Successful communications start with keyword research

All businesses that have a website, write blogs and post social media content must understand the basics of keywords to boost their chances of being located online.

There is no point generating engaging content if no one reads it. You need to be seen and this means getting involved in SEO – search engine optimisation.

SEO is based on keywords. The search engine tries to match the words entered in the search box with words on websites. So the more keywords on your website, the greater your chances of attracting online footfall.

Practical keyword research tips

1. Don’t overuse keywords – words and sentences that appeal to search engines don’t always appeal to real people reading your website or blog. Give them something that grabs and keeps their attention, not just a string of keywords.

2. Put yourself in your customers’ shoes – what would they be searching for if they were thinking about someone like you?

3. Review and revise – search trends change over time, so review your keyword strategy regularly and change your keywords where necessary

4. Use keywords in headlines and subheadings as well as in bullet lists

5. It’s fine to use variations of and synonyms for your keywords

Where to start with SEO

Let Google help you make your keyword list – Google offers some free tools to help you develop and refine your online content.

Google Keyword Tool displays the average monthly worldwide and local (UK-wide) searches for any search terms you put in. This tool also shows the level of competition for a keyword (i.e. how many sites use that keyword) –

Google Trends allow you to explore search trends over time within Google. This is an excellent way of comparing the value of various keywords and whether you need to evolve your core keywords as they are becoming less popular –.

Tips for writing with keywords

The ‘long tail’ is vital for quality SEO work. For example, a simple search term such as “divorce lawyer” will generate lots of searches, but the more detailed search term “best value divorce lawyer in Manchester” will result in more searches that are specific to your market.

It’s also important to keep in mind that long tail keywords tend to convert better, because they engage with people later in the purchasing process. For instance, a person searching for “Paris flights” is probably just browsing. But someone searching for “Cheapest Manchester to Paris flights, January 2012” is likely to be ready to spend.

Contact us for further information on SEO and find out how our specialist content writers can help drive customers to your website.