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If you are familiar with SEO, you have already heard of keywords. When you write an article, a page on your site, or even a product sheet, you surely focus on the primary and secondary keywords to use.
However, should you focus on just one keyword per content? How to use other keywords associated with a search term? Could you stand out by using secondary keywords? We’re going to see some tips for optimizing your keyword strategy!
Primary And Secondary Keywords
The importance of your primary keyword
For each new content produced, you need to identify a primary keyword. The basic concept of natural referencing is simple: 1 keyword = 1 page of your website.
The latter must be chosen according to an expression on which you wish to position your company, but above all about the content that you are going to write.
Don’t try to attract traffic to a topic that’s too far from your keyword. You risk losing credibility in the eyes of your audience and having a high bounce rate, which would be harmful to your SEO.
When we talk about the main keyword, we must not forget that we are talking about a query. The “keyword” can be composed of several words. We also speak of a key expression or target query.
Also Read: How to do keyword research in 2024?
The main keyword will be present in the H1 title of the article, in the meta title and meta description as well as throughout your content. By going from H2 and H3 titles to the content itself. Without going as far as keyword stuffing, it is essential to integrate your main keyword numerous times so that your content is referenced correctly.
Are secondary keywords useful for your SEO strategy?
Secondary keywords are keywords related to the main keyword. For example, if you want to rank for the primary keyword “open shoes”, the keywords “sandals”, “flip flops”, “Birkenstock” and “Crocs” can be considered secondary keywords.
The objective of secondary keywords is to make search engines understand that your content is specialized on the topic you are covering. Using a rich lexical field allows you to naturally integrate secondary keywords into your content.
The objective is not to position the same content on several keywords but to enrich the article with associated keywords. It is still possible to imagine an SEO strategy with several keywords for a single content. However, you risk diluting your efforts before you have even managed to position yourself on your main keyword!
Focus on your primary keyword first, publish your content, and then use Google’s suggestions or specialized tools like Yourtext. Guru to determine relevant secondary keywords.
Secondly, it may be interesting to create specific content for each of the secondary keywords used. This strategy will allow you to create internal networking, that is to say, to make links between your articles belonging to the same theme. We then talk about SEO clusters or silos.
Boost your semantic SEO by placing your primary and secondary keywords in the right places
Once you have established the list of your secondary keywords, it will be essential that they are present on your website.
But, like the primary keyword, there are places where secondary keywords have more “value” than others. So, do not hesitate to use these in a few strategic places such as:
- H2, H3, or H4 titles: intertitles are perfect for developing secondary keywords and seeking SEO on questions or long-tail keywords.
- The body of the article: you must integrate both your primary and secondary keywords into your content.
- The ALT tags of your images: many forget that Google robots also consider images when they scan a page. Also, if the “ALT” tag of the main image of the article must include the main keyword, those of the other images on the page can, perhaps, include a secondary keyword. Pay attention to what appears in the image: the keyword must have a minimum connection with what is displayed!
Avoid places that are too important for SEO to avoid creating confusion for the search engine. Reserve these slots for your main keyword:
- The H1 title and the meta title of the page: are undoubtedly the most important for a search engine.
- Site URL: Some sites make the mistake of not paying attention to the URLs of their pages. However, it is an essential element that must be optimized when it comes to SEO.
- The meta description: although the Google search engine no longer systematically displays the meta description provided by the site in the search results, it is important to write it if only to integrate calls-to-action that meet your expectations.
How do you effectively use primary and secondary keywords in your content in 6 steps?
As Google regularly suggests, you must above all produce content for Internet users. If you are looking to produce a complete and quality article, you will naturally integrate your primary and secondary keywords.
To help you identify secondary keywords, you can also use SEO tools. But keep in mind that these are just tools: you shouldn’t focus your entire SEO strategy on achieving scores from tools external to Google.
Step 1: Write on a specific topic
Instead of focusing on one or more keywords, opt for a specific theme. Write your content naturally using rich vocabulary related to your subject.
Step 2: Analyze the SEO of your content
After publishing your content, wait a few months and take stock to determine the SEO of your article. What key phrases drive traffic to your article? Does a particular expression bring people to your page?
Step 3: Optimize your content accordingly
After analyzing the main keywords that Internet users search for in their browsers before arriving on your site, you can optimize your article accordingly. This work will be all the more relevant if it is based on reality and not on hypotheses.
Then, if you want to position yourself on secondary keywords, use additional key expressions that draw traffic to your site either to enrich your existing content or to create new content.
Step 4: Include your secondary keywords in your subtitles
If you are writing articles and optimizing them for search engines, you need to use subheadings to categorize and prioritize your information. Well, these subtitles can be used to place secondary keywords! If these are well chosen, this should help Google to better understand what your content is about and therefore to better reference it.
Subtitles are great for embedding questions. Some Internet users write their search engine queries in the form of questions. Don’t hesitate to do the same with your subtitles by including secondary keywords to optimize the indexing of your content by Google robots.
Step 5: Set context using them in the introduction
According to some sources, Google gives more importance to the words present in the first paragraph of your content as well as the first links to convey “SEO juice”. This is where you need to bring the semantic field into play.
Step 6: Use Your Secondary Keywords as Anchor Text
As long as this is relevant, you can use your keywords in the anchor texts used to link the different pages of your site. This will help Google understand what the landing page is about.
Our tip for using your primary and secondary keywords well
Just like your main keyword, secondary keywords are an integral part of your SEO strategy. It is essential to work on them to properly reference your content on Google. But it’s not always easy to write in a fluid and natural way when you have to think about SEO at the same time.
Digital Marketing Agency Lahore allows you to obtain SEO-optimized texts with primary and secondary keywords correctly distributed in your articles. Simply prepare a brief with a list of your primary and secondary keywords and have your content written by writers specializing in your topic.
