The top spot on Google is a highly coveted position. More than 75% of web users never scroll past the first page of Google results. Techniques abound for getting your name in that prime position, with search engine optimisation (SEO) and pay-per-click advertising (PPC) providing both organic and paid options. At the heart of every SEO strategy, you’ll find keywords: those little words and phrases people are searching for that help your content rank higher when you include them. Your SEO strategy wouldn’t exist without keywords, so it’s important to know how to check keyword rankings.
As a full-service creative marketing agency, Anchor knows how to make an SEO strategy a success. But let’s start with the basics: what are keyword rankings, anyway?
A keyword ranking is the position of a website on a search engine results page (SERP) for a query.
When a user types a question or phrase into Google, the search engine ranks relevant webpages based on how well their content satisfies the user’s enquiry.
In addition to organic results, Google may include PPC advertisements and other elements on the SERP. These count as ranking results as well.
Your keyword rankings depend on your site’s relevancy, quality and useability. Google’s rankings are prone to regularly changing as the search engine endeavours to always bring users the most relevant results.
How to Accurately Check Keyword Ranking?
Start by selecting your target keywords, then use an SEO tool to check the position of these keywords in SERPs. An above-average keyword ranking is typically in the top 10 search results or the first page of the search engine. This high position increases your likelihood of traffic, clicks and conversions.
A typical bad keyword ranking is beyond the first 30 search results or on the third page. This is the kind of position where visibility is minimal, and the chance of attracting online traffic is low.
Keyword ranking is important to both agencies and clients, leading to enhanced online visibility and business growth. Tools you can use to check your keyword rankings include Ahrefs, Semrush, Moz Pro, Google Keyword Planner and many more.
Understanding Keyword Metrics
Keyword metrics are data points that tell you whether or not a keyword is worth targeting. You can find them using keyword analysis tools like Keyword Overview. Not every keyword is worth creating content around—some will be too competitive, while others will be irrelevant to your audience. When looking for keywords to target, pay attention to the following metrics:
Search volume
A keyword’s search volume is the average number of times a user goes searching for it per month, and it gives you a strong indication of that keyword’s popularity. Targeting a keyword with a higher search volume usually leads to higher traffic and, therefore, more conversions and sales.
Keyword difficulty (KD)
Keyword difficulty is how hard it would be to rank on page one for a particular keyword. Most SEO tools will provide you with a difficulty score for each keyword—the higher the difficulty score, the harder it is to achieve rankings for that keyword.
Search intent
Search intent describes what web users are trying to accomplish when they type search phrases into Google. The four main kinds of search intent are information, navigational, commercial and transactional. You’ll rank much higher if the content you create aligns with the search intent.
Search trend
The search trend shows the changing trajectory of a keyword’s popularity, offering you an insight into whether searches for the term are going up or down. A keyword that’s on the decline is a keyword that’s losing popularity, so it’s probably time to deprioritise this keyword in further campaigns. On the other hand, an upward trajectory suggests a keyword that’s growing and indicates that the time is right to jump in and target it.
Cost-per-click (CPC)
Cost-per-click shows you how much advertisers pay for each click on their ads for a particular keyword. A metric primarily used in PPC, it’s also useful for SEO as it shows you how popular certain keywords are.
SERP features
SERP features are those little extra elements that appear on SERPs in addition to the regular organic listings. Commonly, these additional features include AI-generated summaries, local packs (maps and local listings relevant to the search query), and knowledge panels (information boxes on the right-hand side of the screen). If your keywords activate these features, you will have a higher chance of visibility.
How to Improve Keyword Ranking?
Now you know how to check your keyword rankings, but how about taking them to the next level? Here are some tips for boosting your keyword rankings:
Use lower-ranking keywords
Because they have lower search volumes, lower-ranking keywords also have less competition. That’s why so many SEOs recommend going after the low-hanging fruit rather than targeting the most-searched keywords of the day. Sometimes, a low-volume keyword is on the cusp of being a trending topic, and the best thing you can do is to jump on it early. You can also embed a high-volume keyword in a long-tail search phrase—the specificity of the longer phrase makes it easier for search engines to match them with searcher intent.
Satisfy the search intent
There’s a purpose behind every search. Every user wants something, and understanding and meeting their desires is the way to get the results you want.
Focus on new information and fresh insights
Google prioritises helpful, reliable, people-first content. Google assesses content to be helpful based on experience, expertise, authoritativeness, and trustworthiness (E-E-A-T). Creating well-written content that meets users’ needs and answers their questions goes a long way to putting you ahead of your competition.
Put your main keyword in the title, H1 and URL slug
Putting keywords in the right places is good SEO practice, but overdoing it is considered spammy. For best practice, choose the most relevant keyword as your primary SEO keyword and include it in the title tag, H1 tag and URL slug.
Build up your backlinks
If other credible websites are willing to link to your site, Google takes it as a sign that your content has value. Link building is the process of building credible backlinks through both building brand authority and reaching out to other professionals.
Boost Your Keyword Ranking With Anchor
Anchor Digital has a straightforward approach to SEO services optimised for human readers rather than machines but will still please the bots. With more than a decade in the industry, we keep on top of all the changes in SEO while recognising that some approaches stay relevant because they work and always have. Our best-practice SEO is optimised to suit the needs of your business and to help you achieve the results you want. We provide easy-to-read, high-quality content that ranks and converts, straightforward reports in plain English and tests for the best outcome.
Performance matters—you only have a few seconds to make a strong first impression. However, with a focus on more than just speed, Anchor Digital’s performance services take a seamless and integrated approach to SEO, PPC, social media marketing, and more, incorporating platforms from Google Ads to Facebook PPC into our approach.
To find out more about keywords, from how to check keyword rankings to how to increase them like never before, contact the Anchor team.
