Keywords: Unlocking the Secret to SEO

Over 80% of marketers and search engine optimization companies consider increasing overall conversion a major priority for their SEO strategy. In order for this to happen, however, potential consumers must first be able to find your website. That is where keywords come in.

Keywords are at the center of content creation. According to HubSpot, a keyword is “a word or phrase that is a topic of significance.” That sounds pretty simple in theory, but in practice it’s a bit more complicated. When it comes to search engine optimization, there are four kinds of keywords:

• Broad Keywords: These are short words or phrases that typically stand alone. As the title indicates, they are usually less specific and can be applied to many other companies within your industry. (Ex. metal roof)
• Fat Head Keywords: These are generally made up of two or three broad keywords. (Ex. metal roof contractors)
• Chunky Middle Keywords: These are the phrases that real consumers are typing into search engines. They mark the crossover between the most competitive and least competitive keywords. (Ex. best metal roof contractors Wisconsin)
• Long-Tail Keywords: These are longer phrases made up of a series of words that are more specific to your company. (Ex. How to find the best metal roof contractors in Madison, Wisconsin)

What Is the Purpose of Keywords?

• Keywords establish a main topic
  Each webpage has an overarching topic, which can be tied back to a keyword. Keywords help your visitors understand what the page is all about.
• Keywords optimize your page for search engines
  This, of course, is the most important reason to use keywords. As Google scans your website, they index pages based on the keywords they discover in order to determine the purpose of your content. If you are using keywords correctly and effectively, a user should come across your page after typing a keyword into Google.

Because keywords are essential to direct traffic to your webpage, you may think that the more times you use a keyword, the better. This is true, but it is only part of the equation and there are exceptions to this rule. Overusing a keyword compromises the quality of your content, and search engine optimization companies know that poor content quality can have major consequences. In other words, keywords are important, but there are many other factors to consider when setting up a successful SEO strategy.