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I am writing an article for my Special Feature Series on my blog. It is about what is more important to a blog...SEO or Content?
There are a lot more experienced bloggers than me on IndiBlogger, and I thought to ask heir opinion about this. Keep in mind that the article is for newbie bloggers, with perosnal blogs..not corporate blogs. Do you think such a blogger should concetrate on SEO? Or is Content still King?
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Quality Content matters.
I feel, both are complementary to each other and one cant work without the other. Of course, for a newbie blogger, the focus should always be writing of good content and then marketing it in the relevant circles. SEO, still comes with time.
OK...I see that all of you prefer Content over SEO. And I completely agree. SEO can come in later, when your blog has a good archive list. Till then, Great content is the only way forward!
Only if I knew what's SEO 
Search engine optimization. Optimizing your blog so that search engines rank it quickly and high. I can't believe you didn't know that!
Doc. You continue to baffle me.
Oh Okey.... ya thanks Aniruddha 
.... what to be so surprised of.... didn't you guys see the acompanying 'embarassment' smiley with my comment 
OK OK then I vote for content...
Content is king but SEO help u reach u r targeted reader.
ok then you won't know that unreal number chapter
BTW would anyone be generous enough to check my blog(s) and suggest me how to work on SEO for it? 
I am tech 0
PL did you have mathematics in your intermediate?
I had but what addition or subtraction is needed.
I am not having an experience of many years in blogging, but I must say both content and SEO is important if one really wants his/her blog to be read by someone.
What will be the use if your article with quality content does not reach to more readers, only because it lacks in SEO? Similarly, a super-SEO optimized blog post, if ranks higher in search engines but does not have something useful weaved in it, will be a fair wastage of both writer and readers' useful time.
Also, if a established blogger is trying to think just from the SEO point of view, then it is really unfair! Being a famous blogger with a popular blog, it become one's first duty to serve good and unique to his/her readers.
So, I think both content and seo has their own value. You can't make a cocktail with a single bottle of cold drink!
Duty? I'm not a communist so I don't really understand that! But I haven't seen any established blogger rely only on SEO and give out poor content. In fact, huge bloggers like Problogger and Copyblogger have some of the best most unique content I have ever seen!
Content was king, content is king and content will be king :)
Content should be the king but then there are so many blogs that that have poor content but a big audience. So there are other factors at work too. But then at the end of the day it depends on what you want. Do you write for yourself or does the hit-count matter more to you?
This is kinda true. But I thnk SEO will help you grow from a certain point till a certain point. After and Before that, only content will help you!
@Aniruddha,
Actually, I meant the same. You cannot kill your content in order to optimize your blog.
"Duty? I'm not a communist so I don't really understand that!"
Yes, I addressed it as 'duty'. Do SEO, but if you are already having a good number of readers, your posts should be reader-friendly. I have seen a number of blog which are ranked good in SE, but the way they put the informative part of the content is close to boring.
For example, long articles are said be ranked higher by search engines. But stretching an innocent(short) article for better SEO cannot be said as a good decision. That's why I mentioned both are important. Content is the 'soul' and SEO may work as a transformer in your blog.
Then I agree with you, Ank. Stretching articles just for SEO is hopeless. And naive, in my opinion. I have always concentrated only on my content, and some promotion. What traffic comes, comes!
there is no such this are SEO vs Content, because in SEO, Content is King
who write post for him/herself? May be there are some people but many people write because they want that people hear thier voice. SEO is the way to get noticed in the search engine and talk with larger audience.
by doing SEO you just tell people "hey, I have what you want to read", but in the core if you don't have the content that holds people and make them read every line of your writing, then what's the point in doing SEO.
Also for newbie bloggers its very important to write engaging content cause content is the base of every blog if that base is weak you can't create solid blog.
And SEO is much technical and vast, newbies are already get frustated with all the new things they see in blogging so introducing them SEO at the start of the blogging journey is not really helpful to them.
Even Matt from Google asks Bloggers to write for readers, not Search Engines. There is no alternative to good content
inspiring
Lady gaga is most searched name on search engines, my post lady gaga may or may not like my poetry, can make my blog hit?
PL if you really want your journals to be hot-dog then post some *****y posts like free-enlargement-techniques and all those dorky stuffs... give your email there and you'll receive more client mails/comments which will make Dr Jain green eyed 
DOC. I cannot cheat. A person was complaining he received a magnifying glass on order for enlargements magical cure.
so what... isn't it great to attain some greatness before own eyes
SEO is long dead. The only thing that matters is social media and on page optimisation of your quality content.
Both are important parts........................ coz youre blog is lifted and depend on this bothe topics.......... you have to follow both consistently
Well I would go for SEO.. If your post is SEO frndly.. Then ur content wud obviously a quality one... So according to me SEO is king and content is queen ( similar to chess game)
This is not always correct. I have seen posts that are very SEO frienly, but the author has concentrated completely on the SEO part. Taking your Chess analogy, the Queen moves a lot farther than the King. The queen is the most imprtant piece!