Successful PPC and SEO starts with keyword discovery, research and organization. In paid search, discovery and research are important, since searches of the keywords you pick are what you’re paying for. Organization is an often overlooked, yet critical, task. Intelligent keyword management and organization are important for organic search optimization.
To achieve high ROI in paid search, you’ll need to match the keywords in your keyword lists with relevant, compelling and original ad text and landing pages, resulting in:
Higher quality score
Keywords with higher quality scores enjoy greater exposure and a lower CPC.
Better conversion rates
By selecting specific keywords and using relevant ad text and landing pages, your customers are more likely to find what they were looking for.
You can’t write different text ads and landing pages for each keyword, so be creative. Group and organize your keywords (i.e., segment your keyword list) into close-knit keyword groupings, and author targeted ad text and landing pages for each group. Put yourself in the shoes of the searcher — analyze the search phrases for the presence of discriminating words that give clues to what they were actually looking for. For example:
Information orientation
Someone who types “SQL database” is likely looking to learn more about the topic.
Product orientation
Searchers who write “SQL database software” or “buy SQL database software” or “best SQL database software” into a search engine all reveal something unique.
Now you can craft text or page content for various query types.
This process is hard work, but, if done well, provides great returns.
Prioritize your work based on the keyword verticals that drive the most traffic to your site.
The good news is you can apply the work you do in creating your PPC campaign structure to your SEO efforts. Having grouped and organized keyword data into ad groups, you can leverage those same keyword organization structures to inform content authoring, information architecture and workflow prioritization for SEO.
PPC and SEO data sharing and keyword organization results can be staggering — keywords support your search campaigns, and developing an intelligent keyword infrastructure impacts search-driven revenue.
Larry Kim is the founder of WordStream. Reach him at [email protected].
