Everybody involved in the world of SEO has their own opinion about keyword density. Some people think that keyword density doesn't exist while other people believe in specific, exact densities to achieve high rankings. So what is the real truth about this topic, and how can it potentially improve or damage your positioning in the search engines?
When someone mentions keyword density for SEO, they are talking about the percentage that a particular word is found within the content of a page. A single word keyword used 5 times in 500 words has a 1% density. However, keep in mind that a 4 word key phrase used 5 times in 500 words actually has a 4% density because of the number of words used.
In the earlier years of SEO, many people believed that trying to achieve an exact density was the true key to improving their rankings. Many people began trying to estimate exactly what they should try to shoot for, with some people estimating perhaps 2-3% and other estimating very high numbers such as 8-10%. After all of this time, what's the true answer for the keyword density you should shoot for?
However, these days we know that for SEO there is not a specific, targeted keyword percentage that is going to improve your rankings. There is no exact science, and it's unwise to try to achieve a specific keyword density just because you think it will improve your rankings.
This means that as you prepare your content you should keep a focus on including your keyword phrases wherever they make sense to be used. You might have a general guideline for yourself, such as trying to include the phrase every 100 words, or once per paragraph or so, but you should not worry about hitting a targeted percentage.
More important is to ensure that you use the words you are targeting for SEO, and to make sure that you do not overuse them. It's entirely way too easy to overdo yourself while pursuing a keyword density. If you think you have used a phrase too much, then you probably have. Your visitors will be turned off, and you can even get punished in the rankings of the search engines as a result.
Another important thing that you'll want to remember is that besides your content, other areas of your website can be affecting the level of keyword density that you have. For example, the terms used in the links within your menus show up in the search engines, as does the description you enter in your META tags and the title you have at the top of the browser.
By now, the SEO debate for keyword density has been solved. The answer is to stop trying to pursue exact percentages. Instead, focus on natural inclusion and avoiding excessive usage of your keywords. In this way you'll please both your visitors and the search engines and your rankings will improve.
Visit SEO professional Nick Halmonds' website. To get more great information on internet marketing. You will get affordable SEO Services, FREE SEO Tools, articles and more. Visit search engine marketing
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