What Effect Do Keywords Have on Your Website Rankings?

all about keywords

Modern marketing has been transformed in this digital age, where the internet is most people’s first stop for any kind of information. Making your website stand out to search engines like Google and Microsoft Bing is crucial to maintaining your visibility to your customers. One of the most effective strategies to increase your website’s visibility is through the strategic use of keywords in your website copy. Let’s talk about how utilizing the right keywords can be a game-changer for your search rankings.

What’s a Keyword?

A keyword is more than just a buzzword or phrase; online, it’s the connector between what people are searching for and the content your website offers that can meet their needs. 

Hardly anyone uses the old-fashioned Yellow Pages anymore. Today’s equivalent is the online directory, but search engines are built to direct people’s queries about specific products, services, or topics to the websites that can provide answers. 

When your website’s copy includes the same terms – keywords or key phrases – that your target audience is typing into search engines, you’re essentially raising a flag in the crowded online space, making it easier for search engines to pick your website out and present you as a solution to the user’s problem. 

Keyword Relevance and Context

Google’s long-stated mission has been to deliver the most relevant and reliable information available to users. By including relevant keywords into your titles, headings, and body text, you signal to search engines that your content is a good match for what users are seeking. It’s not just about quantity, though. The context in which you use your keywords is equally important. Your content needs to provide real value that addresses the intent behind the user’s search query. In other words, your website needs to provide an actual answer to their question for it to rank highly in searches. 

Placing Your Keywords in Your Copy

Where you include your keywords also matters. Strategic placement amplifies their power. Including keywords in your page titles, headings, meta descriptions, and early in your content can have a significant impact on SEO. These key spots indicate to search engines what the content is about, helping them understand the essence of your page and how it relates to user queries.

Beyond the Basics: Long-Tail Keywords

While short, generic keywords may seem attractive due to their high search volume, there is often fierce competition for them. Long-tail keywords are perfect for niche marketing and targeting specific buyer intents. They’re great for content marketing, as they can be used to address specific questions or needs. These types of keywords allow you to target users with specific intentions, leading to higher quality traffic and improved conversion rates. Small and medium-sized businesses often utilize long-tail keywords to capture traffic from potential customers who are ready to make a purchase or are looking for detailed information.

Want an example? One short-tail keyword that gets an overwhelming amount of search online would be “laptops.” You can see how for a smaller store selling computers this would not be as useful a keyword because they have to compete against all of the websites out there that address selling, repairing, or using laptops. A long-tail keyword that might be a lot more useful might be “best gaming laptops under $1000.” 

Keyword Density

The days of keyword stuffing working as an SEO tactic are long over. Keyword density refers to the number of times a keyword appears on a page relative to the total number of words. While there’s no magic number, stuffing your content with too many keywords can backfire, resulting in a penalty from search engines. The best strategy is to use keywords naturally within your content, maintaining a balance that feels organic to the reader while still signaling relevance to search engines.

Keeping Up with Keyword Trends

The online landscape is always changing, and so are the ways people search. Regularly researching and updating your keywords is essential to stay relevant and maintain your search rankings. Online tools like Google Keyword Planner can help you discover new keywords and assess their effectiveness over time.

Incorporating keywords into your website copy is not just about improving your search engine rankings; it’s about connecting with your audience by matching your content with their needs. By strategically selecting and placing keywords, you ensure that your website not only attracts more visitors but also satisfies and converts their queries into sales. 

At Corporate Conversions we are always keeping an eye on Google’s algorithm changes and tweaking our SEO strategies to keep up. We’re doing our best to stay ahead of the keywords curve to better serve our clients needs.