Welcome to our guide on optimizing your target keyword phrases using SEO Optimizer. If you've boosted your site's SEO health with the help of our SEO Optimizer, you're off to a good start. However, for those looking to step up their SEO game, attracting even more potential customers to your site is possible by crafting effective target keyword phrases.

To achieve the best possible SEO for your site, the app relies on your input and expertise. This guide will demonstrate how the app can assist you in refining your product pages to include keywords that align with what your audience uses in web searches, ensuring your site appears higher in those search results.

Wondering how SEO Optimizer can help make your products keyword-optimized? Keep reading to find out!

By default, the target keyword phrase mirrors the title of the product or page:

​However, there's often room for improvement by considering a keyword phrase that your audience is more likely to use in web searches. In the given example, people are unlikely to search for "MechaCat". A more probable search phrase could be "robot cat" or "robotic cat" or "robotic pet". In this scenario, a competitor using one of these phrases, which more accurately reflects what customers type into web searches, would outperform my product page if all other factors are equal.

But be warned: if you change this keyword phrase at the top of an audit (and save and refresh the page), the rest of the audit will expect to find the new keyword phrase in each section, but it won't automatically update your content to include the new keyword phrase. So customizing your target keyword phrases can be a lot of work.

The easiest way to avoid this extra work is to ensure that you product titles contain a relevant keyword phrase. For instance, instead of naming my product "MechaCat," I could navigate to the product information in the audit and rename it to "MechaCat Robotic Cat":

Save your changes, refresh the page, and scroll back up to the top of the audit. Remove words from the beginning and/or end of the keyword phrase to create a shorter, more general phrase that is more likely to be used as a search phrase in Google:

This action makes "Robotic Cat" the target keyword phrase, which is already included in the default values based on the product title (this means that you don't have to manually add the new keyword phrase everywhere, thanks to the app's AutoPilot feature). At the same time, this shorter keyword phrase is easier to manage, preventing complications with keyword optimization.

Here's another example: for a product titled "Vintage Victorian Jacket with Tailcoat | Black | Large", you can delete the last several words in the target keyword phrase, leaving only the more general name people are likely to search on Google: "Vintage Victorian Jacket".

You might be wondering, why doesn't SEO Optimizer automatically choose the best keywords for me? Well, that's because only an expert in your industry can determine the phrases your customers associate with your product — and that expert is you! 😊

If you've successfully conquered Part 1, congratulations! You're well on your way to becoming a keyword master. But now you might be wondering, how do I know what the perfect target keywords to use for a particular product or page? The Part 2 of our guide will walk you through the steps of effective keyword research, helping you choose the best keyword phrases for your products or pages.

Keep in mind that SEO Optimizer sets default keywords that may work well, but there's often room for improvement by following these steps:

Imagine yourself as your potential customer. What phrases would you type into Google to find the products you want? Create a list of possible keyword phrases by starting with the services or products you offer and then adding descriptors, your location, or your customers' location.

Example: For espresso beans, your brainstormed keywords might include:

To expand your list further, try some Google searches. Search for your product or service and observe the results. Are there alternative names for your service or goods? Include these synonyms in your brainstorming list.

As you type your product or category into Google, you can also use the autocomplete feature that suggests search terms.

Lastly, at the bottom of the results page, explore related searches for additional inspiration.

You've begun research by Googling your keyword phrases, but here are a few more sophisticated tools that can help you refine your list. Check out the resources at the end of this article for detailed guides on how to use these tools.

UberSuggest: This free tool provides not only a list of related keyword phrases but also useful statistics for each one:

Google Analytics: Another free tool, this one gives you insight into what web searches are already leading people to your website, helping you focus on relevant keywords.

After compiling your list of keyword phrases for a specific product or page, eliminate any that you think are not worth focusing on—whether due to relevance, low volume, low value, or high competition. From the remaining keyword phrases, choose one keyword phrase to enter into the audit page in SEO Optimizer:

Remember, stick to one keyword phrase only! For instance, entering "organic espresso beans, chocolate-covered espresso beans" might seem like it would provide broader coverage of different keywords, but the app's audit page is designed to assist you in optimizing your product or page for one keyword phrase only.

However, this doesn't mean you can't include other valuable keyword phrases into your meta description, description, and content. You can, but you'll need to include those additional keyword phrases manually without the assistance the audit page provides for the primary keyword phrase entered at the top of the page.

After optimizing your product for effective target keywords and allowing Google to recrawl your site, you can expect an increase in traffic from individuals searching for those keywords!

If this entire keyword research process is confusing or difficult to grasp, try these more detailed guides: