Worried about how to choose the right keywords for your website? You don’t have to be. You can choose your keywords with confidence by following these simple tips:
Know Whether You Can Compete for a Keyword or Not
In other words, enter into fights which you know you can win. The vague, broad keywords that have a search volume in the millions and which are targeted by the big brands are not what you want to go after. Good examples are keywords like Insurance, Marketing, and Finance--way too competitive unless you are a Forbes or a CNN type website. Big brands have high domain authority that will make ranking your website almost impossible if you are a small-to-medium brand or just starting out. You want to focus on relevant keywords that have less competition, rather than punching above your weight.
You Are Better Off with Highly Relevant, Low Competition Keywords
These are usually long-tail keywords that are more focused than the broad, super competitive keywords that usually consist of just one or two words. Apart from the fact that these long tail keywords are less competitive, other reasons you should target them include:
1. These low competitive keywords are usually focused and more specific in nature, addressing a relevant problem in the industry.
2. The specific nature of these long-tail keywords makes them ideal for crafting relevant content that adequately addresses search intent.
3. A well-crafted piece of content aimed at addressing a searcher’s intent is usually rewarded with lots of organic traffic and referrals.
These keywords may be less popular than the single word keywords but they are ideal for kickstarting and growing the website for a small-to-medium business.
Utilize Keywords Already Driving Traffic to Your Site
There is no need to forget about keywords that are already driving traffic to your website. Instead, you can build on their success by coming up with a list of related keywords which you can use to bolster any SEO gains. Building content around these related keywords can maximize SEO benefits and take advantage of previous SEO success.
Once you have these ideas locked into your brain as guidelines you are ready to decide which keywords you actually want to use.
How to Decide Which Keywords to Use
Brainstorming keywords will be a lot more effective if you keep a few things in mind as guideposts:
Think in Terms of Queries and Needs
When was the last time you needed the answer to something real quick? You probably punched a question into Google and found the answer. You can assume your target market is doing same with their own questions related to your industry. By taking common questions from your target market and using them as keywords, you can create the sort of content that provides relevant answers for questions that your customers ask search engines.
Spy on Competitors Websites
Spying and SEO go hand in glove. Visit competitor websites, forums, and social media to learn the things that matter most to your audience and also the keywords that matter.
Use Your Own Website Statistics
If you have had Google Search Console installed you can look for all the keywords which Google already associates your website with and then build on that with related keywords.
Use Keyword Research Tools
Keyword tools like Google Keyword Planner and others take the guesswork out of keyword research by showing you what people actually type into search engines and how many people do so.
Even in these days of truly advanced algorithms and hundreds of ranking factors, keywords still play an important part in the success of your website...too important a part in fact. If you need to learn more to make sure you are headed in the right direction, reach out today and let’s talk.
