As marketers, content creators, and website owners, we all want to make our content more visible. In this quest, keywords play a vital role. They act as signposts in online content, guiding readers and search engines through your valuable content.
Naturally, when it comes to keyword usage, a common question arises: “How many keywords should I use for SEO in a blog post?”
Finding the perfect balance between optimizing your content for search engines and providing an enjoyable reading experience for your audience can be challenging. In this post, we’ll explore how to use keywords in your blog posts.
How many SEO keywords should you focus on per page?
Let’s start with a short answer first. For a single blog post, it’s good practice to target a single primary keyword and a few secondary keywords. You should aim for a keyword density of less than 2% to be safe, although keyword density isn’t really a thing anymore following the Panda and Hummingbird updates.
What this means is that you shouldn’t really be asking yourself “how many keywords should I use” on my blog but instead should be wondering how to use the keywords data that you have.
Effectively your focus should be less on how many keyword and more on readability and providing complete information on the topic. Following this principle, keyword frequency will naturally flow.
As for how to strategically place keywords, you’ll have to understand a little bit more about keywords in general. Let’s move to our long answer.
Primary keywords vs. secondary keywords
Target SEO keywords can be divided into two categories: primary and secondary.
Primary keywords, also known as target or focus keywords, are specific terms or phrases that best represent the main topic of a webpage or a blog post. Primary keywords play the critical role of letting the search engines know what the content is about and helping them understand its context and relevance to user queries. You should only target one primary keyword per blog post.
Secondary keywords, also known as supporting keywords, are additional terms or phrases that are closely related to the main topic of a piece of content. They provide more context and depth to the content, helping search engines understand the overall subject matter better. You can target as many secondary keywords as needed to cover a topic comprehensively.
You should clearly distinguish between primary and secondary keywords when creating your blog post. This will help you structure the content.
Which make the best target keywords for SEO?
So, how to optimize your keyword selection process? Everyone has their own process and the selection process varies from industry to industry. However, what you need to remember while selecting keywords to target is to opt for mid-tail and long-tail keywords, as they’re easier to rank with. When you start your keyword research, begin with seed keywords and expand your search by adding related words or modifiers.
However, we don’t just write for algorithms, do we? Since our goal is to provide valuable information with our blog post, you should strongly consider search intent when selecting your target SEO keywords to target accordingly.
Understanding user intent is essential for creating relevant content and connecting with your audience. Determine whether the intent behind a keyword is informational, commercial, transactional, or navigational. Then, model your blog post around whichever it is.
At Ranq, we sift through and refine the large volume of keywords that SEO tools provide to find the most specific and relevant keywords for your content to shine. Each piece of content incorporates primary and secondary keywords in the most strategic way while remaining true to search intent.
How many keywords is too many?
Keyword stuffing is a very real concern in SEO nowadays. Google has cracked down on the practice, considering it a spam technique, and search engines are smart enough to tell when keywords are too frequent or placed abnormally. Including too many keywords can reduce the likelihood of ranking and maintaining a good reputation.
How many keywords is too many, then? Many SEO professionals recommend 1-2% keyword density. A 1,000 word blog post may use the keyword around 10 to 20 times in this case. For best results, you would want to hit the lower range.
Here’s what we recommend, though: create content that sounds natural above all else. Keywords should be the focus of your piece, and there are strategic places to include them, but you’re creating your content for actual readers more than search engines. Supplement your content with variations on the main keyword and make sure you’re matching the search intent, and you’ll go a long way.
Our advice on the best number of keywords for SEO and how to use them
Now that you have a few keywords to work with, here are our tips for how to use them in your blog post. Remember, it is better to focus on topic coverage and search intent than on how many keywords you should focus on per page or even other website keywords rules.
Include your primary keyword in strategic spots
Remember, your primary keyword is the topic of your blog post. Its main job is to indicate to search engines what the page’s intent is and match the reader’s particular search query.
Considering the above, you should incorporate your primary keyword in your blog post’s title and heading (H1). You may even include it in a few but not all subheadings (H2). You should also include the primary keyword somewhere in your introduction, as it helps both readers and search engines recognize the post’s relevance right away.
Even though meta descriptions aren’t a ranking factor, you should still write them and include your primary keyword within them. The same goes for the alt text of your featured image.
When you’ve incorporated the primary keyword wherever needed, you may sprinkle your primary keyword naturally throughout the body of your blog post. Aim to include it a few times, but avoid overstuffing it.
Wondering how to draw the line between too few and too many times? Focus on providing valuable and complete information to your readers first and optimizing your content for readability. After, check the keyword density of your blog post. If you’ve edited rigorously for readability, there’s a good chance it’ll fall between 1% and 2%.
Secondary keywords are great for subtopics
Secondary keywords are great at supporting your primary keywords in covering the entire breadth of your topic. Think of secondary keywords as pronouns: they help maintain context without overusing the primary keyword. This aids readability.
A great place to start using secondary keywords is subheadings. You can use secondary keywords to expand on related aspects of your primary keyword, which helps to provide comprehensive information and capture a broader range of search queries.
Further, you can incorporate secondary keywords naturally throughout your blog post. Just ensure they flow seamlessly within the context of your blog content, making it informative and engaging for readers. The key is to use secondary keywords to enhance the overall user experience and provide valuable information.
Avoid keyword cannibalization
Now that you know what to do, a word on what NOT to do. We all understand that stuffing keywords in a blog post isn’t going to help on SERPs. What often goes unmentioned is that using too many similar keywords across website content can also negatively affect rankings.
This is known as keyword cannibalization. Keyword cannibalization occurs when multiple pages target the same or similar keywords. This confuses search engines, which can seriously hinder your SEO efforts.
Why? When multiple pages compete for the same keyword, search engines may struggle to determine which page to rank higher. As a result, your pages may end up competing against each other rather than collectively ranking higher.
More often than not, search engines will favor one page, meaning the other page won’t receive visitors. It’s even possible that your domain’s authority may become diminished. This is a scenario you want to avoid.
Review your website content and ensure each page has a unique target keyword. If you have multiple similar pages, consider consolidating them into one authoritative page and redirecting redundant pages.
Ranking for one helps you rank for more
It’s also important to note that prioritizing ranking for a specific keyword often leads to improved rankings for other keywords.What this means is that even if you focus on the best number of keywords for SEO, the algorithms will change things up in the future.
Focusing on a particular keyword has a ripple effect. Search engines view keywords in clusters, where one keyword is related to numerous others. In their eyes, if users are searching for a particular keyword, they likely want to know about associated keywords, too.
Therefore, when you make your content highly relevant to the target keyword, search engines recognize its value and authority for other keywords in the same cluster. This leads to improved rankings and increased visibility in SERPs for multiple keywords in the cluster instead of just one.
A higher ranking attracts more organic traffic and engages users better, reinforcing your content’s value to search engines over and above its relevance to the primary target keyword for SEO.. As a result, your overall online presence strengthens, and you have a better chance of ranking for multiple keywords within your niche. Isn’t that something we’re all looking for?
Ranq can deliver keyword-rich blog posts right to your door!
If you’re struggling to find the right balance of keywords in your blog posts, don’t worry! Ranq has you covered. Our team of expert content creators can take the guesswork out of keyword usage and ensure your blog posts hit the mark every time!
By partnering with Ranq, you’ll receive professionally crafted blog posts that engage your readers and boost your search engine rankings with optimal keyword usage. If that sounds like something you could use, contact Ranq today!