Google and other search engines are pretty amazing when you stop to think about it.
We often take for granted our ability to type in a search term, click "Go", and see results from all over the Internet.
This happens in a fraction of a second.
But if you're a blogger you definitely should not take this for granted.
Getting your blog noticed on the Internet takes some understanding of how search engines work.
You especially need to focus on keywords.
What is a keyword? For your readers, a keyword is the word or words they use when searching the Internet.
Even though "keyword" is singular, users most often type in more than one word - known as a keyword phrase.
For a blogger keywords are the content elements that a search engine stores in its index.
When things work properly, our content is connected directly to the keyword or keyword phrase the user types into the search box.
As a user you are pretty familiar with keywords.
You use them everyday when you are working or playing on the Internet.
As a beginning blogger, you probably are not familiar with how you can use keywords and keyword phrases to help your readers find your great content.
Let's work on the basics.
First, as mentioned above, your potential readers can find your blog by typing in a keyword or keyword phrase into a search engine such as Google.
A keyword could be one word but more often is a phrase.
For example a user could type "Yankees" - or "NY Yankees".
Both of these terms would produce similar results for the top 20 or 30 "hits" returned to the reader.
However, users often want specific information and will use fairly detailed keyword phrases.
For example "NY Yankees 2011 home schedule" or "NY Yankees 2009 playoff results".
These phrases are known as "long-tail keywords".
While keywords such as "Yankees" will produce millions of results - many of the people who visit a site after typing in "Yankees" won't find what they are looking for.
On the other hand, if a user types in "NY Yankees 2009 playoff schedule" the results returned will be fewer - but much more relevant to what the user wants.
As a blogger you will try to rank highly for relevant "long-tail keywords.
" Let's talk now about where to use keywords.
Remember that search engines "crawl" through your blog's content and collect bits of data they believe are relevant.
This data includes the name of your blog, the titles of your blog posts and pages, and the content within your blog posts and pages.
This content is not all gathered "equally" - content is grouped and prioritized using keywords.
The search engines assign keywords using mathematical formulas to calculate what the search engine believes is the topic covered by the content.
As a blogger you'll want to make sure you name your blog so that it is relevant for keywords being searched by your target readers.
You'll also want to make sure the titles of your posts and pages include keywords that are important to your target readers.
Finally, your blog content should target specific keywords related to the title and also to search terms important to your readers.
The objective is to make sure your blog content appears in the results provided to potential readers when they search for a keyword phrase.
Not only that, you want your blog content to appear on the first page of the results.
This is challenging but it can be done.
Right now you probably have a few questions - 1.
How do I know what keywords my potential readers are searching for? One great way to find-out is to use Google's free keyword tool.
Search for Google keyword tool to get the web address.
Type a broad search term (i.
e.
"Yankees") into the keyword tool and it will return keyword phrase variations - including long-tail keywords - for which people are searching.
Keep in-mind the results are based on Google's AdWords advertising program, but this tool still gives you insight into popular search terms and phrases for your topic.
2.
How can I use keywords to name my blog? First, you can't use registered trademarks for your blog name - so using "NY Yankees" or a variant will only get you in trouble.
But you can use the results provided by the Google keyword tool for blog name ideas.
Write down some ideas based on your results and enter them into a domain name provider such as NameCheap (search for NameCheap to get their address) to see if the domain is available.
3.
How do I use keywords in my blog post and page titles? Search engines place some weight on titles when crawling blog content.
You should use keywords early in your title to increase the chances that a search engine will index as relevant for your targeted keyword.
For example, if you are using "NY Yankees 2011 schedule" as you long-tailed keyword, you would create a title such as "NY Yankees 2011 Schedule - Everything You Need To Know".
4.
How do I use keywords in my blog content? As with your title, you want to use your targeted keywords often enough in your content so search engines find it relevant for your targeted keyword.
However, you don't want to use your keyword too often.
This is called "keyword stuffing".
The search engines may think your content is spam.
What is the right amount? About 2% to 3% of your content should include your relevant keyword phrase.
So for 100 words, you should have about 2 to 3 keywords.
5.
Is there anything I shouldn't do? Yes! First, make sure you write your content for your readers and NOT for search engines.
If you work to make the search engines happy you might rank highly but your readers won't stay (or come back) once they visit your site.
Don't "stuff" your content full of keywords.
Search engines really do not like this and will penalize your blog.
Let's bring this all together: Now you have a basic understanding of keywords and how you can use them.
Here are the things you should do after reading this article: - Make a list of main keywords you think are relevant for your readers - Go to the Google keyword tool and get some ideas for keyword phrases known as long-tailed keywords.
- If you haven't got a name for your blog, see if you can use your research to help develop a domain name.
- Use keywords in your blog post and page titles.
- Use keywords in your blog content - Write for your readers - not for search engines - Don't "stuff" your content with keywords