Even if you wouldn’t consider yourself to be a digital marketing expert, you likely know that keywords play a pivotal part when it comes to Search Engine Optimisation (SEO). For the avoidance of doubt, despite outdated practices that were widely used some 10 or more years ago, stuffing your content full of keywords is not the way to rank on Google.
However, carefully placed instances of a keyword in your content can and does help your website to rank higher on Google. The trick is to know which keywords to use, which is not always an easy task. You need to find the right balance between searches and difficulty – a keyword with high search volume is likely to be highly competitive, while keywords with little competition may not have any search volume.
Keyword Research Tools
There are several tools available to aid your keyword research, the most popular of which is arguably Google’s Keyword Planner, which is used in conjunction with Google Ads. Tools such as this will help you to identify additional keyword and broad match opportunities alongside your base keyword and narrow your strategy down to the best keywords to focus on, in terms of search volume and difficulty.
David vs. Goliath
For smaller businesses competing against large global brands, identifying the right keywords to use is crucial to your digital marketing campaign. The reality is that some keywords are dominated by these big brands that invest large amounts of resource into their website’s SEO so, instead of fighting a losing battle, you look for opportunity elsewhere.
For example, while search results for ‘DIY tools’ are dominated by brands such as B&Q and Amazon, seeking out broad alternatives that those sites aren’t necessarily optimised for is your opening. This is an example of how SEO can level the playing field for small businesses competing against large brands.
Local Keywords
Another way that SEO and, more specifically, finding the right keywords levels the playing field is through local keywords. While searching for ‘table and chairs’ presents a selection of large businesses, refining that search so as it is localised presents a list of local businesses – an opportunity that should not be ignored.
Local keywords are not only less competitive, but the users searching are more likely to want exactly what you are offering. For example, if someone is searching for ‘table and chairs Newcastle’, there is a strong chance that they are seeking a seller of table and chairs that are local to Newcastle. While the search volume will be lower than the generic ‘table and chairs’ search term, there is a much higher chance of converting that traffic into a sale.
Optimisation
When you hear the term ‘optimised’ in an SEO sense, it means that a website and/or a specific page has been designed to target a specific keyword or group of keywords, as it is possible to optimise for more than one keyword at a time.
Keywords in PPC
As well as for SEO-purposes, keywords can also be used as part of a Pay Per Click (PPC) campaign, especially when it comes to Google Ads. The adverts that you see at the top of Google’s search results have been targeted via keywords, designed to appear based on searches that are likely to convert.
Much the same as for regular (organic) search results, keywords with higher search volume come with greater difficulty. Instead of optimising the advert to appear higher and/or more often, bids are placed. Simply, the higher the competition, the more expensive the advert will be to be displayed. By being smarter with the keywords you target, your PPC adverts will not cost as much to show while still being put in front of users that are likely to convert.
