Target Several Keywords Without Stuffing Your Page Title
Ok, so today I am giving my first SEO tip and I made my best to start with something both basic and useful.
Creating a good title is real art. Especially if you need to target several key phrases on one page:
- You don’t want to stuff the title with your core term repeating it twice (or more);
- You don’t want to make the title too long.
The solution: match two keyword patterns in one:
[modifier1 keyword] + [keyword modifier2] = [modifier1 keyword modifier2]
Here is an example for you to better understand what I mean, let’s say ‘make-up artists‘ is our core term, then:
[find make-up artist] + [make-up artist portfolios] = [find make-up artist portfolios] which makes our title target three phrases in one:
- find make-up artist;
- make-up artist portfolios;
- find make-up artist portfolios.
So this very simple tactic makes it possible to create a short concise title of the page and at the same time optimize it for more than one key term. Of course, it is not always possible to find patterns like the above one but anyway before choosing the ultimate variant, make sure you thoroughly considered this tactic.
And what tricks for title tag optimization do you use? Please share them in the comments or submit your SEO tip!
Ann Smarty
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148 Responses to “Target Several Keywords Without Stuffing Your Page Title”
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SEO Poll : How Often do you Change Your Title Tags for SEO? http://tinyurl.com/cko8mu (Please Retweet)
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Michelle Reply:
February 12th, 2009 at 4:59 pm
Thanks, Ann, for your first SEO tip. I look forward to reading more of your tips. Your ideas are always so right on target and I’ve incorporated them into client websites with much success. Thank you!
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So my first SEO tip: http://tinyurl.com/cko8mu (stay tuned and you’ll see more every day!)
Javier Callón Reply:
February 12th, 2009 at 8:02 am
Congratulations for your first SEO tip. I’ll be back here tomorrow for more
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SEO Poll : How Often do you Change Your Title Tags for SEO? http://tinyurl.com/cko8mu (Please Retweet)
RT @lorenbaker SEO Poll : How Often do you Change Your Title Tags for SEO? http://tinyurl.com/cko8mu (Please Retweet)
RT: @seosmarty: RT @lorenbaker SEO Poll : How Often do you Change Your Title Tags for SEO? http://tinyurl.com/cko8mu (Please Retweet)
RT @seosmarty SEO Poll : How Often do you Change Your Title Tags for SEO? http://tinyurl.com/cko8mu
RT @seosmarty: RT @lorenbaker SEO Poll : How Often do you Change Your Title Tags for SEO? http://tinyurl.com/cko8mu (Please Retweet)
@seosmarty RT So my first SEO tip: http://tinyurl.com/cko8mu (stay tuned and you’ll see more every day!) Links NOT working
RT @seosmarty SEO Poll : How Often do you Change Your Title Tags for SEO? http://tinyurl.com/cko8mu
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RT @lorenbaker SEO Poll : How Often do you Change Your Title Tags for SEO? http://tinyurl.com/cko8mu (Please Retweet)
RT RT @lorenbaker SEO Poll : How Often do you Change Your Title Tags for SEO? http://tinyurl.com/cko8mu (Pleas.. http://tinyurl.com/aamwse
RT RT @lorenbaker SEO Poll : How Often do you Change Your Title Tags for SEO? http://tinyurl.com/cko8mu (Pleas.. http://tinyurl.com/aamwse
- “Target Several Keywords Without Stuffing Your Page Title” thx to @seosmarty ( http://tinyurl.com/cko8mu )
Wow Ann, I love that TwtPoll, it looks so cool at the end of the post
@Ann,
I hope you are not advising via the poll title to change the title tags with any kind of frequency?
IMHO – Its best to analyze the title upon creation before publishing and then say after a week or 2 of the page seeding into the results to even think about changing it.
Perhaps tweak it slightly for a target keyword if the page is on the cusp somewhere on page 2 of the results.
,Michael Martin
Google And Blog
Michael Martin’s last incredible blog post..RC33 Update for T-Mobile G1 Android Phone Users – Why No 31 or 32?
Ann Smarty Reply:
February 11th, 2009 at 3:57 pm
@Michael, oh no, I hope I didn’t sound as if I recommended changing it daily
The key is to make it good from the beginning and to only introduce slight changes then.
Loren Baker Reply:
February 11th, 2009 at 3:57 pm
I can say that as a blogger, I go through my posts on a regualr basis and make changes to the title tags using the All in One SEO Pack.
I don’t think Ann is suggesting frequency here, just curious of how often people look at their titles and make changes.
In my case, SEO is an ongoing experiment, so I make the changes whenever I can or see fit … or feel like having some fun in the rankings
Thanks Michael, and thanks for the insight!
maarten Reply:
February 11th, 2009 at 7:25 pm
But do you see improvements in your rankings by those small changes? After how much time do you see results?
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Ryan Adami Reply:
February 11th, 2009 at 10:20 pm
Title change frequency seems to be a big topic in the comments to this post. I will only change a title tag if I’m not seeing results, or if there is a shift in keyword usage by my target demographic. Switching out keywords from the title tag can decrease existing rankings on those terms. How much of a decrease really depends on inbound anchor text and link strength to that page.
Even if you achieve top rankings for your target keyword, use analytics to measure the effectiveness of the search traffic from that term. Traffic might be high, but if conversions are low, think about switching it out for a higher performing keyword. I recommend using PPC to help measure keyword effectiveness. This can save you from optimizing and re-optimizing your pages.
The title tag tip above is great! This type of formatting is something a few of us have been doing for a while now. I would even take it a step further and say that you can mix keywords even if there are other words in the phrase. The majority of searches in Google are simple keywords without quotes. This means that Google should broad match the terms in your title.
Example:
If my title is ‘Spy Optics Soldier Goggles Review’ I should have keyword matching in organic search on: Spy Goggles, Spy Optics Goggles, Spy Soldier Goggles, Soldier Goggles, Soldier Goggles Review and Spy Goggles Review. I’m sure you can find a few more!
In fact if you search Google for ‘spy soldier goggles’ (no quotes!) you will see the 5th result title is: ‘Spy Soldier Snow Goggles’. The words Spy, Soldier and Goggles are bold. This shows Google’s broad match organic search in action and strengthens your title formatting tip! I only add that SEO’s should not be afraid to use other words within their keywords in the title tag.
So let’s all vow to stop creating titles that look like this: Spy Goggles, Spy Optics Goggles, Spy Soldier Goggles . . . It’s a lot of bold text, even more stuffing and very little Call to Action!
Follow me on twitter . . .
Michael Martin Reply:
February 11th, 2009 at 10:38 pm
@Ryan,
What SEO company, that we are both familiar with, would encourage such title tags as that???!?!
Michael Martin’s last incredible blog post..RC33 Update for T-Mobile G1 Android Phone Users – Why No 31 or 32?
Ryan Adami Reply:
February 12th, 2009 at 5:13 am
You mean one like this:
PPC Management, PPC Advertising, Pay Per Click Management
???? LOL
Yeah, TwtPoll is really cool!
I’ve often unsure of what to do with title tags once I’ve reached the position I’m aiming for. Do I now go for a secondary term?
There’s no question the importance of the title tag. Moving keywords closer to the front of the tag is always one of the first moves I make on a new project.
Great site, I’m fully subscribed, and look forward to tomorrow’s tip!
Mike Pantoliano’s last incredible blog post..Be Like Google – Always Be Testing
Marios Alexandrou Reply:
February 16th, 2009 at 1:51 am
If a page is ranking well for a keyword, consider using it to bring one of your other pages in the SERP as an indented listing. Linking from one to the other is a good start. The good news is that the second page need only have a “true” rank of 10 or better and it’ll automatically be pulled up as an indented listing under the first page.
Marios Alexandrou’s last incredible blog post..Rankings Don’t Matter Except…
I cross check twice before I publish the post to make sure the title is proper.
Raju’s last incredible blog post..35+ Web Based Image Editing Tools & Online Services
Very good tip Ann Smarty! I agree with you!
There is no problem in target more than 1 keyword phrase in your page!
Cassiano Travareli’s last incredible blog post..SEO Content Optimization – Designing Your Layout
That is a great tip if you´re targeting more than one keywords/page
Rafael’s last incredible blog post..Cómo conseguir el enlace adecuado
I don’t stuff my blog posts with similar keywords but try to include good phrases which are being searched in SE’s. Anyways good tip
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Often overlooked
Whilst Google uses the title tag in SERPs and as a ranking factor, it will be the post title that is most often used by blogging systems for internal linking, and the most likely and predictable link anchor text you will receive if someone links to a post.
Title tag is often picked by default by social media sites as the headline and link text.
Ann Smarty Reply:
February 11th, 2009 at 4:45 pm
Really great additions, Andy! Thanks!
Michael Martin Reply:
February 11th, 2009 at 5:31 pm
Great point!
@Andy,
Are you going to PubCon next month as I didn’t see you on the speaking list?
I am heading over to speak on the SEO Site Design panel – http://www.pubcon.com/sessions.cgi?action=view&record=205
,Michael Martin
Google And Blog
Michael Martin’s last incredible blog post..RC33 Update for T-Mobile G1 Android Phone Users – Why No 31 or 32?
Andy Beard Reply:
February 11th, 2009 at 10:37 pm
Much easier to fly to Vegas from San Diego than Poland, plus not much point doing speaking gigs if you don’t have a product or service to sell, even if you are just branding on stage.
That being said, flights are a lot cheaper than they were 18 months ago, thus I might end up in the US more often.
I love placing a call to action to the end of the title tag once you achieve high rankings. Simply adding “Free Shipping” to the title tag can really help CTR.
imnotadoctor’s last incredible blog post..Killer Ocean Beach Sunset
Thanks for the matching keyword pattern example.
Those new to SEO should note that drastic and frequent changes in the Title tag are discouraged. (I understand this was not the suggestion…just expanding upon the conversation.)
I recently saw 2 top 10 rankings drop to page 3, because person who took over SEO on site changed multiple Title and meta tags with keywords that were not included in the H1 or body copy.
Looking forward with anticipation to tomorrow’s Daily SEO Tip!
Dana Lookadoo’s last incredible blog post..Universal Search Optimization Chart – Rules of the Game
Sheila Reply:
February 11th, 2009 at 6:59 pm
Definitely, I agree completely Dana. This is a great basic SEO tip to start off “Daily SEO Tip” with
I often need to target multiple keywords on a page and try to use this technique as much as possible, usually going back around once a month to check on which title tags might need a little extra TLC.
Sheila’s last incredible blog post..The Ultimate SEO Snake Oil Salesman? John Dvorak of Course!
This tip is very usefull. I like to use – as as separator, then you don’t look too spammy. Something like:
Find Make-Up Artist – Make-Up Artist Portfolios
Fábio Ricotta’s last incredible blog post..A Importância de Comentar em Outros Blogs
I try to get the title right the first time, but often find a better degree of “right” later. SEO is art and science merged, thus mistakes are possible.
Mark Aaron Murnahan’s last incredible blog post..Twitter Usage Study: Pass The Tweet #PTT
Good point, and great start to the new blog!
Dan Perry’s last incredible blog post..TwitClicks – Analytics for Twitter
Great poll – I personally ebb and flow with my Meta data analysis, sometimes I’m “all over it” and other times “I’m a back seat” attitude. Just depends on where the current SERPS are shaking out – and user engagement.
Would LOVE to get on the Blog Roll – and I’m very excited for the potential of this site, way to go Ann!
Cheers,
Jeremy Hermanns
http://www.seointelligence.com
http://blog.seointelligence.com
Jeremy Hermanns’s last incredible blog post..The SEO Linking Pyramid – Prioritize Your Link Efforts
This is great! Please add my blog, “Dave Rigotti” http://daverigotti.com
Thanks!
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Great tip Ann! The way I do it is generally some version of:
The Best KW1, KW2, KW3 in or
Find KW1, KW2, and KW at
Often the more simplistic KW1 | KW2 | KW3 | Brand also works!
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Ann Smarty Reply:
February 12th, 2009 at 5:50 pm
That works if your KW1, KW2, KW3 are short enough or consist of only one word. Otherwise, you’ll end up having a too long title…
Welcome to the world Daily SEO Tip! A very promising start for this new blog, which of course has been added to the list of RSS-feeds to follow!
Choosing the right keywords have always been a mystery but articles such as yours always makes things understandable.
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Really good tip. Thank you.
A question: when you get ranked for “find make-up artist portfolios”, then, probably, you will focus for one of the two keywords to get more organic traffic.
At that point, what will be the chosen one? “find make-up artist” or “make-up artist portfolios”?
More simple.
(Today) New title tag (no rank): “find make-up artist” + “make-up artist portfolios” = find make-up artist portfolios.
(Tomorrow) Fine tuning title tag (you get ranked for “find make-up artist portfolios”): “find make-up artist” or “make-up artist portfolios”?
Maybe two different pages?
Sorry for my english.
Marco, from Italy
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Ann Smarty Reply:
February 11th, 2009 at 7:26 pm
You can always split the page in two and add content accordingly. However your further strategy depends on how this first page performs.
Well said good post ou can also mention about long tail keywords
Yes, an SEO should be proofreading titles and descriptions every 3 to 6 months for all their sites. Unfortunately, it’s low on the priority list for most people.
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Nice blog
Barry Schwartz’s last incredible blog post..Daily Search Forum Recap: February 10, 2009
Simple yet effective – nice tip!
Kevin Boss’s last incredible blog post..Website Name Generator
Some great tips. I look at my page titles every month just as a best practice but don’t change that often. I agree with Utah SEO Pro that for most people titles aren’t really on their radar.
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Lately I’ve been reducing clutter, making them more poignant.
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Mike Reply:
February 11th, 2009 at 7:55 pm
Yeah, that’s the toughest part, especially in terms of SERPS. Balancing SEO and a headline.
I generally go with Websitename: Modifier Keyword Modifier.
Sometimes, if you’re lucky, you can use the title of the website as a keyword OR modifier. When I do this, I go with a hyphen since Google treats it as one space, instead of a colon AND a space.
Example: “Joe’s Company-SEO tips” where you’re going for SEO Company and SEO Tips.
I find that a good technique for a new website / SEO campaign is to have a title tag that targets a relatively low competition keyword that includes one or more generic keywords that you can target in the long term, without having to change it in the future.
For example, the title “Freelance Web Design in Manchester” means you can target your link campaign to a fairly quickly achievable term to begin with. Once good rankings are achieved for the full title, you can move your link campaign onto “Web Design in Manchester” (without having to change the title), and then (probably after a few years!) “Web Design”.
What a great blog, I feel I am going to be a loyal reader of this blog. Congratulations, Keep it up!
Tip for Ecommerce sites:
Keyword or product <- category <- Brand
Easy to set up in a CMS software as well.
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Great post as always Ann, loving the new look of the site as well
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Webmaster Julio: How to make a resume: Reply:
February 11th, 2009 at 9:33 pm
I think when I don’t speak properly a new languague is very difficult to create a good title. But you have a good experience in your native languague, you can choose one of the best title for your website, if you have studied in tool adword. I hope I don’t disturb you.
Good tip and a great start for this new blog.
I agree with the other commenters – this is a great start. I’ll definitely be back!
Congratulations on your new blog!
First of all, a word of caution against trying to optimize your page against too many keywords: try to limit to two keyword phrases, and organize your ‘synonymous’ key phrase clusters.
The title tag strategy that has worked best for our clients tends to be the following format: ‘Main key phrase targeted + Product or service keywords + GEO location (where relevant) + company name (if there is enough space left).
Since the title tag also becomes the heading for your website in the search results, make it easily understood and think about the promise it holds to the searcher – can you convince him that clicking the link will lead him to the anticipated information. Also focus on the meta description as an extra chance to get some convincing copy in there.
The first H1 tag should be close to the title tag, to enhance it effectiveness. Make sure your most important key search phrase is as close to the beginning as possible.
Hope this is helpful.
Good luck with you new blog!
Anna’s last incredible blog post..Top 10 ways to promote your blog
Wow, almost nobody here has a gravatar….
p.s. gotta love twtpoll
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Loren Baker Reply:
February 12th, 2009 at 4:39 am
LOL, I KNOW! I thought EVERYONE used Gravatar
Gerald Weber Reply:
February 12th, 2009 at 3:31 pm
There is another plugin out there that first pulls their Twitter profile pic and then if there is no Twitter it will then pull their gravatar profile. Can’t remember the name of it offhand *scratches head*
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