I don’t know what it is about keyword research that makes digital marketers so obsessed with it. Maybe it’s because the internet is such a competitive place. Or perhaps it’s because the whole world is typing “keywords” into Google so often. Either way, understanding keywords is one of the most crucial steps, your agency can take to develop a winning SEO strategy. After all, it all comes down to search engine rankings while offering SEO services.
So in this guide, we’ll discuss keywords in detail and how to use them to drive traffic, boost rankings, and increase conversions on your client’s website.
What is a website keyword?
A keyword is a specific word or group of words used by someone to search for web pages, images, and videos on search engines like Google or Bing. For example, if you want to buy a new bike, you might type “buy a bike” into Google.
Some keywords are more popular than others (like “buy a bike” in our example) because more people often search for them. When people enter a keyword on a search engine, it triggers a list of websites related to their search. This is the best opportunity for you to appear at the top. So that the website can be found by prospects, searching for information on a particular topic.
Two Types of Keywords
Keywords can be mainly separated into two categories: Short-Tail and Long-Tail keywords.
Short-Tail Keywords are single words or short phrases that people use to search for something.
Long-Tail keywords are extended phrases that describe the topic in more detail. They usually have several words, typically a descriptive term in front of the main keyword. Here’s an example:
The difference between the Short-Tail keyword “makeup” and the Long Tail keyword “best makeup brushes” is enormous! The first might bring in 100,000 searches per month, but the second might bring 1,000. Your goal is to optimize for as many long-tail keywords as possible.
Why are keywords important?
The importance of SEO keywords lies in the fact that search engines work based on keywords. The keywords that you choose for your client’s website will determine whether the site will rank in search engines or not. The more relevant your keywords are to the user’s query, the more traffic your client can expect to get.
How do I know which keywords to use?
The best way to do keyword research is to start with a list of products that your client already sells. For example, if your client has a store that sells children’s books, consider the titles of the books as the main keyword. If you can’t think of any good titles, try brainstorming with your co-worker.
Ask your client for the top ten bestselling books and find keywords in those titles that you could use as search terms on Google. For instance, instead of using “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” as a keyword, try “caterpillar coloring book.”
You can even narrow down your target audience by choosing more specific words or phrases. For example, the term “caterpillar coloring book for kids” is more targeted than just “caterpillar coloring book.”
Also, if you don’t want to do the hardship of finding keywords on your own. You can also take the shortcut by using the Google keyword planner tool.
It’s free and provides valuable information while doing keyword research for any website. It analyses billions of keywords to help you find exactly what you’re looking for. It uses real-time data, so it’s always up-to-date with the latest search trends and will give you the most relevant data possible.
By using this tool, you’ll gain an understanding of how many people are searching for a particular keyword each month. And how difficult it will be for you to rank in the search results. So, get creative with your keywords by playing around with different phrases and words.
How many keywords do you need?
It’s a question I get asked all the time, and there are so many different answers to it. Suppose your agency is just starting with website SEO. In that case, you might be tempted to try as many keywords in your client’s copy as possible. But that is a big mistake. Quality is far more important than quantity when it comes to SEO content.
Trying to cram many website keywords will not only make your client’s website look cheap and unprofessional. But Google’s algorithms are likely to penalize you for keyword stuffing too. So how do you choose the right number of keywords for your post?
Here are some simple steps:
- Decide on the purpose of your work – The first thing you need to do is work out what your goal is with the piece of content on your clients’ websites. Is it informational? Is it designed to increase ranking on the search engines? Or maybe its goal is a little bit of both?
- Start out by identifying one keyword or keyword combination and work on ranking for that. You can always add more keywords later.
- Research the competition of the keyword phrases (using Google keyword planner tool) to determine how hard it will be to rank for them and how much traffic they get. If you see a lot of competition and not much traffic, then maybe this phrase isn’t the best one for you. Since it will take a lot of effort and not bring in much traffic. On the other hand, if there is little competition, but the keyword phrase gets thousands of searches per month, this might be the right keyword for you.
- Brainstorm potential ideas – Once you know which way to go, it’s time to start thinking about what you can do differently to achieve your goal. You can also use premium keyword research tools like SEMrush or Ahrefs to find related terms that could be useful.
How many keywords to use per page?
There’s no hard and fast rule. However, there are some basic things you should keep in mind while choosing the number of keywords per page.
Here are some tips for deciding how many keywords to use per page:
Tip 1: Start with a keyword density of around 0.5%.
The first thing to do is to make sure that a specific keyword is used at least twice on the page. The main keyword should be used at least once in the title or first H1 tag and again in the introduction of the page. This will get you off to a good start, but remember that this is just the minimum criteria.
Tip 2: Don’t overdo it.
While it’s easy to go overboard with keywords, remember that they are intended to be searchable by anyone who comes along and looks at your site. Suppose you have too many keywords per page. In that case, it’s possible that your visitors will get annoyed and leave without buying anything.
Some people believe that keyword stuffing is the best way to rank their website, but this is not true. Keyword stuffing can cause search engines to index your site lower than it would generally be. And search engines may also penalize you due to keyword stuffing.
Tip 3: Keyword Density Formula.
There is no fixed formula for determining keyword density. But generally, it can be calculated by dividing the number of occurrences of the specific keyword by the total number of words on the webpage and then multiplying by 100.
For example, if a web page contains 500 words and a given keyword is used twice, then its density is 0.4% i.e. (2 ÷ 500) × 100 = 0.4%.
How do I track keywords/rankings?
Search ranking is one of the most important factors influencing search engine traffic. If your client’s site is ranking on page 1 for your targeted keywords, then your client will get a lot of traffic due to its ranking.
Trying to figure out what website keywords are generating traffic to your client’s website, who is searching for them, and how well the website is performing in the search engines can be very difficult to do manually. This is where tracking tools can help you out.
There are several tools available that can do this for you, including Moz Pro and Ahrefs. These tools possess similar functionality, but they vary quite a bit in price (Moz Pro being one of the more expensive). They all charge either an annual subscription fee or a monthly fee for their services. By paying a yearly fee, you save money in the long run.
Conclusion:
Keywords are the foundation of SEO and thus play a vital role in any serious digital marketing strategy. Using the information in this article, you’ll be able to clarify your agency’s goals regarding SEO services, develop a method for researching potential keywords without going crazy, and understand which keywords are most suitable for each client. So go ahead and get stepping!
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