What Are Organic Keywords? Tips for Finding the Best Ones for Your Website

Intro

Key Steps for Finding the Best Keywords for Your Website

• Brainstorm Topics Relevant to Your Website
• Use Keyword Research Tools
• Analyze the Keywords of Your Competitors
• Target Long Tail Keywords
• Consider User Intent

Some of the most important factors in attracting traffic to a website are organic keywords. But what exactly are these keywords, and how much influence do they have? This article will provide a detailed explanation and offer advice on identifying the most effective keywords for any website.

What Are Organic Keywords?

Organic keywords are all the words and phrases people type into search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo when looking for information online. These keywords have not been paid for through advertising. They're considered 'organic' because they appear naturally in the website content. When a person types a query into a search engine and finds your site—not through some paid ad—at the top, middle, or bottom of that list, it's treated as an organic search result.

How Search Engines Use Keywords

Search engines use complex algorithms to determine what's relevant to a user's query. A search engine spider does a keyword hunt in the content for a specific topic when it crawls a website. The better the keywords are likely to match the search query, the higher the page will go in the search results.

Role of Algorithms in Keyword Analysis

Search engines have algorithms that analyze keywords and content. These algorithms test various parameters for each webpage to understand relevance and quality. The factors include keyword placement, frequency of keywords, the context within which keywords are used in the content, and webpage quality. The goal is to provide users with the most relevant results.

How to Identify the Best Organic Keywords

Finding the best organic keywords for your website requires research and analysis. Here are some tried and tested methods:

Brainstorm Topics Relevant to Your Website

First, brainstorm a list of topics relevant to your website. Think of what the audience is looking for and note them down. For example, if you have a website about gardening, you may come up with topics such as 'vegetable gardening,' 'flower care,' and 'pest control.'

You can back your brainstorming up using mind maps or other brainstorming apps that help keep your thoughts in order. Please note all possible topics and subtopics relevant to your niche. This will ensure you have many ideas to kickstart your organic keyword research.

Use Keyword Research Tools

There are several tools available that aid in finding keywords related to your topics. Popular ones include:

• Ranktracker: It offers a deep analysis of keywords and competitive data to help users find the best keywords.
• Google Keyword Planner: This is a free tool provided by Google that allows someone to locate keywords relevant to the business and how well they'll perform.

Such tools can provide information on the volume of search queries and the level of competition for each keyword. They can help you identify the most valuable ones.

Find and Analyze Competitor Keywords

Check what keywords your competitors are using. Get a feel for what's working in your industry and identify areas where you are not competing. Tools like SEMrush and Ahrefs can help with this analysis.

You can target long tail keywords. They're longer, more specific phrases that generally have lower search volumes. Still, they have higher conversion rates. For example, instead of targeting the broad keyword 'gardening,' you might target 'how to grow tomatoes in a small garden.' Sometimes, it's easier to rank for long tail keywords, plus they send much more targeted traffic.

With long-tail keywords, there will typically be less competition. They tend to be used by users who are farther along in the buying process and clearer about their intent; thus, conversion rates are higher.

Consider User Intent

User intent refers to the motivation behind a user's search query. Understanding this can be extremely helpful in choosing appropriate keywords for your content.

There are four types of user intent:

• Informational: The user seeks information (e.g., "how to grow tomatoes").
• Navigational: The user wants to go to a specific webpage (e.g., "Facebook login").
• Transactional: The user is ready to purchase (e.g., "buy tomato seeds").
• Commercial: The user wants information about products/services (e.g., "best tomato seeds for small gardens").

Consider user intent when choosing keywords that match your audience's needs. For example, if you're educating users, use informational keywords. If you aim to sell products, use transactional keywords.

Monitor Top-Ranking Keywords

After identifying popular keywords where your website appears on the first page of Google organic search results, select a few keywords that drive lots of clicks. Garrett Digital suggests setting up a check on a few to inform you if and when those rankings and pages drop from the first page of Google results.

• Use Google Search Console to understand organic search performance and click-through rates.
• Track keyword rankings over time using SEO tools.
• Analyze organic traffic to correlate with keyword rankings.
• Keep an eye on competitor keywords for new opportunities.
• Set up a few alerts to monitor your most important page 1 rankings in Google.
• Regularly review and adjust your keyword strategy based on performance.

These steps will help you develop your SEO strategy, improve your content, and increase organic traffic to your website.

Organic Content Optimization

After choosing the best organic keywords for a website, optimize the content to rank for such targeted keywords. Here's how to go about it:

Use Keywords Naturally

It is crucial to use your keywords naturally within your content. Avoid keyword stuffing, which involves overloading your content with keywords to improve your ranking. This can make your articles challenging to read and can result in penalties from search engines.

Make sure that your writing is clear and readable. Use synonyms and related keywords to prevent repetition of the exact words. The tone should always be conversational. Thus, it helps not only to keep the readers engaged but also to ensure that the keywords are seamlessly inserted.

Use Keywords in Key Places

Strategic keyword placement throughout your content signals relevance to search engines and helps users understand what your page is about. Here are the key areas where you should focus your efforts:

Title Tag

• This is often considered the most important on-page SEO element.
• Your primary keyword should appear as close to the beginning of the title tag as possible.
• Keep it concise and compelling.

Example: "Beginner's Guide to DSLR Photography: Mastering the Basics" (primary keyword: DSLR photography)

Headings (H1, H2, H3, etc.):

• Organize your content logically and incorporate relevant keywords.
• Use H1 for the main title, H2 for major sections, and H3, H4, etc., for subsections.

Example:

• H1: Top 10 Destinations for Family Vacations on a Budget
• H2: Affordable Beach Destinations for Families
• H3: Exploring the Outer Banks with Kids

Introduction (First Paragraph):

• Include your primary keyword naturally within the first few sentences.
• This helps establish the topic early on.

Example: "Are you looking to capture stunning photos with your new DSLR camera? This beginner's guide will walk you through..."

Meta Description:

• While not a direct ranking factor, a compelling meta description with your keyword can improve click-through rates.
• Aim for 150-160 characters.

Example: "Learn the fundamentals of DSLR photography, from aperture and shutter speed to composition techniques, and start taking professional-quality photos."

URLs:

• Keep URLs short and descriptive, and include your primary keyword.
• Avoid using numbers or special characters.

Image Alt Text:

• Describe the image accurately while incorporating relevant keywords.
• This helps search engines understand the image content and improves accessibility for visually impaired users.

Example: (For an image of a person taking a photo with a DSLR) "Photographer using a DSLR camera to capture a landscape photo"

Body Content:

• Use your primary and secondary keywords naturally throughout the body of your content.
• Avoid keyword stuffing, which can hurt readability and SEO.
• Focus on providing valuable and informative content.
• Consider using long-tail keywords to target niche audiences.

Important Considerations:

• Keyword Density: There's no magic number, but aim for a natural flow. Don't force keywords where they don't belong.
• Readability: Always prioritize creating content that's easy to read and understand for your audience.
• Search Intent: Match your keywords to the intent of the searcher. Are they looking for information, a product, or something else?

By strategically incorporating keywords in these key areas, you'll enhance your content's visibility in search engine results and attract the right audience to your page.

Write High-Quality Content

On top of a search engine ranking's priorities lies quality content. Focus on informative, useful, relevant, and interesting content that answers the needs of your target audience. It would increase the on-site time of users, decrease the bounce rate, and enhance the SEO in general.

Quality content should be informative, detailed, and readable. Visual content such as images, infographics, and videos can give a much-needed boost. Furthermore, it must be free of grammatical errors and structured with clear headings and subheadings.

Update Content Regularly

Remember that regularly updating your content can help maintain and improve your search engine ranking. Search engines favor fresh and updated content. Review your webpage or website content and identify areas that need updating to keep it relevant.

By updating your content, you can outsmart your competition and keep viewers engaged. This also signals to search engines that your site is active and relevant to targeted keywords, which can impact your ranking.

Track and Refine Your Strategy

It's an ongoing process, and you'll need to monitor your results and adjust your strategy accordingly. Use Google Analytics and Google Search Console to monitor performance and identify areas for improvement.

Knowing what keywords are driving the organic search traffic, how users are engaging with your site, and where there is room for improvement can be a breeze with the right analytics tools. You can make data-driven decisions to enhance your SEO strategy by periodically checking these metrics.

Conclusion

Organic keywords are vital in driving traffic to your website through search engines. Knowing how to find and use them effectively is essential to improve your search engine rankings and attract more visitors. Focus on creating high-quality content that matches user intent for the best results. And remember to monitor and adjust your strategy continuously.