Keywords, which are the key to success in the internet world, play a critical role in increasing the visibility of your website. So, what is a keyword? From an SEO (Search Engine Optimization) perspective, using keywords allows searchers to easily access your content via search engines like Google. In this guide, we explain “What is a Keyword? How to Find Keywords?” in detail.
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ToggleWhat is a Keyword?
Keywords are phrases or search queries that define what your content is about. From an SEO perspective, they help searchers find your content through search engines like Google.
If you do not use keywords in your content, searchers will not be able to reach your content. This prevents your website from receiving traffic.
In short, keywords consist of the words people use to search for something on the internet. In other words, a keyword does not come out of nowhere; it emerges based on the search habits and needs of internet users.
Why Are Keywords Important?
In digital marketing and SEO, keywords are extremely important. They help attract traffic to your site in a cost-effective or sometimes completely free way. This is the starting point of your marketing strategy. If you utilize the traffic to your site well, you can convert visitors into potential customers and achieve your sales targets.
Additionally, it has benefits like promoting your site, building brand awareness, and creating a target audience. Compared to paid ads, it is more advantageous and provides long-term benefits.
In short, keywords are important. They allow you to obtain the right audience for your niche. However, not every keyword will meet your expectations. Keywords vary depending on the level of competition and the search intent of users.
If you target high-competition keywords, it becomes more difficult to get a share of the pie. Or using brand name-containing keywords may position your site lower compared to the official site of the brand. This can cut off your traffic flow. Therefore, you need to be careful when determining your keyword strategy.
How to Find Keywords?
There are many methods to find keywords. However, the most frequently used keyword-finding methods are listed below:
Get Feedback from Your Customers
Asking for feedback from customers requires time and resources, but it is one of the most effective methods. You can ask them how they search for your niche services and products. Based on the information you gather, you can improve your keyword targeting.
Gather Information from Forums and Community Groups
There are many communities on the internet, such as forums, Reddit, Facebook, and Discord groups. When doing keyword research related to your niche, you can take advantage of these platforms.
You can access a lot of information about users’ problems, criticisms, or recommendations about your product or service. With this information, you can create a frequently asked questions section on your website to answer questions about your products and services.
Research Search Engine Results Pages (SERP)
SERP research is one of the most effective methods for finding keywords. By searching for words that describe your products and services on search engines like Google, you can discover keywords or queries with various search intents.
Use Keyword Research Tools to Find Keywords
There are many keyword research tools available in the market. These tools typically monitor search engines to identify the most frequently used keywords by visitors and provide you with detailed analyses. For example, tools like Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, SEMrush, and Moz provide information about the search volume, competition level, and other important metrics of specific keywords. By using these tools, you can identify keywords to optimize your content.
Use Long-Tail Keywords
There are two types of keywords: root keywords and long-tail keywords. An example of a root keyword is “car.” A long-tail keyword provides a more specific description of a car. For example, “Features of Electric Tesla Car.” The second example we provided is an example of a long-tail keyword. In other words, the more specific a keyword or search query is, the better.
Although root keywords have a high volume, they also have a high competition level. This means a lot of targeting in the search engine index. Thus, your chances of getting a share of the pie decrease, as mentioned in the previous example.
However, long-tail keywords are more specific, have higher competition, and their target audience is more specialized compared to users searching for just the word “car.”
Where to Use Keywords?
Keywords are used on the pages of your website. These pages can be content pages or higher-level pages. For example, for an e-commerce site, product pages and category content are the places where content should be created. Category content is the type of content where keyword targeting is primarily done.
In addition, URLs, content bodies, main headings and subheadings, meta tags, and image alt text are the areas where keywords are most intensively used.