Remember when SEO was non-existent? I wish that I had learned how to reach my target audience, sooner. I am so glad that the guru’s of the internet developed a better way for us to sift through the vast information that is out there.
Keywords are one of the most important components of any successful Search Engine Optimization campaign. However, before you quickly skim your website and round up a few less-than-stellar keywords, you should invest time in performing some in-depth keyword research. Salma Jafri, online content development specialist and New Way To Work finalist, shares her 5-step guide on finding the right keywords to get your search rank jumping.
Oftentimes, buyers give you a brief description of the title of an article or its main topic and let you determine the appropriate keywords to use. Whether you’re doing an SEO article project for a client or wish to rank your website or blog higher, you’ll need to pick and find the right keyword combination to attain that all-elusive high-ranking keyword niche. This article will provide you with a primer on getting started with keyword research.
Step 1: Think Like Your Reader
When I was writing an article about buying ergonomic chairs, I started thinking about why anyone would want to buy this item. Here’s what I came up with.
People who’d want to buy ergonomic chairs:
* might be looking to buy chairs for their office, home office or staff
* might have back pain, spine problems or suffer from some other kind of repetitive stress injury (RSI)
* are probably concerned about their posture while sitting and about preventive pain furniture
This brainstorming helped me to think like my potential readers. So before you start keyword research, spend a few minutes thinking about what problem the article will solve for a reader – this will help you align the article’s focus with the keywords used in search queries.
Step 2: Brainstorm Larger Keyword Categories To Develop A Niche
I found that I could group my brainstorming session above into three distinct categories: chronic back pain relief, office furniture and chair features (such as backless, arm rest, wheels, etc). Grouping keywords in this way can help narrow the categories that you’d wish to derive keywords from. So now I can use a tool like Google AdWords: Keyword Tool to search these specific categories for keywords.
Using the tool I came up with several possible keyword combinations (executive, reclining, orthopedic, lumbar, armless, computer, posture, swivel, etc) that I may not have thought about on my own. Even if I don’t use all these phrases as my main keywords, I can still work them into my article as synonyms and alternate terms so that people searching for them will find my article.
Step 3: Analyze And Rank Traffic Potential And Earnings
If you’re looking to find the maximum number of readers for your article, then you’ll want to sort your keywords according to volume. If you run ads which relate to your article, then you’d want to choose keywords that have a high earnings potential (CPC). In most cases, it’s best to have a middle-of-the-road strategy and choose keywords that have a good amount of volume and pay well. The actual numbers that work well for you will depend on your niche and SEO goals.
Step 4: Pick a Targeted List of 2-3 Keyword Phrases
From your list of researched keywords, narrow down your main keywords to two or three phrases. These will become your main keywords that you’re trying to rank well for.
Step 5: Insert Keywords Into The Elements Of Your Article
The most important place where your primary keyword needs to go is the title. Next up is the sub-title or lead paragraph, where you can usually put your secondary keywords. Use your keywords in other prominent places of your article such as sub-headings, anchor text links, images, as well as the first and last paragraph of your article.
Using these five simple steps, you can choose keywords that not only rank well and pay well but also use those that are human reader-friendly and natural-sounding in your article. Your keyword research will hit the mark if your reader benefits from your article and your client (or your blog) benefits from targeted and relevant traffic.
~E
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