Most people nowadays start purchases with an online search, entering phrases that describe their needs into the search bar. The search engine will display the most relevant websites for the inserted terms.
These phrases are actually “keywords,” and that’s how websites attract visitors. Ranking highly for relevant keywords ensures potential customers or readers become familiar with your site or brand. But the first step is determining the best keywords for your web pages.
Keywords have always been the core of search engine optimization. Our article focuses on the steps to finding the most suitable key phrases. Here’s what to know about this SEO technique!
Understanding Your Audience
Before even considering keywords, it’s vital to figure out your target audience. Is there a specific group that makes your primary visitors or potential customers? What are the pain points of your prospective website readers?
Online marketing and SEO recognize the concept of user search intent. It includes identifying what a user planned on finding when they entered a particular keyword. Understanding that could be crucial to picking the right phrases for your website.
Audience research includes quantitative and qualitative analysis. The former focuses on figures and facts, such as location and of your audience. Qualitative research includes specific insights that help you understand your potential visitor’s pain points, interests, and lifestyle overall.
Some audience research techniques include:
- Questionnaires and surveys. You can use a web page, phone call, or email to ask questions about user experience with your site or company.
- Competitor analysis. The idea is to check what your rivals are doing to gather the best audience research techniques for your niche.
- Use specialized tools. The market offers apps and services that could help to understand potential customers better.
Brainstorming Initial keywords
Brainstorming keywords include writing down phrases your target audience might use to search for your site or products. You can do this alone or with your colleagues or friends. Although brainstorming presumes that no suggestion is too random, try to keep the phrases relevant.
Here are some suggestions when brainstorming keywords:
- Think about what you are offering. Write down phrases that somebody might search for when looking for your website’s product or service.
- Search for similar products and sites online. Check out the main competitors and see if you get any ideas from browsing their internet pages.
- Check out online forums and communities. You might get some ideas from browsing internet discussions on Reddit or similar platforms.
Refining Your Keyword List
You now have the initial list of phrases to use, and it’s time to proceed to specialized keyword research tools. As this is the foundation of SEO, it’s not a surprise many platforms come with this feature. Checking out professional reviews at Top10seosoftware.com is an excellent place to find the best keyword research tool for your needs.
Here are some reasons why using keyword research tools is a smart move:
- Receive detailed feedback about different phrases. A tool will analyze search volume, which displays how frequently users enter a particular keyword.
- Check keyword trends. This shows whether a specific phrase is popular during certain months or if there’s a significant increase in its volume lately.
- Get competitive analysis. If you find a rival whose page you love, enter it in the tool. Keyword research will display the main targeted phrases. That helps you understand which terms to use when creating your site’s content.
Prioritizing the Right Keywords
You probably have a fairly long list of potentially suitable phrases for your website now. The next step is narrowing that down and prioritizing keywords. Start by analyzing the basic metrics like the search volume and ranking difficulty, which displays how hard it is to pursue a high position for a specific phrase.
High-volume queries are important but don’t neglect long-tail keywords. You can also pick several trending terms with a fairly low volume, especially if you think they have potential. The secret lies in achieving the right balance.
Some SEO platforms will also display the keyword intent. It describes the purpose of the user search. We can divide it into multiple categories:
- Informational. It describes phrases users pick to find specific data.
- Transactional. The user intent is a certain action, such as buying something online.
- Navigational. Searchers use these terms to find a particular page or website.
Advanced Keyword Research Techniques
Google constantly changes its search engine algorithms. However, a huge change occurred with the Hummingbird algorithm presented in 2013, and the RankBrain algorithm was released two years later. Before that, Google searched solely for keywords on a page. So, if you use the “latex mattresses” keyword all over the page, the platform will assume it’s the main topic. That changed with the introduction of the semantic search.
Semantic SEO looks to understand the search intent, the connection between words, and context. The idea is to give each web page more meaning, and here are some tips to improve semantic SEO:
- Target similar keywords. Aim to optimize each page for clusters of key phrases.
- Cover the topic to the smallest detail. Article length plays a role but doesn’t have to be a primary concern. If necessary, create multiple pages to form a topic cluster.
- Focus on the People Also Ask section. It’s an option Google offers in search results. Focus on answering those questions to improve the odds of appearing in related searches.
Many SEO platforms have AI-powered content editors that can help you achieve the article quality you need.
Local SEO
If you do business in a specific area, you can place people from that region as your target audience. Some specific local SEO tips include:
- Create a Google Business Profile page. Make sure the information about the address, phone number, and other data is accurate.
- Make different pages for each area. You can create a separate page on your site for each city or region where you have a physical location.
- Ask for reviews and respond to them. Encourage your visitors to leave positive reviews online, boosting your web reputation.
Voice Search Optimization
Most devices that enable internet search now come with voice assistants. Microsoft has Cortana, Apple has Siri, and Amazon created Alexa. It made voice search more popular than ever. That means optimization for this search type has become imperative.
Some tips to apply include the following:
- Identify long-tail keywords. Your keyword research should focus on longer phrases, especially those starting with a question or having a conversational tone.
- SERP features are crucial. Many experts claim that SERP features increase your odds of appearing in a voice search.
- Focus on optimizing your site for mobile devices. The statistics indicate that at least 27% of mobile users pick voice search.
Conclusion
It’s not easy to find the best keywords for your website. However, the process is essential and could help you boost traffic and, subsequently, income. Your first step is understanding who potential visitors or customers are. From there, you can start creating phrase lists.
All experts agree that it’s imperative to use specialized keyword research tools in the process. These can perform in-depth analysis and display useful metrics like search volume and ranking difficulty. That will help prioritize the right keywords and know which to use on the website. Finally, remember that combining the most suitable phrases with top-quality content is the perfect recipe to pursue that #1 page in Google and other search engine results!