Writing informational articles for a service business looks straightforward, but most businesses get the execution wrong.
The idea of writing informational articles is sound. The way most businesses carry it out is off base.
In an SEO Training Camp session, a member asked about using informational content to grow topical authority for a service-based business, and Casey Keith addressed the problem.
The answer reverses the usual approach.
The mistake most service businesses make
A local SEO agency decides to build topical authority. The team researches People Also Ask questions, finds keywords, and publishes articles like “How to Optimize Your Google Business Profile” or “Local SEO Checklist for Small Businesses.”
The result: the agency taught its potential customers how to do the work themselves.
This content competes with the agency’s own services.
What supportive informational articles do
Casey’s framework is simple: informational articles must educate clients on how to work with you, and they must not teach clients how to replace you.
Consider onboarding. When someone purchases your service, what must they bring to the table for you to do your best work?
That information is your content.
Examples by industry
Local SEO services
Instead of writing “How to Do Local SEO,” write content that prepares clients to provide what you need:
- Business name, address, and phone number for NAP consistency
- Dun’s number for data aggregator submissions
- Existing citations (Better Business Bureau, Yelp, industry directories)
- Google Business Profile login credentials
- Service area details, including the cities you serve and the cities you don’t serve
- Target audience information for schema markup
Send this content after someone becomes a client. It streamlines your intake process and sets expectations.
Web design services
A web designer’s supportive content might cover:
- Logo files and whether they need logo design services
- Brand colors (with a link to Adobe Color for exploration)
- Primary, secondary, and tertiary color preferences
- Font preferences
- Company slogan or tagline
- Photography assets or stock photo needs
This content assigns homework. Clients arrive prepared, projects move faster, and the end product improves.
Plumbing and home services
Here, Casey’s framework gets interesting. A plumber does not write “How to Fix a Leaky Pipe,” because that article eliminates the service call.
An article titled “How to Shut Off Your Water Main in an Emergency” is valuable.
The client already called, and the plumber is on the way. This article helps the client minimize damage while waiting and positions the business as helpful instead of gatekeeping basic safety information.
Contractors and licensed trades
For construction companies in California, supportive content might include:
- State licensing requirements (CSLB license number)
- City business license information
- Bonding and insurance documentation
- Permit process expectations
This content serves two purposes: it educates clients on compliance requirements and collects the information you need to represent their credentials on the website.
The corporation test
Casey offers a gut check: act like a corporation.
Kentucky Fried Chicken doesn’t publish blog posts about the temperature it fries its chicken or the farms that source its poultry. That information is proprietary. It is the product.
Your methodology, your process, and your expertise are what clients pay for. Don’t give them away in blog content disguised as topical authority building.
Rethinking topical authority
Topical authority still matters. The path to building it looks different for service businesses than for informational publishers.
Your service pages describe what you do. Your supportive content prepares clients to engage with that service effectively. Together, they create a content ecosystem that serves business goals instead of vanity metrics.
The final check
Before you publish your next informational article, ask one question: does this prepare someone to work with me, or does it teach them to work without me?
The answer tells you whether you’re building a business asset or training your competition’s next DIY customer.