Finding your site’s ideal keywords is one of the most important tasks you will do as an entrepreneur or business owner looking to gain exposure through social media and the internet.
What are Keywords?
Keywords are powerful marketing tools in and of themselves — they help people find your content online via search engines like Google and Bing! They are an essential component of search engine optimization (SEO) and are used by search engines to understand the context and relevancy of a webpage or website. In simple terms,
Keywords are like the map that guides search engines and users to the right content on the internet. They are the words or phrases that summarize the main topic or focus of a webpage or website and are included in the webpage’s title and header tags, alt tags, and throughout the content. When users enter keywords into a search engine, the search engine uses them to find and display relevant websites or pages in the search results.
By optimizing your website and supporting materials using targeted keywords, you increase your chances of appearing in the top results when someone searches for those terms. This could be through natural search (where users use precise keywords to find what they want) or through paid advertisements where you “buy” that position and attention for your product or service.
Why are keywords so important?
Imagine you’re lost and trying to find your way home. You pull out a map and look for the street you’re on and the one you need to get to. These streets are like keywords – they help you figure out where you are and where you need to go.
Now imagine you’re trying to find something online. You type a few words into Google (or your favorite search engine) and hit enter. These words are like keywords – they help the search engine figure out what you’re looking for and show you the most relevant websites or pages.
See how important keywords are? They help search engines and users find the right content on the internet. Without them, it would be like trying to navigate through a city without street names – you’d have no idea where to go or what you’re looking for.
So, if you have a website or blog, you want to make sure you use the right keywords to help people (and search engines) find your content. That way, you can get more traffic, leads, and customers to your website. Plus, the more relevant your content is to what people are searching for, the more likely they are to stick around and read it. You have to pick terms that will bring in traffic to your site, but that are not overused. Using too many keyword phrases can look spammy or unnatural.
Keyword stuffing is actually illegal in some cases! If you are looking to make big changes to your website’s SEO, make sure to do thorough research and test out different strategies before investing heavily in one set of words.
Another way to use keywords is through rich snippets. Rich snippets like bold text or additional headings add value to your page and help search engines determine what content is more relevant to your page.
Examples of keywords
Finding your site’s ideal keyword is an important first step in optimizing your website for search engines like Google and Bing. You have to pick words that are interesting and relevant to your business so they will generate traffic.
When you’re trying to figure out what keywords to use on your website, it can be helpful to think about the words and phrases that people might use when they’re looking for the products or services you offer. Remember, it’s important to focus on both short-tail and long-tail keywords in your selection.
Short-tail keywords are single words or short phrases that are general and broad, like “shoes“, or “jewelry“.
Long-tail keywords are more specific and detailed, like “handmade earrings” or “fitness for beginners“.
Using a mix of short-tail and long-tail keywords can help you attract a wider range of users to your site. So take some time to brainstorm and come up with a list of both short-tail and long-tail keywords that accurately represent your business and will help users find your website when they’re searching for the products or services you offer.
How to Find your best keywords?
Finding your ideal keyword is not as hard as some make it seem! While there are several ways to determine which words contribute to your site’s overall performance in terms of traffic, most experts agree that looking into your website’s corpus (the content you have) and then determining the presence or absence of those specific keywords is one of the top strategies. So now we will discuss these strategies step by step:
- Start with brainstorming: By thinking about potential keywords (such as related to products and services you offer) before starting any writing or content creation projects, you’ve already done some valuable work. Now it’s time to add some solid optimization strategies to ensure your hard work pays off. Write down as many ideas as you can think of.
- Use keyword research tools: There are many ways to find new keywords, but one of the easiest is to do a simple web search. Simply type your target word along with the “and” or “+” sign to see if there are other similar terms.
Alternatively, you can use tools such as Moz.com, SEMrush.com, or Ubersuggest to research the most relevant and popular keywords and get lists of related terms. These sites can help you come up with alternative keywords and determine which ones have enough competition to bring in traffic. There are many free tools that can do this for you, such as Google’s “Keyword Tool” or WordStream’s “Toolbox”. Both offer extensive functionality that can be used to test hundreds – even thousands – of keywords at once to see how competitive they are and if they are researched frequently.
The reason why this approach works so well is that users tend to type their searches using complete phrases, and not just individual words. By adding these bits together, the tool can work out what the whole phrase means and therefore give you more accurate results.
- Consider your target audience: Who are you trying to reach with your website? What words or phrases might they use when searching for products or services like yours?
- Look at your competitors: By analyzing your own text and comparing it to what others write about similar topics, you can also find potential keywords that may help people search for or find information about your products and services.
- Generalizing: Generalized keywords are great candidates for starting off with when doing your initial keyword research. You can then slowly add onto them as your business grows.
- Keep it specific: Don’t be too broad with your keywords. Instead, focus on specific phrases that are more likely to bring qualified leads and customers to your website.
- Test and track: Once you’ve found some promising keywords, use them on your website and track your results. This will help you see which keywords are working well for you and which ones might need some fine-tuning.
Overall, the key to selecting the right keywords for your website is to think about your business, your target audience, and the language they are likely to use when searching for what you offer. By focusing on relevant and specific keywords, you can increase your chances of attracting the right users to your site and ultimately drive more traffic, leads, and sales.
How to Choose Keywords?
What are some factors to consider while conducting keyword research (and specifically choosing which keywords to use)?
There are a few key qualities you should consider to ensure you’re choosing the most effective ones:
- Search Volume
- Search Intent
- Competition
- CPC
- Word count
Search volume
Search volume refers to the number of times a particular keyword is searched for on a search engine, such as Google. When it comes to selecting keywords for your business, it’s important to consider the search volume of each keyword.
For example, if you run a bakery and you’re trying to decide between the keywords “cupcakes” and “custom cupcakes,” you might want to choose “cupcakes” because it has a higher search volume. This means that more people are searching for “cupcakes,” which means you have a better chance of attracting those potential customers to your website.
On the other hand, if you choose the keyword “custom cupcakes,” you might have a harder time attracting traffic to your website because fewer people are searching for that keyword.
Image result for the keyword “cupcakes”
Image result for the keyword “custom cupcakes”
(The above images illustrate the difference in search volume and other SEO factors between the broad keyword “cupcakes” and the more specific keyword “custom cupcakes)
It’s important to keep in mind that having a high search volume doesn’t guarantee success, as you also need to consider the competition for each keyword and its relevance to your business. However, choosing keywords with a high search volume can be a good starting point for your keyword research.
Search Intent
Search intent is the purpose or goal behind a particular search query. In other words, it’s the reason someone is typing a particular phrase into a search engine. Understanding search intent can help you optimize your website and content to better meet the needs of your audience.
Here are a few examples of different types of search intent:
- Informational: When someone is searching for information about a particular topic, they have an informational search intent. For example, someone searching for “what is SEO?” is looking for information about search engine optimization.
- Navigational: When someone is searching for a specific website or page, they have a navigational search intent. For example, someone searching for a “Facebook login” is looking to navigate to the login page for the social media platform.
- Commercial: When someone is searching for a product or service with the intention of making a purchase, they have a commercial search intent. For example, someone searching for “best laptops under $500″ is looking to buy a laptop within a specific price range.
- Transactional: When someone is searching for a specific product or service with the intention of making a purchase, they have a transactional search intent. For example, someone searching for “buy red Nike sneakers” is looking to make a specific purchase.
By understanding the search intent behind different keywords, you can better optimize your website and content. For example, if you know that a particular keyword has an informational search intent, you might create a blog post or resource page to provide information about that topic. On the other hand, if a keyword has a commercial or transactional search intent, you might create a product or service page to showcase your offerings.
Competition
No matter how many times a keyword is searched, it’s crucial to consider its competitiveness. It’s more likely that there is already a tonne of websites competing for the top spot for a keyword the more popular it is (both in the organic and paid results). The majority of keyword tools offer a mechanism to gauge keyword competitiveness. There are usually two measures that you may use to gauge the competition on Google’s first page:
- Keyword difficulty, also known as SEO difficulty or search difficulty, refers to the competitiveness of a keyword in organic search results. It’s a measure of how difficult it is to rank well for a particular keyword on search engines like Google. A keyword with a high SEO difficulty (e.g, cupcakes) means that it is likely to be difficult to rank well in search results because there is a lot of competition for that keyword. On the other hand, a keyword with a low SEO difficulty may be easier to rank well for because there is less competition.
- Paid difficulty refers to the competitiveness of a keyword in paid search advertising, such as Google AdWords. A keyword with a high paid difficulty means that it is likely to be expensive to bid on and may have a lot of competition from other advertisers. On the other hand, a keyword with a low-paid difficulty may be less expensive and have less competition.
Cost per click (CPC)
Cost-per-click (CPC) is a term that is often used in the context of paid search advertising, such as Google AdWords.
In paid search advertising, advertisers bid on keywords that they want their ads to appear for when people search for those keywords on a search engine. The amount that an advertiser is willing to pay for each click on their ad is called the CPC.
For example, let’s say you run a bakery and you want to advertise your cupcakes on Google AdWords. You might bid on the keyword “cupcakes” and set your CPC at $0.50. This means that every time someone clicks on your ad after searching for “cupcakes,” you will pay $0.50.
The CPC for a particular keyword can vary depending on a number of factors, including the competition for that keyword and the relevance of the ad to the keyword. By setting a CPC that is too low, you may not get as many impressions or clicks on your ad. On the other hand, setting a CPC that is too high may not be cost-effective for your business.
CPC is just one factor to consider when setting up a paid search advertising campaign. It’s important to also consider the relevance and quality of your ads, as well as your overall budget and marketing goals.
Word count
Keyword word count refers to the number of words in a particular keyword or keyword phrase. In general, keyword word count can impact how well a particular keyword or keyword phrase performs in search engine results.
For example, a shorter keyword or keyword phrase with only one or two words (such as “cupcakes” or “custom cupcakes“) may have a higher search volume and be more competitive, but it may also be more general and less specific to your business. On the other hand, a longer keyword or keyword phrase with three or more words (such as “homemade vegan cupcakes” or “custom cupcakes for weddings“) may have a lower search volume and be less competitive, but it may also be more specific and relevant to your business.
When it comes to selecting keywords for your business, it’s important to consider the word count of each keyword or keyword phrase. In general, it’s a good idea to try to strike a balance between choosing keywords that are specific and relevant to your business, while also considering the search volume and competition for each keyword.
It’s also worth noting that the word count of a particular keyword or keyword phrase can also impact how it is used on your website. For example, a shorter keyword or keyword phrase may be more suitable for use in the page title or header tags, while a longer keyword or keyword phrase may be more suitable for use in the body copy of a webpage.
How to use keywords to improve your website’s SEO?
When it comes down to it, keywords are key to optimizing your site for search engines. They help by giving your web pages and websites an index (like the list of apps at the top of the Google app) with some targeted information. People use this index to perform a search online, and if there is something matching one of their searched-for terms, then they will choose your site over the others! You can’t really optimize a page without knowing what you have to promote so that people will click on your content or action. Let’s discuss how to do it
So, you want to improve your website’s SEO with a particular keyword? Great! The main strategy to do this is to match the search intent of the keyword. In other words, you have to understand what people are searching for when they use that keyword and make sure your website provides the information or solutions they’re looking for.
Although we briefly discussed this earlier, it is very important to emphasize how crucial this is. It’s unlikely that a blog post will rank for “cupcake mold” in search results. Google is aware that people are searching to buy, not to learn. The top five results are all e-commerce site product and category pages as a result.
However, generating the appropriate kind of content is not the only aspect of matching search intent. You should also address the topics that searchers expect to find.
After you’ve matched the search intent of the keyword, there are a few other things that can help improve your website’s SEO with that keyword:
- Title tags: These are the words that appear in the title bar of a web browser and describe the content of a webpage. Including your keyword in your title tag can help search engines understand the topic of your page and boost your ranking for that keyword.
- URLs: The URL of a webpage is the address that appears in the address bar of a web browser. If you can, try to include your keyword in the URL of the page that’s relevant to that keyword.
- Headings: Headings are used to organize and structuring the content on a webpage. So use your keyword in headings on your page.
Just remember, SEO is a long game, so don’t get discouraged if you don’t see immediate results. Keep working on it and you’ll see progress over time.
Determining your website’s keyword popularity
Determining your website’s keyword popularity can be a helpful way to understand how well your website is performing for specific keywords and whether there are any opportunities for improvement. Here are a few ways to do it:
- Use a keyword research tool: Tools like Google’s Keyword Planner, SEMrush, and Ahrefs can help you understand the search volume and popularity of specific keywords. . Simply enter your keyword into the tool and it will provide information about the average monthly search volume, as well as the competition for that keyword.
- Check your website’s search engine rankings: You can use a tool like SEMrush or Ahrefs to see how well your website is ranking for specific keywords in search results. If your website is ranking on the first page of search results for a particular keyword, it’s likely that your website has a high level of popularity for that keyword.
- Analyze your website’s traffic: Google Analytics shows you how much traffic your website is getting from specific keywords. If you notice that a particular keyword is driving a significant amount of traffic to your website, it’s a good indication that your website is popular for that keyword.
- Monitor your website’s social media mentions: If people are talking about your website or mentioning your keyword on social media, it’s a good sign that your website is popular for that keyword. You can use a tool like Hootsuite or Brand24 to track social media mentions of your website or keyword.
Just remember, keyword popularity can vary over time, so it’s important to regularly monitor and analyze your website’s performance to ensure that you’re targeting the right keywords.
Conclusion
Over 3,000 words are used in this article. You’ve finished congratulations!
We sincerely hope that you did not merely learn what keywords are. However, I also hope that you left with some useful insight into how to employ keywords in your digital marketing campaigns.
You should now put everything you’ve learned into practice. Pick some keywords for your website now. Furthermore, start implementing those keywords into your SEO and Google Ads efforts.
