TODAY'S BEST PRACTICES FOR WEBSITE MARKETING

Using Keyword Research for Effective Website Copywriting

Feature article by Elisabeth Osmeloski

1) It will bring more traffic to my site.
2) It will bring qualified buyers to my site.
3) It will make people do something on my site.

Sounds familiar, right? Let's break it down now. Points 1 & 2 should in fact be a result of good keyword rankings. How do you know what a "good keyword ranking" is? The answer to that question should be "from keyword research". Solid keyword research is the foundation for effective website copywriting.

Too often, companies make the mistake of churning out website copy without any keyword research. Typically, the person(s) responsible for writing content within a company knows only their 'version' of the product or service being offered on the website, rather than looking at it from a user perspective. If this is the case, the copy usually ends up reading as a jumble of unclear corporate jargon, muddled buzzwords or product/service descriptions that have no real meaning to the consumer and are of little value to a search engine.

Keyword research aids the copywriting process by showing what customers actually search for, compared to what you think they will search for. It's true that your instincts can be on target, but often, keyword research will provide alternate perspectives - keyword variations or synonyms that can also attract qualified users to your site. Weaving these alternate phrases into your copy can effectively increase exposure to your target market.

Now let's look at Point #3 - good keyword rankings alone will not convince a user to perform an action on your website. For one, the search engine result that the user sees must be enticing enough to click on. Your SEO tactics matter at this stage - targeting the right keywords and incorporating them into Title and meta tags, as well as within page content the search engine will read. Once the user clicks through to your site, it's the content that needs to 'sell' the user on your product or service.

Folding keyword research into your website copywriting and marketing message presents two challenges: 1) changing the way you think about your company's product or services and 2) creating readable content that flows smoothly and satisifies the user's needs. At the same time, the copy must contain your target keywords for search engine effectiveness.

How do these concepts work together? Evaluating user interest through keyword research can be the first step in structuring the pages and content on your website. Creating alternative paths through copywriting can lead different searchers to the same end goal. Clearly and concisely presenting your product or service using commonly searched for words show the user they've found what they wanted and should lead them down the path to conversion.