Don’t Rely on Endless Spreadsheets for Keyword Optimization
Phil Frost, Founder and COO of Main Street ROI, says, “Successful SEO is not about tricking Google. It’s about PARTNERING with Google to provide the best search results for Google’s users.” Google indexes information to provide relevant search results, not to make marketing easier. When you keep that in your mind as part of your content marketing strategy, you can use keywords to support your SEO strategy to provide engaging content that delivers value to your audience.
Keyword Competition Is Real
The most popular keywords for your industry aren’t only shared by you and your local competitors. Companies around the world are trying to rank for the same phrases. When you only focus on keywords as your marketing strategy, you are losing out. Customers may be searching for those phrases, but their intent behind search can be very different. For example, you may discover that “red paint” is a highly searched term. As a paint company, you may optimize content to target this keyword and offer calls to action that aim to increase sales for your red paint shades. In reality, the search volumes may be high because users are looking for ways to “remove red paint”, “change red paint”, “cover red paint”, “get rid of red paint”, and so on. Thinking beyond keywords when you create content gives you more opportunity to reach the right consumers to make the sale.
Keep Your Content Fresh and Relevant
We aren’t recommending that you completely dismiss keyword research in pursuit of memorable and shareworthy content. What we do recommend is to dig deeper than the keyword list to see what your customers truly want. Here are two ways to think outside the box.
Find Out What Searchers Want
When you do a Google search, there’s a section labelled “People Also Ask.” This can help you learn more about user intent of a particular keyword. A search for “how to take care of LVT flooring,” brought up questions about what product to use to clean LVT flooring and if you can use a Swiffer on vinyl plank flooring. Take that information to create content on maintaining LVT flooring.
Examine Search Results
Popular keywords often have the same generic content, even from different competitors. By digging a little deeper into how the keyword is being used in the top rankings, you can differentiate your content to provide more relevancy to the user. Check to see if the content really deals with the keyword. Can your writers offer content that focuses on the keyword better?
SEO Potential Beyond Keywords
Keywords are important to SEO, but SEO encompasses more than the most popular keywords. Put your emphasis on creating relevant and engaging content. Google will respond with better rankings when customers respond to your content more positively.
Need help creating high quality content? Ask what a content agency can do for your content strategy. Contact MintCopy to get started.
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Resources:
Content Marketing Institute: 3 Keyword Research Trends to Get Your Content Seen
Sheetal Pinto is the founder of MintCopy, a content agency that has been helping businesses communicate effectively since 2008. With a passion for words and a knack for SEO, she’s worked with companies around the world to craft copy that not only engages but ranks. Whether it’s blog posts, website content, or social media updates, Sheetal has a talent for turning complex ideas into compelling stories. When she’s not optimizing content or editing for clarity, she’s probably daydreaming about the perfect headline or debating the Oxford comma. With over 16 years in the business, she’s seen the digital marketing and SEO content landscape evolve and grow. Sheetal’s mantra? Fresh copy, refreshing results!
