A keyword phrase is – nomen omen – one of the key concepts related to website positioning in search engines. The proper selection of keywords and their number determines a website's visibility online, and therefore how many potential customers will find it. But what exactly are keyword phrases, and what types can we distinguish? What is a keyword phrase?
What is a phrase?
Keywords are the search terms that users enter into a search engine—for example , Google—when searching for something online. While there are billions of search terms entered into search engines, and new ones appear daily, there's a significant pool of keywords that recur many times. It's from this group that we select valuable phrases for website positioning.
But first things first: what's the deal with positioning for specific phrases? When a user enters a specific term into a search engine, algorithms create a ranking for that term. The highest rankings are those pages that most likely best answer the user's question. Many factors influence whether a website should appear high in search results for a specific term, including the quality and credibility of the page, the accuracy and formatting of text, and links from other websites. One of the most important factors, however, is whether the specific phrase the user entered into Google appears in the headings and text itself. When this phrase appears, it signals to the algorithms that the user is likely to find the answer to their question on that site, which leads them to rank it high in the results.
Key phrases in texts
The discovery that algorithms take keywords into account led to a veritable plague of texts written solely for bots. These were packed with terms that had the highest search volume but offered no value to the user. However, Google quickly clamped down on this practice by introducing the aptly named Panda algorithm into its search engine. It was created to promote high-quality websites that provided reliable knowledge and original content. From that point on, inserting keywords into every sentence no longer made sense, and today, it's crucial to ensure the text contains the optimal number of keywords and that they are woven naturally into the narrative.
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Key phrases – types
Keyword phrases can be short—single-word—or even multi-word. They are most often divided into general phrases and long-tail phrases.
Generic phrases are short and—as the name suggests—rather imprecise. They are typically entered by users who are at the beginning of the purchasing process, meaning they don't yet have specific expectations regarding the service or product. For example, general phrases can include terms like "summer dress," "sneakers," or "car mechanic." They have a very high search volume, which is why they are often considered the best for website positioning . In reality, this isn't always the case, as users entering such phrases are often just conducting preliminary research and aren't yet committed to making a purchase.
Long-tail phrases are much more complex and quite precise, as they are entered by users who already know what they're looking for. Long-tail phrases have fewer searches than general phrases, but they are often more effective – if a user has already formulated their expectations for a product or service, it means they're likely ready to choose it. Long-tail phrases are becoming increasingly important in website SEO , as the popularity of voice search increases year by year. This type of search favors the use of longer and more natural-sounding terms, i.e., long-tail phrases.
Selection of key phrases
How to choose keywords? There's no one-size-fits-all approach. It all depends on the type and scale of your business, your offerings, your competitors' activities, and many other factors. For example, if you run a hair salon, local keywords will work best, meaning those that mention the name of the town or district where your salon is located. SEO for very general keywords is unnecessary, as logic dictates that you should only search for customers in the local area. Online stores, on the other hand, won't use local SEO , but should focus on longer keywords that match their product range. Therefore, the selection of keywords should always be preceded by a thorough analysis of the industry and competition, and a definition of the goals you want to achieve.
It's worth knowing that choosing the right keywords isn't just important for websites – the YouTube algorithm also considers keywords when displaying videos in search results. The "trending" tab on YouTube isn't just about relevant content and video quality – it's also about a relevant description.
Frequently asked questions about keywords
A keyword is a single word or a series of words that a user types into a search engine (e.g., Google) to find specific information, products, or services. From a website owner's perspective, it's a term they want their website to rank for in search results.
We distinguish several basic types of phrases that differ in popularity and user intent:
- Short-tail keywords: These consist of 1-2 words (e.g., "shoes"). They are very popular, but also extremely competitive and rarely lead to direct sales.
- Long-tail phrases: Precise, multi-word queries (e.g., “men’s red running shoes”).
- Local phrases: They contain the name of the geolocation (e.g. "mechanic Poznań").
- Brand phrases: These contain the name of a specific company or brand (e.g., "Nike shoes").
Although long-tail keywords have lower monthly search volumes than generic terms, they hold enormous sales potential. A user who enters a highly specific query knows exactly what they're looking for and is much closer to making a purchase. Ranking for such keywords is typically easier, less expensive, and yields higher conversion rates.
The choice shouldn't be based on guesswork. Effective keyword selection requires analysis of the business profile, competitor activity, and user intent. This process requires specialized tools (such as Google Keyword Planner, Senuto, Semstorm, or Ahrefs) that provide hard data on the popularity and competitiveness of individual keywords.
No, it's a myth and a relic of the past. The practice of artificial keyword stuffing is now severely penalized by Google algorithms. Website content must be natural, substantive, and written with the user in mind. Keyword phrases should be incorporated sparingly, naturally inflected, and placed in strategic places, such as headings, page titles, or the beginning of text.
Summary
The above article covers the following topics:
- A keyword phrase is a query entered by a user into a search engine. Its presence in the page's headings and text signals to Google's algorithms that the website likely answers the user's question and should appear high in the search results.
- Modern texts should contain the optimal number of keywords woven naturally into the narrative, because since the introduction of the Panda algorithm, Google has been promoting high-quality websites with original content instead of texts packed with slogans written solely for bots.
