![search terms](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/3hlB7H8Jm58yl97oN0cnkT/ac8ce51ba45d4dcf7d50ff9884fbbb4e/search_terms.png) <a href="https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1454165804606-c3d57bc86b40?ixlib=rb-1.2.1&ixid=MnwxMjA3fDB8MHxwaG90by1wYWdlfHx8fGVufDB8fHx8&auto=format&fit=crop&w=870&q=80" target="blank">Image Source</a> 

Keywords are the linchpin of every top-performing search engine optimization (SEO) campaign.

The fate of your SEO strategy and website depends on the quality and relevance of the keywords you choose to target.

But extensive keyword research doesn’t guarantee SEO success. You need a framework to sort, filter, and organize the selected keywords.

Otherwise, you’ll find your team members racking their brains, trying to monitor keyword performance and rankings.

Keyword planning is crucial for improving the outcome of your SEO strategy. Also, it skyrockets the efficiency of your SEO experts. It even helps maximize the return on investment (ROI) of your paid search ad campaigns.

That’s the reason professional <a href="https://www.gotchseo.com/keyword-research-services/" target="blank">keyword research services </a> use various metrics and tools to organize their keywords.

In the following sections, we’ll explore a few powerful keyword organization techniques used by keyword services. Let’s dive right in.

## 1. Analyze Value and Usefulness
While evaluating a keyword, the first thing you need to consider is how useful it’s going to be for your website.

An easy way of assessing usefulness is to check the search volume and cost per click (CPC) associated with a particular keyword. 

Use any standard keyword research tool to find those metrics for your selected keyword.

Also, run a Google search with the keyword to assess the ranking potential of your keyword. Typically, you can divide your keywords into the following groups based on ranking potential:

- Top - Keywords with the highest-ranking potential and competition
- Moderate - Keywords with decent ranking potential and low competition
- Bottom - Ideal for finding long-tail keywords and variations of your target keywords.

## 2. Prioritize Relevance
Even keywords with the best ranking potential will prove to be futile if they aren’t relevant to your brand/industry.

You need a thorough understanding of your target audience and niche to understand whether a keyword is relevant to your brand.

Analyzing keyword relevance will go a long way to help you streamline the list of target search terms. Also, it’ll come in handy when you’re creating <a href="https://moz.com/blog/the-advanced-guide-to-keyword-clustering" target="blank">keyword clusters</a> for your content strategy.

## 3. Understand Search Intent
If you’re targeting keywords without understanding the associated intent, you’re aiming in the dark.

Keywords describe what your target audience is looking for. Search intent describes why they’re looking for it.

Typically, keywords can be divided into three groups based on intent:

1. Informational (example: ‘content marketing tips’)
2. Navigational (example: ‘content strategy guide HubSpot’)
3. Transactional (example: ‘free keyword research tool’, ‘best keyword research tool’, etc.)

Enter your target keyword into the Google search bar. Check out the topmost organic listings for a clear idea of the search intent associated with that keyword.

Make sure you map search intent to each stage of the <a href="https://blog.hubspot.com/sales/what-is-the-buyers-journey" target="blank">buyer’s journey</a>.

For instance, if you want to attract consumers in the awareness stage of the buyer’s journey, your best bet is to use informational keywords.

On the other hand, consumers in the decision stage of the buyer’s journey are more likely to use transactional keywords in their search queries.

## 4. Identify Brand-Specific Search Terms
Brand-specific search terms are the ones that include the name of your brand/company. Organize all such keywords into a single group. They’re particularly useful for building brand awareness. 

## 5. Sort for Product Terms
If your business offers a broad spectrum of products/services, it’s wiser to sort and filter your keywords according to product terms. You can group your keywords into the following categories:

- Search terms related to products sold by your company
- Search terms related to products sold by your competitors
- Substitute and complementary product terms

## 6. Explore Business-Specific Terms
It’s another clever way to organize keywords based on their relevance to your brand. Business-specific terms could encompass a wide array of keywords that are related to your industry.

You need a deep understanding of your target audience to select relevant business-specific search terms.

For instance, if you’re running a digital marketing agency, business-specific keywords for your industry might include:

- Digital marketing company
- Social media marketing agency
- SEO services
- Instagram marketing company

If your target audience includes lawyers who are looking to establish their online presence, you’re better off using keywords related to ‘SEO services.’

On the other hand, if you want to target young entrepreneurs looking to build their personal brand, ‘Instagram marketing company’ would be a more suitable keyword.

## 7. Leverage Google Keyword Planner
Manually filtering various search terms and organizing them into lists is time-consuming and inefficient.

The good news is that various keyword planning tools are available to simplify the process.

If you’re looking for a free and easy-to-use tool for organizing your target keywords, <a href="https://ads.google.com/intl/en_in/home/tools/keyword-planner/" target="blank">Google Keyword Planner</a> is a great choice.

You can use the tool to filter your keywords based on advanced parameters, such as location and language. Also, you can group your keywords based on their relevance to specific topics.

## Make the Most of Your Keyword Research Strategy
Identifying high-performing target keywords will only take you so far. If you want your SEO strategy to yield the best results, you need to organize your keywords into meaningful groups.

Evaluate the usefulness, relevance, and intent of various search terms to identify the ones that are worth targeting. Also, use a feature-packed tool, like Google Keyword Planner, to streamline the process.


organize

Powerful keyword organization techniques used by keyword services.

7 Search Term Organizing Methods Used by Professional Keyword Services

![Google Reviews](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/UTAF77UefMHtAHrmBNKxe/c3abcf961ce7ffb4909b80b69d4be8c6/Google_Reviews.jpg)
If you own a small business and have noticed that some of your Google reviews are either missing or have been removed, you are not alone. Business owners have been complaining about this for the last year or so.  If you have experienced this issue, you may be wondering why aren’t my Google reviews showing up?

As you know, Google reviews have a huge impact on your business. Your reviews not only affect your reputation but also <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/how-to-rank-better-in-google-maps-in-2022" target="blank">how you rank in Google Maps</a>. Business owners work hard to get clients to leave reviews, so when one goes missing, it’s a big deal. This year, some business owners have seen numerous reviews go missing, not just a few.

If you’re in this situation, it’s helpful to know that in most cases there is a reason why. These are the biggest reasons why your Google reviews aren’t showing up.

## So, Why Aren’t My Google Reviews Showing UP?
The main reason why Google reviews don’t get published is that they don’t meet Google’s guidelines for reviews. You should <a href="https://support.google.com/local-guides/answer/7400114?hl=en" target="blank">review the guidelines</a> to see if you notice any patterns in the reviews that you see published and the ones you don’t.  
It might seem like they are randomly choosing some reviews over others, but in most cases, unpublished reviews are rejected because Google’s automated filters flagged them for some reason.  Here are a few of the most common reasons why.

### 1. The review was posted using the same IP address as your business.  
![using the same IP address as your business](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2IENdjgSQIzqI206RnYYPh/39be9767477b68edce49692a534aa415/using_the_same_IP_address_as_your_business.jpg)
One of the ways Google flags fake reviews is by filtering out reviews that are posted using the same IP address the business owner uses. Google considers reviewing your own business a conflict of interest. Thus, if the person leaving a review posts a review while they are at your business location, it may be flagged. 

This may happen more often if your business provides free wi-fi. This could result in more of your reviews being rejected because they look like they could be coming from you (or one of your employees).  

### 2. The reviewer posts from your computer, phone, or an electric device.
![The reviewer posts from your computer, phone, or an electric device](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/5I5tfiqhQ2m80fhbzR4O2o/38cebbfbb11af2877bf8dfea1e86f252/The_reviewer_posts_from_your_computer__phone__or_an_electric_device.jpg)
It’s best not to ask a customer to leave a review using a device that you personally use or use to manage your business. Even if you are not connecting over the same IP address, posting a review from your own device may look suspicious to Google. If you ask a client to leave you a review, make sure they do it from their own device and from a different location than your business.

### 3. The review was posted from a new Google account.
![The review was posted from a new Google account](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/HlbCsAUAcQlpvC0mCUZFa/271020baaa6654602e56c074710a4019/The_review_was_posted_from_a_new_Google_account.jpg)
Google is on the lookout for businesses that create fake reviews or that buy Google reviews. Google wants customers to trust the reviews they read in Google Maps. Google may reject reviews if a customer leaves a review from a brand new account, or if they leave a lot of reviews in a short amount of time. 

They may remove reviews from Google profiles that were recently created or look for other indicators that the account is fake.  For example, profiles with no name, no profile picture or history, or that have never posted a review before could be filtered.

### 4. The person leaving the review is nowhere near your location.
![The person leaving the review is nowhere near your location](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/eU3Dp4BnB7iwk9MfAAMkG/795b27d0fb7632dd1a9a229ee540e93e/The_person_leaving_the_review_is_nowhere_near_your_location.jpg)
Sometimes a review will be removed because the reviewer is leaving a review from a completely different area than where your business is located. Although as far as we know, Google isn’t tracking a user’s location to see if they have ever been to your business, some users may look sketchy if they are posting reviews from a location that is too far away from your business.

### 5. The reviewer left a link, email address, or promoted their business in your review.
![The reviewer left a link, email address, or promoted their business in your review](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/5uBH6e97CVLxPYu6amDc79/379e68f90227a4ce0a916cf72d013f3f/The_reviewer_left_a_link__email_address__or_promoted_their_business_in_your_review.jpg)
Google will remove reviews from your profile if they contain promotional content. Google does not allow links, email addresses, or coupons in reviews. Reviews are for honest customer feedback about businesses and should not be used to promote other businesses or websites.

### 6. The reviewer left a political or off-topic comment.
![The reviewer left a political or off-topic comment](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/4xMUh0d1GDiXoE9OrFHdJ6/4307a9935893b075203fc63210a8e718/The_reviewer_left_a_political_or_off-topic_comment.jpg)
Google does not want its review system to turn into a discussion board. Reviews must remain on topic or they will be removed. Occasionally, you’ll see a client stray off-topic in a review and this could cause it to be removed.

### 7. You manage the reviewer’s Google Analytics or Google Business Profile.
![You manage the reviewer’s Google Analytics or Google Business Profile](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/6OzuN9bWe8nAoCpHWi7DxN/5bcb31fa6aace5a6392e340ba23e6f10/You_manage_the_reviewer___s_Google_Analytics_or_Google_Business_Profile.jpg)
This is a big issue for web designers and digital marketers. If you manage a client’s Google Analytics, Search Console, Google Ads campaigns, or Google Business Profile, it may be difficult for your client to leave a review for you without it being flagged. 

If your business email address and IP address are used when you log into their Google products, it may look like they are part of your business to Google’s automated system. To avoid this problem, create a separate Gmail account to use when logging into the client’s Google products.

### 8. The review was removed because of bad spelling and grammar.
![The review was removed because of bad spelling and grammar](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2UsLuT2jNiK7vr1e7KVXXC/9444a9bd8305db654c03c9dac519a6ea/The_review_was_removed_because_of_bad_spelling_and_grammar.jpg)
Google has been known to filter out customer reviews with bad spelling or grammar. While you might think this is ridiculous, the reason is actually quite logical. Google uses artificial intelligence to moderate Google reviews. If there are spelling and grammar errors it could look like an illegitimate review. 

Google is looking for quality reviews that meet their standards.  Because some businesses pay for fake reviews, often from people who don’t speak English as their native language, poor grammar and spelling can be a red flag.

### 9. You receive a lot of Google reviews at one time.
![You receive a lot of Google reviews at one time](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/6KI2XY9zsP9zbPd77WxREx/ae68680948c9a626b7bba1c31477d245/You_receive_a_lot_of_Google_reviews_at_one_time.jpg)
Google is always on the lookout for things that look unusual. If your business has only had a handful of reviews and suddenly gets a slew of reviews all at once, it may cause the reviews to be removed or moderated. While every business owner wants to <a href="https://www.badasswebgoddess.com/how-to-get-more-google-reviews/" target="blank">get more Google reviews</a>, it’s best to be consistent when asking clients to leave reviews. 

### 10. Sometimes Google Reviews aren’t removed but delayed.
![Sometimes Google Reviews aren’t removed but delayed](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/asfECYEiwFijezla162pA/8e4212b928b4d72604b7de336648a029/Sometimes_Google_Reviews_aren___t_removed_but_delayed.jpg)
Usually, when someone leaves a Google review, you get an email notification and it shows up right away. But, sometimes a review doesn’t show up immediately.  In this situation, the review may not be removed; it’s just delayed. A review can sit in moderation for up to a week before it shows up on your Google Business Profile.  

## What can you do if you’re missing legitimate Google reviews?
In many cases, there isn’t a lot that can be done. Google has a community where you can bring up your issue with administrators.  You can post in the <a href="https://support.google.com/business/community?hl=en" target="blank">Google Business Profile community</a> for help.  You can also check out the <a href="https://localsearchforum.com/forums/local-reviews.99/" target="blank">Local Reviews forum</a> at Sterling Sky Local Search forum for advice. 

A lot of business owners have reported that they’ve even seen Google remove their legitimate reviews.  Google admits this occasionally does happen. Unfortunately, when it does, Google is unable to reinstate missing reviews.  You will have to ask your client to leave a review again. However, be mindful of this as well, because a client who leaves multiple reviews for the same business can also be flagged.

This problem is not just a problem for your business, but for every business owner. Consistently promoting your business and asking your clients to leave honest reviews is the best thing you can do if you have had issues with your reviews not showing up.


Google Reviews Not Showing Up

The biggest reasons why your Google reviews aren’t showing up.

These are the biggest reasons why your Google reviews aren’t showing up.

Why Aren’t My Google Reviews Showing Up? 10 Possible Reasons Why

According to a study conducted by Crayon, <a href="https://smallbiztrends.com/2020/01/competitive-intelligence-statistics.html" target="blank">94% of businesses</a> invest in competitive intelligence. __Competitor analysis__ is the first step towards understanding the market and the gap your organization can capitalize on. This includes keeping track of your competitors’ websites and learning the strategies they use to improve their digital presence. 

The insight gained from this analysis can help improve on existing strategies and create new ones. This article will talk about the tools needed to monitor and track the performance of competitor websites.

# 5 Tools To Help You Track Your Competitors 
Many tools can analyze the state of your competitors’ websites and give you meaningful insight on aspects such as keyword mentions, backlinks, website changes, and even social media. The following are some examples of tools used to analyze your competitors and how they work towards helping you with insights for improving existing strategies.

## Fluxguard
Fluxguard is a tool that allows you to crawl a competitor's website, find certain web pages and monitor these pages for activity. The software can constantly crawl your competitors' websites and return meaningful insights. The data obtained from <a href="https://fluxguard.com/how-to-guides/monitor-website-changes-with-fluxguard" target="blank">monitoring website changes</a> can include cookies, headers, network activity, and the frequency of visits to the competitor's website.

This data can help you understand the types of keywords the competitor is using, the types of tracking software they have, and how they are being used to target customers. This insight can help you make specific changes to your website that will drive more traffic and result in better performance.
![Fluxguard](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/523eJpQgVyzl1kzNNeiLAo/6006256172509c5a43a680e432de5d62/Fluxguard.png)<div><center><a href="https://fluxguard.com/" target="blank">Source</a>
## Owletter
Owletter offers data about your __competitor's email marketing strategies__. It allows organizations to automatically capture emails sent to their mailing list from a website. The software then takes screenshots of this data, stores it, and analyzes it. 

The tool also alerts you about the email based on preset parameters. This process will help you learn about your competitors' email behavior and offer insight that can be used to improve your existing __email marketing strategy__.

Owletter can help you figure out the types of emails to be sent, the frequency of emails, and content ideas for future newsletters. All this data is constantly tracked to empower your email marketing campaign.
![Qwletter](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2YP0sXs5MTinBxxpXj9gSr/81f671a09a3abfde8b84ea4574f5a999/Qwletter.png)<div><center><a href="https://www.owletter.com/" target="blank">Source</a>

## Social Blade
Social blade is free to use and mainly tracks your __competition's content__. If they have a YouTube channel, this tool will fetch data about subscribers, views, earnings, and growth. 

Moreover, it also allows you to search analytics on your competitor's Instagram, Twitch, and DailyMotion accounts. This data can serve as meaningful insight and set a benchmark to surpass your competition.
![Social Blade](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/55jXbcp2QdDeD2labbIgCk/cc92327ddd1020e4ae0c2e2890898e5f/Social_Blade.png)<div><center><a href="https://socialblade.com/" target="blank">Source</a> 

## Nozzle
Nozzle is a competitive analysis tool that lets you track the __top websites in the industry__, see any <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/featured-snippet-competitor-analysis" target="blank">featured snippets</a> your competitors may have, find who owns <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/google-local-rank-tracking" target="blank">local listings</a>, and even find <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/video-rank-tracker" target="blank">video content</a> that is performing well.

This is an effective tool to monitor competitor __keyword lists__ on a monthly and quarterly basis, <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/finding-your-top-serp-competitors-across-all-your-keyword-groups" target="blank">keeping track of organizations within your industry</a> and the global SERP landscape. It can also show you the highest-ranking URLs in your niche, so you can analyze them using SEO tools for on-site optimization and backlinks. This should allow you to focus on specific keywords and work accordingly to improve your ranking. 

![Number of Domains with Featured Snippets within a specific Keyword Group (2)](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/1EUKu30N1IqRd05WTCfgWK/befb0c9053d7c5323718315eefa446cd/Number_of_Domains_with_Featured_Snippets_within_a_specific_Keyword_Group__1_.jpeg)

## Semrush
SEMRush helps conduct a competitor analysis based on __search engine marketing strategies__. It allows you to track keywords used by your competitors and see how these keywords are ranked on global SERPs. 

Each keyword is accompanied by data such as domain authority, ranking difficulty, and the countries where it ranks the highest. If you are confused with your keyword research and want to look at some strategies that have produced results, SEMRush is your go-to tool.
![Semrush](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/1H6S1lZTpFZIfPIJrYMUGx/39067d85a53429afe7f69726e875d86d/Semrush.png)<div><center><a href="https://www.semrush.com/" target="blank">Source</a>  

# Importance Of Tracking Your Competitors' Websites
A competitor's website can give you a clear picture of how they are performing and the strategies and keywords they are using to improve their ranking on SERPs. Getting a strong ranking on search engine result pages is primary if you want to improve your traffic and customer base. Doing this can require several strategies that need to work in unison for the results to be successful and give you a favorable outcome. Creating a strategy from scratch might not always work, and even if you do put in extensive research, it is always good to analyze any data you can extract.

A competitor doing well in the market is a clear indication that whatever they are doing is working for them. Tracking the movement and changes of successful competitors can help you gain enough data to devise your own strategy or improve on your existing one.

Competitors can give you a clear picture of how the industry is functioning, and analyzing their data can offer the following benefits:

- Get competitive insights that can be incorporated into your strategies
- Find pricing and inventory gaps to capitalize on and capture the market
- Understand what types of strategies work in your niche
- Stay aware of industry trends
- Identify and plan for new competitive threats

## Wrapping up
Businesses worldwide are looking for ways to improve their marketing practices and get the word out to more people. According to a study, <a href="https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/17515631111106821/full/html" target="blank">90% of Fortune 500 companies</a> conduct competitor analysis to find out what others are doing to achieve these goals. The resulting data is then used to devise branding and marketing strategies that deliver results faster than shooting in the dark.

Experts believe that the best way to see if a strategy works is by seeing if someone else is doing it and how it is performing. Learning from the performance of your competitors can help you tweak your own strategies and eventually produce similar - if not better - results. Several tools in the market can track the competitor's website and precisely track each aspect of the competitor and how they are going about their daily operations.

When done right, competitor analysis can be a shortcut to explosive growth and lightning-fast sales for new businesses


Competitors

The following are tools used to analyze your competitors and how they work towards helping you with insights for improving existing strategies.

The tools needed to monitor and track the performance of competitor websites.

Get One Step Ahead Of Your Competitors - 5 Tools To Help You Track Their Movements

Most business owners understand the importance of ranking well in Google Maps. If you are in the SEO business, helping your clients to rank well in Google Maps is what you do. Even if you understand the fundamentals of local SEO, Google is constantly updating its algorithm. Keeping up with these updates is the key to outranking your competition.

Google made several changes to local search this year, and some of them affect how a business ranks in Google Maps. If you want to know how to rank better in Google Maps in 2022, you need to know about these changes.

In 2016, Google introduced what SEOs call the “map pack”, “3-pack”, or “local pack”. The new design featured a map of just three business listings. This small change dramatically affected local SEO. There were no longer 7 spots, but only an elusive three. Getting your business to rank in the map pack became the main focus of local SEO.

## Why rank better in Google Maps?
It is not necessary for every business to be in Google Maps. However, for local businesses, ranking better in Google Maps is the best way to bring in more local customers and ultimately make more money. 

If someone is searching for your business on Google Maps, they will most likely search “local business near me”. So, if you own a pizza restaurant, for example, if someone is looking for pizza, they will most likely search for “pizza near me”.

This is what makes ranking well in Google Maps so important. If your business isn’t in the top 3 spots, your customers may never find you. The map pack shows up at the top of the page <a href="https://www.seoclarity.net/how-googles-local-pack-update-has-reshaped-the-organic-landscape-12952/" target="blank">in 93 percent of Google searches</a>, according to SEO Clarity, which makes ranking in the map pack the best way for small businesses to be found in Google.

Every business is trying to get into this coveted spot in Google Maps. With every business vying for it, how do you get there? And what’s changed in 2022?

If you want a competitive edge, keep reading. Here is how to rank better in Google Maps in 2022.
![google-maps](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/5Fno8XdXYYukJrtvKs5gci/960062999b80fdb274573c95a4deee05/google-maps.png)
## How does Google decide which businesses rank in Google Maps?

Understanding how Google picks which businesses they display in Google Maps will help you to understand how to rank better. Google Maps was created for local businesses - not so much for online businesses. 

It was mainly designed for brick-and-mortar businesses to help customers and clients locate them on the map. This is why proximity is such an important ranking factor. Google tries to show you the businesses that are closest to you in proximity.

However, just adding your business to Google Maps doesn’t automatically make your business show up first, even if you are the closest in proximity. Google uses numerous ranking factors to determine which business shows up on top. And, Google tells you exactly what they are looking for.

### These are the ranking <a href="https://support.google.com/business/answer/7091?hl=en#zippy=%2Center-complete-data%2Cadd-photos%2Crelevance%2Cdistance%2Cprominence" target="blank">factors Google looks for</a>: 

__Relevance__: This means how closely your business matches what someone is searching for when they do a Google search. They determine this based on your business name, description, and what people say in your Google Reviews.

__Distance__: How close your business is to the person searching. 

__Prominence__: According to Google, prominence is determined by information Google has about a business from links, articles, and directories. Google also looks at your Google reviews. Having a higher percentage of positive ratings will improve your prominence in Google.

## Google Maps Ranking Factors

Ranking in Google Maps is similar to ranking in organic search. Google looks at on-page and off-page factors. However, unlike organic search, where on-page SEO is done on your website, in Google Maps the on-page SEO is done on your Google Business Profile. This is why a business can rank well in Google Maps even if they don’t have a website. Here are some of the on-page and off-page SEO factors Google uses to rank businesses in Google Maps.

__Google Business Profile SEO__

- GBP (Google Business Profile) Optimization
- Google Reviews
- GBP Updates
- Behavioral Signals

__Google Maps Off-Page SEO__

- Citations
- Website SEO
- Backlinks
- Social Signals

## How to Optimize Your GBP (Google Business Profile)
The first step to ranking on Google Maps is to claim your Google Business Profile. To create a Google Business Profile go to https://www.google.com/business/. Claim your listing and verify it. Once your listing is verified, optimize your profile. 

__Use your keywords in your GBP name__

Use your keywords in your profile name if possible. Make sure your profile name reflects what your business actually does. For example, if you own a fitness center, use a name like ABC Fitness Center instead of just ABC Company. Although including keywords in your profile name can help with SEO, Google is cracking down on business owners using keyword spam to rank well in Google Maps. Therefore, having keywords in your profile name may not be as beneficial in 2022 as it was before.

__Fill out your GBP completely__

Fill out every section of your GBP including your physical address, phone number, category, and attributes. Make sure to provide a description of your business using your keywords, location, and the products or services you offer. Also, add your hours of operation.

Select the best category for your business. If you are not sure which category to choose, do a search for your keyword and see what category your competitors are using. Add as many secondary categories to your profile as you can (but be sure they are relevant).

Select appropriate <a href="https://support.google.com/business/answer/9049526?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DDesktop" target="blank">attributes</a>, for example, identified as woman-owned or veteran-owned. Select a short name for your profile. And, make sure to create a free Google website, even if you have your own website. Your Google.business.site will display information about your business, your contact info, and all your GBP updates. 

__Add photos__

Adding photos to your profile helps more than you might think. “Businesses with photos receive 42% more requests for driving directions to their location from users on Google, and 35% more clicks through to their websites than businesses that don’t have photos”, according to a <a href="https://www.brightlocal.com/research/google-my-business-insights-study/" target="blank">Google insight study</a>.

__Post updates__

Post updates on your GBP regularly. Although this does not help directly with SEO, it may help with the click-through rate. It also adds content to your Google business website if you have added one.

__Ask clients and customers for Google Reviews__

Google Reviews are one of the ways Google decides how popular your business is and what people in your location have to say about your business. Having positive Google reviews will improve your prominence and ranking in Google Maps. 

Asking your clients and customers to leave a review for your business is one of the best ways to get more Google reviews. However, many business owners have noticed that Google is filtering more reviews, even from legitimate happy customers. Since Google knows reviews are an important ranking factor, they have tightened the ropes on fake Google reviews. If you are <a href="https://localu.org/unfilter-missing-google-reviews/" target="blank">missing Google reviews</a>, Google’s filtering system may be why.

Don’t just ask for reviews, reply to your customer's reviews. According to Google, this is one way to make your <a href="https://support.google.com/business/answer/6335804?hl=en" target="blank">Google Business Profile awesome</a>.

__GBP Behavioral Signals__ 

If you want to rank better in Google Maps in 2022, focus on improving interaction on your Google Business Profile. Google doesn’t just look at the information on your GBP. They also look at what your customers do when they find you. For example, do they call you? Do they visit your website? Do they search for directions? These actions show Google how customers feel about your business. 

## __Google Maps Off-Page SEO__

The truth is it’s possible to rank well in Google Maps just by having an optimized GBP and positive Google reviews. However, there are other important factors that can improve your position in Google Maps. These are off-page SEO signals such as information from your website, directories, social media, articles, and backlinks.

__Website Optimization__

Optimizing your website will improve both your organic search results and your ranking in Google Maps. This is because Google looks for information about your business across the web to determine how they rank you. This includes the information on your website.

__How to optimize your website for Google Maps__

Optimize your website for local keywords. For example, if you own a real estate business, you might optimize your website for “Atlanta realtor” or “best realtor in Atlanta” or “Atlanta real estate”. 

Also, add location pages or city pages for specific cities you service. This will tell Google you provide services in that city and provide more information about what services you provide for that location.

Include your name, address, and phone number on your website. Embed a Google map to your business as well. You can add this in the footer of your website or your contact page.

Add schema markup to your website. <a href="https://www.badasswebgoddess.com/schema-markup-for-seo-google-maps/" target="blank">Schema markup</a> is code that can be added to your website to tell Google more about your business. It provides information like where you are located, your phone number, your business hours, and what social media profiles are associated with your business.

__Citations listing your NAP (Name, Address, and Phone Number) __

One of the ways Google determines your prominence in Google Maps is based on the information it collects from links, articles, and directories. Mentions of your business’ name, address, and phone number are known as citations. Citations are generally considered listings in directories like Yellow Pages, Manta, Yelp, or Angie’s List. Local business directories or industry-specific directories are also a good way to build citations.

__Backlinks__

A lot of SEOs think <a href="https://www.badasswebgoddess.com/what-helps-more-with-local-seo-citations-or-backlinks/" target="blank">citations and backlinks</a> are the same things. While directories often include a link back to your website, which technically makes it a backlink, they are different. A citation is any mention of your business name, address, and phone number on another website. A backlink is a link from another website back to your website. 

A backlink doesn’t always include your name, address, or phone number. It can link to your website’s home page or internal pages or blog posts. Having more backlinks will help you to rank better in local searches. 

__Social Signals__

Having an active social media presence may improve your ranking in Google, although it may help more indirectly than directly. There is a lot of debate in the SEO community about how much social media helps with SEO or if it helps at all. However, having an active social media presence can help because it drives traffic to your website, can generate natural backlinks (from people who might not have otherwise seen your content), and encourages customers to visit your website. 

## What’s Changed with Google Maps and what to expect in 2022

In 2021, Google made quite a few changes to Google Maps, including making it easier for business owners to get listed in Google Maps, changing the name of Google My Business to Google Business Profile, changing the look of the map pack, and adding new features for business owners.

__Google changed the name of Google My Business to Google Business Profile__

On November 4, 2021, Google changed the name of its business profiles from <a href="https://support.google.com/business/thread/133876833/introducing-new-updates-to-business-profile?hl=en" target="blank">Google My Business to Google Business Profile</a> and made it easier for business owners to claim and verify their business information on Google Maps.

There are now two ways to get your business listed in Google Maps. You can go to https://www.google.com/business/ to create your Google Business Profile or you can simply search for your business name in Google Maps. If you don’t see it listed, search for your business address. Then click on Add your business. This will take you to the Google Business Profile page where you can set up your profile.

__Google added new features for business owners__

In addition, Google added <a href="https://blog.google/products/ads-commerce/connect-local-holiday-shoppers/" target="blank">several new features for business owners</a>. You can now message your visitors directly from search, without having to log in to your business profile. You can also see your call history to see which visitors found you in Google Maps and called you from your profile.

Shop owners can now display their inventory directly from Google. Shoppers can now search for which stores have the item they are looking for in stock. This is a win for customers and shop owners as many customers check to see which stores have a product on hand before they shop there.

__Google added several new attributes__

There are now a wide range of attributes businesses can add to their profile, <a href="https://www.seroundtable.com/google-my-business-crowd-lgbtq-friendly-transgender-safespace-32287.html" target="blank">including LBTQ+ friendly</a>, and health and safety features like “staff wears masks”. In 2022, there may be more attributes added to GBP. Be sure to check for new attributes in the upcoming year.

__Google changed the way the map pack is displayed__
![map-pack-chicago](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/4VEnH5GSCZYra2CmvO286p/0eb015658fbe1f8f303cb23a17da15f8/map-pack-chicago.jpg)

In 2021, Google redesigned the map pack. Now when you search for a business on Google, the map is larger and more prominent than before. The businesses also appear on the left side of the map instead of underneath it.

__Google rolled out the “Vicinity Update”__

In 2021, Google started cracking down on spam. In the <a href="https://www.sterlingsky.ca/vicinity-algorithm-update/" target="blank">most recent Vicinity update</a>, businesses that were dominating local search simply because they had keywords in their business name noticed significant drops in their ranking in Google Maps. A keyword in your business name is no longer as important as your prominence and proximity.

Google confirmed the algorithm update in December. Although they did not specifically say that the latest algorithm places a heavier emphasis on proximity, they did say that the update “involved a rebalancing of various factors we consider in generating local search results.” 

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">Our November 2021 local search update has concluded. It began Nov 30 and ran through Dec 8. It involved a rebalancing of various factors we consider in generating local search results. General guidance for businesses remains the same as covered here: <a href="https://t.co/uyXFfmUEIR">https://t.co/uyXFfmUEIR</a></p>&mdash; Google Search Central (@googlesearchc) <a href="https://twitter.com/googlesearchc/status/1471546117125029889?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 16, 2021</a></blockquote> <script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

What the Vicinity update did, essentially, was bring proximity back as one of Google’s main ranking factors. Google has stated before that the three factors they look at are relevance, distance, and prominence. 

As 2022 moves forward there may be more changes in store for Google. Overall, Google’s aim is to improve user experience. This includes making Google Maps more useful to customers using their services.


map-pack-chicago

This is how to rank better in Google Maps in 2022.

How to rank better in Google Maps in 2022

![seo](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/3guvy7qFxmquh5nJSMF0tI/a0d787315b2eae11e9a2fff7866892a2/seo.jpg)
Search engine optimization (SEO) may feel like technical wizardry, but it’s simply the art of making websites more visible in search engine results (like Google and Bing) for specific keywords. 

For example, someone that wants to look at more information about Allstate might type “<a href="https://www.quickquote.com/allstate-life-insurance-review/" target="blank">Allstate insurance online</a>” into Google’s search box. Being #1 — or close to it — is really the name of the game here. 

When you’re looking for someone to __lead__ your SEO team, a few characteristics come to mind: strong skills in seeing the ultimate roadmap ahead, careful attention to detail, and a deep well of technical knowledge. An SEO team lead is always changing and trying to keep up with Google’s curves. 

### Allstate Excels at Making Insurance Come Alive
When choosing someone to lead your SEO team, a deep understanding of content creation is important. Creating content that’s engaging and easy to understand keeps them on the page longer and lets them know the site is a resource they can use again. 

Allstate takes time on its website to explain how its programs and offerings work with feature-rich articles that are perfect for SEO purposes. Visitors not only learn about these programs but also get more information on how to save money on car insurance. 

Building strong content that remains evergreen is a  <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/44-underutilized-seo-strategies-and-tactics" target="blank">strong SEO strategy</a>. The right lead for your SEO team embraces strong content, builds strategies around strong content, and knows that it takes an entire team to build great content. 

### Macy’s Uses SEO to Make Online Shopping Fun 
There’s nothing more frustrating than going online to shop for everyday items but struggling through a company’s website. Macy’s is changing the way we shop online by focusing on navigation and clear product descriptions for every item in stock. 

Good SEO team leads look at what’s working, and it’s great to see that Macy’s, a retail brand going back to 1858, continues to innovate for the web that we have today. 

One of the key metrics in SEO isn’t just keywords, even though keywords are certainly important. It’s about how long visitors stay on the site. A visitor that spends an hour on the site browsing signals to Google that the site does satisfy the needs of its searchers, boosting the site’s visibility overall. 

Leadership in the SEO space isn’t just looking at what’s working, it’s also about looking at how to improve for the future. Like any technical project, SEO is about constant refinement, feedback, measurement, and revision. What worked in 2005 just won’t fly today.
![fast webpages](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/y2Lxp1Gh6VMECWPiUD6cN/686e3e4e2ecafdff43e3cfc10dd3ea08/fast_webpages.jpg)
### REI.com Keeps Search Attention High With Fast Webpages
Can a website be too fast? Absolutely not. You can never have too much speed with the way websites load these days, but you can certainly have a slow and unresponsive website. In terms of priorities, most people expect any web page to load within a matter of seconds. Anything over five seconds is visibly noticeable and can cause visitors to click away. 

REI.com is our next example, and it’s very clear that someone’s SEO team is in full swing at the company. Indeed, speed is a strong indicator, and today’s SEO teams should be concerned with overall page load speed. 

The best person to lead your SEO team should have a good understanding of how Google’s  <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/evolution-google-serp" target="blank">search engine results</a> rank each page for the specific search term. 

### Etsy Makes Homemade Goods Fun to Shop for Online
Etsy is one of the top destinations for homemade goods online. People are making everything from earrings to dried herbs and offering them for sale. The site is well regarded for its SEO, ranking extremely high for numerous keywords and benefiting greatly from organic search traffic. 

Organic traffic is highly prized because, over time, it costs far less than pay-per-click advertising and other forms of paid marketing.

### The Road Ahead for Companies Pursuing SEO 
SEO isn’t just for big businesses. Small and medium-sized companies can study what’s working in SEO and build strategies that work with the setup they already have. When you’re looking for someone to lead your SEO team, make sure that they are taking the best practices from multiple industries from the very beginning. It truly makes all the difference.

Hiring an excellent SEO lead is not just a matter of chance. It’s a matter of evaluating the right combination of technical and presentation skills. Indeed, the ideal SEO team lead can speak to the technical elements of great SEO, like what we’ve referenced above on the leading company websites. 

Finding a rockstar is a cliche. You need more than that to lead your SEO team. You need someone willing to grow with your team.


When choosing someone to lead your SEO team, a deep understanding of content creation is important.

Who to Look for to Lead Your SEO Team

Ranking higher in the search results is the goal of every content marketer and blogger. That’s because over <a href="https://www.smartinsights.com/search-engine-optimisation-seo/seo-analytics/comparison-of-google-clickthrough-rates-by-position/" target="blank">62% of the available clicks</a> on Page #1 go to the top three positions in the search results.

But how do you rank higher in the search results?

That’s what you’ll discover in this article: seven tips for ranking higher in the SERPs.

# #1 - Optimize your meta tags

Every time you publish a new blog post or article, you should optimize the meta tags. Meta tags tell the search engines what your article is about.
There are only two meta tags you need to focus on: the title tag and the meta description
![optimize your meta tags](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2UlKjdbq2zwruWczqZjdKK/b555e8a2e29811a1d469612102df3d5e/optimize_your_meta_tags.png)

## Title tag

Often called the SEO title, the title tag is the title of your article as it appears in the search results. It’s the first thing a searcher looks at when they see your SERP snippet in the search results.

Your title tag should contain your keyword and a benefit. What will the reader get from reading your article?

If you can, try to also include in your title tag:

- A number
- A power word
- A positive or negative sentiment

Numbers are easier to relate to than words. They tell the reader this is a listicle that can be skimmed and easily digested.

Power words are words that trigger an emotional response. Examples are:

- Discover
- Extraordinary
- Latest
- Unforgettable
- Irresistible
- Awe-Inspiring
- Shocking
- Step-by-Step
- Surprising

Here is a list of <a href="https://sumo.com/stories/power-words" target="blank">over 400 power words</a>.

Try to avoid title tags that are neutral in sentiment. People are either trying to get something or avoid something, so titles that have a positive or negative sentiment get more clicks.

Here are some examples:

- 5 Things You Should __Never Do__ When Selling a House (negative sentiment)
- 7 Tips For __Getting More__ Followers on Twitter (positive sentiment)

## Meta description

The other tag you need to optimize is the meta description. This is the 3 to 4 lines of text that appear in your SERP snippet, beneath the title tag. Your meta description should include:

- Your keyword
- A benefit from reading the article
- A Call To Action (CTA) (e.g. “Discover how to…”)

# #2 - Understand the search intent of the keyword phrase

To rank on Page #1 of the search results, you need to understand the search intent behind the keyword.  Search intent, also known as user intent and keyword intent, is a person’s purpose when they type a search query into a search engine. What is it they were looking for when they typed in that query?

I once did some keyword research and found a keyword with good monthly search volume and low competition. The keyword was ‘best free serp checker’. I decided I would write a blog post about ‘best free serp checkers’.

But then I typed that keyword into Google and what I found made me change my mind. Every single result on Page #1 of Google for that search query was an application or a piece of software for checking SERP results.

That was the search intent behind that keyword. People who typed that keyword into Google were not looking for an article comparing SERP checkers. They were looking for the software itself.

There are three main kinds of search intent:

__*Informational search*__

These are queries where the searcher is looking for information. An example would be ‘How many grams in an ounce’ or ‘what is a dslr camera’ or ‘lcd tv vs led tv’.

__*Commercial search*__

These are queries where the searcher is looking to buy a product or a service. Examples of commercial searches would be ‘best dslr cameras’, or ‘best lcd tvs’, or ‘flights to Rome’.

__*Transactional search*__

Transactional queries are ones where the searcher has gathered all the information they need and is ready to buy. Examples of transactional queries would be ‘dslr cameras under $1000’ or ‘lcd tvs under $2000’ or ‘cheapest flights to Rome’.

When you look at the search results for your chosen keyword, take note of what kind of results are showing up in the SERPs. Are they informational, commercial, or transactional? Your web page will need to match the type of search result that Google is showing for that keyword.

# #3 - Study the top 5 search results

A lot of people don’t realize that the secret to ranking on Page #1 of Google is staring you in the face. The top 5 results on Google for any given keyword contain all the clues you need.

That’s why you should closely examine the top-ranking pages for your chosen keyword.

Look at the type of articles that are ranking in the top results. Are they listicles, definitive guides, ‘how-to’ articles, or definitional articles?
If the top five articles for your keyword are listicles, then your article should be a listicle as well. Because that’s the kind of content that Google wants to show for that keyword.

Also, look at the word count of the top five articles. If they all have 2000 to 3000 words, then your article will have to be in that range as well. But if they are all 500 to 1000 words, then that’s the range you should aim for. I’ve sometimes gone up two or three positions in the search results simply by deleting 1000 words.

But the most important thing to do when you study the top five search results is to take note of the topics and subtopics that those articles cover. Your article will need to cover the same topics and subtopics. Ideally, your article should cover more topics and subtopics associated with that keyword than any other article on Page #1 of the search results.

To get an overall picture of the topics covered, copy and paste the headings and subheadings from the top 5 search results into a Google docs file. Sort them into categories and eliminate duplicates. Then make sure that your article covers all of those topics and subtopics.

You can add topics and subtopics to your article by looking at the ‘People Also Ask’ section and the ‘Related Searches’ section.

![people also ask](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/5535blCD03ebiBaLfcd5iS/7df75224853e73026d3371a1cf868bf8/people_also_ask.png)
![search results](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/69auwEeMwz0uorUF9jHQ0b/f2f9efb7b5563e2cad17d595d8c5d07d/search_results.png)

# #4 - Write powerful introductions

The Google algorithm records how long people stay on your page. The longer they stay, the more likely it is that your page answered their query. But if they click away within a few seconds, that tells Google that your page wasn’t a good match for the search query.

And that’s why a strong introduction is one of the keys to ranking well on Google. One of the most effective formulas for writing introductions is PAS:

- Pain
- Agitate
- Solve

Show the reader you understand their problem. Then paint a vivid picture of why it’s a problem. And finally, tell the reader there’s a solution and that’s what your article is about.

Here’s an example from <a href="https://backlinko.com/how-to-get-backlinks" target="blank">an article by Brian Dean</a>:

![write powerful introductions](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/1hxhuaJqNXw7cPcqHj2VOB/d7dbda5ca31cf1ec8d003cfd24b39e9a/write_powerful_introductions.png)

# #5 - Use transitional phrases

Transitional phrases are the lubricant that keeps your readers moving down the page. Transitions are a way of moving from one topic to the next. They are like signposts guiding the reader through your article.

But transitional phrases do much more than that.

They can also make your article conversational. They can give the reader a sense that you are having a one-to-one chat with them. And that’s the secret to reader engagement. 

Here are some examples:

- I think you’ll agree with me when I say…
- Here’s why that’s important…
- You won’t believe what we discovered…
- But there’s a catch…
- Fortunately, there’s a simple solution…

These phrases build a relationship with the reader. They make the reader feel that you understand them.

When the reader feels that you understand them, they’ll stay with you right to the end of the article. And that’s going to increase your ‘time on page’ (aka ‘dwell time’) which will improve your rankings.

You can read more about how to use transitional phrases in my SmartBlogger article: 

<a href="https://smartblogger.com/transitional-phrases/" target="blank">How to Use Transitional Words & Phrases to Make Your Writing Flow (with Examples)</a>

# #6 - Get your website to score high for core web vitals (CWV)

In 2020 Google announced three new page experience signals which affect how well a page will rank in the search results:

- LCP (Largest Contentful Paint)
- FID (First Input Delay)
- CLS (Cumulative Layout Shift)

These core web vitals are mainly about speed but they also deal with other aspects of user experience. For example, cumulative layout shift is the unexpected shifting of webpage elements while the page is still loading. This happens when content changes dimensions while the page is loading. A common cause of CLS is unspecified image dimensions. When the dimensions of an image have not been set, the space allocated to an image will change as the text in the page loads. 

You can check your website’s core web vitals in Google Search Console:

![google search console](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/4J7RYRyOZmxbRRZ7BsZQaO/1d43d02c17297248bfd80ca1dbddaf98/google_search_console.png)

You can also get a CWV report on individual pages using <a href="https://pagespeed.web.dev/" target="blank">Google’s Page Speed Insights</a> tool:

![page speed insights](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/92z3aEbhu9TmcBvBFUPBN/482f48c900913b59c94f833da1c05584/page_speed_insights.png)

Core Web Vitals are mostly about speed - how fast your web page loads.
The best ways to improve your core web vitals are:

1. Change to a web host that has a faster server response time
2. Install a caching and speed optimization plugin such as <a href="https://wp-rocket.me/" target="blank">WP Rocket</a> or <a href="https://wordpress.org/plugins/w3-total-cache/" target="blank">W3 Total Cache</a>
3. Optimize your images by making sure that they are not larger than they need to be (e.g. displaying an image 3000 pixels wide in a space that is only 850 pixels wide)
4. Use an image optimizer such as <a href="https://shortpixel.com/" target="blank">Short Pixel</a> or <a href="https://wpmudev.com/project/wp-smush-pro/" target="blank">Smush</a> to compress the images on your website.
5. Use a content delivery network (CDN) to deliver static web page resources such as image videos, images, Javascript, and CSS.

# #7 - Build Backlinks

Backlinks from relevant sites in your niche are <a href="https://ahrefs.com/blog/google-ranking-factors/" target="blank">arguably the most most important ranking factor</a>.

Here are three ways to build backlinks safely.

__*Contribute to HARO*__

HARO or Help A Reporter Out is a service that links journalists with sources. Journalists are frequently racing to meet deadlines and they often need quotes to use in their articles at very short notice.

When you register at HARO as a source, you can respond to journalists’ queries and get linked to from their major websites with high DA or domain authority.
What sets HARO apart from other link-building strategies is that the queries come to you. Instead of cold pitching people who are probably not interested in hearing from you, these link-building opportunities come knocking on your door. Three times a day you’ll receive an email from HARO with queries that you can answer. 

For more information on this, see my article <a href="https://robpowellbizblog.com/how-to-use-haro/" target="blank">How To Use HARO for Link Building</a>.

__*Publish Roundup Posts*__

People love seeing their name in a list of experts and they love sharing it with other people. And that’s why expert roundups are a good way of building backlinks. 

Reach out to 25 - 50 experts in your niche and ask them for a tip on a particular topic. When your article is live, send them a link and you’ll find that 20% to 30% will either share it on social media or link to it from their ‘About’ page.

__*Publish Top List Posts*__

Top list posts are articles that list the top experts or websites in a particular field. Here are some examples:

- 30 Top Marketers on Twitter
- 25 Top WordPress Blogs
- 35 Top Copywriters on Instagram

Once your article is live, send each featured expert or website a link to your article. You’ll find that a good proportion will link to it on their website as ‘social proof’.

### Conclusion
The search engine results or SERPs are hotly contested territory: the competition is intense. But these seven techniques will give you an edge over your competitors and help push your pages higher up the search results.
Even if you only implement two or three of these techniques, you will eventually see your rankings improve.


rank higher

Seven tips for ranking higher in the SERPs

7 Tips for Ranking Higher in the Search Results

SEO is an ongoing project and a very important aspect to your marketing strategy; it’s not something you can set and forget. Looking at numbers in Google Analytics (GA) and any other tool you use daily, is extremely critical. But what if you see that your Google rankings are dropping and aren’t sure why? In this post I’ll explain the most common mistakes that can lead to a drop in the Search Engine Results Page (SERP).

### Your website’s mobile and desktop loading speed is slow

This is one of the most important things Google looks at when considering what
websites to serve up in the SERP. If your website takes too long to load, this will also cause a <a href="https://support.google.com/analytics/answer/1009409?hl=en" target="blank">high bounce rate</a> on whatever page is being clicked on, and as a general rule of thumb, users don’t want to wait more than five seconds for a web page to load. 

Common issues for slow website loading speed times can be due to images being too
large and need to be compressed, not using browser caching, and poorly designed
HTML or CSS code. 

A tool I like to use and test my website for speed regularly is <a href="https://developers.google.com/speed" target="blank">Google’s PageSpeed Insights</a> (PSI) because it shows how fast your website is loading for both mobile and desktop. It also provides detailed solutions on how you can fix any issues, plus it also gives you a grade from 1-100, with 100 being the best. The tool that I think does a great job on showing what images are too large and are causing slow loading times is <a href="https://www.screamingfrog.co.uk/seo-spider/" target="blank">Screaming Frog</a>.

### Make sure your website is “mobile friendly.”

Making your website mobile friendly is often overlooked because people assume if your desktop site is optimized then your mobile site is optimized as well, and this is not the case. Google has a <a href="https://search.google.com/test/mobile-friendly" target="blank">great tool</a> to check out your mobile site for errors. Mobile traffic versus desktop traffic has been increasing year-over-year, so having a mobile SEO strategy in place will set you apart from the competition, or at least be a competitor in your industry. Here is some data from TechJury that shows just how important mobile was in 2021, and how the upward trend in mobile search is only growing more. 

Christo Petrov from TechJury says, “In the course of one year, desktop internet usage dropped from 54.86% to 48.88% while mobile users' share marked an increase from 37.38% to 47.59% in 2021. Mobile usage vs desktop usage comparison shows that 58% of all multi-device purchases use mobile to close the sale.” Be sure to review your mobile optimization strategy because this is where consumer buying is heading, and you don’t want competitors to take your customers.

### You Could Be Telling Google to Ignore Your Site

This is an often-overlooked error on websites that you could be telling Google not to index your site. To make sure Google is indexing your site, I like to use the Google Inspection Tool which you can view <a href="https://support.google.com/webmasters/answer/9012289?hl=en" target="blank">here</a>. If Google isn’t indexing your site, then you aren’t ranking in the SERP.

### Duplicate Content

The adage “Content Is King” is still the core of any SEO strategy. The most common problem is when content isn’t unique enough or you have duplicate content. Google ranks pages that offer value to readers, which is of course what you want as well so you can get them into your marketing/sales funnel. Just as your product is unique from your competitors, Google wants to see this by writing insightful, useful and shareable content. Ensure each page has unique content and a relevant keyword. Do not keyword stuff by adding the keyword multiple times all over the page - Google will flag this. Also, be sure each page has its own unique keyword. If you use an SEO plugin such as <a href="https://yoast.com/" target="blank">Yoast</a>, it will warn you if you’ve used this keyword on another page.

### On-page SEO

This is the most important part of SEO. Again, using a plugin like Yoast will help guide you to fully optimize each page of your website. Each page should have a unique: title tag, meta descriptions, alt tag(s) and header tags. None of these should exceed Google character limit, but Yoast will let you know if they do. 

Another very important on-page SEO task is to check for broken links. You want the user to have the best experience possible and being taken to a broken link is not a good experience.

Being on top of your website’s data is one of the most crucial things to look at, and while it might sound simple enough, not checking data everyday can cause things to easily be overlooked. Make sure you have the right tooling and reporting in place so you can track SEO performance. If you follow these SEO tips and tricks, you should have your website up to Google’s standards and reclaim or start ranking for your top keywords.

avoid mistakes

The most common mistakes that can lead to a drop in the Search Engine Results Page.

Mistakes in SEO that can lead to Google ranking drop

# Content Marketing For Small Businesses And Coaches [2022 Edition]
The online coaching space is mutating faster than the coronavirus.

If your small online coaching business wants to make money in 2022 you need to market yourself differently.

Differently means standing out among the other <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/03/26/what-is-a-life-coach.html#:~:text=ICF%20estimates%20there%20are%2071%2C000,Global%20Coaching%20Study%20Final%20Report." target="blank">71,000 coaches</a> out there. To do so, you can't take any shortcuts.

The preferred shortcuts of so many other coaches involve paid ads and DMing on Instagram and LinkedIn.

But these marketing channels just don’t work for small businesses. 
How do I know? 

Because I've tried them and I've gotten burned.

You don't need to invest heavily and fail to realize that paid ads and cold calling don't work. 

Just think back to the last time that you responded to an email from a stranger or clicked on an ad on your Facebook feed. If you're struggling to recall a time in which you gave into disruptive advertising, then I've made my point.

Back in 2012 I started <a href="https://emlovz.com/" target="blank">emlovz.com</a> (a dating coaching site) and applied every shortcut I could.

We tried:

- Google AdWords
- YouTube Ads
- FB Ads
- Cold outreach

Nothing worked.

We were about to call it quits before I decided to try one last maneuver: <a href="https://thomasanthony.co/whats-the-difference-between-inbound-vs-outbound-marketing/" target="blank">inbound marketing</a>.

__Inbound marketing__ is all about attracting attention through high-value content. 

Think <a href="https://thomasanthony.co/articles/" target="blank">articles</a> that answer a searcher's burning questions, <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHO8hSNDfi8" target="blank">YouTube videos</a> that potential clients can binge for hours, and a podcast that they're dying to listen to every morning on the way to work.
![Outbound vs inbound marketing](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/1o0DLeygQw7B8v1RRH1Q21/36b664bdaf79d72a2b7a42b73b3c2535/Outbound_vs_inbound_marketing.png)

We decided to invest heavily in creating unique content that addressed our ideal client's pain points.

Five years later and emlovz has experienced a sea change we could only dream of.

Nowadays emlovz.com is one of the largest coaching sites in the dating space.

In fact, emlovz.com sees enough traffic for me to claim we're a 1% website with regards to traffic.
![Inbound marketing](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/5Y5rdfHWwNrqvQVvkKaES4/3502a2a2a39663727386d7005ef40c30/Image_2.png)

As you can see from the screenshot above, we've racked up just under 3 million clicks from May to September of 2021.

But has this translated into earnings?

Yep.

emlovz is also in the top <a href="https://www.ziprecruiter.com/Salaries/Online-Coaching-Salary#:~:text=While%20ZipRecruiter%20is%20seeing%20annual,annually%20across%20the%20United%20States." target="blank">5% percentile as far as online coaching revenues go</a>.
![top 5 percent](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/Oqtcp4pciQQmZ1WW6Og2Y/e8aca0bfc60ac8dc9b0885090c1737b3/top_5-.jpg)

*So how did we go from 0 traffic and 0 revenue to a top 5% coaching company?*

It was because I decided to stop skipping the line and we decided to start adding value to peoples' lives with evergreen lead funnels like high-quality articles and YouTube videos.

In this article, we'll break down everything you need to do to launch an effective content marketing strategy even if you’re a coach or small business. 

## Content Marketing For Small Businesses
"In this day and age, a big part of <a href="https://technerds.com/how-ai-can-transform-content-marketing-in-2022/" target="blank">content marketing</a> is connecting with the customer on a personal level. When done correctly, content marketing can go a long way in building brand trust and adding value to your business."

It doesn't matter if you're the personal finance messiah, if you don't have a quality marketing strategy to connect with people and spread the green word, no one will know you exist.

In the first portion of this article let's take a look at the vehicles you'll use to attract potential customers.

### Blogging Up The Traffic 

Blogging isn't an activity reserved for teenagers and soccer moms.

Creating high-quality written content is the best way B2B, B2C, and coaches like yourself can attract users to your website.

Google Search is where people go when they want to learn something and/or want to spend money.

With a market share of over 90%, it's no surprise that <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/05/18/how-does-google-make-money-advertising-business-breakdown-.html#:~:text=More%20than%2080%25%20of%20Alphabet's,ad%20spending%20globally%20in%202021." target="blank">Alphabet makes 80% of its earnings through ads</a>. 

With all eyes on Google, ranking on the first page (but specifically within the first three results) can bring serious traffic to your business.
![organic keyword research](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/39GAnFHdCUM2hpcxlfMO8u/da9bd93a30b4fdccb8495f3e4fd7fe1c/organic_keyword_research.png)

Getting to the top of Google means your website and brand is an authority.
Being an authority is exactly how to make money through content marketing in 2022.

By landing at the top of a <a href="https://www.wordstream.com/serp" target="blank">SERP</a> and providing a future client with helpful information, you're building trust, respect, interest, and ideally a following.

__This is something that paid ads just can't do.__

I should also mention that creating targeted content is also more pocket-friendly than throwing money at paid ads.

To generate the same traffic with paid ads (which we don't use at all) that we do through our blogs we'd have to spend $36,800 every month.
![organic research](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/4SpaZGpUDJ7j0fgHQYY4C5/bb58b66c9d00688306e64dad3908b04e/organic_research.jpg)

Instead, we spend just a fraction of creating viral pieces of content that thousands of people read every day.

### YouTube Videos That Are Binge-Worthy

Blogs aren't the only content strategy for small businesses. 

YouTube is the #2 best evergreen lead source you can find on the internet today. 

However, many experts think that <a href="https://quoracreative.com/article/video-vs-written-content" target="blank">video is the future of content marketing</a>. 

They say this because:

- Videos have higher engagement than written content
- The average consumer spends 100 minutes a day watching video
- <a href="https://blog.hootsuite.com/youtube-stats-marketers/" target="blank">YouTube is the world's second most visited website</a>
- Views increase as more people work from home

When you're blogging - you're catching an evergreen traffic funnel of "__readers__." 

When you're pumping out youtube videos - you're catching an evergreen funnel of "__viewers__."

Generally speaking, there are lots of people who consume content either/or.

For example, about <a href="https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2021/09/21/who-doesnt-read-books-in-america/" target="blank">25% of Americans haven't touched a book in the last year</a>.

You can bet the first $10k you make from online coaching that those same people prefer watching your content to reading it.

By only creating written content you're refusing to speak to a large portion of potential clients.

But hey, even if your ideal clients love reading, who doesn't like watching a video every once in a while.

Speaking of which…

At emlovz, before we meet with a new inbound client. we automatically email them a form to complete - and we ask them where they found us.

Many say <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHO8hSNDfi8" target="blank">YouTube</a>.
![keyword strategy session](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/FsjLun9ZC05SZaRjZUeJf/6e810c355d30e65d47ad81ea176027e4/keyword_strategy_session.png)

Only choosing a certain type of content means only speaking to certain customers.

Create evergreen written and video content to cast a wide net and speak to as many potential clients as possible.

### YouTube/TikTok Educational Shorts 

Nobody has time or patience to watch a 20-minute YouTube video anymore.

As we've seen with the rise of TikTok, YouTube Shorts, IG reels, and yes even Quibi, consumers are beginning to favor short-form video.

Refining your content marketing strategy means creating targeted short-form videos.

After you write a 2k-word blog post and then repurpose it for a long-form YouTube video, you now want to make bite-sized videos clips.

Here's an example of what a <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rpStGznWoLM&feature=emb_title" target="blank">YouTube short looks like</a>.

So how did this YouTube Short perform?

Take a look at the analytics provided by YouTube below.
![YouTube analytics](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/74tyX3QLJC2gwWu6RVicyi/670650efb26d1d7f09eb88592062011f/YouTube_analytics.png)

3 YouTube subscribers in just 287 views.

Think about that for a second - you take 1 minute to create a short, upload it to youtube, and 3 new subscribers in a matter of a day or two.

Remember, __one subscriber today could turn into a $5k client of yours in the coming months__ (after they follow you for a bit). 

### Guest Posting Boosts Perceived Value Of Your Website

Guest blogging, also called “guest posting” is the act of writing content for another company's website.

Generally, guest bloggers write for similar websites within their industry in order to attract traffic back to their website.

Guest posting needs to be a marketing tool you use -- not only will you be introduced to another company's audience, but any do-follow links that you embed in the guest post will <a href="https://moz.com/learn/seo/backlinks#:~:text=Backlinks%20are%20especially%20valuable%20for,from%20one%20site%20to%20another.&text=If%20many%20sites%20link%20to,worth%20surfacing%20on%20a%20SERP." target="blank">BOOST your domain authority</a> -- just make sure you're guest posting on sites with a higher domain authority or Alexa ranking.

You can use tools like SEMRUSH and AHREFS to confirm a website's domain authority.

## Think LONG TERM From The Start

Creating a quality content marketing strategy involves understanding who your target audience is and which areas of content creation are worth investing in.

All your content creation efforts won't be worth a thing if you don't first establish your ideal audience.

### Select A Niche!

There are over <a href="https://ilifecoachtraining.com/life-coaching-is-currently-a-2-billion-industry/#:~:text=There%20are%20currently%2020%2C000%20coaches,second%20only%20to%20Information%20Technology." target="blank">20,000 coaches in the USA</a>20,000 coaches in the USA.

Most are defined as __"life coaches."__

A life coach is pretty explanatory, it's a coach that helps someone get their life together.

The issue with this is that our lives are layered, nuanced, and all our problems can't be fixed by some life guru that magically has all the answers.

To stand out you must define your niche.

What kind of coach or small business are you?

You could label yourself as a generic "life coach" but what sets you apart from all the other coaches out there?

Either way, you'll need to define your niche.

Emyli for example isn't a life coach, she's a __dating coach. More specifically she's a dating coach for men that targets men in urban areas that are upper-middle class and between the ages of 30-50__.

You may think that by creating a super-defined niche you're turning your back on a large swath of people.

That's true, but it's only one way to think about refining who you are and your target audience.

I like to think that by creating a specific niche you're able to create more meaningful services and content for the audience that your coaching skills can best serve.

### Side Hustle Until You’re In The Green

Be sensible when starting off.

I understand your desire to ditch your corporate job and dive headfirst into the water - but not everyone knows how to swim and even fewer of us know how to swim using the correct technique.

Don't be afraid to build your small business and make money through online coaching as a side hustle to start.

Hell, Emyli didn't leave her corporate job until our revenue was close to $70k.
Take your time to learn the ropes and build a sustainable business before <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/leadership-lessons-from-alexander-great-hern%C3%A1n-cort%C3%A9s-jay-harrison/" target="blank">burning the ships</a>. 

### Delegate And Build A Small Army Of Creators

Being an entrepreneur is a lot like running a country - albeit an incredibly small one.

As the president of your newfound country, you can't possibly imagine doing everything yourself.

How are you supposed to run each branch of your country, build the infrastructure, and make diplomatic visits to other countries all by yourself?

The best entrepreneurs know how to delegate.

Your first appointments as an entrepreneur should be to hire a:

- Ghostwriter
- Social media intern

This is certainly the case if you're building your business as a side hustle and don't have 5-10 hours a week to create new content and execute an SM strategy.

## Research and Build Your Small Business Program BEFORE You Launch

Whether you’re a coach or small business owner you first need to understand your target audience before launching.

Jumping into the fire that is being a small business owner will only work if you first know what you’re getting yourself into.

Don’t get burned by refusing to do your due diligence in learning both about your competitors and target audience. 

Use SEO tools like SEM Rush and Ahrefs to figure out what type of content your ideal client is interested in learning about. 

During the nascent stage of your company, it’s important to identify your ideal client and understand their pain points. You can do this by interviewing those you think would be interested in your business. 

Understanding their psyche and pairing that with keywords they’re looking for is a recipe for creating amazing content. 

If you have more questions about content marketing for small businesses and coaches feel free to check out my website and <a href="https://thomasanthony.co/" target="blank">contact me for a brief strategy call</a>. 

content marketing for small business

A break down of everything you need to do to launch an effective content marketing strategy even if you’re a coach or small business.

Content Marketing For Small Businesses And Coaches [2022 Edition]

Monitor all of your keywords with Nozzle's keyword position tracker tool

There are so many approaches to the keyword tracking strategy and it is not as straight-forward as a specific number of keywords per client or per website.

30 SEOs Share How Many Keywords They Monitor Per Website In Their Keyword Position Checker Tool

30 SEOs Share How Many Keywords They Monitor In Google Per Website In Their Keyword Position Checker Tool

Ian Campbell

Ian Campbell Pic

Favorite Competitive Analysis Tools

What are the best SEO competitive analysis tools? Find out what 80+ SEOs are saying!

80+ SEOs weigh in on competitive analysis tools that can be used in conjunction with Nozzle.

The Best Tools for Unstoppable Competitive Analysis

SEO Competitor Analysis Tool - The Best Tools for Unstoppable Website Competitive Analysis

![New SEO Jokes 2020 Edition](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/62uv1Xc0UKLKK5jXnmFvdp/57750ebffdfed998ad13895c49484c4b/SEO_Jokes_2020_Edition.JPG)

SEO can be stressful at times and <a href="http://workplacementalhealth.org/Mental-Health-Topics/Workplace-Stress" target="blank">stress is bad for your health</a> so lets all sit back and relax and live longer by reading the following SEO jokes.

All of these jokes are brand new and original as of this year, 2020 and created by the author unless otherwise noted. 

So without further ado...

> 1. What did Jesus say to the SEOs? "Come (do)follow me."
> What did Satan say in response? "Nofollow Him!"

![Funny SEO Jokes about links](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/oqz7cLAG1A8hm7D50xhIP/616f49f2758a80612cc686e80d39422b/Why_did_the_search_engine_receive_a_lawsuit__Because_it_was_a_creepy_crawler.__2_.png)

> 2. The surgeon general told some SEOs to stop smoking because there is a link between smoking and cancer. The SEOs replied, "Well...is the link between smoking and cancer followed or nofollowed?"

> 3. What did Googlebot tell all the hyper links? "Calm down!"

![Googlebot and Hyper link SEO Joke](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2TGTwVqbtcxZuCSg8A5wfc/7a3d7b9bc25a8e317d6a058320d15a9c/An_SEO_invited_me_to_a_business_meeting_at_his_house._It_turned_out_to_be_a_Pyramid_Schema.__1_.png)

<center><h5>Is your current <a href="https://nozzle.io" target="blank">keyword rank tracker</a> a joke?</h5></center>
<span class="hs-cta-wrapper" id="hs-cta-wrapper-87cce768-4031-4dff-bbfa-43ad5c96d50b"><span class="hs-cta-node hs-cta-87cce768-4031-4dff-bbfa-43ad5c96d50b" id="hs-cta-87cce768-4031-4dff-bbfa-43ad5c96d50b"><a href="https://cta-redirect.hubspot.com/cta/redirect/2030303/87cce768-4031-4dff-bbfa-43ad5c96d50b"  target="_blank" ><img class="hs-cta-img" id="hs-cta-img-87cce768-4031-4dff-bbfa-43ad5c96d50b" style="border-width:0px;" src="https://no-cache.hubspot.com/cta/default/2030303/87cce768-4031-4dff-bbfa-43ad5c96d50b.png"  alt="Check Out Nozzle&#39;s Free Trial!"/></a></span><script charset="utf-8" src="https://js.hscta.net/cta/current.js"></script><script type="text/javascript"> hbspt.cta.load(2030303, '87cce768-4031-4dff-bbfa-43ad5c96d50b', {}); </script></span>

> 4. Why did the search engine receive a lawsuit? Because it was a creepy crawler. 

![ Search Engine and Creepy Crawler SEO Joke](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/1QcMdzMlaF3TdOv0gQSnD9/a1e870b795944a51dcf3fad684a3c765/Why_did_the_search_engine_receive_a_lawsuit__Because_it_was_a_creepy_crawler..png)

> 5. SEOs prefer canonical tag over freeze tag or laser tag.

> 6. What do you call an SEO sitting up in a tree branch overlooking a field full of sheep? Above the fold.

> 7. What is an SEOs most important question before he bungee jumps for the first time? "Can you please tell me what my bounce rate is?"

![Bungee jumping SEO Joke](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/3UAdOxZQe93gLhLMtBqJaX/e2a9bf03584ee9093f963941583e8755/An_SEO_invited_me_to_a_business_meeting_at_his_house._It_turned_out_to_be_a_Pyramid_Schema.__6_.png)

> 8. Why are black hat SEOs horrible at hockey? Because they spend a lot of time in the penalty box.

![Black Hat and Hockey SEO Joke](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2clcgTdiIvhEPr9yMHcywa/6e93d9147ae71dfe979e7d4cc1695667/An_SEO_invited_me_to_a_business_meeting_at_his_house._It_turned_out_to_be_a_Pyramid_Schema.__3_.png)

> 9. The general state of everything and everyone makes me think that "discontent" is king not "content".

![Funny SEO Joke about Content Making ](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/2g24AWn7N1T1OTYgl6nFY/a21e3c71ed2069c2f43f4b28e0f4279e/An_SEO_invited_me_to_a_business_meeting_at_his_house._It_turned_out_to_be_a_Pyramid_Schema.__4_.png)

> 10. What did the 1 YEAR OLD SEO teach the 8 month old? "Don't waste your crawl budget going for that toy. Just scream until your mom 301 redirects you to it."

> 11. What did the mom do to the naughty SEO child who kept picking his nose? She de-indexed him.

![Funny SEO Child Joke About Being De-Indexed ](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/3hJF1O2hB4NnF7qtSs7Go5/38c6131eaf42cef73d539604d9d2b152/Why_did_the_search_engine_receive_a_lawsuit__Because_it_was_a_creepy_crawler.__1_.png)

> 12. What do you call getting a haircut to look good for your online profile pictures? A featured snippet.

![ Featured Snippet and Profile Picture Funny SEO Joke](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/3ed2ruiHFQ1Zsj8CWe5ejY/67b1d6479ace5d695366d11697bb52f5/Why_did_the_search_engine_receive_a_lawsuit__Because_it_was_a_creepy_crawler.__3_.png)

> 13. What is it called when Larry Page or Sergey Brin get a haircut? A rich snippet.

> 14. SEO: Yes! My time on page is increasing.
Parent: Why are you happy that you are now reading slower?

> 15. When Google launched its Universal Search many people were excited that we will finally discover alien life.

![Google's Alien life Universal Search SEO Joke](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/31Ji6HCbURDqQh2NJlMiZT/d42bde956e32982f610820f850d34d70/An_SEO_invited_me_to_a_business_meeting_at_his_house._It_turned_out_to_be_a_Pyramid_Schema.__5_.png)

> 16. My new GA-bot is awesome! Unfortunately, batteries and keywords are "not provided."

> 17. An SEO invited me to a business meeting at his house. It turned out to be a Pyramid Schema.

![Business Meeting Turned Pyramid Schema SEO Joke](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/60qSpl03t7HkdkZIjSv9xA/9d41066b181e0c50da5bcecca07f72ae/An_SEO_invited_me_to_a_business_meeting_at_his_house._It_turned_out_to_be_a_Pyramid_Schema..png)

> 18. Why did Google cut it's finger nails? Because a lot of websites were complaining about being scraped.

Also, here is some more <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/seo-humor-from-the-twitterverse">SEO humor</a> from the twitterverse that you might enjoy.

New SEO Jokes 2020 Edition

I guarantee you'll either chuckle or eye-roll. :)

SEO Jokes (Brand New and Original in 2020)

SEO Jokes FTW! - 18 New SEO Jokes from 2020

Are you wondering how to use keywords for search engine optimization (SEO)? Do you find yourself at a loss when figuring out where to put keywords in your content? Then you’re at the right place because we’ve dedicated this guide to telling you exactly where you need to use keywords for SEO so Google can rank your pages higher for those keywords.

Before we dive in any further though, let’s get this right off the bat – you need to use keywords in your content. Organic search is responsible for over half of website traffic, <a href="https://www.searchenginejournal.com/seo-101/seo-statistics/" target="blank">51% to be specific.</a> So it makes sense to conclude that your business is losing out on potential traffic, leads, and sales when you aren’t paying attention to adding keywords in your content. I suggest using a <a href="https://nozzle.io/" target="blank">keyword rank tracker</a> to organize your keywords and monitor their performance. 

Now that we’re on the same page regarding the importance of keywords for better ranking, let’s talk key placement.

By the end of this guide, we’re hopeful you’ll learn exactly how to use keywords in your content naturally and strategically.

Let’s get started:

## Where to use keywords in your content: 7 different places to pop your KWs in

Here’s a handy infographic showing you the exact places you need to add keywords for SEO, followed by a detailed look at why you need include keywords in the places identified:

![Where to add keywords in your content for on page optimization](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/6hXVqixeCkvxI8474uQyvq/977e623a117e00bf01e25c161e74b52e/Where_to_add_keywords_in_your_content_for_on_page_optimization.jpg)

### 1. Use keywords in your title tag

Your title tag is the first thing Google looks at when determining what your page covers. It’s also an invite for your readers, which helps them decide whether they’ll find what they’re looking for on your page.

As is common practice, invites are better off when they’re direct, which is why you need to add your keyword to your title tag.

Here are two proven tips for you to correctly use keywords in the title tag:

Use the keyword in the beginning of your title

- Although a title is worth a 100 characters, Google truncates the last 35 characters when displaying it.

![Use keywords in title tag for Keyword optimization - SERP screenshot](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/716KNvNEzzHOTgzkB2g1Vw/6caf9ea4d396a934475327da6e59954b/Use_Keywords_in_Title_Tag_-_SERP_screenshot_with_truncated_title_tag.png)

This means you need to add your keywords within the first 65 characters of your title so it shows up in search.

One good way of doing so is using the keyword right away. This is why you’ll find the following headline style common:

__Example keyword:__ Content repurposing

__Example title tag:__ Content Repurposing 101: Your Guide to Reusing Your Content for Maximum Reach

- Use the Yoast SEO plugin to differentiate your title tag and headline
You also need to know that there's a difference between the title tag and headline. The title tag is the title that displays on a search engine results page (SERPs). A headline, on the flip side, is your content’s title, displayed on your web page, and you can make both different using Yoast.

### 2. Add the SEO keyword in your meta description

The meta description is the small snippet that shows up below your title tag on a search results page.

![SERP Screenshot - Add the keyword in your meta description for on-page optimization](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/7diSOZSr2ZeUFBOOkQpchu/df73551d2aecaf9944ddc1046b1d1130/On_page_optimization_-_Add_the_keyword_in_your_meta_description_-_SERP_Screenshot.png)

I like to think of it as a couple of enticing words that support the invite (your title tag), encouraging people to read your content. That’s what it technically does too.

Come to think of it – how many times have you found yourself reading the meta description to get a sense of what the content includes? In the example above, the meta descriptions give a quick idea of what’s included, like calendar, noting taking, and to-do lists apps in the piece by CNET.

You’ll find yourself clicking on the result with the meta description that speaks to you the most. This is also the exact reason why you need to add your keyword in the meta description – for the reader – encouraging him to click.

Of course, the more the clicks, the better your chances of ranking.

On a side note, Google does not pay attention to keywords in meta descriptions for ranking purposes. You’ll be adding your keyword here for the humans, not the bots that crawl the content for ranking.

Always keep the following trick in mind when adding keyword in meta description:

- Use keyword in the beginning of your meta description
You have between 55-160 characters in a meta description before it’s chopped off by Google like a title tag. Therefore, a keyword toward the start of your meta description is a better idea.

### 3. Include your keyword in the URL

The URL is another important place Google looks at when figuring out what your page talks about. From a reader’s lens, the URL needs to be simple so it’s easy to recall.

Think of it like this – a visitor enjoys your content, even remembers your site, but not the exact title of your content. He has two options. Either he heads back to your site and does a site search or he remembers your URL and types it in.

Even typing the basics like “Visme how to make an infographic,” for example, can instantly spit out your piece (because how to make an infographic is what’s in the URL)

![SERP screenshot showing keyword in the url for keyword optimization](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/7Gfn6xjEXZAr6T2tFZHaX6/7fc1ac42ae2bc83f357d2d07da61162f/SERP_screenshot_showing_keyword_in_the_url_for_keyword_optimization.png)

Makes sense, doesn’t it?

Plus, here are your tips for adding keywords for SEO in your URL:

- Add nothing but the keywords in your URL
- Remove any extra hyphens or punctuation marks so it’s clean and crisp – ideal to remember

Note the difference between an SEO-optimized URL and one that’s not tended to:

❌  __Bad URL example:__

https://xyz.com/content-marketing-tips-that-will-blow-your-mind-away-in-2020

✔  __Good example:__ 

https://contently.com/2020/01/08/content-marketing-2020-tips/

### 4. Don’t forget to include keywords to your content headings

Heading tags like the H1, H2, H3, and other tags guide Google regarding what’s on your page.

As for the reader, headings and subheading improve reading experience. How, you ask? One, by dividing the piece into readable blocks of text so readers don’t run into an ugly, I’d-rather-not-read wall of text (remember, you’re writing for the web – not an essay for your English teacher). And, two, by showing readers what’s covered on the page. This way, your reader can scan and tell if your piece is worth reading or not.

Here’s how to play with keyword placement when it comes to headings:

- Add your keywords in the H1 heading
You have two options here. Either include your keyword-packed H1 heading straightaway. Note how Fingerprint for Success does that:

![How to use keywords for SEO - Keywords in heading tags](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/542nWo3NCkSVrIhsq7mYB6/36033752eb806192bc4f29c0d7374e05/How_to_use_keywords_for_SEO_-_Keywords_in_heading_tags.png)
<center><a href="https://www.fingerprintforsuccess.com/blog/defeatist-attitude" target="blank">Source</a></center>

Or, include your H1 after the intro just as G2 Learning Hub here:

![On page optimization in SEO - keywords in H1 tag](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/1dIfENgGMpQ5YZmIgoPACN/2868cd99913068912d04ba71674ac03f/On_page_optimization_in_SEO_-_keywords_in_H1_tag.png)
<center><a href="https://learn.g2.com/graphic-design-mistakes" target='blank'>Source</a></center>

- Keywords in your subheadings H2, H3, and so on
This one’s important because keywords in your subheadings can show up in Google’s answer boxes or featured snippets like here:

![How to use long tail keywords - keywords in subheading H2, H3, H4](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/54xCFziep3qttrClmgI652/786173230a96e45440645f5c0ea6f1b8/How_to_use_long_tail_keywords_-_keywords_in_subheading_H2__H3__H4.png)

__Tip:__ Make sure you add keywords in your subheadings at least 2-3 times.

### 5. Sprinkle in keywords throughout the content

But don’t be a douchebag about it. Meaning: use them naturally + subtly. Here’s where your keywords will go:

- First paragraph
This requires you to be creative to get the keyword in the first line. If not, keep it to the first paragraph. 

- Throughout your content
It’s best to use keyword variations and long-tail keywords here. One quick way to find these is to conduct a quick Google search and see what results show in the search box:

![Using long tail keywords for seo within content - Find them in Google search dropdown](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/76xWtVDuMa33aU3I8xq4IB/95858f0dbd8d45ddb62ec57673241590/Using_long_tail_keywords_for_seo_within_content_-_Find_them_on_Google_search_dropdown.png)

Also look at the related searches and use them as your keywords variations. Find these at the bottom of the SERP:

![Search engine optimization keywords - Screenshot of bottom of SERP](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/7u8tVTju20cjHkJYaEef5u/952420773b05de518be6e89f4deb05e0/Search_engine_optimization_keywords_-_Screenshot_of_bottom_of_SERP.png)

- Last paragraph
Bonus points for slipping your keywords in your last subheading too.

__Tip:__ Don’t be spammy and overstuff keywords. Remember you’re writing mostly for humans while ensuring the bots see your page too.

### 6. Include keywords with images too

Google indexes images. So when a reader clicks on the ‘images’ search option, he finds all the images with the keywords. Naturally, this makes your content more findable.

Here’s an example: My featured image for ‘email writing tips’ is ranking among Google’s images, but not in the SERPs. 😀 See the difference using keywords in your images can make?

![SEO keyword optimization - Use keywords in alt text and image file names](//images.ctfassets.net/z8uwv83tofbw/3OQFcDwMMhIwnUTtTAvGgg/5c71d86bd417f57361ad027188156482/SEO_keyword_optimization_-_Use_keywords_in_alt_text_and_image_file_names.png)

You have two places to work your keywords with images:

- Image file name
This helps you get your images indexed on Google. A handy way to go about doing this is naming your image files and screenshots with the keyword or its variations as you save them.

- Alt text
Keywords in alt text play another important role – they make your content accessible. Wait, what? Yep. Alt text are small tags that pop up when you hover your mouse over an image. This is, particularly, helpful for those with visual impairments. Alt text is also great for making content readable for those who block images.

__Tip:__ Don’t use the main keyword only. Use variations and synonyms so people and search engines can better understand what your image talks about.

### 7. Last on how to use keywords: add them to links

Links? Yes, you heard that right. This applies to both incoming and outgoing links.

Let’s elaborate. Incoming links are links that come to your site. Of course, you have little control over these. But, when you’re consciously building links, say using any of the <a href="https://nozzle.io/blog/5-proven-off-page-seo-tactics-to-help-you-build-powerful-links-in-no-time/" target='blank'>off-page SEO tactics</a> like guest posting, you can have a say.

In that case, request the site linking to you to use your keyword phrase to link to your page. The keyword-packed text used here is the anchor text and it’s <a href="https://www.wordstream.com/anchor-text" target='blank'>an important signal Google uses to determine</a> what a web page covers. Don’t forget to make sure the linked page talks about the keyword. Otherwise, you’d be linking to the wrong page – misleading readers. That’s a big no-no.

On the other hand, outgoing links are links that go from your page to another one of your pages. Hence, when you’re internally linking content (just as I did above with off-page SEO tactics), make sure you use the right keyword too.

But here’s an important __tip__: always vary the keyword text linking to you. Using the same text for every internal link sends the wrong signal to Google, which can get you penalized.

### How to use keywords for SEO: Best practices

The truth is – an important difference between good content and poor content is that the former uses keywords as naturally as possible. Poor content, on the flip side, adds a chock-full of keywords in the content and throws it to their reader. How well do you think a reader will receive it? Pretty bad, if you ask me.

So here’s what you need to do:

- Always use keywords natural and subtly. This way your readers learn your content is answering their questions and isn’t written to please the search engine solely.

- Write for humans. Ultimately, Google appreciates and rewards in ranking the content that its users click, spend most time on, and link to. So if your post doesn’t satisfy them, it won’t be long before your ranking tanks. Or, like Wendy Piersall says, “Google only loves you when everyone else loves you first.”

- Stick with using keyword variations, synonyms, and long-tail keywords. These are different versions of your primary keyword. Using them comes with a serious advantage – you don’t sound repetitive and unnatural with your keyword usage.

### Go on and use keywords in your content

So what are you waiting for? Now that you know where it’s best to use keywords in your content, you’re in a better place to create content that ranks. Remember, keywords go into your title tag, meta description, URL, headings, and images. Slip them into the rest of the content and add keywords to anchor texts too.

Where to add keywords in your content for on page optimization

Are you wondering how to use keywords for SEO? Nozzle presents a comprehnsive on page optimization guide plus infographic. Optimize your pages today to get more traffic tomorrow.

Keyword placement guide for on page optimization. Get optimizing!

Blog - SEO