In my years as a digital marketing content writer, the best SEO blog strategy I’ve come across is the cluster topic model.
It works wonders for your website’s search rankings and domain authority, and it makes creating blogs a whole lot easier for you.
Sound good? Let’s get into the juicy stuff.
Cut to the chase:
- What is a Cluster Blog Strategy?
- What does a cluster blog look like?
- Why Cluster Blog Strategies Work
- How to Create Your Own Cluster Blog Strategy
- Measuring Success: Is Your Cluster Blog Strategy Working?
- Get Cluster Blogging to Boost Your SEO
What is a Cluster Blog Strategy?
A topic cluster, or content cluster, is like a little content family on your website, all tied together by a common theme.
A cluster blog strategy uses this family of content to target core topics and then branch out into more specific and detailed subtopics.
The point of this model is to turn your blog into a rich, in-depth resource of information that’s organically organised by design. It’s one of the best ways to achieve SEO content writing success.
What does a cluster blog look like?
At the heart of each cluster is its pillar page—the big, comprehensive guide that covers everything you need to know about one broad topic.
Branching out from this are one or two key subtopics—or sub-pillar pages—each of which go into more detail about one core element on the pillar page.
Surrounding the pillar and sub-pillar pages are the cluster pages. These blogs dive into even more specific topics that usually target long-tail query-based keywords.
Finally, and perhaps most importantly, is the internal linking strategy that ties all these blogs together.
Here’s a basic cluster blog in diagram form:
Why Cluster Blog Strategies Work
Cluster blog strategies aren’t just another digital marketing buzzword—they’re the real deal. Here’s why they’re pure SEO gold:
SEO content that works
When you link related content together, you’re essentially creating a treasure map for search engines. And that treasure is your website domain.
Using a cluster blog strategy allows Google to easily crawl and index your content, recognising that your site is a powerhouse of relevant and well-organised information.
The result? Google understands your content better, likes it more, and pushes it up the search results page (SERP). In other words, cluster blogs boost your search rankings and attract more visitors to your site.
Happy readers, happy search engines
Let’s be real—no one likes a messy website. The minute I have to go digging for the answer to my question, I’m likely to click away and try a different (more direct) website or blog.
Cluster blog strategies make it a breeze for your visitors to find what they’re looking for, keeping them on your site longer. And the longer they stick around, the more Google thinks, “Hey, this site must be pretty fabulous!”
Higher domain authority
The more content you create around specific topics and subtopics, the more you establish yourself as an expert in your field (insert jargon “subject matter expert” or SME).
Over time, this boosts your domain authority, making it easier for your content to climb the SERP ranks.
A cluster blog topic example:
- Say you have a pillar page about Feng Shui principles. It covers the broad topic by briefly discussing essential elements like yin and yang balances and home decor.
- You’ll then create two sub-pillar pages about each of those essential elements. One might talk more in-depth about yin and yang theory, the other about how to decorate your home.
- Finally, you’ll write cluster blogs based on topics within those sub-pillars: one about the ‘opposition’ principle of yin and yang; one about which colours best suit your home, and another about how to design a balanced entry space.
Suddenly, you’ve got six beautifully structured blogs about different Feng Shui principles that users can click through without having to search for an answer.
It’s like offering a tray of after-dinner chocolates to your guests before they even know they’re craving something sweet.
Google will start to see your website as a topical authority figure on this subject because there’s so much information available that is easy to navigate and index.
How to Create Your Own Cluster Blog Strategy
Now to the meat of this content lasagna. How do you create a topic cluster blog strategy?
Here’s what I do for my clients, and what I’m currently doing for my own business website (aka what you’re reading right now):
Step 1: Pick your pillar topics
First things first, you need to choose your pillar topics. Think big-picture here—what are the broad subjects that are central to your brand? These are the topics you want to dominate in search results.
For example, if you’re running a creative agency or copywriting business, your pillars might include “SEO Content”, “Creative Writing” and “Brand Messaging”.
Yeah, those are mine. They’re my pillar pages. You got me.
Step 2: Conduct keyword research
Once you’ve got your pillar topics, do some keyword research to identify popular queries people have about those topics.
Keyword research is also a great way to refine your pillar topic wording and choose effective phrases for your sub-pillar and cluster blogs.
When it comes to cluster blogs in particular, you’re looking for those sweet long-tail keywords and related subtopics that people are searching for.
My go-to keyword tool is Semrush’s Keyword Magic Tool. You can perform keyword research and track keyword rankings with a free Semrush account, too—win!
Step 3: Create your pillar content
Now for the fun part—writing your pillar page content. Well, okay, I find it fun—if you don’t, a content writer can whip it up for you instead.
As I mentioned earlier, your pillar blogs should be comprehensive guides that cover your chosen topics from every angle.
What they shouldn’t do is go into agonising detail about everything—save that for your cluster blogs.
Here are a few golden rules when it comes to creating a pillar page:
- Aim for 2500-3000 words. This might seem long, but you want to cover as much ground as you can in this big umbrella blog.
- Insert your keywords naturally. Use a small filler word if needed, like ‘and’ or ‘a’—Google’s smart and it’ll still pick up on the keyword, so don’t stress too much about inserting it word-for-word every time.
- Use H2s, H3s, H4s, and readability features. Help your readers digest all the information by separating sections into headings. Use bullet point lists and tables where possible.
- Include one image for every 200-300 words. Images break up text for readers and provide visual entertainment to keep them engaged.
Step 4: Plan and write your sub-pillar and cluster content
Your sub-pillar and cluster content allows you to nerd out on the nitty-gritties related to your pillar page.
These could be:
- Blog posts
- How-to guides
- Case studies
- Interviews
- Feature articles
Before you write all these fabulous pieces of content, I highly suggest planning them first in relation to your pillar pages.
This ensures your cluster blogs properly relate to their pillar page, and helps you pinpoint where to insert links on each page.
- Highlight one or two key elements from your pillar blog—the biggest or most important parts. These will form your sub-pillar topics.
- Brainstorm talking points for those sub-pillars. Categorise them. Choose a handful of those talking points that are beefy enough to make up blogs of their own. These will form your cluster blogs.
Step 5: Insert strategic internal links
The secret sauce of a cluster blog strategy is the internal linking. Each cluster piece should link back to the pillar page and to other relevant clusters, creating a spiderweb of content that search engines can’t resist.
- Each pillar page is linked to all of its relevant sub-pillar pages and cluster blogs.
- Each cluster blog must link back to its parent sub-pillar and pillar pages—but not to any other pillar pages, or Google becomes confused.
- And, unlike the outdated silo blog strategy, each of your blogs can cross-link to any other relevant cluster blogs in different pillar categories—but only if they’re directly related, which isn’t always the case.
If we go back to our Feng Shui example for a moment, this is what its internal linking map would look like:
Measuring Success: Is Your Cluster Blog Strategy Working?
To see if your cluster blog strategy is doing its job, keep an eye on these key metrics:
- Organic traffic: Check to see if more people are finding your pillar and cluster pages through organic search. Google Analytics is my go-to tool here. This will take time, but keep an eye on the metrics every month or so.
- Keyword rankings: Track where your pillar and cluster content ranks for your targeted keywords. Over time, you should see a nice upward trend. If you don’t, change up your target keywords.
- Domain authority: Tools like Moz, Semrush and Ahrefs can help you monitor your domain authority (DA). A successful cluster blog strategy should give this metric a healthy boost. It’s normal to start out low, but over time you want to aim for around 50-60—it’s tough to get there, but that’s considered an excellent DA score.
- User engagement: Look at metrics like bounce rate and average session duration to see how well users are engaging with your content. The more they engage, the better your SEO.
Get Cluster Blogging to Boost Your SEO
A cluster blog strategy is the key to your SEO content success. By organising your content into well-structured clusters, you’re not only making your site more user-friendly but also giving search engines exactly what they’re looking for.
So, if you’re serious about boosting your rankings, driving more traffic, and establishing your site as an authority in your industry, it’s time to embrace the power of cluster blogging.