In last week’s blog, we discussed what keyword stuffing is and what it can lead to. Today, we are taking things further and explaining both the good and bad practices in keyword usage, the DOs and the DON’Ts, if you will.
Resist the Temptation It Is Simply Not Worth It
Many marketers are using the keyword stuffing approach in their content marketing strategy in an attempt to boost rankings, believing it to be an advantageous practice that will get them ahead of their competitors. Our advice is, resist the temptation to do it, as it is simply not worth crippling your site’s standing with search engines over a practice that doesn’t work anymore.
The Common DON’Ts
Aside from overdosing on keywords in plain sight, some marketers are taking a “smarter” approach and are using the keywords invisibly. This includes camouflaging text and making it the same color as the page’s background, placing text within the code of the page, such as in comment, meta, and alt tags. This attempt to fool search engines is rather foolish as bots can recognize these misguided efforts and land a penalty in your lap.
Use Keywords Responsibly, the DOs
Yes, But How?
- Choose a primary keyword to each page — don’t make the mistake of targeting too many keywords in a page. Pick one, ideally a low-competition one, and you can add secondary keywords.
- Use the appropriate primary keyword density.
- Use synonyms and long-tail keywords — escape repetition by using synonyms of your chosen keywords, as well as long-tail keyword variations. It will help you spice things up and hit that keyword density sweet spot of 2%.
- Place your keywords in strategic places, namely:
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- Page title
- At least one subheading
- First paragraph
- Meta description
- Title tag
- At least one image alt tag
- Near the conclusion of the text
This concludes our two-part blog about keyword stuffing and how to best avoid it. If you feel insecure about your keyword usage, let our SEO company help you. Place your online presence in the hands of experienced professionals, and experience the difference 411 Locals can make for your business.
Stay tuned for our next topic!