3 Insane (But True) Facts About Keywords

Over the past ten years, many businesses have been focused on creating well-organized websites full of relevant content and professional design. After spending so much time on site design, many businesses are disappointed to find that they are not showing up on search engines. Even more alarming, competitors with inferior sites or less relevant content often show up first. ­­­

The reality is that a good website is just one piece of the puzzle. Understanding SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is critical if you want your target audience to find your site. Keywords are the building blocks of any effective SEO effort. Even though keywords seem pretty straightforward, there are some areas that can get ­­­tricky. That’s why we’ve compiled this list of three surprising facts about SEO.

Many Businesses are not Using Their Keyword List

Many businesses spend a lot of time developing keyword lists that make sense. They research them and distribute them to their digital team. But then they write content without referencing those keywords. They don’t add keywords to the headings or subheads. That means that the keywords can’t do their job. Make sure your website is built in ways that provide lots of natural opportunities to use keywords. And then check your copy against your ­­­­keyword list to make sure you are leveraging SEO opportunities.

Too Many Keywords Can Hurt

You want people using search engines to find your website quickly, right? You know which keywords they use­­­, and you want to rank high. So you add keywords wherever you can. Sometimes, you use them more times than you should. Your content gets repetitive. But the worst part is that the search engines notice. Search engine algorithms penalize you for keyword loading. The recommended ratio is 3%. So, for every hundred words, use keywords three times. If you push that percentage up a little, don’t worry. But don’t jam in keywords in ways that are not readable or feel spammy.

Keywords are for More Than Content

While using keywords in content is a great practice, you need to use them in other ways, too. Are you using them in your URLs? Are they in your meta tags? Did you use your keywords in your page title and subheads? These are all places that search engines look to make sure your keywords are important to your company and to your customers. Don’t stop at content.

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Keywords are important to almost any organization’s digital success. If you want to learn more, or if you’re wondering if content marketing is right for your business, contact us today for a free consultation.

Want to read more blogs about digital strategy? Check out these Cup O Content articles.

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