July 19th, 2013
Keywords are Critical for SEO
You have probably heard the term “keyword” used in reference to websites and blogging but you may not be clear on how or why they are so important. Because keywords are so elemental to how people find your business when they search online, we are going to go over some basics to help you understand their value. In this blog we describe and define keywords so you will have a good understanding of how companies like See You SEO use them to help your business get found online. Because this is such a full topic, we will focus on basics in this article, and get more complex with issues, such as how to choose your keywords and consistency across all pages and platforms, in later blogs.
Hubspot, a leader in inbound marketing, defines a keyword as, “a topic of significance to your industry, a description of what your company does”. When you are creating your business website or writing a blog you will want to include these important words, naturally, to show how your business relates to the industry. Google, for example, is a search engines that looks for those keywords when someone uses their site to try to find resources online. Those keywords tell the search engine how to find those business based on their relevance. For example, when someone types into the Google search bar, “social media Northern Virginia”, Social Media Maxima comes up on the first page of the Google search. This is the value of what See You SEO does to properly use keywords to optimize our website so when someone puts in the words that most relate to our business we come up on the first page of the search. Search engines are the doorway to prospects finding you and companies like See You SEO know how to use keywords the right way so the search engines can find you.
Keywords should be incorporated into the content of your website and blog articles. This is critical to the search engine crawlers, looking for content, and the foundation on which all of your online presence is built. With a solid foundation running through all of your content, it is easier for search engines to know what your product/service is and for consumers to see what you offer.
This is is a double-sided process, being equally critical to the business as well as the consumer. When you do a personal search on the internet, you want the websites that show up to be pertinent to your needs. For example, when you want a bagel in Washington DC, you would be confused and disappointed if Google responded to your request with a list of websites for businesses that sold only donuts or muffins. This is because Google searches the keywords “bagel Washington DC” and websites that clearly state the business offers that are in a good place to come up in the search.
Keywords can make the difference to how your business is found online and your search engine ranking. Search engines take less than a second to look for the keywords requested by the searcher by crawling your pages. If your website does not have those words clearly identified in the content, it will not come up as a relevant site and you do not even get a chance to connect with that client or customer.
As we have established, keywords should be incorporated into your website’s content to improve its ranking, but be careful not to use them too much or inappropriately. There is a balance of just the right amount, any more than that can cause your site to be flagged for spamming. You want to add keywords to your content in a natural way and aligned with how most people search for what you offer. Change up the string of keywords, so they aren’t the same everywhere on your site. For example, we say “social media management company” “inbound marketing” and Northern Virginia social media company” to change up the way it is worded and capture the greatest search possibilities.
When identifying keywords, choose words and phrases that someone is most likely to use when searching for your online business or website. This is a bit of an art. Hubspot’s keyword grader is an excellent resource for deciding what keywords are ranking the highest in your industry. Each of your Web pages should have keywords that include phrases found throughout the page content, title tag, headings, attributes, and link text.
This is is a double-sided process, being equally critical to the business as well as the consumer. When you do a personal search on the internet, you want the websites that show up to be pertinent to your needs. For example, when you want a bagel in Washington DC, you would be confused and disappointed if Google responded to your request with a list of websites for businesses that sold only donuts or muffins. This is because Google searches the keywords “bagel Washington DC” and websites that clearly state the business offers that are in a good place to come up in the search.
Keywords can make the difference to how your business is found online and your search engine ranking. Search engines take less than a second to look for the keywords requested by the searcher by crawling your pages. If your website does not have those words clearly identified in the content, it will not come up as a relevant site and you do not even get a chance to connect with that client or customer.
As we have established, keywords should be incorporated into your website’s content to improve its ranking, but be careful not to use them too much or inappropriately. There is a balance of just the right amount, any more than that can cause your site to be flagged for spamming. You want to add keywords to your content in a natural way and aligned with how most people search for what you offer. Change up the string of keywords, so they aren’t the same everywhere on your site. For example, we say “social media management company” “inbound marketing” and Northern Virginia social media company” to change up the way it is worded and capture the greatest search possibilities.
When identifying keywords, choose words and phrases that someone is most likely to use when searching for your online business or website. This is a bit of an art. Hubspot’s keyword grader is an excellent resource for deciding what keywords are ranking the highest in your industry. Each of your Web pages should have keywords that include phrases found throughout the page content, title tag, headings, attributes, and link text.
