How Many Keywords Should You Be Using for SEO in 2023?

Intro

Search engine optimization (SEO) is responsible for the success of many businesses. But it changes constantly.

Google started as one of the world's first search engines where anyone with a keyboard could score top-ranking positions (usually through keyword stuffing). Today, it's an intelligent platform that understands its users' intents and has over 200 known ranking factors.

Unsurprisingly, one of bloggers' and businesses' most asked questions is, "How many SEO keywords should I use?"

In this blog post, we'll cover the following:

• How many keywords should you be using in 2023
• How Google ranks keyword-focused content
• What keyword stuffing is (and how to avoid it)
• How to find the best keywords
• How to track your keyword performance

How Many Keywords Should I Be Using?

Making the focus of your page clear makes it easier for Google to understand what it’s about. As a result, it’ll be easier to rank highly.

Because of this, fewer keywords are usually better.

Pages with only one keyword (or topic) are the easiest to rank. But four or more keywords make it much harder.

According to HubSpot research, most experts recommend having** one to three primary keywords, then using a few long-tail keywords or other variations**. These are known as "secondary keywords."

The secondary keywords’ goal isn’t to let you rank for as many keywords as possible. Instead, they help make the post's topic clearer without forcing you to keyword stuff (which we’ll discuss soon).

How Many Times Should You Use Keywords?

Generally, you should** use one target keyword for every 100 words of text. **A page usually needs at least 500 words to rank well.

For example, if your target keyword is "residential solar panels" for a 1,000-word blog post, you should aim to use it ten times.

If your content is well-written and focused on the topic, using your keyword throughout will come naturally as you write. Focus on providing valuable information first. Then you can consider adding the keyword a few more times when you’re finished if necessary.

What Is Keyword Stuffing?

Keyword stuffing involves overusing specific keywords on a webpage or in its metadata to manipulate search engine rankings.

Traditionally, search engines like Google relied on keyword density as a ranking factor, leading lazy website owners to repeat keywords in their content.

But today, this practice is ineffective, as search engines have become more apt at detecting and penalizing keyword stuffing.

Keyword stuffing makes your content sound unnatural. And in 2023, content value and user experience are worth more than how many times you use a keyword.

Here are a few ways to avoid keyword stuffing:

1. Use keywords naturally and only where relevant. Focus on creating high-quality, informative content that answers your audience’s questions.
2. Find keyword variations. Using synonyms and related keywords to diversify your language helps provide context for search engines and prevents your content from sounding unnatural.
3. Don’t stuff keywords into metadata. This includes title tags and meta descriptions. Instead, use these elements to provide concise, accurate content descriptions.

Google Ranking Factors that Influence Your Keywords

(Statistic Source, Image created by author)

Google has been making changes to its content ranking algorithm since 2010.

These updates aim to provide users with the most relevant and valuable information when they search for something on Google.

Google's 2013 "Hummingbird" update focused on understanding the meaning behind words instead of just matching them up with keywords.

For example, if you were searching for "cars," Hummingbird would show results related to vehicles rather than just pages about car manufacturers or car dealerships. This helps users get more accurate answers faster because they don't have to sift through irrelevant content before getting what they need from their searches.

So what does this mean for SEO marketers in 2023?

Your content cannot be keyword-focused. It has to be user-focused. Keywords simply help tell Google which searches the page is most relevant to.

Here are a few other factors that influence how your content is ranked and thus, how you should use keywords:

1. User Intent

User intent is what a person searching Google hopes to find. Each search term (“keyword”) has a user intent behind it, and the page that solves the intent best ranks typically highest.

This means your content needs to be relevant to the search intent behind your chosen keywords.

2. Mobile-First Indexing

Google announced in 2018 that it would start using a mobile-first indexing approach instead of its traditional desktop-first indexing model.

According to Statista, 64% of consumers make Google searches on mobile devices.

(Source)

This means mobile optimization should be as important as keyword optimization in your content strategy.

3. Long-tail Keywords

Google increasingly relies on machine learning and natural language processing to understand the intent behind search queries.

This is why it’s essential to optimize your content for long-tail keywords (keywords with three or more words).

If you're trying to rank for a broad keyword like "content marketing" (known as a "head keyword"), the high competition will make it almost impossible.

A long-tail keyword like "How do I optimize my site for voice search?" is less competitive since fewer websites compete for this specific query. Plus, it’s very specific, meaning people searching for this keyword seek a concise answer to a question. This makes understanding the user intent much easier.

4. Local SEO

How you use keywords as a local business differs slightly from online websites.

The same rules for keyword stuffing, user intent, mobile-first indexing, etc. still apply, but you must ensure the people in your area use your keywords.

For example, Rosenbaum & Rosenbaum — personal injury lawyers in New York—will need to target different keywords than Anderson Injury Lawyers, a firm based in Dallas and Fort Worth.

Neither of them would benefit from trying to compete for the broad keyword (“head keyword”) “personal injury lawyer” as much as they would from “personal injury lawyer New York” and “personal injury lawyer Dallas.”

The keywords they are actually ranking for is testament. Here are keywords Rosenbaum & Rosenbaum rank for:

Here are keywords Anderson Injury Lawyers rank for:

Notice any locations in most of those keywords?

How to Find the Best Keywords

Now that you know how to effectively use keywords, it’s time to learn how to find the best ones.

1. Invest in a keyword research tool.

Keyword research tools give you access to data that helps you decide which ones to use. For example, keyword competitiveness, monthly search traffic, and more.

There are dozens of free and paid keyword research tools available. But if you're looking for an accurate and reliable way to find relevant keywords, investing in a paid tool will help you get more out of your SEO efforts.

Rank Tracker is an example of a keyword research tool. It also lets you do more than discover new keywords—you can analyze your competitors, track valuable SEO metrics, monitor your ranking performance and more.

2. Find keywords that are relevant to your target audience.

After you’ve chosen a keyword research tool, brainstorm several topics your target audience is searching for.

Start with questions they have, problems they’re trying to fix, interests they have, etc.

This gives you the perfect starting point, as your content will be crafted around solving your ideal customers’ biggest issues or desires.

I also recommend checking out Google’s “Others want to know” box. This gives you more ideas for long-tail keywords that your target audience searches.

For example, take a look at the box options for the keyword “how to run a marathon”:

These questions can help you identify additional keywords, long-tail keywords, and keyword variations to support your current content or inspire new pages.

This is not just useful in regards to getting more traffic but you will also get more relevant traffic so that when you are scoring your leads, you see the difference.

3. Perform keyword research.

Now it’s time to run your keyword ideas through your research tool (like Rank Tracker).

Identify which options have the highest potential for ranking well. For example, keywords that have less competition, more search traffic, have a low keyword difficulty score, etc.

4. Identify long-tail keywords and synonyms.

Long-tail keywords are more specific than broad keywords, which means they're easier to rank for. They also tend to convert better and are more likely to be used on search engines.

Keyword synonyms are words that mean the same thing as your original keyword.

For example, if you want to target the phrase "best SEO tools," you could also use these synonyms: "best search engine optimization tools," "best search engine optimization software," and so on.

Your keyword research tool should present keyword variations, so this step should be pretty easy.

5. Consider user intent before deciding on a keyword.

As we mentioned earlier, user intent is more important than keyword density. So before committing to a keyword, make sure it aligns with what your target audience is actually searching for.

There are many times when a keyword might seem like the perfect fit, but the search intent is much different than it seems.

For example, it might seem like the top-ranking results for the keyword “workout apps” would be landing pages for different apps. But after searching for the keyword, you can see the user intent is for round-up articles that review the best workout apps:

How to Monitor Your Keyword Performance

Keyword performance monitoring is an essential part of any SEO strategy. It lets you track how effective your keyword-targeting efforts are and make any necessary adjustments to improve your search engine rankings.

Plus, you’ll learn if you’re using the right keywords.

This section will discuss how to monitor keyword performance and provide tips for getting the most out of your monitoring efforts.

1. Set Up Keyword Tracking

The first step is to set up keyword tracking.

You can use various tools, including Google Search Console and Rank Tracker, which help you keep track of your keyword rankings and monitor changes over time.

Once you've set up keyword tracking, it's crucial to establish a regular monitoring schedule. Depending on your needs, you may need to monitor your keywords weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly.

2. Analyze Keyword Performance

Once you've established a regular monitoring schedule, it's time to analyze your keyword performance. This involves looking at your keyword rankings and identifying trends or patterns.

When analyzing your keyword performance, pay attention to the following metrics:

• Keyword rankings: Look at your rankings over time and identify any changes or trends.
• Click-through rate (CTR): This metric is how many people click on your page after seeing it in search results, expressed in a percentage. Look for keywords with high CTRs and identify opportunities to improve low CTRs.
• Traffic: Look at the traffic to your website from specific keywords and identify any opportunities to increase traffic.
• Conversions: Analyze the conversions from particular pages and identify any opportunities to increase them. Which keywords have resulted in the most sales, sign-ups, booked calls, etc.?

3. Identify Opportunities for Improvement

After analyzing your keyword performance, it's time to identify opportunities for improvement. Look for keywords with low rankings, CTRs, low traffic, or low conversions, and identify any opportunities to improve these metrics.

Some strategies for improving keyword performance include:

• Optimizing your content: Make sure it is optimized for your target keywords, including using them in your titles, headings, and body copy. But avoid keyword stuffing and remember to stick to 1-3 target keywords per page.
• Identifying new keyword opportunities: Use keyword research tools to identify and target them with your content.
• **Improving user experience: **Improving the user experience on your website can lead to higher CTRs, more traffic, and more conversions. This includes having a fast-loading website, easy navigation, and mobile-friendly pages.

Final Thoughts on How Many Keywords You Should Use in 2023

In conclusion, you should stick to 1-3 primary keywords per page. Try to use one target keyword every 100 words (or, 10 times every 1,000 words), but not at the expense of content quality and user experience.

Avoid keyword stuffing—this makes your content sound forced and is penalized by Google.

Favor long-tail keywords over head keywords with only 1-2 words, and find secondary keywords (or keyword variations) that support your content and make the topic more clear.