Properly using keywords in your content is one of the most important factors to SEO success.
The short answer is, “you can, but your content will suffer.” When our content team chooses keywords for each piece, they are pulling from Google data to understand how your customers search for information around your pillar topics. When selecting keywords from that data, our team aims for a specific keyword density, as well as a good balance of keywords that are questions versus statements. Going over (or under) that balance will hurt your content’s SEO, and changing a keyword—even if it’s just by one or two words—completely negates that keyword’s SEO value.
That said, we understand you may have reasons for wanting to edit keywords. Maybe a keyword:
- Doesn’t match your brand’s voice
- Targets something you don’t do or offer
- Is not the correct industry term
Let’s take some time to address each of these instances, and why we still believe that you should keep the keywords we selected. Ultimately, you are free to edit the pieces however you’d like, but if you do, we cannot guarantee the content will be successful.
The Keyword Doesn’t Match Your Brand’s Voice
While keywords may not sound the way you want to communicate, remember that the goal of using keywords is to match the language of potential consumers. Keywords are less about how you want to say things, and more about who you’re trying to reach… and who you’re trying to reach are the people who are typing those phrases into search engines. You want your content to pull traffic from as many places as possible—even from where you might not expect conversions. Take away from your keywords, and you take away from your pool of potential customers.
The Keyword Targets Something You Don’t Do or Offer
Even if a keyword doesn’t relate to your scope as a brand, there is value in answering questions that seem unrelated.
Firstly, you don’t know what else your customer is looking for when they search online. And since all of the keywords we select are connected to your pillar topic, it’s highly likely the searchers are interested in what you have to offer as well. Maybe they don’t know your services are an option, and finding your content through their tangential keyword is their first exposure. Or maybe they do know about the product or service you provide, and just haven’t had a chance to search for it yet. Either way, getting in front of them is important, even if it is through a slightly different angle.
Secondly, having answers to a wide variety of questions helps establish you as an authority in your industry, which builds trust between you and your audience. Your content exists to encourage conversions, but part of that process is building a relationship over time by showing up repeatedly with what your audience needs—something DemandJump’s keywords empower you to do.
The Keyword Is Not the Correct Industry Term
Remember, our keywords are a direct representation of how your customers search for things. Oftentimes, the consumers of your product or service will not work in your industry, which means they may not know your industry’s language at all. In fact, they may be trying to find your product for the first time and just not have the words for it yet. If you silo yourself to only using the proper industry terms, you’ll miss out on an entire market of curious browsers—especially those who may need the very thing you offer, but are unable to name it yet.
More Questions? Please Reach Out!
If you’ve read through this and still feel strongly about changing one (or more) of your keywords, please contact Taz Walters (Manager of Content Services) or your CS Representative. We’re happy to help you find a way to represent your voice while also representing your customer’s voice.