Keywords are the “mirror into your market’s psyche.” They are the clues that your market is readily supplying you about who they really are and exactly what they care about. Keywords tell you what your market is searching for or attempting to purchase online at any specific moment. In a way, keywords are the lifeblood of all your internet marketing campaigns — pick the wrong ones, and you’d struggle to target the right market, effectively ending your marketing before it even begins. For many marketers and webmasters, however, the process of selecting the right keywords is like throwing darts blindfolded. They often have misconceptions about which keyword(s) to target, and while it’s a sad fact for many, it could be an opportunity for you.
With that said, let’s look at the biggest mistakes you’re likely to make when researching your next set of search engine optimization keywords in Milwaukee.
But before that, we should be upfront with you and say that, in some respects, our use of the word “biggest” is a tad deceptive. Why? Well, as you’ll discover during the course, it’s often the “little things” that make the “big difference” when it comes to keyword research and SEO in MIlwaukee. For instance, one little tweak to your website’s copy might not produce an avalanche of new sales or leads. But it’ll help a little bit, right? The trick is to put 100 of these little “tweaks” to work for you, each one making the overall system just a little bit better.
Mistake #1: Optimizing for your business name.
Many business owners cite this as their first priority. While it’s certainly important — after all, you don’t want your competitors stealing traffic from you — optimizing for your business name will not deliver new, qualified traffic. Besides, most business names are contained in the domain name anyway, and will most likely rank well without any optimization on your part.
Mistake #2: Focusing on hyper-specific keywords.
Let’s face it: most of the general public doesn’t understand industry jargon. If your company designs heaters, you probably don’t want to waste time on keywords with low search volume like “low wattage high phosphorous heaters.” Instead, it’s better to focus your efforts on broader demand-side terms like “affordable heaters” or “heaters to keep me warm.”
Mistake #3: Try to rank for single words.
Statistics show that only one-fifth of people search for a single word. If you attempt to optimize for this term, you’re going after the keywords with the highest competition and lowest search volume. If you do happen to rank well for a single word, your traffic will probably not be very targeted due to the ambiguity of the term.
Mistake #4: Copying the competition.
Your competitors might not be as smart as you think. While it’s a good idea to research the competition, you will generally fare better by conducting your own research. Effective SEO means discovering popular keywords that are under-used by your competitors.
Mistake #5: Stuff your keywords.
Webmasters often repeat the same keyword on their site, to the point it gets on the readers’ nerves (a practice known as keyword stuffing). Search engines realize that any quality content will have several related terms on the page as well. For example, websites that sell shoes will probably have terms like “sandals” or “hiking boots.” Remember to include numerous synonyms in your webpages, and the search engines will reward you for it.
Final Notes
Any good salesperson will tell you that your sales efforts need to be “market-driven,” not “product-driven”. Have you ever heard the phrase “Sell the sizzle, not the steak”? What this basically means is that the key to a successful online business is simply to find out what your market wants and give it to them. And the easiest way to do that is by doing your keyword research the right way.
Making the Most Out of Your Keyword Research for Search Engine Optimization in Milwaukee
Coming up with the right set of keywords for your SEO in Milwaukee isn’t a 5-minute craft. It takes time. But once you have the right keywords, they can generate revenue on a regular basis. If you would like some help in researching the most profitable keywords for your search engine optimization in Milwaukee, contact us today.