Are SEO Keywords Still Relevant?

Googling it or searching for answers on Google is the norm these days.

Did you know that the terms or phrases you're searching for play a significant role in search engine optimization?

However, in the world of SEO, there's a raging debate going on about whether keywords have died out or not. What are its implications? Is SEO all about keywords?

What are SEO Keywords?

Let's start with the fact that keywords are a significant part of SEO. Keywords are words and phrases that appear in web content and allow people to find targeted sites via search engines. A search engine-optimized website “speaks the same language” as its potential visitor base, with SEO keywords that help connect searchers to targeted sites. Single words to complex phrases can be used as SEO keywords. When properly researched and optimized, keywords act as a bridge between our target audience and the website. A significant chunk of keywords for SEO is chosen based on a combination of search volume, competition, and intent.

Impact of Keywords on SEO

The impact of keywords on SEO is paramount as it allows users to connect with businesses. We create content as we want to be heard and seen as our primary purpose is to drive organic traffic to our website. The critical point here is that the SEO keywords we choose to include in our content will determine the type of traffic our website receives.

Keyword selection is a major factor in determining where your content will rank and if it can gain visitors to the site. To select the right keywords, it becomes essential to research your audience and determine their language usage styles and pain points. This relative goal is accomplished by conversing with various sectors of customers, participating in forums and community groups, and conducting validated keyword research using different tools readily available in the market. Looking at what effect keywords imply on customer traffic, isn’t it exciting to know what is more important than just ‘Keywords’ in SEO?

Are Keywords in SEO Dead?

Before we answer what is important for SEO apart from keywords, let us look at the phenomenon of why people believe that Keywords in SEO are dead.

In the world of optimization today, “Keywords are dead” is a phrase that keeps making its way into SEO circles. Several advancements in the SEO world have alerted this claim, but three major ones come to mind when we talk about the reasons for considering keywords to be obsolete.

 

• Advancement of Artificial Intelligence and Natural Language Processing is one of the primary root causes for the ‘Keywords’ to become extinct.
• One of the most advancing technologies of the ‘Voice Search’ feature is rendering Keywords useless.

 

Now the question arises, what more, if not just ‘keywords for SEO?’

Search Intent is another driving factor when it comes to keywords for SEO

Understanding the mechanism of search engine results is important for SEO. In other words, before ranking for a specific keyword, we need to make sure it makes sense for the company and our business requirements, the bottom line needs to be served, and, most importantly, how Google perceives the keyword in question. Now the point comes where how can we learn what matters to Google?

Google’s Perceived Searcher Intent

Recent studies state that Search Intent is redefining the market funnel in terms of digital marketing.

Let us now dive deep into how Google's Search Intent works. Regarding Google searches, most websites want to rank on the first page, where there are usually ten available spots. In short, Google’s perceived searcher intent is an additional dimension added to those ten spots that help determine whether a specific keyword is something for which we can rank. We need to carefully consider and understand the two types of Searcher Intent to optimize the results.

Different Types of Searcher Intent

Commercial Intent

Commercial intent keywords are those SEO keywords which are typed into search engines by consumers who are looking to buy or maybe looking to educate themselves to buy a certain product or service. In such cases, it becomes highly important for the service-providing industry to rank search results where Google returns direct results of website pages. It becomes important then to optimize pages as compared to blogs.

Informational Intent

Informational intent is a type wherein it is considered that the search action on a browser happens only with the main purpose of gaining some sort of knowledge or information pertaining to a specific topic. This means that the user is not here to buy our product or service. Although this seems to be unworthy, it’s worth investing in. Informational intent enables you to establish yourself as an industry and thought leader, also it is a vital part of a buyer’s buying journey.

Connecting the dots – Searcher Intent and SEO

We need to look at everything from a holistic viewpoint. There’s an underlying connection between ‘SEO Keywords’ and ‘User Search Intent which matters to achieve qualitative high rankings. One of the best suggested strategies to understand ‘Keyword’ relevancy is to google those keywords and analyze what intent on the first page of Google looks like. This serves as the finest way to optimize our sites and lead user traffic to our pages.

Where’s the future headed?

It isn’t a trick game anymore as it once was. SEO will stand strong as long as our users use keywords to search content on search engines. Therefore, the future of SEO keywords is everlasting. Acknowledging the structure of a website, keyword density, and the ever-changing Search Engine algorithms, it is critical for successful SEO campaign execution.

SEO Keywords are here to stay. It’s time to invest in SEO so you can gain advantage for the long-term.

Get in touch with our experts.