Little Secrets to Get the Most Out of SEO Keywords

Yesterday, I wrote about some of the strategic ways SEO can help your business, focusing on tips to draw more traffic to your site. Today, I want to touch basis on some secrets you may not know about, when it comes to the SEO keywords you choose to implement in your content.

First secret is that keywords can be the difference between getting the right audience, increased traffic, and more customers, clients, or patients or getting penalized by Google. You see, Google relies on a algorithm that taps into distinct keywords that then targets the intended audience for your business. So, if you own a beauty business in Roanoke, VA, U.S.A., and you mainly sell makeup, your keywords need to be specific and targeted to that area, focusing on females. If you fill your content with a bunch of keywords that has a forced feel to it, not only will you get in trouble with Google, it will turn off your readership. No one wants to read an article that is non-sensical, only to get keywords stuffed in there. So, if I was writing an article about the benefits on mineral makeup, my keywords might look like this:

Keywords: beauty, mineral makeup, women’s beauty, makeup, roanoke, va. 

That’s it.

You see that I included the niche, the product, the targeted audience, and the location. In a 500-word article or blog post, a keyword density of 20-30% would ensure Google is happy and the content reads and flows naturally, so placing keywords in the beginning paragraph, (not the first sentence) will ensure a natural beginning. Then, placing the chosen keywords in the meat of the article, and then at the end, allows for Google to pick up the necessary keywords that your target audience may be looking for; and the more unique your keywords are for your business, the easier potential customers can find you.

Another secret is the meta description you include should always have the company name, location, a hook that draws in a seeker, and a call-to-action. Here’s an example:

The best makeup is natural makeup that doesn’t clog your pores or damage your sensitive skin, so get in touch with our award-winning customer service team at Kaleidoscope Beauty in Orange County, CA, where right now we offer a 10% discount on all our mineral makeup! 

I’ve included the necessary keywords and a call-to-action, but more importantly, I put the business name and location next to each other, so when a surfer looks up the company name and location, your site comes up top in the search engines.

One last secret, and this one goes against everything you may have known about SEO keywords. Above, you saw that I included just enough keywords to allow Google to crawl through a website and pick up the exact keywords a company would need to place high on search engines, but I didn’t add more than what was necessary.

In yesteryears of SEO, companies thought the more keywords you put in your content, the better it was for Google to pick them up, and the higher your ranking would be - but we’ve learned a thing or two about that and now realize it confuses Google, makes for a messy, unnatural article or blog, and frankly is unneeded. And one last thing. There is a limit to how long the meta description can be, and if you go over it, Google will cut you off, so tread lightly with those descriptions and only add those above elements I listed.

Next time, I will focus on the content itself and what you should include to ensure your target audience will keep coming back, and better yet, will turn into a customer, client, or patient.