When trying to get your site to rank higher with the keywords that are most relevant to your industry, you won’t have much success with single-word phrases unless they are extremely unique and apply almost exclusively to you. But even if you could, you would get lots of traffic but almost no conversions. This is because unless you sell almost everything that’s related to that word, you’ll be only bringing in untargeted and not targeted traffic.

1. How You Shouldn’t Mess Up Your Keyword Research
When trying to get your site to rank higher with the keywords that are most relevant to your
industry, you won’t have much success with single-word phrases unless they are extremely unique
and apply almost exclusively to you. But even if you could, you would get lots of traffic but almost
no conversions. This is because unless you sell almost everything that’s related to that word, you’ll
be only bringing in untargeted and not targeted traffic.
Most searchers who take the chance and use single-word searches will scan the results and then
decide to refine their keywords. This doesn’t only happen just with single word phrases, it also
happens with two and three word phrases too. Searchers learn as they go and they search, scan and
then research so they can see results that are more specific to exactly what they are looking for. The
only people who are not re-searching are usually those who click on the first result without ever
looking at it. Then they wind up bouncing all the way back to the search results anyway.
Even if the traffic you get has a low conversion rate, your conversion rate will still be better than
normal. But even though your boost in sales may be great, the chances are good that they won’t
even begin to pay for what it cost you to get that high ranking. Basically, keyword research comes
down to the ROI based on the search query. If you are just grabbing keywords so you can rank
them, your expense is going to be higher than you like, and your ROI is going to be low. You need
to look for the ROI terms instead.
Targeting Broad Phrases is a No
Even if you only have two and three word phrases, they probably are going to be almost useless.
Before you optimize your site for keywords, try to understand exactly what the phrase means and
what the searchers are really looking for. Here are two good ways to understand the intent behind a
keyword:
Keyword research
Do some keyword research. Check to see what qualifiers are often searched with the phrase you
want to use. Do those qualifiers relate to your industry or do they point to something else?
Check Google say. Try using Google search with your keyword and see what the results are. Do you
see returns that are specific to what you are looking for, or do they relate to something else? If the
results aren’t what you hoped for, and it doesn’t match up with your site, then it’s not a good
keyword. If it does, then it’s probably a good keyword to use.

2. Just because a specific phrase doesn’t work for you, it doesn’t mean you should throw it out. You
just may need to add a few qualifiers to it so it becomes more specific.
Going after Keywords with False Descriptors is Wrong
Make sure the descriptors (or qualifiers) of each phrase you want to use make sense to your
industry. The word “clothing”, for example, is a very broad word. If you sell every kind of clothing
that’s known to man, then you might find great value with that term. But if you’re in a specialty
clothing market, then you need to narrow your keyword selection down to just include only those
qualifiers that work for your industry. Again, you’re going for keyword ROI, not volume.
Don’t Go After Insanely Competitive Phrases
Unless you’re truly expecting to rank for an insanely competitive phrase that everybody else is
already using, you’re barking up the wrong tree. It’s simply not the way to go. Instead, optimize and
forget about those keywords and move on to something more sensible that directs people to your
site and not all the others
Don’t Go after Competitor Brand Names
Optimizing your site for competitor phrases is not a good idea. Even though it might work for PPC
ads, where visitors can see ads that make it clear they aren’t landing on the brand name they
searched, it’s not so easy with SEO.
The only brands that you really want to optimize your keywords for are the brands that are
exclusive to you. This comes naturally, of course, since you want to promote your products. Your
brands should be all over your category and product pages. But a competitor’s brand, no. You
simply can’t build an authoritative page on somebody else’s brand, unless you are creating a brand
review. And if you do, make sure you go over what you want to say with your attorney, just in case.
You do not want a lawsuit from somebody who is bigger than you and has more money to pay their
lawyers.
Don’t Use Inappropriate Geo-Targeted Phrases
If your business is in a specific geographical region, then you should definitely target the
geographical phrases that apply. But be sure to stick to phrases that are relevant to your area. Don’t
optimize for geo-targeted phrases that aren’t relevant, or phrases that won’t bring you new
customers.
Keywords That Don’t Represent Searcher Intent
Don’t use keywords that you think the searcher is going to use that don’t meet the specific need you
can fulfill. This often happens when people are looking for products that you don’t carry and you
want to explain to them that yours is better. Or you might have information on the topic being
searched, but it’s just not the specific type of information that the searcher is looking for.
You don’t want to second guess new visitors because when they come to your site, the first thing
they will do is find out that you are a liar. That is not a good thing. Every keyword you target should
be specifically for something that you provide on your website. It shouldn’t be just closely related,
not partially related, and not even just in the same topical sphere. Today’s algorithms are smarter
than ever before. Topical authority is an absolute must, and even if you try to rank for keywords that

3. are just partially related to the query, your result is likely going to be failure.
These are the Keywords You Should Look For
The Keywords you should be targeting should be based on four critical factors: search volume,
target audience, profit margin, and the ability you have to meet demand.
Every keyword should meet each one of those four criteria. They must be actively searched by your
target audience, and provide you with a strong profit margin. Even when customers come to your
site, you should bbe able to meet the demand.
Keyword research is not about picking the wrong or right keywords. Keyword research is about
knowing which words will resonate with your audience. Even if you do nothing more than simply
look for the words that have value to your audience, you will never fail. In your keyword research
efforts, the absolute key is adding value. If it’s not valuable, it’s absolutely ridiculous to waste your
business’s valuable time trying to rank for it.