Keyword research is a critical part of your marketing and business plan.
People use search engines to solve their problems. Your website must be about solutions, not about how fantastic your services and products are. Once a website visitor can see that you offer a solution THEN they will visit your “About Us” page to see your credentials, track record, product reviews and awards etc
The keywords that the public uses are the keywords you use in your website, especially in the first 100 words on your home page. Example: you cannot create a website around the keyword “motorcycle” if your potential clients call it a “motorbike”.
A keyword is group of words that people use to find a solution to their problem e.g. house for sale in Randburg, mobile office, divorce attorney, how to apply eyeliner, Drakensberg accommodation specials, what is arbitration etc You make sure that your website is full of closely related keywords that describe your products and services.
Traffic. If a particular keyword (or group of keywords) gets less than 500 searches per month you have the wrong keyword. Example “online interior designer” is a great keyword but gets no traffic. By contrast “interior design” gets around 3000 searches per month.
The best approach is to have more than one website . One website is only able to serve up to 12 different keywords (that are all closely related) Example in order of importance: patio furniture, outdoor furniture, garden furniture, patio sets, wooden patio furniture, wicker patio furniture, patio tables, outdoor living. An alternative keyword group like interior design, interior designer, designer furniture, office interior design, home interior designer etc although part of your business are best served on a different website, mini website or landing page.
Domain names. Your chosen keywords should be hosted on a domain name that includes the most important keywords eg “www.patio-outdoor-furniture.co.za”. This is where you host your website even if the name of your business is “Wainstein and Levins”. The domain name “www.wainstein-and-levins.co.za” should be a pointer site only. NOTE: Hyphens in domain names are good !
Landing pages are mini websites, maybe even one page, that are tightly focused around a set of closely related keywords e.g. kids furniture, childrens furniture, playroom furniture, baby furniture. Landing pages are linked to your main website. You are constantly building new landing pages while your main website remains quite static.
Steve Eilertsen
SEO Specialist