Keywords may not be as central to the SEO process as they were in the past, but they are still very important in increasing web traffic.
In the early days, many digital marketers exaggerated the use of keywords on their websites, in what is called”keyword stuffing”, in order to together search results pages of various search engines.
But…Search enginesarenowevolvingandbecomingsmarter and more effective, and randomlystackingkeywordsonweb pages on your website is no longer useful.
Whether you are a professional online marketer or a beginner in the SEOworld, you will findeverything you need to know abouttherelationship tokeywords andsearch engine optimizationin today’s article.
What are keywords?
A keyword is a single word or group of words that defines and clarifies thegoalsof your content. In the field of search engine optimization, keywords are words, sentences and phrases that userstypeinto search engines to find specific information.
Pay-per-click (PPC) marketing models,like Google Ads,use keywords to attract ads related to the search termsthatusers enter.
In other words, searchtermsare one of the factors used by search engines todescribe the purpose or goal ofaparticularcontent on the Internetandtoorganizesearch results intherightand correct waytohelpusers find the information theyneed.1
For example,supposeyouenterthe followingin the Google search engine:”What is the history of pottery making?”The search results pageshowsallarticles and content typesrankedbyGoogle based on the keyword”Historyof pottery making.””
What is the importance of keywords?
Ifyou optimizeyour website‘scontentfor search engines based on the keywords that users search for,yoursiteismorelikelytorankhigher onthesearch resultspage.
Whatdoyoumean?
When you rank higher, it means more and more web trafficorientedto your site, which is why finding the right keywords is the first step in setting up an SEO campaign.
In fact, it is impossible to optimizethecontentofsearch engines without keywords.:
- Discover the structure of your website.
- Planyour product and category pages.
- Writecontent for blogsandYouTube videos.
- Optimizeyourhomepageand salespage.
Here you maybe wondering:”But how do I find the right keywords?
This is what we will findin the next part of our article…Justkeep reading!
How do I find the right keywords for my website?
There are many free and paid toolsyou can use to find suitable keywords for your website. However, before we talk about them, let’sfirst introducesome important steps that you must follow beforeusingthese tools.
1- Determine your target audience.
Start by conducting research on your target audienceand learn aboutproblemsanddifficultiesthat you canfaceandprovidethemwithappropriatesolutionsorquestionsthat you cananswer.
2- Narrow your focus
When you target a large andextensiveset of keywords, itcanreduce the effectiveness of your SEOstrategy. Sotrytofocusonmakingyour content more relevant to your audience.
Wealsorecommendtargetinglesscompetitivekeywords.Thismakesit easierto rank higher onthesearch resultspage.
3- Collect information, analyze itand repeat
Alwaysmonitor the performance of your website in terms ofkeywords you useandalwaysuse them again to improve and develop your site.
Now, after implementing the previous steps,webegintofollowthe most important and best practices insearchingand using keywords.
1- Use Google’s suggestions
Many have a difficult time with SEO since they are targeting highly competitive keywords.
We find some of them, for example, wanting to prepare content about “weight loss,” “insurance,” or other famous words that millions of sites on the Internet compete for.
Can you really appear on the first page of search results when you target these words?
The answer is: Yes, of course, you can, but it may take years to achieve.
Therefore, the ideal solution is to resort to long tail keywords.
Long-tail keywords are, as the name says, long phrases (4 or more words) used by searchers for information on Google and other search engines. The competitiveness rate is often lower,
Which facilitates the possibility of ranking it on the first page of search pages.
If you are new to SEO, then it is a good idea to start with the less difficult long-tail keywords.
But how do you find these keywords?
Fortunately, this is very easy thanks to Google Suggest (or sometimes known as Google Autocomplete).
For example, let’s say you want to create a blog about “healthy eating.” This keyword will most likely be difficult and highly competitive. But when you type “healthy diet” into the Google search engine, you will see a list of suggestions that include long-tail keywords.
You can also find keywords close to your chosen keyword at the end of the search results page under “Related Topics” or “Related Research.”
You’ll have a better chance of being ranked by Google if you write content targeting one of these long-tail words.
2- Use Amazon to find marketing keywords
Researching keywords in the field of e-commerce is no less important than searching for them when writing blogs.
But the only difference is that in the case of SEO for e-commerce sites, you will have to find keywords for products, and category pages, in a very large number.
Fortunately, you can do this using Amazon Suggestions just as you did in the previous step using Google Suggestions.
All you have to do is visit the Amazon business website, type the name of a specific product or category of products in the search box, and see the relevant terms and words that the site suggests to you.
You can apply the same plan to various popular e-commerce sites such as AliExpress, e-bay, or others.
3- Use Google tools to know the volume of search and its cost
Google’s Keyword Planner tool helps you find out a lot of information about the keywords you want to use. It is a great tool because it provides you with information from the most reliable and credible source…Google itself.
In order to be able to use Keyword Planner, you must first create and set up a Google Ads account, and this is not difficult. Even if you do not have any ads, you can simply create the account and use it.
Once you put a specific word in the search box in this tool, you will see the monthly search volume for this word and all similar or related words.
Always make sure to add words with high search volume to your content strategy, target them on your site, and stay away from words that do not receive a large search volume, because what is the benefit of using words that no one cares about?!
4- Double the keywords you already use that are compatible with SEO
When it comes to searching for keywords to improve SEO, everyone often focuses on finding new words only, and there is absolutely no harm in that.
However, you can also benefit from keywords that you have previously used and thanks to which your site ranked on the search results page.
How is that?
By using Google Search Console tools.
With this tool, you can see which keywords are already doing well in terms of SEO, as well as what type of content includes that keyword.
You may find, for example, that you have an article that has been ranked by Google because it included a specific keyword such as “healthy diet,” but upon reviewing this article, you may discover that it only includes a simple example of healthy eating.
Now that you know that Google loves the content you provide around this keyword (otherwise it wouldn’t rank and appear in search results pages), in this case, you can double use it in another article that targets it exactly and better.
How do you use keywords in your content?
So, now that you know what keywords mean, how to find them, and that you now have many suitable keywords in your hands, it is time to start using them correctly on your site.
Here are the steps to do that:
1- Select a main keyword
In other words, don’t try to make your page or content center around too many keywords at once.
For example, if we have an article about: “Create a blog”, this sentence is our main keyword.
We may use similar words such as: “How to create a blog” or “Set up an online blog”…etc., but the focus should always be on the main keyword.
2- Use the main keyword several times in the content
You do not have to repeat this word a hundred times in the article or on your web page, as this will give you the opposite result. But be sure to mention it several times, focusing on its presence in the first paragraph (or at the top of the page).
This way, Google will know that this web page is about this keyword.
3- Use the keyword in the main title and subtitles
As well as in the URL link, and in the description box (Meta Description), as its presence in the description box helps your page to stand out in search results. Its natural click-through rate increases.
4- Add words similar to the main keyword to your page
This is to avoid stuffing your web page with words. 5- Use internal links that include the main keyword
When you create a new web page, it does not have any power or what is known as (Page Authority), and here comes the importance of linking it to other pages from the same site or from outside it.
Then be sure to add some internal links that lead the visitor to other pages on your site, and the text containing the link must contain your main keyword.
It’s another way to show Google that this web page is about that particular topic.
Thus, you have learned about the concept of keywords, their importance, and their relationship to search engine optimization. You can now start preparing appropriate content (visual or written) that includes the appropriate keywords that will lead to your site being ranked by the Google search engine, and actually start displaying it on the search results pages.
You can learn more about SEO and content writing strategies by checking out the following articles available on Learn: Home Keywords only. It is important to add some words similar or related to the topic of your page, to increase the chance of it being ranked in higher positions on the search results pages.
You can find similar or related words by looking at Google’s suggestions at the end of the search page.
