Are Keywords for the Search Engine or for the Reader?

Keywords should show what is in the content of the webpage

Keywords are the "key" to what's inside the text.

By Douglas Krantz

Always keep in mind -- webpages are not for the search engine, webpages are for the reader; keywords are not for the search engine, keywords are for the reader.

The subject of an article shows the keywords; the keywords of an article show the subject. Keywords keep the article on track and keywords keep the reader on track, keywords help the reader continue through the article.

Keyword Search

Having done a keyword search, a visitor clicks on a description. The reader expects to see an article written about the keywords that were used in the search. If the article is interesting to the reader, if the article provides the reader what the reader wanted in the first place, the reader will spend some time on the page.

The search engine sees that readers in general spend time on a page and figures that the readers got what the readers had searched for. Often, as part of their search engine ranking system, the search engine includes that time.

Keyword Suggestions

In all this, search engines care about the readers. From the search engine's point of view, what the readers want -- the readers get.

The search engines give suggestions to the webmasters on how to use keywords, but this information isn't really meant to be a way to get ranked higher in the search engine results. This information is meant to be a way for helping the reader to get the most out of the webpage.

Good Keywords

The search engines are trying to say that the keywords should be used to increase the reader's understanding of the content of the webpage.

When readers to a webpage understand and want what's on the webpage, the company sponsoring the webpage is helped. The search engine, wanting to have readers use them again and again, is helped because the reader will come back to the search engine again and again.

Keywords

Yes, the search engines need good keywords, but even with good keywords, the ranking of the search results will still follow what the visitors want. If the readers stay on the webpage, the search engine will know it and rank the webpage higher.

Remember - - the writing is for the reader, the pictures are for the reader, the videos are for the reader, the keywords derived from the subject of the webpage are for the reader. In other words, the keywords should show the reader what the article is about.

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