Here’s a topic we haven’t yet covered this year: keyword research. You may think this is something for marketers and e-commerce types, but as a small business owner it is important to understand at least the basics of this element of search engine optimization.
What are Keywords, Anyway?
Keywords are the words and phrases that you put into a search engine like Google. They serve as the basis for search engine optimization. If you are an accountant, you will want more keywords on your website that have to do with that area. When people search for these words and phrases, they are more likely to find your small business website if you do search engine optimization right.
What is Keyword Research?
Keyword research is exactly what it sounds like: it is researching and identifying the most relevant keywords for your small business. To use the same example, let’s say you are an accountant. For effective SEO, you do not simply want the phrase “accounting services” on your website to draw in customers. It’s simply not effective.
Instead, you want to find out which keywords your customers and potential leads are searching for. This is where keyword research comes in. Instead of just “accounting services”, you can include “2018 tax season,” “affordable accounting options,” and more. With keyword research, you can identify hundreds of words and phrases that are relevant to your small business.
How Does Keyword Research Work?
There are quite a number of ways to go about keyword research. The most straightforward method is to just start by making a few Google searches yourself. Change up the words, add additional words, and get more specific. Look at the results and see what related keywords come up. At this point you will have a good starting list of keywords relevant to your small business.
From there, you can enter these keywords into specific keyword research tools to get additional ideas.
Why is Keyword Research Important?
As we mentioned above, keywords are the basis of search engine optimization. Keyword research allows you to identify the keywords that your potential customers are searching for and tailor your blog and website content accordingly.