Choosing Keywords: The most important words on your site

What are keywords, why do I need them?

Keywords are the words your customers choose and use to find you, your goods or your services.

It's really as simple as that.

When a customer sits at his or her computer and goes to Google, they are faced with the search box.

The words that they enter into the search box are 'Keywords'

 

Keywords are the 'bait' you use to catch your customers!

Let's go back to the analogy of the hotel you're building.

If say your hotel is a chic boutique hotel in Bath then your customers might start their search using words like this:

• Hotels in Bath
• Places to stay in Bath
• Weekend breaks in Bath

 

Now they would see a list of results from the search engines that might look like this:

 

 

Although you might be in the results, you will be competing with many of the other hotels in bath and the surrounding area.

Hotels of all sizes and styles from simple B & Bs and business style hotels to the large grand 5 star hotels.

 

They didn't find what they wanted from their first search

Your customers might well decide to refine their search with more specific words to define more accurately what they are looking for:

• Luxury hotels in bath
• Boutique hotels in bath

if they did they might come up with something more like this list:

 

 

Much more along the lines of what they are looking for.

So to optimise the boutique hotel website for the search engines we might focus on the keywords or keyword phrases 'Luxury Hotels in Bath' or 'Boutique Hotels in Bath'.

 

What does this mean for your website?

Start to look through the lists that you have made in the last two articles:

• What do my customers want?
• What do I want my website to do for my business?

 

Start to develop words that your customers will use to look for you, your goods or your service.

 

Use your customer's language not your business jargon

It's a common mistake to start referring to your services in professional, technical or business speak or jargon.

Customers rarely use your technical words to look for your services. This means that they won't use those words in the search engines.

So if you've optimised your website only using your professional jargon or language then you are limiting the likelihood of customers finding you through the search engines.

 

Searchers often ask questions

Customers often type a question into the search box when they are looking for information on goods or services that they want.

• Think of questions that they might ask
• Start to write down words they use when they call you or come into
  your shop or office
• Think about the questions and concerns that they have and how you
  can answer them

 

Time to use the Web Coach planning crib sheet and start to list words that your customers might look for when they search for advice, ideas, goods or services that you offer.

 

Read about the next stage in planning a website 'Designing the website layout and building solid foundations'

Call us to set up your initial consultation: 07941 22 75 96

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