The Basics Keyword Research

If you’ve ever been to an SEO conference, you know that the professionals can talk all day about things like backlinks, mobile-first indexing and schema markup . And while these factors (and so many others) help Google determine where to rank your page they all build on a foundation established by another element of search engine optimization: keywords.?

Keywords are the link that connects your website with the people searching for it. They help you understand the needs of your targets and develop content that will meet their needs. They’re the foundation of any digital content strategy.

Keywords are also a major factor used by Google to determine where your page should rank in search results. And because the very first result gets more than a quarter of all clicks , with the top 10 accounting for nearly all of them, it’s clear that the higher you’re ranked the better.

So yeah, keywords are kind of important.?

Of course, that raises an important question: how do you identify the words and phrases you should be going after??

With research, of course.?

Okay, but how do you do that? Should you head over to your local library and reacquaint yourself with the Dewey Decimal System? (Is that even a thing anymore?) Do you need to call in an expert? Or pay for a list from an online provider?

Good news, everyone! It’s easy to master the basics of keyword research, which means you’ll be finding, creating and implementing new content using these words to drive traffic in no time.?

Ready to get started? Let’s go.?

Find a Seed Keyword and Use It to Find Other Keywords

The very first thing you should do is identify your seed keywords. These are words or short phrases that have a high search volume and usually, high competition. You’ll use these as a jumping-off point to help you find other keywords that are easier to rank for.?

For example, if you’re performing SEO for an auto repair shop, you’re probably going to use seed keywords like “tires,” “car repairs” and “mechanic.”

Finding them should be relatively easy, as they are usually common words that describe what the page you’re trying to rank for offers. You should be able to brainstorm a list in just a few minutes.?

Now, using the short list of seed keywords you have created, use these to spark ideas for other keywords you could rank for.

To continue our auto repair example, you might use a seed of “mechanic” to lead you to things like “transmission repair,” “oil changes,” and “tune ups.”

Some of these may still have loads of competition, so be sure to include fine-tuning options with modifiers like “in Austin,” “affordable,” or “Goodyear.”

Look at Traffic Volume and Keyword Difficulty

Now you want to figure out exactly the words and phrases your targets are actively searching for.? Begin by asking questions like “what is your target searching for?” “Who is this target and where are they located?” “What questions and concerns do they have?” “What kind of jargon or nomenclature do they use?”

If you’re having trouble or just want to uncover additional target keywords, there are many tools on the market, both paid and free (hint: your Google Search Console account can be a good source for free keyword ideas). These include SEMrush’s Keyword Research tool, Moz’s Keyword Explorer and Google Keyword Planner. As a bonus, many of these platforms can also provide you with keyword recommendations.?

Generally speaking, the more searches there are for a keyword, the more competition there will be, which means it will take more work to rank highly for it. This is sometimes called “keyword difficulty.”

The unicorn you’re looking for (but may not find) are words with high traffic and low-ranking difficulty. Don’t be discouraged if you can’t find them, but if you can identify some of these blind spots, you’re in a good place.?

And don’t throw in the towel on keywords with high difficulty. Given enough time and quality content, you can start to show up on the first page for these too. It takes some work, but you should lay the foundation now.?

We won’t get too into the weeds here about long-tail keywords and zero-traffic words, but as a rule of thumb, you’ll want to disregard the extremes. That is, filter out keywords with extremely high or extremely low search volume. The sweet spot lies in the middle, where you’ll get a decent amount of traffic, with a level of competition you can compete with.

Create Keyword-Rich Content

Now that you (hopefully) have a list of keywords, it’s time to start creating the content that will cause you to rank for them. You’ll want to work them into your copy in a way that feels smooth and natural and not at all forced.?

Be aware of keyword density. Current best practices call for a keyword density of 1-2%. Avoid overuse, however, as you can be penalized by Google for keyword stuffing.?

To help you go after those high-volume/high-competition keywords, try to create something original on the topic. If you can say or show something new, you’re much more likely to get incoming links pointing to it, which will help you rank more highly.?

Start Climbing Those Search Results Pages

Always remember, SEO is a marathon, not a sprint. Even if you find keywords with high search volume and very little competition, it may take some time for your site to get indexed and start showing up in Google results. And the more people going after a keyword, the longer it will take you to climb the rankings and unseat those ahead of you.?

You should also remember SEO is an ongoing process. You should regularly revisit all of your content to identify areas where you can capitalize on new keywords or phase out ones that are no longer relevant.?

If you’re really looking for a way to streamline the SEO process and ensure you’re always in the best possible position, then you need Evisio . Intuitive and easy-to-use, it will give you step-by-step instructions and recommendations to help your site rank higher.

Contact me today for a free trial.??

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