A keyword planner is a piece of analytical software that gives you a wide range of information about the keywords you want to use in your next advertising campaign. Google has the most popular keywords planner, which makes sense since a majority of the web searches are done on the Google platform. In order to maximize the information given by a keyword planner, you first need to know how to use it. Once you start using a keyword planner to optimize your website and blog content, you will wonder how you ever did without it.
Are Keywords Still Relevant?
Google and other search engines are evolving more into search phrase vehicles rather than relying on a keyword or two to bring up relevant websites, but that does not mean that keywords are no longer valuable. As long as there are Internet search engines, there will be value in doing comprehensive keyword research. Internet users will always use certain words to find what they are looking for, and optimizing your content to become associated with those words will always increase Internet traffic.
Keyword Popularity
The basic function of a keyword planner is to show you how popular a keyword is at specific times during the week, month, and year. While most people try to find the most popular keywords for their content, savvy marketing professionals look for keywords that are growing in popularity and still directly associated with the advertiser’s industry. For example, while “shoes” is a great keyword to use for a shoe manufacturing website, the keyword “laces” is gaining in popularity and can bring a whole new audience to your content.
Associated Keywords
A good keyword planner will point out not just the popularity of the keyword you are researching, but any associated keywords that might also bring in traffic. The keywords that get millions of hits each month are used to the point where they are no longer effective. But if you can team up a popular keyword with one that reaches a different type of audience, then you can enhance the effectiveness of your content.
Geographic Planning
While digital marketing experts are very aware of the ability to geo-target keywords, website owners might still be new to the idea. A keyword planner will show you how popular certain keywords are in different geographic areas, and that can help you to develop content that speaks specifically to that target audience. Each region treats keywords differently, and geo-targeting keywords using a keyword planner can go a long way towards enhancing your content and making it more effective.
All of the attention Google gets for changing its keyword algorithms can sometimes make website owners feel like keywords no longer matter. When Google changes its algorithm, all it is really doing is altering the way it treats keywords. Google is not ignoring keywords at all; it is just forcing website owners to be more efficient in their use of the right keywords for their content.
A keyword planner can help you to stay updated on the popularity of keywords within your industry, and show you how to use keywords to optimize your content. When you create content for your website, you should always do what you can to use the latest keyword data to make your content more enticing to your target audience.