Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is one of the best techniques for managed service providers (MSPs), like you, to gain new leads. Your goal with SEO must be to promote your firm in front of local business leaders who can buy managed IT services, not to draw any random web surfer to your business. Those targeted visitors should then be encouraged to fill out your contact form and proceed through your sales process.
Remember that SEO requires a long-term commitment, and if you want to see measurable results, you must be aware of a few crucial aspects. These aspects can power your SEO strategy and your overall digital marketing campaign by improving your company’s organic search engine rankings.
Keywords Form the Foundation of SEO
Keywords are terms that you must include in your online content in order to appear at the top of search engine results. It is crucial because they connect user searches to the content you provide to meet that demand. The purpose of ranking on search engines is to drive organic traffic to your site from search engine result pages (SERPs), and the keywords you choose will impact the type of traffic you receive.
To find the apt keywords, you can start by asking these questions:
- What kind of content is being delivered?
- What content-related questions might the user look up on the internet?
- What could the user’s intent be behind the search?
- Which keywords will help us stand out among all the articles with comparable topics?
You must keep three rules in mind when it comes to keywords. These are:
1. Do Regular Keyword Research
Your keyword research should not be a one-time event. Every piece of content is unique, and what people search for online, changes over time. To accommodate this, you must make keyword research a vital element of every content rollout process.
2. Create a Keyword List
Building a keyword list to which you can add new words regularly is crucial. This must be a repository where new keywords can be added while old ones are reused or used as a reference. It will come in handy and serve as a starting point every time you create fresh content.
3. Don’t Go After Competitive Keywords
Always try to use low-competition keywords that are easy to rank for when it comes to SEO. When done correctly, creating content containing low-competition keywords can lead to quick traffic gains.
Leverage Keyword Research Tools for Better Results
A keyword research tool assists you in identifying topics that people are frequently searching for on search engines like Google and Bing. This helps you design an effective content strategy and generate content tailored to customer demands.
Keyword research tools can also tell you which keywords your competitors are ranking for. After that, you can improve your content to target those keywords and grab their traffic.
The following are Backlinko’s recommendations for the top keyword research tools:
- Soovle
- Jaaxy
- Google Search Console
- Ahrefs Keyword Explorer
- SECockpit
- Google Keyword Planner
- KeywordTool.io
- Moz Keyword Explorer
- Keywords Everywhere
- Keyword Snatcher
- Google Trends
- SEMrush
- KWFinder
- QuestionDB
- Serpstat
Avoid These Common Keyword-Related Mistakes
- Random Keywords
Using random keywords will not help your content rank higher in search results for your intended audience. - Keyword Stuffing
Never pack your content with the same keywords repeatedly (keyword stuffing). - Prioritizing a Keyword’s Density Over Relevance
Always prioritize keyword relevance over keyword density. - Simple Keywords
Don’t use basic, single-word keywords because they are likely to be quite competitive. - Reusing Keywords
Stay away from reusing keywords and phrases on several pages in a content piece because those pages will compete with each other for rankings.
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