medical sites such as the NHS website and the Mayo Clinic\u2014which maintain a vast library of very complex information\u2014often employ this type of hub.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Internal linking is a cornerstone of any content hub. In fact, it\u2019s the whole point of building one in the first place. After all, if you don\u2019t link between content, your hub is no different from a regular blog article.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cBut wait,\u201d you might be asking, \u201cdidn\u2019t I already link to all of my content when I laid out my hub in step 3?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
It\u2019s easier for users to keep reading. This encourages them to stay on your site longer and improves user experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Internal links can help boost your SEO. That\u2019s because they confer link equity, otherwise known as \u201clink juice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
When a page with a lot of authority links to another page, that\u2019s like casting a vote of confidence in its content. When search engines see this, it can encourage them to rank the new page slightly higher.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In other words, the more high-ranking pieces of cluster content that link back to your hub page, the better that hub page is likely to rank on its target keyword.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Of course, it takes a lot of time and effort to rank for any competitive search term, especially if your site is new. But consistent internal linking can become a firm foundation for future success.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Now that you\u2019ve built your hub and created lots of internal links to support it, there\u2019s only one step left: maintain it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
You can do this by creating content to fill gaps as you find them and keeping your content fresh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Start by creating a content brief for each new article you want to create. This should guide your writers by providing key information, such as the scope of the article, which keywords to target, and other relevant details.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
First, enter the keywords you want to target. Then, the tool will analyze the top-ranking content for each keyword and provide recommendations for:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Once you\u2019ve written it, optimize your content for the ultimate reader- and SEO-friendliness by running it through the SEO Writing Assistant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The tool will quickly assess whether your copy is optimized for search, improve readability, maintain a consistent tone of voice, etc. and provides targeted recommendations to improve it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Finally, once you\u2019ve written, optimized, and posted your article, maintain it over time with up-to-date information so that your readers can always rely on it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Ultimately, the goal of any site is to become a trusted source of information for your audience\u2014one they want to visit again and again.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With time and effort, building a content hub can help you do exactly that, transforming your site\u2019s content into a well-organized library.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here are a few tips to remember when creating the most effective hub for your site:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Following these steps will help your site climb the ranks for your most desired keywords. But more importantly, you\u2019ll help your readers by granting them easy access to the information they need, right when they need it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Top Paying AdSense Keywords and Best Adsense Niches for 2020 If you are using AdSense placement ..<\/p>\n\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
How to Create a Winning Content Hub in 5 Steps (+ Examples) If you want your content to make an impact, your audience needs to be able to find it. And for that, search engines need to be able to not only crawl it but also understand and trust it. That\u2019s where content hubs come<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31273","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alienroad.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31273","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alienroad.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alienroad.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alienroad.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31273"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/alienroad.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31273\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":31549,"href":"https:\/\/alienroad.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31273\/revisions\/31549"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alienroad.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31273"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alienroad.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31273"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alienroad.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31273"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}