One of the hottest topics in the world of SEO has been keyword density. Does keyword density really exist, and what kind of effect does it have on your rankings? What’s the perfect keyword density to use on your website, and how do you determine what it is? Understanding the ins and outs of this highly debated topic will improve your website’s SEO.
When someone mentions keyword density for SEO, they are talking about the percentage that a particular word is found within the content of a page. A single word keyword used 5 times in 500 words has a 1% density. However, keep in mind that a 4 word key phrase used 5 times in 500 words actually has a 4% density because of the number of words used.
Many people have the belief that a specific keyword density is the solution to success with SEO. However, there is no consistency in what people believe. Some people seem to think that extremely high keyword usage, up to 10% is acceptable and effective. Other people feel that smaller 4% or 5% keyword density is the ideal figure. So what is it really, and how can your website use keyword density to improve on its success?
In reality, there is no specific keyword density that is a magical solution for your SEO. If you hit a 2% density, there is no green light that turns on in the search engines that says “page 1 ranking”, and the same holds true for any other density. Therefore, a smarter strategy than worrying about keyword density is just worrying about including the keywords to some extent, and in a natural way.
Instead, what you should try to do is to include your keywords naturally throughout your content. You can certainly try hard to ensure you include them and include them in the right places, and you can even set basic guidelines to help you achieve this. For example, you can try to use a keyword once per every paragraph or two instead of focusing on a rigid percentage for a keyword density.
It’s also important that you don’t overdo this work with keywords, and that you take a more moderate approach with your SEO. People take the concept of keyword density way too far sometimes. The result is content that looks like spam to the search engines, and also looks like spam to your visitors who become quickly turned off and click on the back button.
Additionally, don’t forget that besides the actual article content on a webpage, there are other areas where keywords can be included. The best example of this is the anchor text used in your navigation links, however there are other opportunities such as your footer, any sidebars your META tags and more.
Keyword density is going to continue to be one of the most popular debates in the field of SEO. The truth is however that we already know the answer, and keyword density doesn’t really exist. Instead of trying to achieve specific densities, use your keywords as they fit in and make sense.
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