Have you ever read online content and noticed how some keywords are bolded or in a different color? That’s called keywords.
They’re important words and phrases that relate to the topic of your content, and they help search engines understand what your content is about, so they show it to people searching for that topic.
In this definitive guide, we go through everything you need to know about keywords for SEO, from what they are and why they’re important to the different types of keywords and how to find keywords for your content.
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Keywords in SEO are words or phrases that relate to the main topic of your content. They act like a signpost for search engines, telling them what your content is about so they can match it with people who are searching for that topic.
For example, if you’re writing an article about “How to Make the Perfect Cup of Coffee,” then keywords might be things like “coffee,” “how to make coffee,” “the best way to make coffee,” etc.
If used right, your article could come up on the results page or SERPs whenever someone searches for any of those keywords. That’s why it’s important to choose keywords relevant to what you’re writing about and what people are searching for.
These keywords are 1-2 words long and are generally broader and non-specific; for example, keywords like “coffee” or “tea.”.
They have a high search volume but also a high keyword difficulty, which means they’re (coffee or tea) competitive keywords that can be difficult to rank for.
If you think about it, this makes a lot of sense. Because the words are so common and broad, millions of articles have probably been written about them already.
These keywords are 3 or more words long and are much more specific; for example, keywords like “how to make cold brew coffee at home” or “the best green tea for weight loss.”
Compare these words with short-tail keywords like “coffee” and “tea.” They have a lower search volume but also a lower keyword difficulty, which means they’re keywords that are easier to rank for.
Generally, the longer and more specific the keywords are, the less competition there is for them because there are fewer articles written about them.
That’s why long-tail keywords can be a great option, especially for new websites or blogs just starting and trying to build up their SEO. To know more about long-tail keywords, check out Long-Tail Keywords: Advantages + How To Find and Use Them.
The goal of any SEO keywords strategy should be to focus on keywords that are relevant to your business, products, or services—keywords that will help you attract the right kind of customers or clients.
If you choose keywords that are too broad or general, you’ll attract a lot of traffic, but it might not be the right kind of traffic.
You might also end up keyword stuffing, which is when you try to force keywords into your content where they don’t necessarily fit. This can hurt your SEO because it makes your content look spammy and unreadable.
On the other hand, if you choose keywords that are too specific, you might not get a lot of traffic at all. The best keywords strike a balance between being relevant and having a high enough search volume to attract traffic.
With the right keywords, you can:
Learn more about keyword research by checking out How To Choose the Right Keywords for SEO.
When you’re thinking about doing keyword research, think about keywords that are relevant to your business, products, or services.
Your keywords should be words or phrases that potential customers or clients would use when they’re searching for businesses like yours.
For a business just starting out, it can be helpful to consider what keywords you would use if you search for businesses like yours.
You can also look at your competitors’ keywords to get an idea of what keywords you should use. Check out 9 Must-Dos For an Effective Keyword Research.
Use a keyword research tool to find keywords with a high search volume but low keyword difficulty. The higher the search volume, the more potential traffic you can get from the keywords.
The lower the keyword difficulty, the easier it will be to rank for the keywords. We recommend using a keyword research tool like Google Keyword Planner, Moz Keyword Explorer, or SEMRUSH keyword Magic Tool to find keywords with a high search volume and low keyword difficulty.
These tools will also give you an estimate of how much traffic you can expect to get from the keywords.
Once you’ve found some keywords, check the competition for those keywords. If there are already a lot of websites ranking for those keywords, then it might be difficult to rank for them as well. Learn How to Discover Your Competitor’s Keywords & Use Them to Your Advantage.
Once you’ve found some keywords that are relevant to your business and have a high search volume but low keyword difficulty, make a list of all the keywords you want to target.
You can use a spreadsheet or a tool like Google Keyword Planner to keep track of all your keywords. Be sure to include the keywords you want to target, the search volume, and the keyword difficulty.
Among the keywords you’ve listed, focus on long-tail keywords. Long-tail keywords are very specific and usually have a lower search volume.
They might not seem like they would be as effective as keywords with a higher search volume, but they can be more effective because they’re more specific.
This means that when someone uses a long-tail keyword to search, they’re more likely to be further along in the buying process and more likely to be ready to buy. You can find long-tail keywords with tools like Google Suggest and Google Keyword Planner.
Another type of keywords you can use is question-based keywords. These keywords are based on questions that people are searching for. For example, the keyword “how to start a blog” is question-based.
People who use this keyword are usually looking for information on how to start a blog. AnswerThePublic and Google Suggest are two great tools for finding question-based keywords.
You can also look at forums and Q&A websites to see what questions people are asking about your keywords.
When you’re using question-based keywords, be sure to create content that is comprehensive and helpful.
If your content is helpful, people who use these keywords will be more likely to visit your website and convert into customers or clients. Read on the 6 Content Writing Exercises to Do When You’re Suffering From Writer’s Block.
Google Trends is a great way to keep up with the latest keywords. Google Trends shows you how often keywords are being searched for and how those trends have changed over time.
This can be helpful when you’re trying to decide which keywords to target. If you see a keyword becoming more popular, you might want to start targeting that keyword.
The next time you search for a keyword, look at the results and see if any keywords are similar to yours. These keywords are called keyword variations.
For example, if you’re targeting the keyword “SEO tips,” you might also want to target keywords like “SEO tricks” or “SEO techniques.”. These keywords are all related to SEO, but they’re different enough that you can rank for them separately.
By targeting these keywords, you can reach a larger audience and get more traffic to your website.
Once you’ve chosen your keywords, it’s important to use them throughout your website. This includes using them in your:
Using keywords throughout your website will help you rank higher in the search engines for those keywords. It will also help you attract more organic traffic to your website.
SEO keywords are an integral part of SEO. You could even say that keywords are the foundation of SEO.
By targeting the right keywords, you can get more traffic to your website and increase your chances of ranking higher in search engines. You can also use keywords to create more targeted and effective content.
By following the tips in this article, you can learn how to find the keywords for your SEO efforts and use them effectively. You’ll be an SEO keywords expert before you know it!