How to Pick Your First SEO Keywords

How to Pick Your First SEO Keywords

One of the best ways to grow a business is through search engine optimization (SEO), the process of making changes to increase a website’s likelihood of being ranked for relevant searches within Google and other search engines. Keywords are a critical component of the strategy; optimizing your site for specific ones gives you the power to control which searches you rank for (and therefore who your target audience is). SEO is a long-term strategy, so it sometimes takes months before you start seeing results. Once you know your goals, you should be able at least to decide on a balance between “head” keywords and “long-tail” keywords. Head keywords are short phrases, usually one-to-three words, associated with higher traffic but also higher competition. Next, use an online tool to help you come up with more keyword and topic ideas, based on some of your preliminary ideas. Once you’ve got a “master list” created, you can start weeding out the weakest candidates. "Search volume" refers to how many times a particular phrase is searched for. Sure, it might have high traffic and low competition, but will it really be forwarding the type of traffic your website needs? You’ve narrowed your list down to keywords with the highest likelihood of earning you the results you want, so for now, pick a handful that you’ll have an easy time optimizing for (or the ones that seem the most attractive).

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How to Pick Your First SEO Keywords

One of the best ways to grow a business is through search engine optimization (SEO), the process of making changes to increase a website’s likelihood of being ranked for relevant searches within Google and other search engines.

Keywords are a critical component of the strategy; optimizing your site for specific ones gives you the power to control which searches you rank for (and therefore who your target audience is). Accordingly, adjusting your keyword distribution gives you power to change your campaign over time.

To be successful, you need to start by picking the right keywords. Over time, you’ll gather data that helps you determine which of your keywords are most successful, and which ones need more work — but how do you pick the right initial set of keywords?

Set and understand your overall goals.

Before you decide which keywords are right for your brand, spend some time thinking about what your SEO goals are. Most companies use SEO to increase website traffic, which in turn, increases revenue, but you’ll need to be more specific than that.

For example:

  • How fast do you want to see results? SEO is a long-term strategy, so it sometimes takes months before you start seeing results. If you want results faster than that, you’ll need to choose lower-competition and higher-volume keywords.

  • How relevant does your audience need to be? Are you laser-focused on one specific audience, or flexible with the types of people you have coming to the site?

  • What types of traffic are you seeking? Do you want people to buy your products, or are you focusing for now on brand awareness?

Decide on a blend of head and long-tail keywords.

Once you know your goals, you should be able at least to decide on a balance between “head” keywords and “long-tail” keywords. Head keywords are short phrases, usually one-to-three words, associated with higher traffic but also higher competition.

Long-tail…

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