SEO Strategies & Trends in 2018 – Keyword Research

The world of search marketing and optimization is changing every day.  So we wanted to pull together our opinions on trends, tactics and strategies for SEO in 2018.

Let's start with what I call Evergreen strategies.  Strategies that will never get old or outdated and have stood the test of time.

Keyword Research

Every quality search optimization and marketing campaign needs to start with an in-depth keyword research session.  Start with what you believe is the top keyword for the service or product you are trying to rank.  This would be the head or primary keyword.

In our case, we are trying to rank for SEO related keywords.  We would start with the primary keyword "SEO".  If you are a plumber, you might start searching "plumber" or "plumbing services".

I start my keyword research with Google Trends.

  1. Type in your primary keyword into the search bar on the Google Trends page.
  2. Select the location of the search traffic.  It defaults to worldwide.  I refine to United States.
  3. Pick the time frame.  i usually leave on past 12 months, but for local or low volume trends I increase to 5 years
  4. Scroll down to the bottom right section of the results.  You will see a box for related queries.
  5. It defaults to rising, but I usually choose top.
  6. Related queries are the first batch of keywords you want to grab. There are 25 suggestions.
  7. You should use the option to download to csv file.

seo keyword research - google trends

 

Next I'll use a regular Google search.  I noticed one related keyword in trends was "seo services".  I'll start with that term.

Once you start typing your search google gives you suggested or related terms dropping down below.  Make note, and type them into the csv file from your trends research.

Perform the search, then scroll to the bottom of the google results page.  You will notice "searches related to..."  Copy these suggested terms into your sheet as well.

Repeat this process by clicking on some of the suggested topics/keyword phrases.  These suggestions are great for new page ideas, but most importantly blog content ideas to write about as supporting pages for your main keywords.  I selected "seo services for small business" and here are the continued suggestions.

related search phrases

Continue to extend the search terms and gather more phrases.  Populate your keyword spreadsheet with all the data you want to load in it.

I use a few other services to enhance this process and hopefully generate dozens or hundreds of possible keyword phrases.  These are free:

Google Adwords Keyword Planner

Ubersuggest.io

Google Search Console

Source Here: SEO Strategies & Trends in 2018 – Keyword Research

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