keyword research

SEO keyword research has evolved considerably over the last several years. Every time Google rolls out an algorithm update, the spiders get smarter. The best SEO companies now understand that stuffing as many keywords (KWs) as you can into an H1, lead paragraph or metadata won’t necessarily produce positive results. As search gets more sophisticated, effective keyword use must tell a story.

Begin The Journey

Let’s say you represent a law firm with a high volume of personal injury cases, and you’ve been entrusted to write a piece of content for them.

Your research finds that “personal injury lawyer” brings in a large search volume, and even narrowing it down to local search shows it’s still a lucrative target.

Under previous Google algorithms it would have been best to further optimize for close derivatives of this phrase—like “personal injury attorney”, “personal injury law firm” or go plural and add “personal injury lawyers.” But things have changed. The spiders are now smart enough to know that those looking for a personal injury lawyer are also interested in a personal injury attorney.

Explore New Avenues

This opens up more room for creativity in your secondary and tertiary keyword selections. Envision the way the content will look as you move forward. For example, you might choose to add “accident lawsuit” – another common search term. For a high-level firm, a even broader reach for “civil law attorney” might not hurt, and neither will “top personal injury lawyers.”

The keywords selected not only bring steady traffic, but they flow well together in a way that a real-life person would appreciate reading. And they won’t feel like they’re hearing fingernails raked across a chalkboard due to keyword redundancy.

Example

The content you create might look something like this:

“When you need a personal injury attorney there is no better choice than (fill in law firm’s name and go on to describe their credentials and experience)…

“An accident lawsuit is always a scary time, even if you’re the plaintiff. (Firm’s name) is there to steer you through the various challenges…

“When (firm’s name) brings a civil law attorney on board, we know that they’re the most competent and professional – with knowledge of everything from how to talk to an aggressive defense attorney, a stern judge or simply a frightened client.

Bring It Home

Finally, move into your close and call to action with the keyword most similar to the one you began with, like this:

“We’re proud to have the best personal injury lawyers in the legal profession working with (firm’s name). Contact us today to set up a consultant…

Tell Your Story

For smoother content development, it’s ideal for the writer and the keyword researcher to be the same person. Then they can develop the story in their mind as they run through traffic volumes and competition levels.

Good storytelling can’t just be the province of the ancient Irish bacach, who walked the countryside telling tales in exchange for a meal and lodging. In the new world of Google, good storytelling and good SEO go hand-in-hand. 

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