Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is one of the best and effective digital marketing for your business, especially if it’s done right. There is a crucial component of this strategy, and that is the use of keywords.
If you want to build an online presence for your brand, reach out to more customers, both locally and internationally, and increase your sales at the same time, SEO marketing is a sure way to help you achieve your goals by getting that top ranking spot in Google Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs).
SEO keywords, in essence, are topics and ideas that describe the content of your blog, article, image, or videos. In SEO, these are the words and phrases that your potential customers enter into the search bar of a search engine. But it would be best if you exerted effort and time to find out the primary keywords that you’ll be using to become competitive online.
Are Keywords Relevant In SEO?
Keywords are significant since they are the linchpin between what the internet users are looking for and the content that you are giving them. The main goal here is to achieve a better ranking among other competitors in the SERP as well as driving organic traffic to your website. The keywords that you want to target will determine the kind of traffic you will get for your website.
Understanding Long-Tail Keywords
Broad keywords are known as head keywords, while long-tail keywords are composed of a precise combination of terms.
A single type of keywords might be your definitive goal because of its high search volume, but these types of keywords are usually tight in competition and infuriatingly vague.
Long-tail keywords, on the other hand, are more precise and have defined intent. You will also notice that it has lesser competition and allows a smaller page to break in and establish a ranking spot in SERPs.
Putting Keywords On Your Page
Don’t just put any keywords on your page; you have to create something that’s of value to the people, which will compel them to visit your site. Here are the basic things you need to remember:
- Unique keywords must be used for each page that you want to rank, in places where humans can read and bots can crawl, assuring them that your site contains what they are seeking.
- The pitfalls of clickbait. Be careful with your title tags and content. Don’t deceive users by putting tempting vague titles and not showing what your site is all about. This will lead to an increase in bounce rate.
- You can try to put your primary keyword in your URL, Meta description, H1 tag, and alt attributes images on your page since all these elements can help provide a clue in search engines on what your content contains.
The most basic means to target content is by using your targeted keywords in these areas. It will not directly get you to the top spot of the results, but it is a critical SEO. If you fail to take these basic steps, you will not succeed from ranking by other ways.
Formulate A Content Scheme When Using Keywords
Create a content keyword map to guide and help you understand your existing content’s impact and recognize the gaps that need filling or weak links.
Keywords can define every page of your website, using them can help you organize your content and for you to formulate a strategy. The simplest approach to achieve this is by using a spreadsheet, which will be your content keyword map, and pinpoint your primary keyword for every article on your website. Build a spreadsheet that contains your own requirements, add organic traffic, keyword search volume, page authority along with all the other metrics that are crucial to your business.
It’s ideal to have every page on your site target a unique main keyword. Well, in general, the homepage of your site will be targeting a wide-ranging industry word, and as you will be creating articles, product pages, and category pages, they will be narrowed down into your niche and target more definite needs.
Understanding Keyword Research
One of the SEO’s core tasks is keyword research, and it is comprised of identifying general words and phrases that Internet users enter in search engines, which help you figure out what you can rank for. This process allows the marketers and advertisers to get a good grasp of understanding of a keyword’s demand and how hard the competition it will be in the organic search results as it offers direction to your efforts in optimizing the website.
Keyword research facts:
- It’s about verifying the number of searches that a certain keyword has.
- It’s also about discovering many different ways that individuals use language whenever they research a topic or idea.
- It’s a big part of search engines.
- All in all, it’s the main element of content marketing since it can help in finding ideas for the next blog post, understand more what your audience needs, and be updated with the lingo of the developing search landscape.
Drive the right traffic to your website, the kind of traffic that is more likely to convert if you research the words that Internet users type in search engines, and using those words in creating targeted content.
How Often Should Keyword Research Be Done?
This process is not a one-off kind of task. Remember, the foundation of your website will be built on keywords. With this, it needs regular maintenance and re-evaluation.
Search language continues to change as new keywords are formed and so are the needs of your audience, it also develops and grows.
Whenever you’re planning to create new content for your site, keyword research is a task worth doing. This is also perfect if you’re looking into building a new website, when you’re thinking about promoting a certain product, service, or if you are trying to write new blog content for an existing website and many more. It’s also great if you want to restructure your existing website, and if you want to consolidate your content.
Remember, the content of your site should fulfill your visitor’s needs. Continue to create content that your audience shares and enjoys by regularly assessing the ways on how they search and by identifying the popular searches and the ever-changing ways or methods that Internet users search for content within your industry or niche.
The Basics On Keyword Research
Keyword research starts with the following:
- Topic
- Idea
- Head keyword or “seed” – this can come from your knowledge in the industry, from being active in related online groups and forums, or from what your business provides (products or services). Always keep a record using a spreadsheet or notepad as you learn many terms from social networks and websites and discover combinations on those keywords.
Once you have made a list, you need to find out how popular the keywords are and the level of difficulty when ranking them on the SERPs. You can’t do this manually; a keyword tool will help you out. You can use Google Keyword Planner. Once you enter the ‘seed’ in your list, the tool will show you details on its popularity and difficulty of ranking for the keyword.
Seed terms or head keywords do not just open metrics such as search volume; they will also show you the abundance of words or phrases related to the keyword; these are suggestions that have not crossed your mind yet.
Questions to ask before starting your keyword research:
This is a crucial step, and many actually bypass this planning stage because it takes time, and they assume that they already know what to rank for.
The terms that you want to rank for and what your potential Internet users actually want are often two different things. If you want a successful campaign, you should focus on your audience and use the keyword data to improve those insights rather than focusing on random keywords.
You can ask the following questions before you begin your keyword hunt:
- What kind of product or service are they looking for? For example, you own an ice cream shop. What kind of ice cream, snacks, desserts are individuals searching for online?
- Who is searching for those terms, words or phrases?
- When are these individuals searching for the product or service? Take note of the seasonal trends in your business if there are any.
- How are these individuals searching for the product or service? Find out the words that they use, the usual questions that they ask and if more queries are done using mobile phones and other similar gadgets.
- Why are they looking for the product or service? Are they health-conscious? Are they doing it for self-gratification? Ask questions that are related to your business offerings.
- Where are your potential clients located? Are you targeting locally and internationally? Don’t limit your scope in your local area.
With this information that you have, your question is: How can you deliver the best content about your business to encourage a community and fulfill what they are looking for? Asking questions is basic but a crucial step in planning that will help you better in your keyword research and craft only good or excellent content.
