Keyword Definition

Keywords are specific portions of content on a web page. The term technically denotes a single word, but is often used to identify a series of words or short sentence as well (though this is accurately described as a key phrase). Keywords are usually referred to pertaining to their role in search engine optimization (SEO).

Keywords are important because search engines like Google use them to help determine the subject or overall topic of a web page. When used as part of an overall SEO strategy, carefully selected keywords are a powerful way to improve your site’s ranking. A variety of tools exist to help you determine which keywords are the most important and which you’re likely to be able to rank for, but expert interpretation and analysis of these reports is still advised in most cases.

Keyword Example

A business wants to improve their SEO, so they go through their website to make sure that the right keywords are being used. The business updates their site to include appropriate keywords in the headline, subheadings, and body copy of each page and blog post on the site.

While some search engines have made improvements in recent years, indexing the content of video or audio files still isn’t perfect, so the business also decides to create written transcripts for those types of media available on their site.

Why are Keywords Important in Strategic Marketing?

Strategy

Keyword selection is a very strategic skill. Certain keywords might be more popular than others, but you also have to consider if you can rank for them. Picking low competition, high value keywords is likely to yield the best results.

Content Creation

Keywords are an integral part of any content strategy. Content needs to be appealing to human readers first and foremost, but search engines shouldn’t be neglected either—and they “like” keywords.