What is Pillar Content and Does My Business Need It?
Pillar content is essential for building authority online, ranking higher in search, and bringing in steady traffic.
A strong pillar page is the foundation of a well-structured content strategy. It dives deep into a broad topic, acts as the go-to resource for your audience, and connects related content in a way that makes search engines (and readers) notice. When done right, it creates a seamless content ecosystem that boosts SEO and drives reader loyalty.
What is Pillar Content?
Pillar content is a well-thought-out 10,000+ word page that serves as the hub for related content and topic clusters. Also known as cornerstone content, it helps organize your site and makes it easier for users and search engines to navigate.
Common Marketing Challenges that Pillar Pages Tackle
Pillar pages bring structure and strategy to your content by tackling common marketing challenges like:
- Low website traffic
- Poor search rankings
- Disconnected content and sales teams
- Inefficient content creation strategy
- Difficulty measuring content ROI
If your business faces these challenges, a pillar page may help unify your content marketing strategy while improving key performance metrics.
What to Expect on a Pillar Page
A pillar page is designed to be the ultimate guide on a broad topic, filled with a wealth of information for users to explore. For example, a marketing agency could create a pillar page on Facebook marketing, linking to additional content on:
- Facebook advertising
- Posting best practices
- Understanding Facebook Analytics
- Third-party Facebook tools
- Facebook post inspiration
These content groupings, known as topic clusters, link back to the pillar page, creating a network of educational content.
SEO Benefits of Pillar Content
Pillar content offers SEO benefits that can boost your site’s performance by providing a detailed, well-organized resource.
Intelligent internal linking and topic clusters help your site rank higher, drive organic traffic, and enhance visibility on search engines.
Higher Search Rankings
Well-structured pillar pages improve SEO by aligning with how search engines prioritize content. It does that by:
- Aligning with search engine algorithms that prioritize factors like search intent, featured snippets, and location.
- Responding to users’ long, specific queries instead of fragmented keywords, ensuring your content answers their questions directly and comprehensively.
- Linking to related topic clusters while creating an organized web of content that search engines can easily crawl and index.
- Establishing your site’s authority on the topic to help improve rankings and drive more traffic over time.
Improved Website Analytics
If your content strategy isn’t working, pillar content can boost your website’s performance by providing valuable, in-depth resources that improve key SEO metrics. Here’s how:
- Increases time on site: Valuable content keeps visitors exploring and reading longer.
- Reduces bounce rate: Internal links encourage users to explore related topics, keeping them engaged.
- Enhances engagement: Structured, engaging pillar pages attract and retain visitors, boosting website performance.
Establishes Your Brand as an Authority
Pillar content boosts SEO and establishes your brand’s authority by building trust and showcasing expertise. Here’s how it strengthens your brand’s authority:
- Demonstrates Expertise: Comprehensive, in-depth content demonstrates to both your audience and search engines that you are a trusted authority on the topic.
- Strengthens Online Presence: Linking pillar content to related topic clusters helps Google better understand and index your content, boosting visibility.
- Improves SEO Rankings: This interconnected web of content signals to search engines that your site is a reliable resource, leading to higher rankings and more organic traffic.
Content Pillars vs. Cluster Content
Content pillars and cluster content are essential for creating a solid content strategy. Pillars cover the big picture, while cluster content zooms in on the details.
Content Pillars
Content pillars are in-depth pages that explore a broad topic, strengthening your content strategy and boosting SEO. Here’s what makes them stand out:
- Thorough coverage: Gives a detailed look at a big topic.
- Evergreen: Stays relevant and attracts traffic over time.
- Organized: Easy to navigate with clear headings and links.
- Keyword-focused: Targets the correct terms for better visibility.
- Linkable: Connects easily to related content for deeper exploration.
Cluster Content
Cluster content consists of smaller, detailed pieces that support pillar pages, diving into specific subtopics and linking back to the pillar. Here’s why cluster content matters:
- Focused: Zeroes in on specific subtopics related to your pillar page.
- Interconnected: Links back to the pillar page, creating a web of related content.
- Keyword-targeted: Optimized for specific keywords that complement your pillar content.
- Shorter: Typically more concise than pillar content but still valuable for the reader.
- Engaging: Helps keep readers on your site longer by offering more detailed info.
How to Create Pillar Content
Creating pillar content involves choosing a relevant topic, researching keywords, and crafting high-quality, well-structured content that provides valuable insights for your audience. Link it to supporting cluster content to build a connected, SEO-friendly resource.
1. Decide on Topics for Your Pillar Content Strategy
Start by brainstorming topics for your pillar content strategy, always keeping your audience’s needs in mind. Here’s what to focus on:
- Ensure your content answers their key questions, offers something unique, and aligns with their search intent.
- Consider what extra value you can provide to help them accomplish their goals or solve their problems — things they can’t easily find elsewhere.
- Use a content style guide to keep your team and freelancers on the same page with your brand voice, mission, and messaging.
- Ensure your pillar content strategy stays consistent and your content creation process is efficient and scalable.
2. Do Your Keyword Research for Your Pillar Content
Keyword research is crucial for a successful pillar content strategy. Identify topics and phrases your audience is searching for, ensuring they have a solid search volume and can rank well on Google. Focus on broad keywords that link to multiple topic clusters.
Targeting the right keywords will help your pillar content rank higher and drive more traffic to your site.
3. Create High-Quality, Structured Content Using a Template
To create effective pillar content, focus on crafting high-quality, in-depth content that adds value. A pillar content template can help structure your page with clear headings, subheadings, and internal links, making it easier for writers to align your quality expectations with your site architecture.
4. Link to Cluster Content and Optimize for SEO
A key advantage of pillar content is that it helps you organize your content strategy, reducing stress and writer’s block. For example, if your pillar content covers a topic like “Buying Your First Guitar,” you can create related topic clusters, such as:
- Acoustic Guitars
- Electric Guitars
- Types of Guitar Strings
- Types of Amplifiers
- Popular Guitar Brands
- How to Learn to Play the Guitar
Topic clusters form a connected content network, allowing you to tackle multiple related topics. With 10,000+ words in pillar content, you have plenty of smaller pieces. Repurpose and link older posts to your pillar page for an SEO boost and fresh content ideas.
What Makes Pillar Content Successful?
Great pillar content is thoughtful, detailed, and designed to meet your audience’s needs. Here’s what makes it work:
- Offers valuable, in-depth information: It answers your audience’s questions and provides them with something they can’t find anywhere else.
- Keeps your branding consistent: Uses your brand’s voice and tone to connect with readers and leave a strong first impression.
- It has many links: Including links to related articles and topic clusters helps users and search engines explore your site.
- Has a smooth design: Looks great and works well on any device, ensuring an easy user experience.
- It is easy to navigate: Readers flow through the content and easily find other valuable resources without confusion.
Types of Pillar Pages
There are several types of pillar pages, each serving a unique purpose in your content strategy. Here are the most common ones:
- 10x content pillar page: A detailed resource on a broad topic, often presented as an ungated e-book or guide, encouraging users to share info for a downloadable version.
- Resource pillar page: A hub of valuable links and resources, guiding visitors to deeper content on a specific subject.
- Product or service pillar page: This page focuses on specific products or services, offering detailed information and benefits to help users in the consideration or decision-making stage.
Pillar Page Examples
Need inspiration for your pillar pages? Here are some examples to inspire your pillar content strategy:
- Betterworks Performance Management Guide: A detailed performance management resource with easy navigation to related topics.
- Atlassian’s Guide to Agile: A clear guide to agile development with internal links to mini-hub pages and tutorials.
- Diet Doctor’s Keto Guide: An informative guide on the ketogenic diet with multimedia resources and links to deeper topics.
- Zapier’s Remote Work Guide: A simple pillar page introducing remote work with easy navigation and clear calls to action.
- Ahrefs SEO Guide: A pillar page covering SEO basics, broken into chapters with links to more detailed content.
Now that you know what makes pillar content successful, it’s time for you to implement those insights. From selecting high-impact topics to optimizing structure and internal linking, these strategies will elevate your SEO and keep your audience engaged.
If you need expertly crafted, search-optimized pillar content written by industry-specialized writers, ContentWriters is your solution. Our professional SEO content writing services deliver content that ranks, resonates, and drives results. Let our expert writers do the heavy lifting and get started with us today!
An earlier version of this post was published in November, 2019 by Anne M.
Jane Kenney is an expert SEO content and copywriter who has helped over 100 long-time clients with their content growth strategies.
