Website Content Doesn't Matter.........wait, what?

I saw a post on on LinkedIn last week that got my SEO strategy wires in a bunch.  I witnessed a post where an "SEO professional" made a statement along the lines that you do not need to content to gain rank in Google, you can simply manipulate headers and title tags to accomplish rank.  This bears a bigger question - Does RANK matter?  

Look at Google's Mission Statement.  Their goal is to provide the end user with the most relevant results to answer their question.  Do you think that headers and title tags provide the most relevant information to a user?  Do title tags and headers address long tail search and complex questions? 

I met with a client today that was concerned that their website wasn't "ranking" for "medical malpractice attorney in Minneapolis."  My question was to the attorney, "Do your potential clients search for medical malpractice? Is malpractice a term your clients would search for?"  His answer was, "I would guess probably not often."  If a doctor cut off the wrong leg, my family would most likely be doing a search for something to the effect of "What kind of lawyer do I need to sue a doctor for a botched surgery?"   Which search query would you rather show up for?

You need to think well above rank to bring qualified traffic to your site. No question, you need traffic to your site but you need qualified traffic to get leads!!  Tailoring your website to not only gain rank by using title tags, headers, etc AND building user friendly, optimized content targeting your ideal clients will bring both the window shoppers and the people ready to buy!  

Bottom line, content is king if you want qualified visitors to your website. Aiming for rank is  not only uber competitive but also very expensive and simply not a sound strategy