SEO: How to create a good keyword strategy
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The importance of a good keyword strategy
SEO is basically the art of doing the same thing as everyone else - just a bit better. And of course, there's much more to it. To do SEO that yields positive results, it's not enough to just analyze your competitors and follow their lead. You also need to understand why they do what they do. And most importantly, you need to learn which disciplines are not worth repeating.
Without a keyword strategy, your SEO texts will not perform well on Google. You can write a successful SEO text without a keyword analysis - but not an effective one! Keyword research not only provides insight into the most used keywords, but also into the phrases and keyword combinations that make the most sense to use. In other words, a thorough keyword analysis gives you a better understanding of potential customers' demand and behavior.
You can compare texts written without keyword research to dusty old books sitting in the back row of a library. They exist, but no one will ever read them. Instead, your texts should be among the first and most visible on Google's golden page 1 - and a keyword analysis is the first step on the way.
Keyword analysis tools
- Ahrefs is a tool that contains several features in one. One of them is the content gap feature. By entering competitors' domains, specific paths or URLs and comparing them to your own, you get a list of keywords that competitors are found on - but your own website is not. This gives you the perfect tool to find new keywords that can make you visible to your target audience.
- Google Search Console is Google's own goldmine of SERP and SEO technical data. You get access to indispensable data on how users on Google interact with your website and concrete and data-based suggestions for improvement.
- SEMrush is an all-in-one tool that can be used for SEM and SEO. The tool can give you insight into your visibility on Google, relevant keywords, inbound links, ad campaigns, social media and competitors - and you can also check your content.
- Answer The Public is a free tool where you can find inspiration for questions, queries and more in combination with your entered keyword.
Focus on core keywords and longtail keywords
Of course, good keyword research varies by company and industry. However, a common denominator is a healthy mix of broad core keywords and more specific longtail keywords.
Core keywords come from your company's core competencies and the services you offer. For example, a dentist's core keywords could be "dentist" or "book a dentist appointment". Both examples are very broad keywords that align with your company's core services - but this is also the case for all competitors in the same industry.
That's why it's also important to have some more specific keywords that are particularly related to your business. In SEO terms, these are called "longtail keywords". For a dentist located in Amager, a longtail keyword could be "Dentist Amager". If it's a dentist specializing in root canals, an obvious longtail keyword would be "Dentist specializing in root canals".
The two most significant differences between core and longtail keywords are:
- Longtail keywords make up the vast majority of searches.
- Longtail keywords are by definition more specific than core keywords.
What is your search intent?
- The user wants information.
- Will often be formulated as a long tail keyword and a wh-question - 'how do I get better indoor air quality in my home', 'when was the internet invented', 'what is search intent', 'how do I get red wine off my white shirt' etc.
- The search results will typically be Wikipedia articles and other online encyclopedias, blog posts etc. - informative and educational sites.
- The user searches for specific products, offers, services or subpages of a company or website they already know.
- For example, it could be 'offers IKEA', 'apartments in Aarhus DBA', 'website Amplify' etc.
- The search results will be product and service-specific landing pages and domains under the companies the user wants to shop with.
- The user's intention is to buy a product, service or something else entirely.
- The search often has words like "buy", "cheap", "offer" or similar words associated with it.
- At times, the search will also just consist of the overall term for the product such as "running shoes", mixing the search intent with what is called research search.
- Research searches cover the stage before users are ready to buy a product. They therefore seek information about a particular product in the form of specifications, reviews, comparisons, etc.
- The search often overlaps with the other categories as the goal is to find information about a specific product or service.
Monitoring and continuous optimization is crucial
If you want to ensure you're constantly in the race for Google's favorite page 1, there's no such thing as resting on your laurels. Firstly, Google's algorithm is a complex and ever-changing entity. Secondly, the competition for good keywords is fierce.
That's why it's important to continuously evaluate the results of your efforts. Is your website generating enough traffic? Are you ranking poorly for keywords? Or are your users not interacting with your content as desired?
These are important questions to ask to make sure your website is always performing at its best. If it's not, it's time to optimize! This is where an SEO specialist is worth their weight in gold, as they have their fingers deep in the complex world of SEO every day.
At Amplify, our skilled SEO specialists help you find the right keywords and put them in the right places, so you can concentrate on your core business.
Let our SEO specialists create your keyword strategy
Do you need help with a professional keyword analysis to lay the foundation for your SEO strategy? Amplify is a serious SEO agency in Copenhagen ready to help you become visible in Google results. Our specialists take care of everything from A to Z - including link building, technical SEO, Programmatic SEO and copywriting.
Contact Amplify on 70 60 50 28 or info@amplify.dk to find out what our SEO specialists can do for your business.
Amplify offers 3 different SEO plans: Premium, Premium Plus and Paramount. Which plan is best for you depends on your needs and budget. Talk to us to learn more about the benefits of the different plans.
No matter which subscription you take out, our collaboration always starts with a meeting and a good dialog. This ensures that we take your company's reality as our starting point when we do your SEO marketing.
Test your SEO with our free SEO test here.
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