How many SEO keywords should I use?

Focusing on one well-chosen primary keyword per article helps keep your content clear, relevant, and aligned with what your audience is searching for. It also makes it easier for search engines to understand and rank your page. You can still include related keywords naturally throughout the content, but staying centered on a single main keyword keeps things on track.

1. What are SEO keywords?

2. How many SEO keywords should I use?

3. How do I choose SEO keywords?

4. Short tail vs long tail keywords

5. Where should keywords be placed?
   

1) What are SEO keywords?

SEO keywords are the specific words and phrases people type into search engines when looking for information, products, or services. Using relevant keywords strategically in your website content increases the chances of appearing in search results, driving organic traffic to your site.

We like to think of SEO keywords as the language of the target audience. For example, if we are looking at ways to boost the online presence of a bakery, potential customers might search for terms like 'best sourdough bread near me,' 'custom wedding cakes,' or 'gluten-free pastries.'

Using these phrases naturally in your online content ensures that this fabulous bakery stands out to hungry browsers. Kind of like advertising, but for free!

2) How many SEO keywords should I use?

Focus on just one primary SEO keyword for each piece of content. Supporting related terms can appear naturally within the text, but your main keyword should guide the entire piece.

By concentrating on a single keyword, your writing will be clear and focused, directly answering what people are searching for. Using multiple competing keywords dilutes your message and reduces the likelihood of achieving good search engine rankings.

So, we’ll say it again for the people at the back, stick to just ONE primary keyword for each piece of content!

Long post? Short post? Same rule: ONE keyword.

And while we're on the topic, let's debunk the myth around 'primary' and 'secondary' keywords. The problem with this approach is that it overcomplicates keyword strategy and leads to the misconception that you need to stuff your content with multiple keywords to rank well.

In reality, SEO works best when you focus on one strong, relevant keyword and allow supporting related terms to organically add context and richness to your content. 

For example, if your main keyword is 'healthy smoothie recipes,' related terms might include 'nutritious smoothie ingredients' or 'easy breakfast smoothies.' And, for any writer knowledgeable in their niche, terms like these will appear in their content.

So, at Aloha Life Digital, we allow relevant supporting terms to evolve naturally within any content that we create, ensuring our articles stay readable, relevant, and valuable to both users and search engines.

3) How do I choose SEO keywords? 

Identifying and incorporating specific keywords is crucial to enable your business to connect with your target audience. Here's a simple step-by-step guide to finding great keywords that align with your goals and niche:

Think like your audience

As a start,  ask yourself, 'What would someone search to find my article/product/business?'. This helps to get inside the mind of your target audience, and then build a map of ideas based on this.

Utilize free keyword research tools

Enter one of your keyword ideas into a free tool like Google Keyword Planner or Moz Keyword Explorer which will suggest related keywords along with how often people search for them. To boost the potential visibility of your topic, look for keywords with decent search volume but not too much competition.

Check search intent

Type your chosen keyword into Google and see what comes up. Are the top results similar to the content you plan to write? If yes, you’ve likely found a good match. If not, tweak your keyword to better align with what people seem to expect.

4) Short tail vs long tail keywords

The length and complexity of your keyword play a huge role in how valuable it can be in generating organic traffic to your site. Common search terms are normally grouped into two categories - short-tail and long-tail keywords.

Short-tail keywords are broad, general terms like 'running shoes,' with high search volume but a lot of competition. If  a person typed in 'running shoes' into Google, it would probably be because they don't know much about them and have no idea where to start. Not a likely candidate for a potential customer!

In contrast, more specific long-tail keywords, such as 'comfortable running shoes for women,' will have a lower search volume, but are more likely to attract an audience that is already invested in learning more and potentially making a purchase.

Generally, short-tail keywords are too broad to draw meaningful traffic to most websites. For example, a yoga studio that focuses on general terms like 'exercise' or 'wellness' will not connect with customers looking for a certain type of yoga class in a specific location.

So, by identifying and incorporating specific long-tail keywords like 'beginner yoga in Boston,' you're not just casting a wider net - you’re casting a smarter one.

5) Where should keywords be placed?

You might have the greatest keyword in the world, but if it isn't placed in the correct locations then those little search engine crawlers will not find it! So, for every article, make sure your keyword appears in all the following locations:

• Title Tag

• Meta Description

• URL/Permalink

• Headings (H1, H2, etc.)

When it comes to using keywords within the text itself, less is definitely more. A good rule of thumb is that the keyword should only appear once or twice per full page of text. Repeating a keyword over and over will not make it any more visible to search bots, and can even harm page rankings.

Let's take this article as an example - the keyword is 'How many SEO keywords should I use?', and this appears in all the locations listed above. When building an article on a topic like this, we answer the main question and linked topics, without repeating the keyword over and over again.

To wrap things up with a fun story! Avoiding keyword repetition can be surprisingly tricky with certain terms.

Take this example: when asked to write an article with the keyword palomino horses, you’d think it would be a piece of cake, right?

Wrong! Try writing about palomino horses without repeating those words over and over—it’s like trying to describe grass without saying the word green. It’s nearly impossible!

The key is to mix things up by using related terms and synonyms, like horse breed or golden coat. This helps keep the content fresh while still targeting your main keyword, without sounding like a broken record.

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My name's Claire and I’m an SEO and content strategy expert. I help startups and ambitious businesses improve their content, so that customers can find your website in search, and so that when they do, they convert.

I’m a former startup CEO, and I’ve worked for some of the world’s biggest publishers (Penguin Random House, Oxford University Press), as well as training with Google's in-house SEO team. I even built a website to attract 45k in organic search visitors/month. Drop me a line if you need help of any kind with SEO and content.

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