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Keyword Stuffing
Our series on strategies for best practice in content writing is nearing its end with this, the sixth of seven anticipated parts.
This time we’re looking at SEO manipulation by keyword stuffing. As usual, we’re looking less at content mistakes and are more focused on offering advice on what you should be doing if your goal is to produce good quality content.
Previous posts in this series have discussed audience, jargon, the potential problem of “TMI,” fact checking, and localization. The final post is planned to look at writing effective and varied calls to action.
The SEO Version of Verbal Abuse
The term keyword stuffing covers several different practices. The most common, which we’ll be talking about here, is the over-repeated use of important key words and phrases on a page in an attempt to boost page rank in search engines.
Other types of keyword stuffing, which we won’t be looking at, include cramming keywords into hidden text (very old-school) and placing keywords throughout the page code (in alt tags and elsewhere). When a page uses keywords that are unrelated to the subject of the page, and are used because they might increase page rank (especially by gaming automated search), that can also be considered stuffing.
What’s an example of keyword stuffing? Here’s a piece of text which might demonstrate:
No Thanksgiving dinner should be considered complete without cornbread stuffing. Alongside the mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberry sauce, and the turkey itself, cornbread stuffing is a necessity! We’re perfectly capable of making our own cornbread stuffing in our family, but we’ve discovered that the Pepperidge Farm cornbread stuffing is not only just as good (and more consistent) than our own cornbread stuffing, it’s also a lot easier to make. Everyone agrees that it’s better than the Stove Top cornbread stuffing, too, so it’s definitely our go-to cornbread stuffing.
That’s atrocious. The passage is only 87 words long, but repeats the key “cornbread stuffing” 7 times. Since it’s a two-word phrase, that’s 14 of 87 words, or more than 16% of the text.
The math used by search engine algorithms is more complex than that, but this is a good rule of thumb to understand the important idea of keyword density. Keyword density is simply the percentage of words on a page used up by a particular keyword (or phrase).
As with all things Google, specifics are both difficult to pin down and ever-changing. But a well-regarded rule of thumb is that the keyword density on a page should not exceed 2%. So the 16% in the sample passage is terrible. Google has repeatedly cracked down on different kinds of keyword stuffing over the years, and the algorithm has been tweaked over time to down-rank or even ban pages (and possibly entire domains) that are the worst offenders.
Yet even when a page doesn’t, strictly speaking, overuse a keyword and risk running into trouble, a page can still have a keyword stuffing problem. It might only reach a keyword density of 1% or 2%, but if the keys are used awkwardly, it won’t be Google that down-ranks a page: it will be the users, who will avoid it for better-written material.
Keyword Use, Not Abuse
We follow a few simple general rules when it comes to using keywords (and keyword density). Every content writer should consider adopting them, and should at least be aware of the principles behind them.
- Single use in body text. Because our articles typically target a length of around 500 words (variable based on client needs), we don’t have an enormous amount of wiggle room when it comes to keyword density. Assuming, for example, that the key is a two-word string, we could use it 5 times in a 500-word post and still not cross the 2% density line. With that in mind, our general practice is to draft content with the key used only once in the body text, typically in the first or second paragraph. That also reserves the keywords for use in the other ways noted below. Note that 2% is not a magic and certain number: it’s a guideline that’s generally considered a good idea. No exact density threshold has ever been stated by Google: a density of 3%, 5%, or even 10% might not cause any trouble (and some people believe that density is not even part of the algorithm, although that seems very unlikely). We lean conservative for two reasons: it gives us a larger margin of safety to work within and it contributes to better writing overall.
- Header use. Headers are important in search, which means it’s important that keywords land in them. Another general practice we follow is to place each page’s primary keyword in a heading, either the main (H1) heading or the first subheading (at the H2 level). Flexibility is important, though, as is writing that flows well for the reader: the keyword might fit more naturally in a later H2 subhead, or even at the H3 level. SEO experts generally agree that it’s important to include keys in the page title and the H1 header. There are disagreements over placement in subheadings and whether keys in headings even count toward the density calculation. We err on the side of caution.
- Synonyms. A wise and experienced master of SEO long ago taught us the value of keyword synonyms. If there is a reasonable synonym for the keyword that you’re using, you should make an effort to use it in the text. In fact, you should also make an effort to use it in a heading. And, if there are multiple appropriate synonyms, you should attempt to use each. Note, however, that you should not go overboard with any of them: each synonym should target the same 2% or less density point.
Google uses synonyms to produce search results and claims 98% or better relevance, thanks to the years of work they’ve done in language analysis. Never mind that of the 2% it gets wrong, it gets quite a few very wrong: it’s a good effort. Your use of synonyms puts them at both ends of search—in the text (placed deliberately) and in the algorithm (placed by Google). - Call to action. It might be your keywords; it might be a synonym. But the call to action of your post should directly reference the point of the text written for this page. Don’t forget it here.
- Room to spare? If we (or you) have followed these guidelines, we’ll find ourselves at the end of 500 words with a keyword density in the vicinity or 1.5%-2%. Synonyms (which should be calculated separately, but we’ll treat cumulatively here) will probably increase that to around 2.5%, give or take 0.5%. But there might still be room to add another instance or two of the important and relevant keywords. When we write early drafts, we are conscious of the keys and work to avoid them except as outlined above. If the post turns out long—650 or more words, for instance—but we’ve followed these practices rigidly, keyword density might be at or below 1%. We would then have the opportunity to take a more relaxed approach during revision, and perhaps find a good way to insert the keyword once or twice more.
Good Writing Above All
Care must be taken with the use of keywords, but even the most careful use of keywords—and a complete avoidance of stuffing—will not help bad content writing. An awareness of keywords, as with every other concept covered in this series, is only a small part of creating good content. Each and every one of those ideas should be kept in mind and applied as a means to producing the best, most readable content possible for each circumstance.
For original content that pays attention to all of the details, get in touch with Waltham WordWorks. Understanding the right keywords for each piece we produce is a critical step, but only part of the effort we put into learning all that we can about a client’s business and their content needs. When you’re ready to begin building your online content strategy on a strong foundation, contact us to discuss the first step.
The final post in this series discussing “mistakes” and “best practices” in site content will appear soon. Click the “follow” button just below the search box to receive notification when it’s published—we don’t collect or share your information, it’s for this purpose only.
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