Keywords: The Complex Building Blocks Of SEO

The world of search engine optimization – more commonly known by the acronym SEO – is one which is deceptively complex. SEO entails peppering your articles and product descriptions with keywords, thereby making your site more palatable to Google and other search engines.

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Despite the seeming simplicity of this idea, there is a delicate balance which must be preserved. You have to be sure to choose keywords which are not too common, while at the same time still within the realm of what your potential customers might be searching.

Why Can’t I Choose The Most Commonly-Used Keywords?

When deciding which keywords would be most helpful in directing traffic to your site, the instinctual response is to use the keywords which seem most immediately obvious. For example, if you sell computers, it might seem like a no-brainer to go with “computers for sale” or “cheap computers.”

However, when you use keywords which are so general and obvious, you put yourself in direct competition with every other site which uses that term.

If a person were to type into a search engine such general keywords as those above, it is likely that they would be swamped with results from major retailers and other powerhouse online sellers. This means that your site would most likely be lost in the mix.

By using the Google Keyword Planner you can find which are the most commonly-searched terms and thus help yourself find which keywords to avoid.

So Should I Choose The Most Obscure Keywords Possible?

While the previous point was fairly counterintuitive at first glance, its opposite is fairly obvious: keywords won’t help you if you choose ones for which no one is searching.

It is important to choose keywords which are less common and more specific, but not so uncommon that no one will find you. If you use a term which is only searched a few dozen times a month it would hardly be any different from using no keywords at all.

It is therefore important to choose keywords which are not so much hyper-specific as they are tailored to your particular situation. If you are a printing shop, you might want to look up the popularity of “Printing shop in (your city).” If very few people have searched for this, you might consider expanding to “Printing shop in (your state).”

This way you are still drawing in people who are actively searching for you, but who might not find you as a result of under-specified search terms.

Search engine optimization is one of the most important ways to quickly and substantially draw increased attention to your site, but it requires some fine tuning.

Many people fail to find this balanced point and even resort to outside help – there are professionals who specialize entirely in the field of SEO. However, the Google Keyword Planner is a valuable resource you may use to explore the search terms which people have used to find businesses in your field.

Hopefully, after doing some detailed keyword research, you can find the perfect words and phrases to draw hoards of people to your site.