5 Common Keyword Research Mistakes and How to Avoid Them - Entrepreneur

Being aware of these keyword research errors enables you to create an effective SEO plan and avoid actions that may harm your Google rankings.

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Keyword research is pivotal to the success of any search engine optimization (SEO) campaign. A danger foreseen is half avoided, so it is helpful for website owners to know how to research keywords correctly. I want to share a few lessons learned and show how proper keyword research can help you analyze your SEO performance better.

Mistake #1 — Ignoring search trends

The first mistake is to kick off your SEO campaign without knowing what to expect. Of course, you start by looking for your best keywords. But you must not only determine your keywords and track their ranking progress but also set measurable goals and KPIs to understand if you are moving on the right track.

In keyword research, it can be a good idea to forecast your traffic by analyzing search trends. Seasonality, holidays, sales and Google updates — all these factors can impact your clicks and revenue.

And how do you know if your SEO strategy fails or wins? Compare your ups and downs in the organic with search trends in Google Trends year to year and over a longer time. This way, you can anticipate your growth or decline in organic traffic. Such a comparison might explain why your traffic has dropped: perhaps an internal issue on your website or an external factor, such as a Google update.

Mistake #2 —...

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