Priority Pursuit
A podcast dedicated to helping small business owners define, maintain, and pursue both their business and personal priorities so they can build lives and businesses they love.
Priority Pursuit
How to Choose the Right Keywords for SEO as a Small Business
Are you struggling to make sure your small business pops up in Google search results?
If so, understanding the power of keywords may change the game for your marketing strategy.
In this episode, I show you why quality of content matters more than stuffing your website with keywords. We explore what keywords actually are, why they’re so crucial for getting seen, and how they help Google understand what your content is all about. I also share some tips on how to think like your ideal client to discover the best keywords for your business.
And, I introduce you to some handy tools that make keyword research a breeze.
I promise this episode will help you make your SEO work for your small business. So hit play and let’s get started!
Specifically, this episode highlights the following themes:
- The importance of quality content over keyword stuffing
- How to brainstorm and research strategic keywords
- The difference between head keywords and long-tail keywords
Other Mentioned Links & Resources
Episode 167: Is SEO Worth It for Small Businesses?
https://treefrogmarketing.com/seo-worth-small-businesses
Explore Treefrog’s Done-for-You SEO Service:
https://treefrogmarketing.com/seo-services-small-businesses
Choose the right keywords with Google’s Keyword Planner:
https://ads.google.com/intl/en_us/home/tools/keyword-planner
Discover Trends on Answer The Public:
https://answerthepublic.com
Boost Your Rankings with Moz Explorer:
https://moz.com/explorer
Explore Keywords on Ubersuggest:
https://neilpatel.com/ubersuggest
Listen to The Priority Pursuit Podcast SEO Episodes:
https://treefrogmarketing.com/category/seo-website
Get this free PDF guide: How to Use Keywords to Improve Your Small Business’s SEO:
https://treefrogmarketing.com/how-use-keywords-improve-small-business-seo
Receive 50% Off Your First Year of HoneyBook:
https://www.treefrogmarketing.com/honeybook-coupon-code
Book a Strategic Marketing Coaching:
https://treefrogmarketing.com/marketing-consulting-small-businesses
Join the Priority Pursuit Podcast Facebook Community: https://www.facebook.com/groups/179106264013426
Follow or DM Treefrog Marketing on Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/treefroggers
Follow or DM Kelly Rice on Instagram
https://www.instagram.com/treefrogkelly
Follow or DM Victoria on Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/victorialrayburn
Victoria Rayburn [00:00:00]:
Today, search engines rank content based on relevancy, quality and authority. In other words, Google tries to rank the most helpful, relevant, reliable websites first, regardless of how many times a keyword is included. So if you want your site and content to rank well, think quality of content, not quantity of keywords. Hey there, you're listening to the priority Pursuit podcast, a podcast dedicated to helping small business owners and leaders define, maintain and pursue both their personal and business priorities so they can build lives and businesses they love. Last week, we discussed why SEO is essential for your business and how ranking well on Google can help you achieve consistent, sustainable growth. This week, I want to dive into the first step of implementing a successful SEO strategy, choosing the right keywords by the end of this episode, you're going to understand exactly how to find and select the best keywords to get your website in front of people who are actively searching for your products, services and content. Are you ready? Let's go. First of all, let's talk about what keywords are.
Victoria Rayburn [00:01:08]:
Keywords are the ideas and topics that define what your content is about in terms of SEO, they're the words and phrases that searchers enter into search engines. So keywords are the words or phrases that people Google. And as a small business, you want to include relevant keywords on the main pages of your website and in your content, such as your blog posts, so that you can get your website and content in front of potential customers who are specifically looking for products, services and content like yours. Now, back in the day. So the 1990s and early, two thousands more specifically, search engines scanned web pages and articles specifically looking for keywords. As a result, copywriters would do what Google called keyword stuff, meaning they would put their keyword on a page as many times as they physically could. So search engines would display their web pages first. Today, search engines rank content based on relevancy, quality and authority.
Victoria Rayburn [00:02:03]:
In other words, Google tries to rank the most helpful, relevant, reliable websites first, regardless of how many times a keyword is included. So if you want your site and content to rank well, think quality of content, not quantity of keywords. Now, this does not mean that keywords don't matter. With Google's current algorithm, keywords are what link users search to your website and help Google determine what kinds of searches you can help its users with. As a result, if you're spending time or money building a website or creating blog posts, but you aren't taking the time to choose and use the right keywords, you're doing yourself and your business a huge disservice here's why. Google's goal is to provide users with the most relevant, helpful and trustworthy information for their searches. And keywords are the bridge between what people are searching for and the websites and content Google ranks so when Google crawls your website, meaning when it looks at your site to understand it and add it to its database, it looks at what keywords you use so it can better understand what your website and content are about. Without keywords, even if you've created incredibly helpful content, Google is less likely to show what searches your site should rank.
Victoria Rayburn [00:03:24]:
Well for for example, let's say you run a landscaping business and you write a great blog post about low maintenance plants. Well, if you don't include a relevant keyword like low maintenance landscaping ideas or best plants for easy yard care, Google won't necessarily know that your post is a perfect match for people searching for those terms. Basically, by not including keywords or by not utilizing the right keywords, you're limiting the reach of your website and content. I mean, your site might include the exact information your ideal client is looking for. But if Google can't understand what a webpage or piece of content is about and connect it to what people are searching for, your dream customers may never find your content. They may never find your website. They may never find your business, which means lost business and opportunities for you simply because you aren't using keywords. So in short, keywords help Google, and other search engines for that matter, understand the relevance of your website, web pages and content, which increases the chances of your site and content ranking well.
Victoria Rayburn [00:04:24]:
So if you're already investing time or money in a strategic website and in content creation, which you should be as a small business, just for the record, you need to take the extra step of choosing and strategically placing the right keywords. Otherwise, to put it bluntly, your website and content are a waste of time and money because people won't be able to find it. So yes, keywords are important, but how do you choose the right keywords? How do you know which keywords are strategic and will help your site rank well and your business grow? Let's get into this step by step. So first, you need to think like your ideal client. What are they searching for when they need product, services or content like yours? What questions are they asking Google or other search engines to identify strategic keywords? Simply start by brainstorming the phrases, questions or problems your ideal customer might be typing in the search bar. For example, if you own a coffee shop in downtown Indianapolis, your clients are probably searching for things like coffee shops in downtown Indianapolis or drive through coffee in downtown Indianapolis. So I know if someone could, could please, please put a coffee shop with a drive through in downtown Indy, I would be so grateful. I often have my daughter and Hattie our gold doodle in the car with me, and taking them both into a coffee shop is, well, not always practical.
Victoria Rayburn [00:05:40]:
Especially if a baby girl is asleep or if a coffee shop isn't dog friendly because my very clingy dog cannot stand be left alone for even a few minutes. But anyway, maybe I can speak that into existence, but the goal here is to focus on search intent. So what is the actual problem your client is trying to solve? What is the specific information that they're searching for? Whether you're trying to determine keywords for a blog post or a webpage, write down all of the phrases that come to mind. Then, once you've brainstormed a few ideas, you'll want to expand your list using keyword research tools. Now, there are so many online tools available. Some are free, some come with hefty price tags. Now, if you are handling your own SEO, I don't necessarily recommend dropping hundreds of dollars on SEO tools. While the data they offer can be helpful, chances are these tools are just more robust than you need, making them a waste of money.
Victoria Rayburn [00:06:36]:
But some of my favorite tools for small business keyword research include Google's Keyword planner. This is great for finding keywords directly from Google's data. I also highly recommend answer the public. This tool gives you a list of keyword phrases and questions people are actually asking online. Then Moz, keyword explorer and Ubersuggest are also great tools that give you a few free searches per day. When you set up a free account, we will be sure to include links to all of those tools in the show notes, but basically plug in the initial keywords you brainstormed into those tools. Then they'll suggest additional keywords you might not have thought of and help you determine which keywords you should prioritize and which will be the most effective for your business. Now really quick, I also want to note that keyword research can help you determine what kind of content you should be creating.
Victoria Rayburn [00:07:23]:
Whether you think of things that your ideal clients are searching for or you gain ideas during the research, file this information away and use it to create webpages or blog posts around these keywords in the future. For example, let's pretend you're a wedding planner. Maybe in your keyword research, you discover that people are specifically looking for rooftop wedding venues in your city well, you could write a blog about rooftop wedding venues and use the keyword rooftop wedding venues in Indianapolis or wherever you're located. Basically, just know that you can use keyword research to one, determine keywords for the content and pages you already have, and two, to strategically decide what new pages or content to create in the future.
Natalie Franke [00:08:02]:
What would you do with an extra 45 minutes every workday that would save you 16 hours a month or roughly eight days a year? And over the course of your career, we're talking about over one year of your life. Saved all that time back? Well, many independent business owners spend far more than 45 minutes a day on administrative tasks, and with honeybook you can get that time back, and then some. Honeybook lets you easily manage projects, contracts, invoices, scheduling and client communication, saving you time and allowing you to better serve your clients. For a discount on your first year of Honeybook, visit honeybook.com and subscribe with the code priority pursuit. 45 minutes a day adds up quickly. Use it to focus on what matters most. Many small businesses don't have an effective marketing strategy, and because of this, they try one tactic after another without seeing results. This not only prevents consistent business growth, it makes managing marketing marketing efforts more difficult than it should be.
Kelly Rice [00:09:01]:
As a marketing agency for small businesses, we understand how frustrating it can be when hard work doesn't deliver the results that you want. Because of this, Treefrog has developed a proven four step marketing system that will help any small business grow. On our website, you can also schedule a 30 minutes discovery call to discuss working with Treefrog to build a marketing strategy that will allow your small business to finally see the growth you've been working so hard to achieve.
Victoria Rayburn [00:09:25]:
Whether you're trying to determine which keywords to use on your website or what keyword to use for a new blog post you're working on, it's crucial to understand the difference between head keywords and long tail keywords. First, head keywords are broad terms like landscaper or coffee shop. Now, these kinds of broad keywords are incredibly competitive because there are so many landscapers and coffee shops in the world, and because these keywords are just too general to rank well for, especially as a small business. Now, long tail keywords, on the other hand, are more specific phrases, and they are just closer to what your audience is actually typing in. These keywords typically have three or more words and are less competitive, making them easier to rank well for they're also more likely to match your customer search intent, which makes it more likely for your ideal customers to find your site and content so that they can do business with you. So for example, instead of using just landscaper, which is a head keyword, a long tail keyword might be best landscaping companies in Indianapolis. Instead of plants, which is also a head keyword, a long tail keyword could be plants that do well in full sun. Long tail keywords are powerful because more than 70% of all Google searches are long tail.
Victoria Rayburn [00:10:41]:
So by optimizing your content for these phrases, you're making it much more likely for your ideal clients to find you. So with this information in mind, I want to encourage you to use long tail keywords for every web page and blog posts. Focus Keyword now, if you have no idea what I'm talking about, let's talk about focus and secondary keywords. You see, if you want your web pages and blog posts to rank well, you need to make sure every page or post is optimized around a single focus keyword and often supporting secondary keywords. A focus keyword is the main term or phrase you want your specific keyword or post to rank well for on search engines, this helps Google understand the central topic of your page or content. So by writing your copy around a single, clearly defined, focused keyword, you increase your chances of ranking higher for that specific term. But you don't want to stop there. To help Google better understand the full scope of your page or content, it's important to also include secondary keywords, which are related terms that complement your focus keyword.
Victoria Rayburn [00:11:45]:
These secondary keywords allow you to cover more ground by addressing variation, subtopics or synonyms that people might also be searching for. So, for example, if your long tail keyword is lawn care services in Indianapolis, your secondary keywords might be landscaping or affordable lawn care. By the way, you can absolutely use head keywords. So those broad keywords we talked about as secondary keywords. But by using both a focus keyword and secondary keywords, you're making your content more comprehensive and helping Google see your content as a valuable and relevant resource. This approach can allow you to rank for multiple related searches and increase your chances of getting found by your ideal clients. Now, I know that's a lot of information, especially if you are new to SEO. But long story short, as a small business, long tail keywords are going to make you more likely to reach your ideal clients via Google.
Victoria Rayburn [00:12:37]:
As a result, you want to use long tail keywords as your focus keywords. So those keywords that have three or more words, just as a general rule of thumb, then you could use related terms and even head keywords as secondary keywords to further support each page or blog post. All right, once you have a list of potential keywords, you need to evaluate them by looking at their search volume, which is how many times your keywords are searched for on a monthly basis. As you assess your keywords, your goal is to find that sweet spot between where your keywords have enough search volume to bring in traffic, but not so much competition that it's impossible to rank well for. So as a general rule of thumb, aim for keywords that have between 100 to 1000 searches per month. These are low enough to give you a fighting chance at ranking well and high enough that they'll bring in traffic. It can also be strategic to go for the low hanging fruit, which are keywords that have ten to 100 searches per month. You may not gain a ton of traffic from these keywords.
Victoria Rayburn [00:13:41]:
However, the traffic you do get will be genuinely interested in your content. You can use Google's Keyword planner as well as the other keyword tools we discussed to find the search volume for each term you want to explore. Now, as you look at search volume, I know using long tail keywords instead of head keywords might seem counterintuitive when you see that, for example, 1 million to 10 million people are searching for coffee shops every month and only 100 to 1000 are searching for downtown Indianapolis coffee shops. But the fact of the matter is that you don't need to rank well for coffee shops because if you're based in Indianapolis, your ideal clients aren't worldwide. Chances are nobody from California, France or even Illinois, which if you're not familiar with the midwest, it's just one state over, is going to travel to enjoy your coffee. But when you use keywords like downtown Indianapolis coffee shops, you're much more likely to, one, rank well, two, reach potential customers who are looking for exactly what you have to offer, and three, make sales, which is, you know, the goal at the end of the day. So to give you an online business example, maybe you're a virtual assistant. The term virtual assistant receives 10,000 to 10,0000 searches per month.
Victoria Rayburn [00:14:53]:
As a result, it's going to be difficult to rank for this keyword. However, perhaps you have a niche. Maybe you're a VA specifically for wedding photographers. Well, virtual assistant for wedding photographers as a search volume of ten to 100 searches per month. So using this long tail keyword is going to make you very, just so much more likely to show up in search results and to reach people who are actively looking for your services. Now, ten to 100 searches might not sound like a lot, but let's say you're a VA who only needs five clients. Well, if you rank on the first page of search results for one year, that gives you the opportunity to reach up to 1200 prospects, which is huge considering you only need five of them to book. So as you go through your list of possible keywords, make sure that the keywords you choose have somewhere between ten to 1000 searches per month because these targeted keywords are going to help you actually reach your business goals.
Victoria Rayburn [00:15:52]:
Now, as you research and choose keywords, one thing I can't stress enough is to make sure that every blog post or webpage has its own unique focus keyword. You don't want to optimize two different pages for the same keyword because these pages will end up competing with one another. This is what Google calls keyword cannibalization and it can confuse search engines about which pages to rank well. So if you've already used a certain keyword on one of your pages, you need to find a different one for your new content. Now don't worry if you're into this issue, no big deal. Chances are you can just tweak the keyword for your new page or post just slightly. For example, if you've already optimized for best lawn care services in Indianapolis, your new page could target eco friendly lawn care services in Indianapolis. So make sure you don't use the same focus keyword more than once.
Victoria Rayburn [00:16:43]:
To do this, I recommend keeping track of all of your keywords in a spreadsheet so that you can easily refer to them. But chances are your web builder or blog will also tell you if you've used a keyword in the past. So, for example, if you have a WordPress blog and you install the yoast SEO plugin, yoast will tell you if you've used the keyword before. It will put a orange or red light and it will let you know, hey, you've already used this, don't do that again. Now once you've chosen your focus keyword and any supporting keywords for a webpage or blog post, you have to put them to work, meaning you have to put them in key places, on webpages or in blog posts. You can make the world's most beautiful spreadsheet, but your keywords are only going to help you if you include them in the right places. Now I could tell you where to put your keywords. However, my experience this is something that's so much easier to understand when someone shows you.
Victoria Rayburn [00:17:36]:
So with this in mind, I want to encourage you to check out our free guide how to use keywords to improve your small businesses SEO. This guide walks you through exactly how to choose keywords like we just discussed. In case having written step by step instructions is helpful to you and shows you exactly how to use keywords and where to put them on your site. Now you can find how to use keywords to improve your small business SEO in the show notes or by going to treefrogmarketing.com keywords. Again, you can find this guide by going to treefrogmarketing.com keywords or by visiting the link in the show notes. At the end of the day friend if you're not optimizing your website and blog posts for search engines, you're doing your business and yourself a major disservice. If you're investing time and or money into building a website or creating content without optimizing for keywords, your site and content simply won't reach as many people as they could, which limits your small business's ability to grow. Google and other search engines need a little help to understand what your content is about, and keywords are the way to make that happen, because without proper optimization, your target audience may never find the helpful content you've created.
Victoria Rayburn [00:18:43]:
The process of choosing keywords might feel overwhelming, but that's just because it's new. You simply need to think like your ideal client, use keyword research tools to your advantage, focus on long tail keywords, make keyword decisions based on search volume and competition, and avoid keyword cannibalization and then put keywords in the right places on your website. Following these steps will help you get the most out of your website and content and drastically increase your chances of reaching the people who want and need your products, services and content now friend well, I firmly believe that you can learn how to identify and use strategic keywords. There are only so many hours in a day and truthfully using strategic keywords is just one small part of developing and implementing a successful SEO strategy. If you don't have time to handle your own SEO, please know that we are here to help with treefrogs done for you SEO service. We'll create an SEO strategy for you based on your business goals and optimize your website for search engines, which includes conducting keyword research and getting them on your website for you. To learn more about our done for you SEO service, visit the link in the show notes or go to treefrogmarketing.com to explore the service and schedule a discovery call. Again as a small business owner, I know you don't have time for one more thing, but SEO isn't something you can likely afford to put on the back burner.
Victoria Rayburn [00:20:07]:
The longer your website doesn't appear at the top of Google search results, the more business and opportunities you miss out on. SEO can do huge things for small businesses. So friend, please do not wait. Whether that means learning SEO yourself or investing in SEO services, make SEO a top marketing priority so you can stop chasing business, generate consistent leads, and experience the sustainable growth and success you deserve. On that note, friend, be sure to check out the show notes or visit treefrogmarketing.com to find all mentioned resources. And thank you so much for tuning in to another episode of the Priority Pursuit podcast. If you enjoyed this episode, I hope you'll take a moment to share it with your small business friends to leave us a review on Apple Podcasts and that you'll join us next week for even more marketing boundary and priority driven tactics you can use to build a life and a small business that you love.