3 tips for wise use of keywords in your SEO strategy
The density of keywords, an obsolete notion
With the evolution of search
engines, the role of keywords has changed significantly over the years, and
what prevailed 5 years ago is not necessarily true today. This is why there are
many beliefs and "legends" around the use of keywords in a digital
strategy, and it is often difficult to discern true from false. This article,
inspired by Moz's latest Whiteboard Friday, aims to restore the truth about
certain notions.
The density of keywords, an obsolete notion
Lesson # 1: Do not use keyword
density as an SEO performance indicator
“How many times does my keyword
have to be repeated to optimize the SEO of my page? ". This is the
question that has certainly crossed the minds of all web marketers someday. And
yet, the unnatural repetition of keywords should be avoided like the plague.
The notion of keyword density is now obsolete. Indeed, most good SEO software’s
do not hold rigor in their features, simply because the search engines do not
take more into account, and for many years already! These have naturally
changed during the evolution of their search algorithm and now take into
account data that is more complex than the mere repetition of a keyword as a
criterion of relevance.
The title, a strategic place
Lesson # 2: Insert your keyword
into your title, but prefer a convincing title to a perfectly optimized title.
Of course, it is necessary that
your keyword appears in your content, even if only once or twice:
First, because it allows Google
to link your article to one or more queries and offers it as a search result;
Then, because this keyword is
important for your reader's understanding, it allows him to grasp the subject
of the content and to understand if it will interest him or not.
That's why, for the sake of
clarity, it's important that your keyword also appears in your title. However,
it is not necessary to over-optimize your title, for example by inserting the
keyword at the very beginning of the sentence (search engines give more weight
to the first word of a title than last ). Your title will be optimized, but if
nobody clicks on it, what is the interest? A well-written title that attracts
the attention of the reader is much more valuable than a title perfectly
optimized for search engines.
Between the 2 following article
titles:
«The best restaurants in Paris»
«The ultimate guide to the best
(and worst) restaurants in Paris»
Privilege the user rather than the search engines
Lesson # 3: On-page optimization
is important for SEO, but the user experience is even more important. Do not
sacrifice it to the detriment of search engines.
When writing content, consider
writing for your readers and not for search engines. With the arrival of
Hummingbird last year, search engines are now able to detach from keywords and
take semantics and context into account as a criterion of relevance. It is no
use wanting to fit his keyword and all its variants 5, 10 or 20 times in its
content. You are not doing yourself a favor, nor are your readers leaving your
site because of the poor user experience you offer them.
In summary, it can be argued that
the best SEO techniques are the ones that are invisible. With the improvement
of search engines, "forced" and over-optimized referencing techniques
simply no longer work. Today, it is therefore necessary to want to please the
user more than search engines.

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