Semrush Writing Assistant and Content Template

Semrush is well known for its keyword/domain analysis and tracking. But did you know there are tools to help improve your content with Semrush?

That’s right!

Under the Semrush Content Marketing tab, you’ll find the Semrush Writing Assistant and Content Template features.

Great! But what do these tools offer to improve your writing and help that precious content you’ve just written to rank higher?

Improve Your Content

The SEO Content Template allows for bulk analysis of up to 30 keywords with insight into how these should best be utilized in your content. Plus advice about semantically related words to enrich your writing.

The Writing Assistant provides real-time recommendations as you write for how the content can be improved with a focus on SEO, readability, tone of voice, and originality.

Let’s dig into them further!

SEO Content Template

How can the Semrush SEO Content Template improve your writing?

It’s simple and very easy to understand. Just enter up to 30 keywords or phrases to receive a broken analysis of that grouping. Information such as how your top rivals are using these keywords, semantic words that relate to the topic, backlink recommendations, and readability/text length.

Consider this template a blueprint for your Semrush content marketing success that you or your team can use to construct informative content. That’s really what it’s about at the core of writing, giving your readers helpful information and becoming the authority of your niche.

So what aspects of content writing does the Semrush Content Template help with to actually provide REAL value?

We’ll take an in-depth look at these key features:

• SEO Recommendations for Your Content
• Key Recommendations of Semantic Words
• How Competitors Use Target Keywords
• Basic Recommendations About Core Aspects
• Export Function

Just remember that everything we talk about in this guide is a tool to help you write better content that is more likely to rank high on search engines, actually executing the recommendations provided is up to you.

SEO Recommendations for Your Content

Search engine optimization relies heavily on what your competitors in the top spots are doing.

Heck, if they’re ranking on the first page, they must be doing something right!

That’s why the SEO recommendations provided for your content draw data from your top 10 rivals for each key phrase or word that you entered.

This quick and easy bulk analysis should be used to help you get an idea of what is already working and how your competition has landed those first-page rankings.

But analysis only goes so far. And you can’t outright copy what your competitors are doing. So how do you outrank them?

You take a look at what they’re doing. And then you do it better.

This is where the data-driven mind departs, and creativity enters the chat. What you need to extract from all the competitor data is how YOU can serve this information in an improved and more digestible format.

Now that doesn’t necessarily mean everything needs to be bullet points or that you even need to shorten the content. Think of unique ways that make what you’re trying to get across easier to understand.

Infographics became very popular as a way to compress information into what is essentially a “one-sheet” of data. You need to use your mind and come up with a great idea like that. And yes, I think the infographic was a great idea.

Key Recommendations

The key recommendations feature of Semrush SEO Content Template is the meat and potatoes of the written aspect.

Here you’ll find all the recommended words that are semantically related to the content you’ve entered. These add depth to your writing that sends signals to Google, further specifying what your content means.

Backlinks recommendations are also listed to help easily determine where your backlink outreach should be focused. 

Semrush readability is provided so you can see the average score for the top 10 ranking URLs and make sure you’re beating them or close to. This feature is a nice reminder that you’re not writing a Shakespearean play, but content that will be featured online. Writing for the internet shouldn’t be full of big words that make you feel smart, but alienate the reader. Figure it out!

The average text length is also listed here, so you can quickly refer to how much content needs to be added to help with ranking. But this can’t be fluff, we’re talking about truly informative writing that helps your site become an industry authority.

Note that some of these key recommendations come into play again when using the SEO Writing Assistant.

How Competitors Use Target Keywords

This section is fun because you’re able to view how your competitor’s content appears in the SERPs with the target keywords highlighted.

For visual learners, seeing the content as it will appear makes determining your formatting and layout easier. No second-guessing or continuous testing is necessary. Plus, bulk analysis couldn’t be any easier!

Basic Recommendations

It’s interesting that these basic recommendations are listed last, considering they’re key aspects of SEO. The definition of last but not least!

What does Semrush consider “basic” recommendations?

Page Title – provides advice on the number of keywords to use and optimal character count for the title

Meta Description – shows the optimal character count for the meta description

H1 Heading – gives the recommended number of target keywords to use in the H1 heading and lists your keywords in order of search volume to easily determine the most valuable ones to target 

Body Text – lists the target keywords in order of search volume and recommends the number of times to use them in the body copy

Someone working in the SEO industry is likely familiar with the basic recommendations that Semrush provides. But they’re a nice reminder and especially helpful for those using the software without much search engine optimization experience.

SEO Writing Assistant

Looking for an SEO content editor?

How about one that checks your Semrush readability score, provides search engine optimization tips, confirms your tone of voice, and reviews your content for originality… ALL in real-time?!

That’s where you’ll recognize the power that Semrush is trying to bestow upon you 

We’ll take a detailed look at these key features:

• Quick Checker for Real-Time Review
• Content Readability Score
• Search Engine Optimization
• Tone of Voice
• Content Originality

And another reminder that everything mentioned in this article is a tool for writing content that could rank higher and improve conversion on search engines, execution of said recommendations is entirely up to you.

Quick Checker

The Semrush Writing Assistant Quick Checker is a content creation powerhouse that reviews your work in real-time and provides relevant advice related to your keywords.

In terms of formatting your writing, the Quick Checker is a bit limited. You can set an H1 or H2s, but the heading options stop there. 

A cool additional feature that’s available is the Google Docs add-on. If you don’t want to write within the Quick Checker or keep pasting your work into it for feedback, this is the way to go. It’s a convenient extension that puts the power of Semrush right into Docs. This is the best way to take advantage of the Writing Assistant without breaking from your usual writing routine.

Readability

They define the readability score by how easily a reader can understand the written text. Semrush uses the Flesch reading-ease score formula. Which is pretty much the industry standard. You’ll see the target Semrush readability score, which is an average of the Google top 10 competitors and your current score. The goal is to match the recommended value as close as you can.

You determine the Readability Ease (RE) for English with the following data:

• Average Sentence Length (ASL) – calculated by taking the number of words and dividing by the number of sentences
• Average Syllables per Word (ASW) – calculated by taking the number of syllables and dividing by the number of words

With that information, the Readability Ease mathematical formula is:

RE = 206.835 – (1.015 x ASL) – (84.6 x ASW)

The solution is a number ranging from 0 to 100. The higher the number, the easier the text is to read. Semrush provides the following table for reference:

Another aspect of readability is the word count, which correlates with how long it takes to read through the content. The longer it takes to read, the more time they spend on site. But this isn’t a matter of adding fluff words just to hit the goal. Serve informative content and your audience will react positively (engaging, sharing, etc.), which helps your site stats.

The title issues section ensures that your title is present, within Google character limits, and has the correct amount of words. It’s also a nice reminder to use a target keyword in your title – but only once!

SEO

The SEO tips start with your target keywords, providing the correct amount to use in your core body text. Following those, you’ll see the recommended keywords which are the semantic words. These relate to your target words and enrich the text so Google knows exactly what your content is about. When hovering over the recommended keywords, you’ll see the volume and difficulty if available. 

Alt attribution is the text used to describe the accompanying images in your content. You want to write alt text that accurately describes the picture, but is not stuffed with keywords. This text is what appears when certain elements cannot be rendered when a page loads. These are also important for screen readers that the visually impaired use. That’s why it’s important to give a rich description that explains what is shown.

Interlinking and outbound links are important in helping Google understand the structure of your site and how it connects to the rest of the internet. The link issues report will help you determine the right amount of links to use based on the amount of content. As well as how you will improve any existing links that aren’t already optimized.

Tone of Voice

The tone of voice that you use will depend on your target audience. You’ll measure it on a casual to formal scale.

Casual being the way that you’d talk to a close friend. This writing generally consists of shorter sentences, use of contractions, and informal slang terms. There is also simplified grammar in casual writing. For example, it is common to drop the word “that” from clauses. As in, “I’m glad you’re enjoying this article” versus “I’m glad that you’re enjoying this article.”

Consider Formal the “academic” style of written communication. This means no first person, contractions, slang, abbreviation, etc. There is a serious tone to formal writing with an objective view of the information being delivered. You’ll often see the main point being made with supporting arguments.

Whatever the tone of voice aligns with your target audience, stay consistent throughout the written content.

Originality

When doing research and getting inspiration for your content, you can sometimes accidentally copy someone’s existing work. It’s not as though you’re TRYING to steal from the content, but it can happen.

Don’t plagiarize and this feature isn’t really necessary. But joking aside, there is A LOT of value in this tool.

It can exclude sources which is convenient if you’re updating already published content that would show as unoriginal content

One-click of a button to confirm that you’re not plagiarizing? That’s very convenient!

Different Ways to Access

One great aspect of the SEO writing assistant is that you can access the tool in multiple ways. For those who’d rather not use the tool on the SEMrush website, you can download add-ons for apps such as Google Docs or WordPress.

This is ideal for anyone who wants access to the tool without changing their current workflow. Let’s discuss how you can utilize the SEO writing assistant, whether you’re on the site or using an add-on/plugin.

Semrush Website

Your first option is to use the SWA on the SEMrush website itself. If you’re used to using options like Google Docs or Microsoft Word, this might be a bit of an annoyance. When you must repeatedly copy your text from your source and head over to the website to paste and check the results, it can significantly slow things down.

Sure, over time, you’d become accustomed to doing things this way. But the additional time required to do so will mean that it’ll take that much longer to finish your work. Some will say the website SWA experience isn’t the best due to limited functionality.

However, it’s still a fantastic backup option, or if you just don’t use any of the programs for which they offer plugins or add-ons.

WordPress Plugin

If WordPress is where you do the majority of your writing, the SWA WordPress plugin can be very beneficial when you add it to your arsenal. Once you’ve downloaded the plugin and have activated it, you’re ready to start optimizing your writing for SEO.

By default, the SWA window is below the writing space, which isn’t the most intuitive location. You can rectify this by allowing it to float freely wherever you want. Simply click the ‘Float mode’ button in the top right corner, and you’re good to go.

Having access to such a valuable tool directly inside WordPress is outstanding since you can check your SEO without having to leave the site.

Google Docs Add-on

If your preferred app for writing is Google Docs, then you’re in luck since there’s a SEMrush SWA add-on you can take advantage of. Anyone who outsources their content creation or works hand in hand with their clients will benefit from this immensely.

To be able to check your client’s or outsourced writing SEO score directly in Google Docs is a huge timesaver. And setting it up couldn’t be easier. Start by creating a new document or clicking on an existing document that needs SEO analysis.

Once you’re in the document, click on the Extensions drop-down menu at the top of the page, then hover over ‘Add-ons’ before clicking on ‘Get Add-ons.’ This will open a window for the Google Workspace Marketplace where you will find the add-on after a simple search for ‘SEO Writing Assistant SEMrush’.

When you click the install button, you will be asked which Google account you want to install it under. Now, to use the add-on, simply click on the extensions drop-down menu again, and hover over ‘SEMrush SEO Writing Assistant’ before clicking ‘Show’.

It will appear next to your document on the right side where you can analyze your doc and make any necessary adjustments to increase the SEO score.

Microsoft Word Add-in

The newest tool to join in on the fun is their add-on for Microsoft Word. Sure, it’s a little late to the party, but late is still better than never. Especially seeing as how Microsoft Word is so widely used across the entire globe, it’s about time!

Any way you slice it, writers can now rejoice since they have the luxury of using SEMrush’s SWA without ever leaving Microsoft Word. And installation is a piece of cake. Begin with an open Word document and navigate to the ‘Insert’ tab where you will click on ‘Get Add-ins’.

A window will appear in which you will search for ‘SEO Writing Assistant SEMrush.’ Once you’ve located the add-in, click the ‘Add’ button before ‘Continue’ to install the tool. Once you’ve successfully added the SEMrush SWA, you have to enable it by heading over to the ‘Home’ tab and clicking the ‘Show SWA’ button.

You’ll be asked to login to your SEMrush account to have access to the add-in where you can benefit greatly from the real-time SEO recommendations.

Final Verdict

If you’re not using the Semrush Writing Assistant and Content Template, you should be!

Utilizing the combination, it’ll make your writing richer. When you serve more in-depth content to your audience, they spend more time on the page while reading. Over time, this can help send signals to Google that your site is an authority in your niche, which helps with ranking.

The SWA checks all the boxes, so to speak, providing a blueprint for writing informative content that sets you up for success.

Start your free Semrush 7-day trial and become a master of content creation.