What Is a Good Keyword?

Creating compelling content is not enough to get the most out of your online marketing efforts. Maximizing the traffic you receive from search engines relies heavily on having the right keywords in place. 

You have probably heard people talking about keywords before and wondered what they meant — or you may have even heard of SEO keyword research but never taken the time to learn more about it. 

The thing is, if you don't have the right keywords in place, you might be missing out on easy traffic that could end up boosting your business tremendously.

Why Are Keywords Important for SEO?

If you want your site to be visible to people searching for relevant terms, you need to choose the right keywords and use them throughout your site — in your titles, headings, descriptions, and images. 

Why? Because search engines use keywords to index and categorize content and then match it with user queries. 

In other words, picking the right keywords can be the difference between appearing on the first page of results or the tenth, so it is important to choose wisely.

Look at the keyword's search volume.

Search volume is the number of times people search for a keyword over a period of time. A high search volume indicates a lot of interest in the topic, which means more traffic to your website if you rank for that keyword. 

However, high search volume keywords are usually very competitive, which can make it challenging to rank in the top results.

If you are just starting out, choosing keywords with a moderate search volume is important so you can still get some traffic but are not too competitive.

How relevant is the keyword to your business?

When it comes to SEO keywords, relevance is key. A good keyword is one that closely matches what your target audience is searching for. 

In other words, pick a word or phrase that potential customers are likely to search for when they are looking for what you have to offer. If you are selling women's shoes, for example, a good keyword might be "women's shoes."

The more relevant your keywords are to your target audience, the better your chances of ranking high in search engine results pages (SERPs).

Consider the intent of the searcher.

The right keyword must match the user's intent. There are three main types of keyword intent: navigational, informational, and transactional:

• Navigational keywords are used when someone wants to find a specific website or page, like "Netflix login page."
• Informational or research keywords are used when someone wants to learn about something, like "how to start a business."
• Transactional keywords are used when someone is ready to buy something, like "buy replacement window screens."

When creating your keyword list, it is important to be aware of the difference between these three types of keywords so that you can target the correct customers.

Conclusion

To find the best keywords for your SEO campaign, start by brainstorming a list of potential keywords that are relevant to your business. Once you have a list of potential keywords, use a keyword research tool like Moz Keyword Explorer or Google Keyword Planner to get more information about each keyword. Be sure to consider each keyword's search volume, competition level, and user intent before you make your final decision.  

Building content with the best possible keywords in mind is one of the most important things you can do to help your site rank well in search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo. If you need help building your SEO strategy, we can help. At Tommy House Studios, we provide cutting-edge online marketing solutions to small businesses to boost their online presence and drive traffic to their website. Call us at (334) 310- 2915 or fill out this form to learn more about our services.