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By Ryan Boog
Key phrases are the words (one word or several) someone types into a search engine to find you. If those words are not on your page, written the way a person would actually say them, you will have a hard time showing up when they search.
They used to get talked about as if a "keyword" was always one word. It is not. People search in the language they already speak.
A key phrase is a short description of what someone wants. They type it into a search engine (Google, Bing, and the rest) and they expect a useful answer back.
A few real ones:
Those little summaries do two jobs. They help a real person find your site. They also help a stranger figure out, in a few seconds, what your business actually does.
People make these phrases to fit their own question. That is why they matter for SEO. They help live humans find you, and they help Google build a picture of what the page is about.
Yes, SEO keywords can be phrases.
A keyword can be one word ("SEO") or several ("seo key phrases"). Google treats both as search terms. If one person says "keywords" and another says "key phrases," they are talking about the same thing: the words people type into search.
You do not need a separate plan for each. You need the phrases your customers already use.
The useful ones sound like a person. The stuffed ones sound like a brochure got stuck in a sentence.
| Awkward / stuffed | Natural | Too narrow |
|---|---|---|
| Are you looking for a great affordable lawn care service Minneapolis MN? | lawn care Minneapolis | I accidentally spilled wine on my mom's tablecloth, what can I use to get it out |
"tablecloth stain remover" is specific enough to match a real need without copying a whole sentence someone would only type once.
A few more that sound like a person:
If you cannot say the phrase out loud without cringing, do not put it in a paragraph.
The goal of SEO is to show up near the top when your audience searches. People scan the first page. They do not have time to scroll through 100 results. If they do not see what they need, they move on.
There is no way to get there if the phrases they type are nowhere on your page.
Here is what key phrases actually do:
That is it. Matching the words people already use. For the rest of the plan, see Create an SEO strategy.
Tuck them into the page where they belong. A simple checklist:
Do not force key phrases into content like trying to fit big feet into small shoes. It will only hurt you and the reader. Websites get in trouble when they try to include phrases awkwardly. Our best advice is to be helpful and write normally. Some phrases (like the lawn-care example above) are just too hard to drop into a paragraph, so do not try unless you can do it seamlessly.
You do not have to guess. Walk through Easy, Effective Keyword Research for SEO and use real search data, not hunches.
A few rules of thumb while you pick:
Some phrases are way too specific. Those get called long tail key phrases. "I accidentally spilled wine on my mom's tablecloth, what can I use to get it out" is a real question, but it is a poor phrase to build a page around. "tablecloth stain remover" is the more logical pick.
The 5 easy steps to increase your Google rank for free post is a good next read once you have a short list.
The words someone types into Google to find a thing. One word or several.
The search terms you build a page around so the right people can find it.
Yes. Most of the useful ones are.
Mostly the wording. A keyword can be one word. A key phrase is usually a few. Google ranks pages for both.
Pick a few phrases your customers already search, put them on the page where they fit, and write the rest like a person. If you want help choosing them for your site, talk to us.
Need Help With Your Key Phrases?