The ever-evolving SEO techniques teach us new lessons every day, and by now everybody knows that keyword targeting does not work anymore. Putting it bluntly, keyword targeting is dead. RankBrain has robbed marketers of their ability to rank well with specific keywords related to the product or service. But, ranking for keywords remain as important as before and to clear the confusion, you must first understand how keywords differ from targeted keywords. Keywords are phrases used for searching that people type in the search boxes of search engines to describe what they are looking for. This helps search engines to sort millions of information and serve them right one against the search query. On the other hand, keyword targeting means the way we used to use keywords that relied on matching the exact phrase for better understanding by search engines.
Algorithm updates like Hummingbird have enabled search engines to understand the meaning of search phrases much better and match it with search queries. This does away with the need for using exact keyword phrases in search queries as matching the search intent acquires more importance. The days of working with a single keyword that faced low competition but high traffic and developing content around it are now over. Today, understanding user intent has become much more critical. It is the view of the experts at Seattle Golden Search Advantage SEO. By understanding user intent, it becomes easier to include multiple keywords into a single piece of content.
In this article, we will discuss how to use multiple keywords in one content and make those keywords earn good ranks too.
Can a single post rank well for multiple keywords?
Keywords in the content should rank well, or else there is no point in using it. You can use as many keywords as you can use in a single content almost up to 1000 keywords. Yes, top-ranking pages have the ability of ranking for 957 additional keywords as revealed in a study by Ahrefs. And the page that ranks 20th has an average of 225 additional keywords that rank on the first page. It means that even if your primary keyword appears on page two of the search results, there would be more than 200 other keywords that show up on the first page. It provides the answer to why you must build keyword clusters into the content. But ranking alone does not make it a good keyword unless the high search volume accompanies it. It means that you must rank well for high search volume keywords in a single content.
Common features of websites that rank for multiple keywords
Studies have shown that almost 65% content that occupies the first place for one keyword also have another keyword for the same rank having a search volume of 1000. These websites have something in common that other websites do not have. It is clear that anything that helps to earn the first rank for one keyword also helps to earn the first spot for multiple keywords. This means that long articles with more backlinks and better URL ratings have much higher chances of ranking for various keywords. Therefore, it is necessary to understand what is common among multiple keywords that make it rank higher. On scrutinizing keywords that websites were ranking high for at least one keyword was common to the majority of sites. This point to the importance of choosing related keywords instead of trying to accommodate too many unrelated topics in a single article or post.
How to select multiple keywords that rank
Now you face the real challenge of selecting multiple keywords related closely that can rank well. You can use the LSI keyword generator or even use Google to generate related keywords. Another way is to ask your audience for seed keyword, and a fourth way is to check out sites like Answer the Public.
LSI keyword generator
Latent Semantic Indexing or LSI generators are tools for identifying keywords that have relation to one another. LSIGraph is one such tool that is available free and will provide a list of related keywords for any keyword that you put in. For whatever term you search, the tool will give numerous related keywords. Choosing keywords from the result should help to build your outline for long-form content. A single click generates tons of related keywords that provide enormous opportunities for good ranking. LSI keyword generator allows 3 searches per day if you stay anonymous and it can go up to 20 searches if you sign up for email.
Find related keywords in Google search pages
Google is also one of the places to hunt for related keywords because the search engine keeps trying to provide the best content to searchers.
Autosuggestion – The first option that you can avail is the autosuggestion that Google provides while you are typing the search query. It will provide multiple suggestions of related keywords by taking a cue from the tip of the search query even before you complete typing.
Related searches – When you look at the bottom of the search results page, you will find searches related to the search term. The keywords that appear in this section, though related to the main search keyword, are different from what Google had shown earlier as autosuggestion.
People also ask – Sometimes Google will also display a section named ‘People also ask’. It contains a list of probable questions that has a close relation to the searched keyword. When you click on it, more questions will pop up which are similar to what you are trying to find.
Seed keywords
‘Seed keywords’ is a tool that helps you to find out what real people within your target audience are searching for. This free tool can help to grow a list of keywords that most suits your target audience.
Now you know how to look for related and relevant keywords, and it is the best way to rank for multiple keywords in a single content. Going ahead, you must also consider the use of synonyms that enriches the list of related keywords.
