What’s the key to words for SEO? If you follow the online marketing giants, you will quickly realize that content was, is, and probably always will be KING. And one of the keys to good search engine optimization (SEO) results is knowing the words to use in your content marketing efforts.
Let’s take a step back here. There are lots and lots of “gurus” out there trying to sell you ‘systems’ and ‘tricks’ that will shove your website to the top spot or get you lots and lots of traffic. Here’s the real secret: For every trick you try to game the system created by Google and all the other search engines, you must know that the brains behind those web crawlers are working to ferret out the games and tricks. They don’t want anyone gaming the system and when they uncover a trick, they will take steps to not just reduce its effectiveness, but punish you for trying.
For example, when websites were in their infancy, developers discovered they could stack white space with keywords, change the color of the words to white, and no one would suspect the site was over-stuffed with keywords. Ha! As a result, once that strategy was discovered, search engines began shoving down sites that did that. They wanted keywords to be used in content in a way that was natural– not contrived.
Keywords
So now that we are talking about keywords, what are they? There is no big mystery here once you understand. Keywords are those words that represent two things.
First, keywords are the words that surround the topic of the writing you do for content marketing. If you are writing about plumbing, then keywords would be those words that connect with that topic such as pipes, drains, faucets, plumber, plumbing, etc.
Second, keywords are the words (search terms) people will use when searching for information on a topic. Again, with plumbing as an example, people might search for clogged drains, leaky pipe, dripping faucet, or even asking how to fix a dripping faucet. When you have more than a word or three, it is referred to as a long tail phrase, but it is still considered a keyword.
The trick to using the best keywords for each piece you create for content marketing is knowing the frequency that certain words are used by people searching the internet. There are several sites and tools that actually track that data and will help you identify the top words for whatever topic you have in mind. Some are free, some are paid.
Be mindful of keywords
The caveat here is that some keywords get overused and, in that case, will work against you. Some are too broad and still others have a double meaning, so they are difficult to tie down.
There are some words that actually have meanings or connotations that will take the searching down a road they don’t want to go. Here is where that double entendre can bite you and send your potential readers to some pornographic or virus-laden sites. Be careful!
With the popularity of platforms like Instagram and Twitter, you will see additional keywords used with hashtags. On some platforms you can include an unlimited number, on others use is more restricted. Wherever you are using them, the same rule applies – choose the ones that are most relevant for each piece used in content marketing, most frequently used, and will give you the longest reach.
Tags (for a blog post)
Tags are additional words that are added to expand the categorization taxonomy on a blog post. For example, you have written a blog post about how to repair a dripping faucet. You have assigned the focus keyword, repair a faucet, to the post. Now to further explain the content, you could include words like plumbing, dripping faucet, faucet repair, fix a drip, plumbing repair, and stop a drip. These are all words that someone might use in a search phrase. Your focus keyword should be the best, most frequently used search term, while tags help catch the less frequent searchers and further explain the content in the post.
The bottom line
The bottom line when it comes to writing content for online content marketing is really pretty simple. Instead of focusing on keywords and trying to game the system, do these three things:
- Write quality content that informs, educations, entertains, and or explains. Doing that means you have lots of options about what to write.
- Write quality content that is accurate, complete, and clear.The internet is full of stuff. You want to provide content that is reliable and credible. Doing that brings respect and repeat readers.
- Write quality content consistently.Develop a schedule and meet it! You want readers to know that you will be giving them something new and useful on a regular basis. Once they identify your pattern, they will watch for it. And, believe it or not, they will be disappointed if you miss a posting.
Effective content marketing articles for online consumption really is all about common sense. If you want to build a reputation and brand for your business that is professional and credible, approach your content just like you do everything else you do for customers. Give them honest, reliable information and you will be rewarded.
NuMedia Marketing can help with the branding and marketing of your business as well as the technology in your business. Call us today at 317-563-7236 to see what a difference it can make.