content before website or website before content ?

What kind of website are we talking about?

What would you be selling? Adsense, ebooks, affiliate offers, etc???

In a broad niche like weight loss... honestly you might want to go into a different niche. Especially if you're asking questions like this.

You build the website and include 5-10 related articles for a start, then constantly add new content at least two times a week (can be curated content, which is more powerful than one can imagine). Make sure you have a way to grab your visitors email address and build your marketing list.

Best regards,
Andre Foisy

There is nothing worse than having a website without content on it. I am not just talking from an SEO standpoint, but also when it comes to your stress levels. I have put up plenty of websites with the intention of writing a new piece of content every day. I didn't stick to this plan at all. Well, I did, but the stress of needing to get a new piece of content out on a regular basis meant that I ended up producing poor quality content. It is great to have a nice little backlog of content that you can rely on. That way you can focus on actually marketing your site.

I always suggest people have at least a month's worth of content 'in the hole' before they launch their site.

It doesn't really matter. Just start. You can always change your website later if the content isn't resonating with your target market.

My most recent site went online with a single blog post. I started to add one every day and continue to do that. I made no effort to monetize the site for several weeks. That way, the search engines initially see a site that just has good content.

Charlie

I think the better question is content before CUSTOMER or content after customer. Just registering a name, getting hosting, and then having a website live is meaningless in and of itself. You are lost in a sea of websites and billions of pages. You can start a website with one article - just make sure you get it to be a bit more substantial before you actively try to drive traffic to it. I am NOT an SEO expert, but the idea seems to be that there is some weight placed upon site/domain age, so I say get the website going, if even with one article, and then continue to flesh it out to the point you are comfortable driving traffic to it.

You should be good to go with a couple of posts initially. So that people see your website as a trusted source.

Website first! For a start, this is taking massive action and stops you from writing 100,000 words, only to decide not to start.

Secondly, in the beginning, unless you are paying for traffic, which I wouldn't recommend without a product or funnel in place, you are likely going to have little to no traffic for the first few weeks. In the quiet time, publish like crazy.

Furthermore, Google tends to like to see activity and fresh content.

Finally, by publishing each post one-by-one you can see the results of your work and if certain topics take off, you know where to focus your energy.

After several attempts to build my website, and then write the direction I desired it to go.

I now start with either a proven offer or established product or service (the solution).

Then, I research...

° Who is my target audience?

° Where are they?

° How can I engage them, compel them to action? (subscribe, download, attend, etc...)

° How many steps are there to the solution they seek?

° Once that problem is solved, is there more that can be built upon that transition?

° How can I cultivate them, nurture them, and continue to deliver (or guide) them to their next need, desire, or solution!

Then, once I have gathered all the appropriate info, start development.

Funny thing is, almost every major company invests heavily Research & Development, and though I come from no formal corporate training or big business... The process works! - if you do.

Then, as you begin laying out your sales funnel from 'back to front' -or- from the prospectives 'end goal to where they are NOW' - the path can be mapped out like spraypaint on the trees, if you've ever ventured into a nature walk deep in the woods.

Without mapping the path... People tend to get lost, real fast... As did most of my early attempts at building a website first!

In short, I agree 5 or more articles used as a 'guide' - leading to whatever path you are mapping... is plenty.

Heck, a one page ad can work, if your seekung to inform through a video invitation, opt-in, maybe a webinar, or local event...

Whereas, all the components lead to the solution, or can be curated to multiple adventures, paths, or in essence a harmony of solutions.

Great, now I've got this weird image in my head of carrying a walking stick, dressed in an elf costume, strolling towards the Keebler cookie factory, and narrating to a small group of adventurers... where to find the best cookies, to go with the thermos of freshly chilled milk everyone's toting... And all I really wanted was to be Santa Claus!!!

Ok... the last part sucked, but I do like Keebler's chocolate chip cookies, and a tall glass of cold milk...

Sold... Dang, now I gotta go to the store. "Munchie Run!"

-Art

First create a website with few articles and then update your website on a fix schedule regularly with new articles.

It doesn't really matter. Just create a blog and start adding quality content to it. One that engages your audience.

If SEO is your primary focus, then by all means start with the WEBSITE FIRST

Make sure you have a clearly defined and well-laid out SEO framework for your website.

After that's done, start layering in your content.

The best SEO content is RESPONSIVE to readers' needs WHILE hitting SEO objectives (context / kw mentions /etc)

Actually you need both to get started. articles is a vital part and website gives you the platform to manipulate it.