Keywords are the corner stone of SEO-friendly content. The difficulty is, search engines are geared against sites that stuff keywords into their content. There are many, many keyword formulas floating around the SEO community. How do you decide on the exact keyword density for your particular site?

One reason many keyword density formulas don’t work is because search engines are updated to avoid these predictable formulas. Another is that each site is different, and will offer a different service to its viewers. Even within one sector, sites that go against the crowd may be more successful because of their unique strategy. In an industry where fresh ideas and new content can increase your rankings, formulas have a limited value.

Remember that keyword density doesn’t count for everything with search engine optimisation. Google is placing increasing value on related keywords within a site, so your links, both internal and external, are going to count for a lot. As different search engines use different algorithms, your keyword density should be a balance of what your site can successfully contain and what your viewers will tolerate. Keyword stuffing isn’t just frowned upon by search engines – it’s also incredibly annoying for the human viewer to read and will decrease your return traffic.

Keywords aren’t the be-all and end-all of SEO. Your web content should be just one part of your SEO strategy. Many estimate that it counts for around one-third of your PageRank, although even this is a little too simple to be accurate. For one thing, different keywords compete at different levels for search engine attention. Your keywords should also be linked through other parts of your SEO strategy.

It has been theorised that the positioning of keywords is important. This is certainly true when you use your keywords as anchors for your links, which search engine spiders then use to swiftly find related information on your site. Keywords in your link anchor text may have more effect than page content that has a high keyword density.

It is generally thought that Google has less tolerance for high keyword density than Yahoo! or MSN. When optimising your site, you want to appeal to as many search engines as possible, but remember that the popularity of some search engines has been steadily declining over time. Google is not the only search engine in the world, but it does have a certain importance and being Google-friendly is the ultimate aim for many. Keeping your keywords to around five percent of your content is thought to stay just below the trigger for Google’s filter for keyword stuffing, but again, experts like SEO Consult have noted a difference in tolerance for certain areas.

Something that Google says again and again, when providing a guideline for good SEO and for those wanting to avoid being kicked off their index is to keep your site’s viewers in mind when managing your site. If your keywords are used too frequently and make your content seem clumsy, it’s likely that a search engine will deem you guilty of keyword stuffing. If you have trouble working keywords naturally into your content, contact SEO Consult for advice on organic search engine optimisation.

Get Involved