Keyword

A keyword or key phrase is, in the field of digital marketing, any term consisting of one or more words that users enter into internet search engines to perform a search or inquiry.

Keywords are used in SEO strategies to try to rank a website, a product (in the case of e-commerce), or a blog article in the top positions of search results. Therefore, they are of vital importance for website owners.

1. Types of keywords

To create your keyword strategy, you must take into account that there are different types of keywords. Among all the options, we can highlight two main groups: based on search intent and based on length.

Let’s look at each one in more detail:

Keywords based on search intent

Here, what matters is the reason or intention that led the user to search for this keyword. This type is subdivided into four categories:

• Navigational. When the user directly types the name of a company, brand or website in the search engine.
  The user’s intention is, a priori, to access the official website, but for convenience or not knowing the exact domain, they use the search engine to access it. For example: Mailrelay, Netflix, etc.
• Informative. These are searches with a very simple intent—to find specific information.
  Here, the user has no other intention than to obtain information on a specific topic. For example: send a newsletter or golf club in New York.
• Transactional or commercial. They are intended to show pages where products or services are sold.
  The user’s intention, at the beginning, is to get something. For example: buy padel shoes.
• Commercial investigation. This is a combination of informational and transactional searches, where the user seeks information and, after obtaining it, will likely make a purchase or plan one.
  For example: the best fiber optic offer or which portable air conditioner consumes less energy.

Keywords based on length

For this classification, the number of terms the user uses to search for the information (the level of specificity or depth) is considered. This type is subdivided into three categories:

• Short tail They are the keywords formed by one or two words (in SEO jargon they are known as seed or generic), they have a high search volume, as they are very generic keywords. For example: email marketing, flashlight, chair, etc.
• Medium tail In this second type, the user uses more specific search terms (two or three words), and the search volume is lower, but since the search intent is more precise, the results are more relevant.
  For example: email marketing software, camping flashlight, office chair, etc.
• Long tail. These keywords are very specific and offer highly relevant results, though they have a lower search volume. They consist of phrases with more than three terms.
  For example: free email marketing software, camping flashlight with rechargeable battery, director’s chair for office, etc.

2. Keywords and digital marketing

Using appropriate keywords in content provides advantages and interesting opportunities for marketing strategies that go beyond improving SEO ranking.

• They generate organic traffic. Based on the user’s search, you can determine their stage within the sales funnel. This way, you can direct already-segmented organic traffic to your blog, which you can more easily convert into customers.
• Content discovery. A keyword analysis can reveal keywords that were not initially considered but for which content can be created that is of interest and was not initially planned.
• Improves digital authority. It helps us be recognized as references in our field and enhances visibility thanks to mentions received from other websites or blogs.
• Get more information from users. By understanding the keywords used, we gain insight into users’ interests and can provide them with the information they need more precisely.

3. How to use keyword research

A keyword study or keyword research allows us to discover keywords we can rank for more easily or find real opportunities to improve our SEO.

Before you can start a keyword study, it is necessary to use tools that provide reliable information. Some of the most popular ones are:

• Google Keyword Planner.
• Keywords Everywhere.
• SEMRush.
• MOZ.
• Sistrix.