When most people think of SEO keyword research, they think of picking out individual keywords to stuff into their website’s metadata – the title tags, meta descriptions, and H1 tags that help search engines understand what your website is about.
And while that’s still a part of it, keyword research has come a long way since the early days of SEO.
Now, when we talk about SEO keyword research, we’re talking about so much more than just finding individual keywords and keyword ideas to insert into our website copy.
Keyword research SEO is now an essential part of any comprehensive SEO strategy because it gives you the insights you need to understand what people are actually searching for when they go online.
This information can then be used to inform your content strategy, help you choose the right keyword targets for your website, and even guide your link-building efforts.
In short, if you want your strategy to be successful, keyword research is essential. You can hire an SEO Agency for expert assistance with your SEO keyword research.
But what, exactly, does keyword research involve? And how can you do it effectively?
In this guide, we’re going to answer those questions and more about keyword research. We’ll start by taking a look at what keyword research is and why it’s so important. Then, we’ll give you a step-by-step guide to conducting your own keyword research.
After that, we’ll share some tips and tricks for making the most of your keyword data and even share some essential keyword research tools. So stay tuned!
What is Keyword Research?
At its core, keyword research is the process of discovering what people are searching for when they go online.
Keyword research is an integral part of search engine optimization (SEO) because it helps you understand the language and topics your audience is searching for. With this data, you can develop content that’s more likely to appear in search results, drive more organic traffics, and ultimately grow your business.
When you conduct keyword research, you’re looking for patterns in search terms – words or phrases that have a high search volume but little competition from other marketers trying to target them in their SEO efforts. These are the kinds of keywords you want to hone in on if you want to get the most out of your SEO strategy.
Why is Keyword Research Important?
Keyword research is important because it’s the foundation of any successful SEO strategy. It gives you insights into what people are looking for online and allows you to produce content that meets those needs.
Having a good understanding of which keywords to target can help you attract more organic traffic to your website, as well as improve your ranking in search engine results pages (SERPs). In addition, keyword research SEO can also be used to inform other aspects of your SEO efforts, such as link-building and meta-tag optimization.
There are some important reasons why many businesses resort to SEO keyword research:
1. To Understand User Intent
Keyword research SEO helps you understand what people are looking for when they search online so you can create content that meets their needs and expectations.
You can answer questions, provide helpful advice, and target keywords that are more likely to draw in high-quality traffic.
2. To Gain Insights into Popular Topics
What’s trending these days?
The last thing you need to target is yesterday’s keyword. The internet moves fast and communication between people is done in a heartbeat. So it’s essential to be up-to-date with the most relevant topics and words that are being typed on Google the most.
SEO keyword research can help you identify popular topics that you can use to write content that resonates with your target audience.
You can also keep an eye on emerging trends and capitalize on them before the competition does.
By researching the keywords in your niche, you can uncover which topics are most popular among users and use this information to inform your content strategy.
3. To Craft Effective Titles and Descriptions
Knowing which keywords are likely to be used by users will help you create more targeted titles and meta descriptions that give a clear understanding of what your content is about.
Your titles are important for attracting readers to your content, while meta descriptions help improve your click-through rate (CTR) in SERP features.
So if you don’t use the necessary keyword research in your titles and descriptions, it’s likely that your content won’t be seen by the people you’re trying to reach.
Tip: Make Your Titles and Descriptions Enticing
For titles, make sure to craft something that will grab the attention of your target audience and compel them to click through. For descriptions, use keyword-rich language that provides a clear overview of what your content is about.
For example, if you’re writing a blog post about SEO, make sure to include the keyword “SEO” in both the title and description. This will help the search engine understand that your content is about SEO and rank it accordingly.
And to make it attractive, you can incorporate adjectives in the title, such as “The Essential Guide to SEO” or “Everything You Need to Know About SEO.”
4. To Optimize Your Website for Specific Keywords
By targeting the right keywords, you can improve your search engine rankings and drive more traffic to your website.
Your website should also be optimized for these keywords, which means using them in the body text, titles, meta descriptions, and URLs. This will help search engine crawlers understand the context of your content and ensure that it’s easy for users to find in SERPs.
However, be mindful of SEO keyword cannibalization, which can occur when multiple pages target the same keyword, leading to internal competition and potentially lower rankings. Use them strategically in the body text, titles, meta descriptions, and URLs.
Additionally, employing white hat SEO techniques will help maintain the integrity of your optimization efforts.
5. To Inform Your Link-Building Strategy
Knowing which keywords are most popular in your niche will help you identify potential link opportunities from websites that rank for those terms.
Collaboration and backlinks can help you increase your visibility and reach a larger audience. Plus, it will also give you an additional signal of authority, which can give your website a boost in the SERPs
Important tip: Remember not every page that ranks high is worth linking to, so make sure you only target high-quality websites with good domain authority.
Some websites use black hat backlink tactics, which can have a negative impact on your website’s ranking in the long run. So, be sure to use caution and conduct thorough research before building any links.
6. To Gain a Competitive Advantage
By keyword research process used by your competitors, you can gain insights into their SEO strategies and find new keywords to target in order to stay ahead of the competition.
For example, if your competitors are targeting certain keywords that you haven’t yet identified, you can use this information to build out your content strategy and develop content that is more likely to rank higher in Google search results.
Plus, marketing trend analysis and brand monitoring can also help you understand how your competitors are using their keywords.
Now that you know why keyword research SEO is so important, you need to know how to do it.
So, what steps are involved in conducting SEO keyword research? Let’s take a look!
How to Do Keyword Research: a Step-By-Step Guide
What goes into keyword research SEO?
Sometimes you can have the perfect topic but still have trouble getting it to rank in search engine results. That’s why keyword research is so important for SEO – you need to figure out which phrases people are searching for when they look for information related to your topic.
And this is what leads us to step number 1 on the list:
Brainstorm and Make a List of Keywords Relevant to Your Business
Start by making a list of topics related to your business that people might be searching for. You can come up with 5 to 10 topic buckets and then start to look for specific keywords within each one.
For instance, if you own a home decor store, your topic buckets might include: “living room furniture”, “bedroom furniture”, “home office furniture” etc.
Remember to jot down your buyer personas as this will help you pinpoint the most relevant keywords.
If we take the example above, your buyer personas might include “single mom”, “recent grads”, or “first-time homeowners”.
You also need to pay attention to monthly search volumes, as this will give you an idea of how many people are searching for that particular keyword. You can find your search volumes by using a keyword research tool.
We’ll go over this in more detail later.
Fill in Your Topic Buckets with Keywords
Once you have your topic buckets and buyer personas, it’s time to start filling them in with a relevant and specific keyword.
Relevant keywords are those phrases that people would use to conduct their searches on Google.
If they’re looking to buy a specific dog, for example, they would type “buy labrador retriever”.
Remember that there are long-tailed and short-tail keywords!
Short-tail keywords consist of one to two words and are very broad. These types of keywords often have high search volumes but also a lot of competition. For example, “home office furniture” is a short-tail keyword.
Long-tail keywords usually have three or more words and they are more specific. These keywords have lower search volumes but also less competition so it’s easier to rank for them. For example, “ergonomic home office chairs” is a long-tail keyword.
Make sure to include long-tail keywords, as they tend to be less competitive than short-tail keywords and are great for targeting niche topics. Long-tail keywords are also more specific, so they are more likely to convert.
Other types of keywords:
In addition to your topic buckets, you can also look for other types of keywords. These include:
Question terms: these are phrases that start with “what”, “where”, and “how”. For instance, someone might type in “How to choose the best home office desk”.
Comparison terms: these are phrases that compare two or more items. For example, “ergonomic office chair vs regular office chair”.
Negative keywords: these are words or phrases related to your topic but they are not relevant to you. For instance, if you sell home office furniture and someone is searching for “free home office furniture”, this would not be a relevant keyword.
Head terms: these are very popular terms that have high search volumes and a lot of competition. For instance, “home office furniture” is a head term.
Understand How Intent Plays a Role
The intent of the search also plays an important role when it comes to keyword research.
For instance, someone searching for “home office furniture” might be looking for information about different types of office furniture, while someone searching for “ergonomic home office chairs” might actually be ready to buy one.
That’s why it’s important to know what your content strategy is when targeting a certain keyword – are you trying to educate your readers, entertain them, or sell them something?
Knowing this will make it easier for you to choose the right keywords and master search intent optimization.
Let’s say you want people to buy your newly launched pair of shoes. So you choose to write a short blog post with the title “Where to Buy the Best Shoes” and you include long-tail keywords like “buy shoes online” or “best running shoes for men”.
That way, you’ll be targeting people who are ready to buy and not just those looking for informational content.
Ultimately, if you don’t consider intent, you can end up targeting the wrong search term and wasting your time and resources.
So, make sure to consider intent when researching keywords so you can find the most relevant ones for your business.
Research Related Keyword Terms
You should also look for related search terms and a keyword phrase.
For instance, if you’re targeting the keyword “home office furniture”, then you should also consider related keywords such as “desk chairs” or “home office desks”.
The more relevant terms you include, the more likely you are to reach a wider audience.
These search-related keywords can also help you develop content that is more comprehensive and informative.
Plus, it will make your content look even better in SERPs (Search Engine Result Pages).
Tip: Consider Google’s Autocomplete Suggestions
Another great way to find related keywords is by using Google’s Autocomplete keyword suggestions.
Start typing in a keyword, and Google will automatically suggest related terms that people are searching for.
These can be used as ideas for content creation, or even as keywords you should target in your SEO strategy.
Use Keyword Research Tools
Using keyword research tools is another great way to find relevant keywords and phrases. These tools can help you identify the most popular search terms and even uncover hidden gems that your competitors might be targeting.
They also provide helpful data such as search volumes, keyword trends, competition levels, and more. This information can help you better understand which keywords are worth targeting and how competitive each keyword is.
Some popular keyword research tools include Ahrefs, SemRush, Moz, and Google Keyword Planner.
Ahrefs:
Ahrefs is a powerful keywords research tool that offers comprehensive data and insights. It can help you identify popular keywords, uncover related search terms, and see how competitive each keyword is.
Semrush:
Semrush is another helpful keyword research tool. In addition to providing keyword data, it also offers valuable SEO insights such as backlinks analysis, technical SEO audit and more.
Moz:
Moz is a great tool for keyword research, as it provides you with the data you need to create an effective keyword strategy. It can help you uncover long-tail keywords, understand search intent, and identify related search terms.
Google Keyword Planner:
This is a free tool that provides keyword data and insight. It can help you discover related keywords, understand search trends, and even estimate how much traffic each keyword might bring to your website.
Ubersuggest:
Ubersuggest is a free keyword research tool that offers helpful insights such as keyword difficulty, search volume, and more. It can help you find keywords that are easier to rank for and understand how competitive each keyword is.
By using these tools and considering intent, you can develop an effective keyword strategy for your content that will help you reach the right audience at
You can also use these tools to find long-tail keywords and related search terms to target in your content.
Overall, keyword research tools can save you a lot of time when it comes to selecting the best keywords. They can help you understand search intent and find related keywords to target in your content so you can drive more traffic to your website.
How to Ensure Your Keywords are SEO-optimized in 7 Steps
Creating your topic buckets is only the start of the process. You need to also make sure that your chosen keywords are SEO optimized in order to get the most out of them.
Follow these steps to ensure that each of your chosen keywords is SEO-optimized:
Using Google Keyword Planner to Cut Down Your Keyword List
Google’s keyword planner is a useful tool to help you cut down your list of keywords. It provides data on search volume and competition so you can easily identify which keywords are worth targeting.
You can combine the planner with Google Trends to see if any of your keywords are growing in popularity or declining over time. Google Trends is a great way to find unique keywords that might be worth targeting.
Prioritize Long Tail Keywords
Long-tail keywords are more specific search terms that may have lower search volume but higher conversion rates. It’s important to prioritize long-tail keywords because they can be easier to rank for and give you better results.
Besides, during the initial stages of SEO, you should focus on low-competition keywords to increase your chances of ranking higher.
As you increase your site’s ranking, you can start targeting more competitive keywords.
Balancing On-Page and Off-Page SEO
Understanding the differences between on-page SEO and off-page SEO is essential to ensuring your keywords are SEO-optimized.
On-page SEO includes using your targeted keywords in the body text, titles, meta descriptions, and URLs.
On-site SEO, a part of on-page SEO, improves site speed, mobile-friendliness, and internal linking structure. This helps provide a better user experience.
Off-page SEO involves actions outside your website that affect your rankings, like getting high-quality backlinks and being active on social media.
By balancing on-page and off-page SEO strategies, you can create a comprehensive SEO plan that ensures your keywords are effectively optimized, and your website ranks higher in search engine results.
Optimize for Voice Queries
Voice queries are becoming increasingly popular due to the growth of virtual assistant devices such as Amazon’s Alexa and Google Home. It’s important to optimize for voice queries because this is how people are using any search engine now.
When optimizing for voice queries, focus on natural-sounding phrases and use keywords that people would actually ask a virtual assistant. This will help you reach more people who might be looking for your content.
Optimizing Voice Search for Mobile:
Mobile search is a different beast than desktop searches. People use their phones differently and often rely on virtual assistants to answer their questions quickly.
When optimizing for mobile SEO, focus on shorter keywords. For example, instead of using “why is my PC light not turning on”, you can use “PC light is off” or “why is my PC light off”.
Also, use natural-sounding phrases that people would actually say, such as “My computer won’t turn on”. This will help your content show up in voice search results.
Analyze Your Keywords
Analyzing your keywords can help you understand how they are performing. You can use tools such as Google Search Console to analyze your keywords and determine which ones are bringing in the most traffic to your website.
There are also several things you need to consider regarding keyword analysis:
Monthly Search Volume
How many people are searching for a particular keyword?
This factor helps you understand the potential reach of your content. If you want to reach more people, you should focus on keywords with higher search volume.
You should also keep in mind the following regarding the search metric:
- It’s not the number of people who search but the number of searches that matter. One person might do 1000 searches for a keyword, while another person might do just one. So the important thing here is the number of searches.
- Search volumes can fluctuate over time, so it’s important to keep an eye on them. Just because a keyword had a high search volume last month doesn’t mean that it will stay the same this month.
- It doesn’t equal how many visits a keyword will get. Just because a keyword has a high search volume doesn’t guarantee that you’ll get lots of visits from it.
- It’s more like an annual average. The search volume for a keyword can vary from month to month. So, it’s important to look at the annual average when analyzing keywords.
- It’s country-specific. You should also keep in mind that search volumes can vary depending on the country. So if you’re targeting a specific country, make sure to look at the volume for that country.
Traffic Potential
The traffic potential is the estimated amount of visits that a keyword can bring to your website. It’s based on the competition and volume of the keywords.
It’s important to consider both the search volume and competition when analyzing keywords as these will affect how much traffic you can get from each one.
If you’re using Ahrefs, you can use the “traffic potential” metric to see how much-estimated search traffic you can expect from a keyword.
Important tip: search volume is NOT the same as the traffic potential.
For example, there can be 2 pages that rank the same on the search volume with the keyword “coffee filters”.
But after you click on the traffic potential, one of them has a traffic potential of 100 and the other of 500.
This means that even if they rank for the same keyword, the page with a higher traffic potential will bring in more visits to your website. It’s probably because the one that has higher uses similar keywords that also rank high on SERPS, such as “buying coffee filters”, “biodegradable coffee filters”, and so on.
So when analyzing keywords for search engine optimization, don’t just look at the search volume, but also consider the traffic potential to get an accurate picture.
Keyword Difficulty
This is the measure of how difficult it is to rank for a particular keyword in search engine results pages (SERPs).
When using a keyword research tool, you can come across domain authority, page authority, and link count of the ranking pages.
These metrics can help you understand how difficult it is to outrank competitors for that keyword.
So if you see a keyword with very high domain authority, it means you will probably have to invest more effort in creating better content and building more links to outrank the competition.
It’s also important to note that keyword difficulty scores can vary from one search engine to another. What works for Google may not work for Bing, so keep this in mind when analyzing keywords.
Another tip: you don’t have to target only high-difficulty keywords. You can still get traffic from low-difficulty keywords. Even if they don’t bring you huge amounts of search traffic, they will still bring in some visitors and help to diversify your keyword portfolio.
Just remember not to completely avoid high-difficulty keywords. You should try to target them but also invest in low-difficulty ones as well. This can help you get indexed faster and boost organic traffic over time.
Local Search Volume
If you are targeting local customers, then you need to make sure that the keywords you’re targeting have local search volume.
This is different from global search volume as it includes only searches that happen in a certain region or city.
So if you’re targeting customers in New York City, for example, then you need to target keywords with local search volume specific to this area.
Ahrefs also has a great tool called “keywords explorer” that can help you find keywords with local search volume.
Once you’ve identified the best keywords, you can then start optimizing your content and website for them to drive more local traffic to your website.
Cost Per Click
Cost per click (CPC) is the amount that you’re willing to pay for each click on your advertisement.
When researching your keywords, it’s important to take into account their CPC as this will have an impact on your ad campaigns and budget.
For example, if you’re running search campaigns with keywords that have high CPC, then you need to make sure that you have a good conversion rate or else it won’t be worth the investment.
Using Google’s Keyword Planner tool, you can get an idea about the CPC for any keyword. This will give you an estimated cost per click for each keyword and help you decide which ones are best suited for your campaigns.
So when researching your keywords, make sure you take into account the CPC, as this can have a big impact on your budget and marketing efforts.
Study the Search Intent
Search intent is a user’s goal when entering a search query into a search engine.
It’s important to understand this as it will help you craft content that better meets the needs of your target audience and rank higher on SERPs.
If you know what people are looking for when they enter keywords related to your business, you can create content that meets their needs and increase your chances of ranking higher.
It’s best to stick to the following variables:
- Type: Do they want to buy something, read an article, or watch a video?
- Format: Are they looking for a list, an infographic, a tutorial or something else?
- Focus: Are they searching for specific information related to a topic?
- Timing: Do they need help now or have time to research?
- Location: Are their searches localized?
By understanding the search intent behind your target keyword, you’ll be able to better craft content that meets user needs and helps you rank.
When researching keywords, try to understand what kind of search intent is associated with them, so you can craft content that matches the user’s expectation and bring more organic traffic to your website.
Identify Your Parent Topic
When researching the keywords, it’s important to identify the main topic that your keywords are related to.
This is known as the parent topic, and it will give you an idea of what kind of content and pages you need to create to rank for those keywords.
For example, if you’re targeting keywords related to “social media marketing,” your parent topic would be “social media.”
By understanding the main topic associated with your target keyword, you can create content and pages focused on this topic and help you rank higher for those keywords.
Ahrefs has a great “Content Explorer” tool that can help you identify parent topics for any keyword.
These are just some of the main factors you must consider when researching the keywords for SEO optimization. By taking these into account, you’ll be able to identify the best keywords for your business and create content that meets user needs.
These factors – keyword search volume, search traffic potential, keyword difficulty, local search volume, and cost per click – play an important role in keyword analysis. They can help you determine which ones are worth targeting and optimize your content accordingly.
How to Leverage Keyword Research to Drive Results Faster
You might have already started with some basic keyword research SEO. But, if you want to drive better results faster and make your website more visible on search engine result pages (SERPs), you can take a few other steps.
Monitor Your Rankings
It’s important to monitor your rankings for the keywords you’ve identified to track progress and optimize your campaigns accordingly.
If your rankings aren’t meeting your expectations, you’ll know what to tweak or change.
Tools like Ahrefs’ Rank Tracker can help you monitor how your pages rank for different keywords and identify areas you need to optimize.
Understand the Buyer’s Journey Framework
Your potential customers go through a series of steps before making a purchase. Understanding the buyer’s journey framework can help you create content that meets their needs at each stage and convert more visitors into leads and customers.
A common and popular frame of reference is AIDA, which stands for attention (Awareness), interest (Interest), decision (Decision), and action (Action).
Awareness
The first stage of the buyer’s journey is awareness. Your potential customers are just beginning to identify a problem or need and are researching potential solutions.
For example:
If a potential customer might need software, they might enter “the best software for XYZ” into a search engine.
Interest
During this stage, visitors learn more about solutions that can help them solve their problem or need. They’re actively searching for content that can provide information and help them make an informed decisions.
for example, if a potential customer is researching software, they might search for “the top features in XYZ software.”
Decision
At this stage, visitors are gathering more information and comparing different solutions to determine which one best meets their needs.
For example, if a potential customer is looking for software, they might search for “XYZ software vs ABC software” or “XYZ Software reviews.”
Action
In the final stage of the buyer’s journey, visitors are ready to purchase a product or service.
For example, if someone is looking for software, they might search for “XYZ software pricing” or “buy XYZ software.”
By understanding the buyer’s journey framework and the type of content visitors need at each stage, you can create content tailored to their needs. This can help increase conversions and bring more leads and customers to your business.
Keep an Eye on Your Competitors
It’s important to do competitor keyword research to keep track of your competitors and the keywords they’re targeting. This can help you get insights into what works for them and identify gaps in their SEO strategy that you can take advantage of.
Tools like Ahrefs’ Site Explorer, Keywords Explorer, and Content Gap can help you measure their performance and identify keywords they’re ranking for that you aren’t.
Identify and Review Your Primary Keywords:
You should focus on one or two main keywords per page and use them to create topic buckets.
These primary keywords should be used in your page’s title, headings, body content, and meta descriptions.
By creating topic buckets, you can group related keywords together, making it easier to create targeted content that helps visitors find what they’re looking for.
It also helps search engine crawlers understand your content, which can improve rankings and increase visibility.
Remember to review your primary keywords often and adjust them as needed. Since trends and search queries, and behavior can change quickly, it’s important to stay up-to-date and optimize your keywords accordingly.
Optimize Your Content for Search Engines
Optimizing your content means optimizing it for users as well. You should create valuable, relevant, and easy-to-understand content.
You wouldn’t want users to bounce off your page after reading the first few sentences, so keep them engaged and provide useful information.
That’s why it’s essential to be up-to-date with industry trends and write content based on the latest news and research.
Tip: Consider E.A.T. (expertise, authority, and trustworthiness) when creating content.
Expertise: Make sure your content is created and written by an expert in the topic. For instance, if you’re writing about SEO, make sure the content is created by someone with knowledge and experience in that area.
Authority: Ensure your content is backed up with references and data from credible sources. This will help to increase its credibility and trustworthiness. For instance, reference reliable websites such as Moz if you’re writing about SEO.
Trustworthiness: Make sure your content is accurate and up-to-date. It should provide useful information that readers can rely on. For instance, if you’re writing about SEO, make sure to use the latest techniques and research.
Optimizing your content for search engines can help increase visibility, improve ranking, and ultimately drive more traffic to your site.
Include Keywords in Title Tags
Ensure all your chosen keywords are included in the title tags and meta descriptions of your published content. This will help improve your SEO rankings significantly.
For example, if you’re targeting the keyword “SEO basics,” make sure to include it in the title tag of your content. This will help search engine crawlers better understand what your page is about and help it rank higher in the SERPs.
How long should the title tag be?
The title tag should generally be no more than 60 characters in length; otherwise, it will get truncated in search engine results. This means that you should include your main keyword as close to the beginning of the title tag as possible.
Utilize Internal Links
Internal linking helps visitors move around your site, leading to better engagement and user experience.
It also helps search engine crawlers understand the structure of your site, helping them crawl and index your content more efficiently.
This can help improve rankings and increase visibility in SERPs.
Include internal links wherever relevant within your content; for instance, if you’re writing about SEO basics, link to other pages on your site which provide more in-depth information.
This can help guide visitors around your site and increase their chances of finding what they’re looking for. When adding internal links, make sure they are relevant and not broken. You should also use descriptive anchor text to indicate the link’s context.
Add Keywords to Image Alt Text
Search engines can’t “see” images, so you should include your chosen keywords in the alt text of any images you use on your site. This will help search engine crawlers better understand the content on your page.
For instance, if you’re writing about SEO best practices and include an image, then you should master seo image optimization, using the alt text to describe the image’s content. This could be something like “How to Optimize Your Website for SEO” or “Best Practices for SEO.”
By adding your chosen keywords to the alt text, you can help give search engine crawlers the context they need to understand better what your content is about. This can potentially improve rankings and increase visibility in SERPs.
Use Keywords in URLs
Use keywords in the URLs for any pages or blog posts you create to help search engines understand what your content is about and rank it accordingly.
For instance, if you’re writing about SEO basics, then your URL should include the keyword “SEO.” This will help search engine crawlers better understand what the page is about and could lead to improved rankings in SERPs.
Use descriptive keywords when creating URLs, as this can make your content more visible to potential visitors. Keeping URLs short and concise is also important, as this can help improve click-through rates from SERPs.
Focus on Quality Content
Above all else, focus on creating quality content that users actually want to read and share rather than keyword-stuffed articles that are of no use to readers. Search engines will appreciate it, too.
Things to keep in mind when writing content include grammar, readability, structure, and style. Aim to write content that is easy to understand, flows well, and provides helpful information. This can help drive organic traffic to your website and improve SEO rankings.
Don’t forget to optimize the content for keywords as well; this should be done after the content has been written to avoid detracting from its quality. This will help search engine crawlers identify what your page is about and rank it accordingly.
Keep Text Natural
You don’t want to sound like a robot when writing content. It should be natural as if you’re talking to someone in person.
Many people, in the pursuit of high rankings, forget that there are actual people at the end who are going to read the content.
Using keyword stuffing or unnatural phrases will draw attention away from the quality of your content and could lead to poor UX SEO. The goal is to write content that reads naturally while still including your chosen keywords.
Make sure to focus on the user experience when writing content and creating links; use accurate anchor text that’s relevant to the page you are linking to. Also, check that all of your external links work correctly and lead users to where they should go. This will help ensure a good user experience and improved SEO rankings.
Promote Your Content
Once you’ve published your content, promoting it to maximize visibility and reach is important.
Promoting your content through social media channels and other online networks can help draw attention to it while also helping you build relationships with influencers in your industry.
You could also consider running paid campaigns or promoting it through email newsletters.
Having a solid promotional strategy in place will help maximize the visibility of your content, which could lead to increased traffic and improved rankings in SERPs.
Implementing Keyword Research Best Practices
Wrapping up, it’s important to understand that thorough keyword research SEO is at the heart of any successful SEO strategy. For your content to be found and ranked highly, you must find the best keywords & keyword phrases and use them appropriately.
Keep in mind the following:
- Always perform keyword research SEO before starting any project; know what keywords are most relevant to your content, and use tools like SEMrush or Google Keyword Planner to uncover related keywords.
- Don’t forget long-tail keywords; they may have lower search volume, but they can be more specific and have higher conversion rates.
- Study the search intent and keyword difficulty to ensure that the keywords you’re targeting fit the goals of your SEO strategy.
- Use internal links with relevant anchor text to help search engine crawlers understand the context of the page.
- Analyze the competition and determine how to differentiate yourself from them with different keywords.
- Consider the monthly search volume of keywords and use the ones that are most searched to maximize visibility.
- Utilize keyword modifiers such as location or negative words to further refine your search results.
- Focus on quality content and ensure your keyword usage is natural, not forced; use synonyms if necessary.
- Promote your content to maximize visibility and reach, as this can help improve rankings in SERPs.
Following the best practices outlined above ensures that your website has a solid foundation for SEO success!
