Is Keyword Research Worth the Trouble?

You may think, “why conduct research?” By skipping keyword research, you never really know how your audience is finding you. Your logical guesses could be right in some cases, but you’ll miss many not-so-obvious opportunities to gain traffic without researching keywords. Long-tail keywords are more effective, and the hardest to simply guess—and keyword phrases gain and lose popularity over time. Keyword research must be done regularly, in order to maintain or increase your website traffic and your leads. Using too-general, outdated or irrelevant keywords is a waste of time and money.

Expert Tips for Keyword Research

Compile your list of best SEO keywords after considering:

  • Current, relevant topics for your business. You can’t rely completely on current trends, however. You still need more general, evergreen content on your website built around the basic and unchanging aspects of your industry, products/services, and industry. But do make sure your keyword strategy includes new keywords over time.  
  • Data from keyword and analytics tools. Check to see which keywords are leading searchers to your website now, and which are most popular. You can also get on-target keyword suggestions by entering your topics or keywords into Google search. Scroll to the bottom of the page and you’ll see common related search terms and phrases. 
  • Competitor research. You can also use keyword tools to view which words your competitors are using, and what is working well for them.
  • Geographic modifiers. Local search is powerful, so be sure to use keyword phrases that include all of your business territory.  
  • Search intent. Transactional keywords are used by searchers who are ready to buy or take action, and may include words like find, buy or schedule. Informational key phrases might include how, what is, or guide. Navigational terms could include brand names, or words like near or reviews. 
  • Priority keywords. Prioritize keywords by considering competition and search volume. Big brands in your industry may have more general, head search terms locked up, so that they appear at the top of search results for those terms. This is why strategy matters. Carefully chosen alternative, yet still relevant, keywords and long-tail phrases can help your business rank well on those results pages.  

Create the most effective keyword strategy, effortlessly, with help from the pros at Earthlings Digital Inc. Contact us today.