SEO

Small Business SEO Guide: What Keywords Should You Target?

small business seo guide
Spread the love

Afraid to start your small business SEO efforts?

With over 30 million small business owners in the U.S. alone, competition seems impossible. The sheer variety of enterprises with websites can hamper your marketing strategies.

However, a good way to have the edge over them is to target the right SEO keywords.

If you have no technical expertise, it might seem foreign to you. Worry not since we outlined some steps to help you target the right keywords. Read on and learn some good SEO tips.

Brainstorm and Pick Keywords

It’s easier to do SEO when working with a reputable agency. However, making some SEO efforts on your own can help too. The first task is to pick the keywords you desire to rank for.

Brainstorming keywords is one of the easiest components of your SEO strategy, especially when your business is in the industry for a while.

Find your keywords by considering the questions and phrases your potential clients ask. These questions relate to the things they think about before buying your product or service.

After brainstorming, segment your keywords. Make topic groups for the keywords you intend to target.

Start your research once you have definite topic groups. Find keywords that mesh well with your topics. It must apply to your chosen niche and target audience.

Have a Small Business Mindset: Value Over Flash

After identifying potential target keywords, use Google’s Keyword Planner. When using the tool, maintain the right mindset.

Think like a small business and do your best to trim and fit them.

Focus on getting more value out of your monetary investments. Always prioritize spending less while getting a bigger return. Thinking like a big business is wasteful since they’re all about flair and getting the most traffic.

Most small business owners use the Keyword Planner with that mindset. It’s what makes them pick keywords with the highest search volumes. Avoid doing it since it can kill your small business SEO campaign.

The question is, why?

High-volume keywords are competitive. It will take a lot of effort and money to get a higher rank. Even then, you have no guarantees because of the sheer number of competitors.

A lot of businesses sank months’ worth of money and time to rank in these keywords. The worst part is that they had no chance, to begin with.

It only ended up setting their SEO efforts back and hurting their budget.

Look for Lower-Volume, Long-Tail Keywords

Good SEO practice is to look out for search volume. It’s the number of people using a keyword to search. Instead of picking high-volume keywords, go for ones with more achievable search volumes.

For example, the keyword “SEO” is highly competitive. Avoid that and instead focus on SEO marketing.

It’s easier to see these comparisons when using the Google Keyword Planner.

In ideal situations, you can rank for competitive keywords after a few months of SEO work. The chances of it happening in the real world are low.

You’ll have a better use for your time and money if you go for low-volume keywords. These keywords give you a better chance of ranking higher since there’s less competition.

Consider the Impact of Intent on Keyword Targeting

Understanding intent is all about comparing short and long-tail keywords. Always think about the right keyword that will help accomplish your business goals.

Here are some considerations:

Short-Tail Keywords

These keywords are very competitive since lots of people search for them.

They give off a more generalized intent. They might search to get the word’s definition or a more in-depth discussion about the subject.

It’s often bothersome to rank for. Their search intent is vague and general, meaning it offers little to no value to your small business.

Even when they click on your listing, they’re more likely to exit as soon as they get to your website.

Longer-Tail Keywords

The intent of searchers is easier to determine when they’re more specific.

Sometimes, it’s still vague. Are they looking for information or a company that provides related services?

Without a deeper definition of their intent, visiting your website is a hit or miss. Lots of searchers could click away from your website when it doesn’t match their intent.

Long-Tail Keywords

These keywords have the clearest intent. For example, searching for a “local SEO services company” shows they’re finding SEO services.

It also shows that they’re looking for an agency specializing in local SEO.

It’s exactly the type of visitor local SEO firms expect on their website. Traffic originating from this keyword has a higher chance of converting. It gives them the best value for their monetary investment.

The best lesson is that long-tail keywords have higher search intent. It costs less money and time since they’re low-volume. At the same time, it brings better traffic.

Target Quality Keywords Using the “Less Is More” Concept

Small businesses often put lots of effort into marketing but get fewer results.

Time is your most valuable resource. It’s why you must spend as little of it while making your way to the top of the Google search results page.

The premise of “less is more” is simple enough. Optimizing your website for 100 keywords will yield 10 successful ones. These are the search terms that drive a significant amount of traffic.

Out of these, two or three will dominate the traffic share. The other 90 keywords give a drip of traffic now and then but nothing else.

Use the concept and focus your energy on identifying these successful keywords.

Cut the rest out and invest in launching your first SEO campaign. It saves a lot of time while getting the same number of visitors and seo tips for small businesses.

Improve Your Small Business SEO Today!

These are some keyword research considerations when investing in small business SEO. If you don’t know what SEO is, spend time learning about the basics.

Are you looking to take your SEO campaign to the next level or want small business seo checklist ? Use our contact page to connect with us at any time.

error: Content is protected !!