Every discussion about Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) invariably includes the term “SEO keywords.” SEO keywords are a crucial element of SEO, and their significance in driving traffic and improving webpage rankings remains a topic of debate among SEO specialists and managers.
What are SEO Keywords?
To appreciate the importance of keywords, one must understand their meaning for both your website and potential customers. From the customer’s viewpoint, keywords are the words or phrases used in search engine queries. These queries can range from simple inquiries like finding the best computer, to complex ones like solving engineering problems.
For website owners, keywords define the content. They provide insight into what potential customers are searching for, the frequency of these searches, and the volume of similar searches. keywords offer valuable insights into customer behaviour trends, enabling the creation of effective marketing strategies to better capture customer demand through their searches and queries. They also help determine the type and subject matter of content to publish on your website or blog.
Keywords and Your Target Audience
Keywords not only shape your content but also help target specific customer groups. Each keyword possesses properties or metrics, such as Keyword Search Volume and Keyword Difficulty. Keyword Search Volume indicates the number of searches for a given keyword within a specified timeframe. Keyword Difficulty measures how many websites are using the keyword in their content, indicating how challenging it is to rank on the first page of search results. These metrics can be likened to the supply and demand of content.
Targeting Your Audience
How do these keyword metrics help you target your audience? They reveal search trends and enable the creation of specific content aimed at particular user groups or niche markets. For instance, the keyword “Top 10 Games” is broad with high search volume and difficulty, attracting a diverse audience, from parents seeking games for toddlers to gamers looking for summer entertainment.
By refining the keyword to “Top 10 Games for PC,” you target a more specific group interested in computer games. Narrowing it further to “Top 10 Action Games for PC” hones in on a particular niche within that audience, allowing for highly targeted content.
Long-Tail Keywords
SEO keywords can attract a broad audience or a specific niche, depending on their specificity. Long-tail SEO keywords, usually comprising more than three words, target specific niches. While they may attract less traffic than broad SEO keywords, they typically have lower competition and can lead to higher quality visitors who are more likely to convert. Many websites and blogs strategically use long-tail SEO keywords to target specific audiences, potentially outranking broad SEO keywords by attracting high-quality visitors across multiple pages.
Short-Tail Keywords
In contrast, short-tail SEO keywords generally contain fewer than three words and pertain to broad topics. They generate high search volumes but also come with high keyword difficulty.
SEO Keywords and Your Content
While keywords can define your content, they should not dictate it. Keyword stuffing—cramming SEO keywords into your content without regard for readability—is highly discouraged by Google and can negatively impact your rankings. Effective keyword use follows fundamental rules: SEO keywords should inform search engine bots about your webpage while appearing natural and relevant to your audience.
Keywords should be included in the Title Tag and body content, present in the webpage URL, the H1 tag, meta descriptions, and the alt attributes of images. This practice helps crawlers and bots understand your webpage content while providing an overview to your audience.
Final Words
Keywords are a double-edged sword; they can improve traffic with quality visitors, boost conversion and click-through rates, or increase bounce rates and customer abandonment. The importance of keywords fluctuates yearly due to evolving search engine algorithms. For instance, in 2012, search engines required meta keywords, but by 2017, they auto-detected keywords through webpage content.
While keywords help define your content, they should not dictate it. The quality of your content should not be compromised for the sake of keyword inclusion; instead, the content should complement the keywords.
If you need help with your SEO keywords, check us out at SEO Wirral.
Curious about how the technical aspects of SEO match up to the on-page experience? Check out our article On-Page Vs Technical SEO!