WHAT ARE KEYWORDS
Keywords are the words and phrases that people type into search engines to find what they’re looking for. For example, if you were looking to buy a new jacket, you might type something like “mens leather jacket” into Google. Even though that phrase consists of more than one word, it’s still a keyword.
For example, if you were looking to buy a new jacket, you might type something like “mens leather jacket” into Google. Even though that phrase consists of more than one word, it’s still a keyword.
Of course, nobody outside of the SEO industry tends to use this terminology. Most people would call them Google searches or queries. Just know that keywords are synonymous with both of these things.
Keywords in digital marketing are the main element to start search engine research. These terms can consist of one or more words, if there are more than two words they are called keyphrases. Keywords are like anchor texts in web pages that search engine algorithms record in their databases of web pages as preferred content for a search result when a user uses that keyword or keyphrase as a query to be answered.
Types of keywords
Key words are tied to search intent. Understanding the search intent behind a keyword or, as mentioned above, a key phrase can help identify the types of keywords that can be found on the Internet.
There are six major keyword types:
- Informative Keywords.
- Keywords for navigation.
- Transactional keywords.
- Keywords for extensions.
- Keywords for local seo
- Semantic keywords.
There are other types of keyphrases we can mention, but the six above are the most important, the rest, like:
- Header Keyword
- Body keyword
- Footer keyword
They all belong to one of the six main types of keywords, among others.
Characteristics keywords must have:
These 5 characteristics indicate the quality of a keyword and define the effectiveness of keywords along with their success rate in search engine optimization strategies.
Keywords are a fundamental element in search engine optimization or SEO strategies. Therefore, they determine the chances of potential customers to find a product, service or related information.
Not all keyphrases are equally effective for the same business or project. Their effectiveness and chances of success depend on certain characteristics that must be considered before using them.
There are five important characterristics that a keyword must have
- Relevance
- Search volume
- Competitive strength
- Business value
- Specificity
Relevance
The goal of your SEO strategy must be to attract prospects and customers, not just anyone. Therefore, it is crucial that the keyphrases you use are highly relevant to the target audience in your industry or niche area.
Use keywords that directly relate to your products or services without highlighting misleading or unrelated aspects as this will confuse the user. keyphrases that appear in the search result should match the searcher’s query in terms of content.
For example, if you sell women’s shoes and use the keyword “clothing deals,” you will likely attract searchers looking for things other than what you sell, so they will leave your site and not convert.
Search volume
Identify the keywords and synonyms that your target audience uses most often. If you speak their language, you have a better chance of being discovered.
This characteristic is measured by traffic volume, which is the number of users searching for a particular term in a given time period. Remember that term usage changes with trends and the emergence of new techniques.
For example, in Cyprus, keywords like “SEO”, “marketing” and “advertising” might get the most traffic, while in Greece, the synonyms “search engine optimization”, “online promotion” and “online marketing” are likely to get more searches.
The competitive strength
General keywords compete against many pages to be listed at the top of search results, with big websites with established brands and leading ranking always coming out on top.
To stand a greater chance of getting a good search engine ranking, you should select keywords that are frequently searched for, but are not so general and, at the same time, are not competing with too many other big branded websites.
Business value
Keyword value provides a measure of the business value that a keyword has within an advertising campaign.
Most keyphrases indicate an action a user wants to take that is consistent with the goals of the digital marketing project. The most common are the commercial ones, i.e. those that indicate an intention to buy.
A few good examples are:
- Buy
- Discount
- Coupon
- Offer
- Special Offer
Specificity
It is important to maintain a balance between generality and specificity so that you can appeal to a broad audience, even though you are targeting a specific audience in a specific area or with a specific need.
Keyword hit rate determines the success of any SEO strategy.
There are several tools you can use to measure the first four parameters from this list, giving you accurate data on search queries, cost, and competitiveness. Also, most of them provide useful information about related keyphrases or synonyms to help with selection criteria.
However, to find the right matching level, you need to evaluate the specifics of your digital marketing campaign and strategy. This way, it becomes possible to tailor the digital strategy to the services and products you offer and align it with your overall business goals.
To check keyword ranking in Google, you can do this manually or use a keyword position checker tool. Google Search Console is a free tool to check the position of keywords. Semrush and SERPWatcher are paid tools for checking specific keyword rankings.
How To Check Keyword Ranking In Google
1. Manually Checking Keyword Rankings
You can check your rankings manually in Google by doing a keyword search and scrolling through the results until you find your website listed. But as explained in this other guide on search engine position analysis, this is the most time-consuming method for checking positions.
Therefore, I don’t recommend manual keyword rank checking because it’s not an efficient use of your time.
2. Using Google Search Console to Check Keyword Rankings
Search Console is a free method for how to check keyword ranking in Google. And it removes all of the manual work for searching for keywords.
I’ll explain the simple 5-step process for how to use Google Search Console to check keyword positions for every URL on your website in the next section. (It takes up the bulk of this post.)
But for now, just know that Google Search Console is a free tool that can give you the average keyword rankings for every page.
3. Using A Paid Tool to Track Keyword Rankings
SERPWatcher
If you want to track specific keyword rankings in Google, then SERPWatcher by Mangools is one of the best tools for the task.I like SERPWatcher so much that I became an affiliate for it. You can try SERPWatcher for free here. (Disclosure: If you upgrade to a paid subscription, they’ll give me a small commission at no extra cost to you.)https://abaee94b062b0500d1b23c6e955a9913.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0-38/html/container.html
This is one of my favorite tools because it’s cheap and gives you everything you need to track the success of your website. SERPWatcher also comes with four other powerful SEO tools:
- Keyword Finder
- SERP Checker
- Link Miner
- Site Profiler
The basic plan starts at $29 per month.
With SERPWatcher you can track up to 200 keywords for your website on the basic plan, which is more than enough for most people’s needs.
As you can see in the images below, SERPWatcher reports the daily change in position for your keywords, the average position for rankings, the best position ever reached, and the search volume for each keyword you’re tracking.
Semrush
If you want to find all of the keywords your website ranks for, then Semrush is the most powerful tool to do this. With a few clicks of your mouse, you can instantly know which keywords are bringing in the most traffic for your site and the positions your website ranks for in Google.
Semrush is my second favorite SEO tool with over 50+ tools in one application, which is why I am an affiliate for it. It’s on a whole other level than SERPWatcher. You can try Semrush for free here. (Disclosure: They’ll give me a small commission at no extra cost to you.)
As you’ll see in the images below, you can use the Organic Search tool to find all of the keywords a domain is ranking for. You can then use the Position Tracking tool to monitor the rankings for individual keywords.
How do I check My SEO Ranking?
How to Determine Your True Organic Google Ranking
- Log into your webmaster tools account. …
- You will then see a list of your top keywords.
- Click on a particular keyword you want to view the ranking data for. …
- You can modify the results by changing the date range and country to your desired choices.
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