How Should You Optimize for Branded Keywords? - Entrepreneur

Should you be optimizing for keywords and phrases directly related to and including your brand names?

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Anyone familiar with search engine optimization (SEO) can tell you about the importance of keywords. Optimizing for a specific keyword or a specific keyword phrase will maximize your chances of ranking for search queries that include that keyword or phrase. Your company might optimize web pages for a term like "bicycles for sale" or "hotdog restaurant near me."

But what about branded keywords? Should you be optimizing for keywords and phrases directly related to and including your brand names?

What are branded keywords?

Branded keywords are just keywords associated with your brand. If you have a company called "Waffle Place" and a signature waffle called "The MegaWaff," branded keywords might include "Waffle Place," "MegaWaff" and "Waffle Place MegaWaff," along with related phrases. By extension, branded keyword phrases might include your brand name with other information or pieces of related queries, like "Waffle Place hours" or "Waffle Place submit resume."

Why do branded keywords matter?

Your brand is your company's identity, and it's one of the most important pieces of your marketing puzzle. You already know you need to take your brand seriously. This is just one more application where you need to guard your brand name closely and use it intelligently for your marketing and advertising goals.

When most...

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