Last Updated on Mai 22, 2023
Bring Savvy Consumers to Your Website with Specific Keywords.
- Specific or General Keywords: Which are Best for Your Business?
- Discerning Search Intent by Keywords
- What are people looking for?
- What is the value of a word?
- Want to Know More?
- Let’s Schedule a Call
- Read More
Should you use broad keywords or specific keywords on your website? Did you read an article about long-tail keywords? What about bidding for keywords? What if someone comes to your site for the wrong reasons?
You have questions, I get it. Keywords feel like they’re traded on the floor on Wall Street. Fortunately, my years of expertise in combination with that of my Munich partner Joerg Geissler will help uncover the enigma.
Specific or General Keywords: Which are Best for Your Business?
I recently talked with Joerg about the difference between general keywords and specific keywords. This is a bit painful for us because clients usually don’t want to spend time or unnecessary money researching sales-specific keywords. But it is a must. No one knows your business as well as you do; your consultant will need to gain as much insight about your industry as possible to discern consumer intent.
Keyword research isn’t the end; it is simply an important first step. Only by understanding the value of different keywords, can you write engaging web content (SEO) while we provide you with relevant Google ads. This is also an important step when bidding for keywords.
I joined Jason Tucker and Bridget Willard on the WPWaterCooler show to talk about Google Ads for small businesses. Check it out!
Discerning Search Intent by Keywords
It’s important to notice what keywords bring people to your site. Here is an example from my own business. A large number of searches related to my specific services are „websites.“ Another is „WordPress.“ Imagine that my website attracts a visitor who searches for a „WordPress website.“ The question for us is, “what is their intent?”
If that consumer wants someone to build their website, that is a potential customer. So, that’s good. But, how do we know that? Do they really want to build a new website? Are they considering hiring someone, or are they looking for information or free advice on setting up a website themselves? What type of website are they looking to build? That’s pretty difficult to determine from those two general keywords “websites” and “WordPress.” (Unless, of course, there is a conversion, but that’s another blog post.)
Now consider someone searching for this exact phrase: „WordPress consultants in Bremen.“ When that phrase brings them to my site, that is a good prospect and most certainly a qualified lead. They are looking for the services I offer in my local community.
What are people looking for?
Here is another example. Someone searches for „social media courses.“ Are they considering offering them or taking them? Why do they use the plural „courses“ instead of „course“? Are they considering Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, or a combination of many platforms? And, to what end?
Here is a specific scenario-search for „online social media courses in Bremen.“ Like the first example, this seems to be a good chance for me. I teach online and offer social media courses. Now suppose they use the plural „classes“ instead of the singular „class.“ And, what does it mean to them that the class is online and in Bremen?
There is also a gray area in the middle; for example, someone is searching for „PPC ads.“ Better, but are they looking for banner ads or search ads? Or what if the search includes the word „social media,“ but the intent is really about TikTok? I don’t offer TikTok classes.
With Google Ads, you can use location targeting and negative keywords to adjust these things, but you will still get some clicks that aren’t the right fit for you.
The best way to ensure customers find you for the right reasons is to have good organic SEO on your website. Even for natural search engine optimisation, the value of specific keywords is still important.
What is the value of a word?
Back to the value question, what is the value of a particular keyword? My website’s best keyword by clicks is my own name, and by impressions is “digital consulting.”
The value of very specific keywords is much higher than the value of very general keywords. Putting them into practise together with your SEO is challenging. It takes time. This is why it’s important to spend the time researching and understanding the keywords best for your business, and the intent and way in which people are using them.
So what to do?
There are many (expensive) offerings regarding this problem but the success relates mainly to understanding clients – on both sides. And, this is a matter of asking the right questions. When it comes to search it is communicating with a machine which behaves mostly like an “Alexa” but has no human name. Did you try to ask Google a whole sentence? Not the voice search, but in the usual input box? The results give you a first idea how your client might search for what you are offering.
How effective this experience becomes will depend only on your ability to understand your clients’ needs. As a small business you probably know them much better than the big companies, that “only” relate to their data. Human communication will outperform machines in many aspects for years to come. That’s the good news and the point to start for you.
Want to Know More?
Interested in Google Ads for your small business? Find out more about that service here, or contact me with any questions you have by using the form below.
Would you like to connect with my partner Joerg Geissler in Munich? You can reach him here: https://die-weboptimierer.de/
Are you interested in how your social media resonates with your SEO? Bridget Willard is the woman to talk with – you can connect with her here: https://bridgetwillard.com/