Keyword mapping is about targeting a unique keyword for each page of a website. It also helps to avoid keyword cannibalization, as keyword cannibalization in SEO is a situation in which more than one page of your website competes for the same keyword.
It doesn’t matter whether you have a new website or an already established website; if you just target random keywords, it will not help you to drive traffic and rank higher on search engines like Google. If you want to improve your rankings, then you need to target the right keywords and strategically place them with the right pages of your website. Now that’s what keyword mapping is: ‘matching the right keywords with the right pages on the website’.
In this blog, we will discuss more about keyword mapping, including its benefits, how to do keyword mapping, and some of the most commonly used free tools for keyword mapping.Â
What Is Keyword Mapping?
Keyword mapping simply means organising all the target keywords and categorising them into groups, and then assigning relevant keywords to specific pages of your website. It helps to avoid the issue of overlapping. More than one page of your website should not compete for the same keyword.
You can also create a detailed keyword map to keep track of all the important details, for example, including keyword volume, keyword difficulty, along the link to the pages that you wish to optimize it for.Â
You can even create a separate column like ‘Status’, where you can keep a record of whether your keywords are already optimized in the content, or you still have to add them.
- Keyword mapping help to optimize your content and structure it properly using the right keyword at the right place.Â
- This practice can help you gain organic traffic and engagement on your site.
- With keyword mapping, you can identify the gaps in your content and fix them on time.Â
- With keyword mapping, you would be aware of the keywords you are using and hence it prevents keyword cannibalization i,e. Different pages are competing for the same keyword.
- The practice of keyword mapping enables you to use the right keywords with the right content at the right time.
- Organize your content with relevant keywords around the main keyword, as it might be useful to people visiting your site to gain more information on a topic.
Read More:Â What is SEO Content? Types, How to Write & Tips to Rank Higher
Let us know more about keyword mapping and how to actually put this practice in use.
What Are The Benefits Of Keyword Mapping?
Keyword mapping helps you to improve the overall SEO of a website. If you are unsure whether or not keyword mapping is worth giving a try, then let’s have a look at some of its key benefits.
- Keyword mapping improves the site experience for visitors as well as search engines
- It reduces bounce rates (it is a percentage of visitors who visit and leave the website without performing an action)
- It builds a strong internal linking system
- It helps to avoid keyword cannibalisation
- It also identifies keyword gaps
It is essential to use keyword mapping because it allows users to easily find information on any topic they are looking for, instead of confusing them or wasting their time scrolling through pages with irrelevant information.
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How To Do Keyword Mapping?
While performing keyword mapping, it is essential that you do it the right way. Let’s have a look at the steps you must follow for creating a keyword map.
1. Keyword ResearchÂ
The first and most important step while doing keyword mapping is to research keywords. You need to find a primary keyword for which you want to rank.Â
You need to do some brainstorming to find the right primary keyword. For example, note a few keywords that describe the content and your website well, and would be most relevant for your niche. Apart from this, you can also use Google Search Console, which gives you the best-performing search queries that your website is already ranking for. So you can use those queries as your primary keywords.Â
Once you have a primary keyword in your mind, you can use various keyword research tools like Semrush, Moz, Ahrefs, etc, to find similar keywords and suggestions which can be used for keyword mapping.
2. Categorize Keywords
Keyword mapping involves grouping your keywords into categories that are related to each other. It makes it easier to plan how your website will be structured and what keywords the different pages of your website will target. For example, if you have a website that is about a travel guide, you can group your keywords in the following categories:
- Destinations
- Travel time
- Travel tips
- Season
Each group is like a pillar, and the specific keywords inside it are like the supporting topics for your keyword map.Â
3. Create a Keyword map
There are various ways you can create a keyword map, but the most common and best suggested way is to use a spreadsheet like Google Sheets or Microsoft Excel. These actually help you to track all of the information related to your website in one place. You can add keywords, along with their search volume, keyword difficulties, and other important information.
You have to assign the relevant keywords to each page of your website. You can organise your niche into categories and sub-categories. Then, place all the relevant keywords that match the pillar page. Now, this will help you to assign unique keywords to each page of your website, which will result in the prevention of keyword cannibalization. It will also give each page a unique focus, which will eventually result in a lower bounce rate.
4. Optimize URLs
After you have mapped the keywords, that is, once you have assigned different keywords to each page of your website, you have to make sure that the URLs of different pages have those keywords included.Â
URLs that contain the primary keyword not only improve search engine visibility but it is also beneficial for the user, as URL optimization makes it easier for them to find and understand the content.
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5. Update the Map Regularly
You must know that keyword mapping is not just a one-time task. If you think that once you perform keyword mapping, and your job is done, there’s no need to revisit and make updates, then you are definitely living in a bubble, which can cause loss of rankings for your website and content.
For example, search trends, the behavior of users, business priorities, and goals can change over time. That’s why it is important that you constantly keep a check on the map and take the required actions. You can revisit your keyword maps every 3 to 6 months and add trending keywords with high volume, and remove the outdated keywords to push your content and improve rankings on search engines.
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How To Use Keyword Mapping In SEO?
You can either preplan a keyword mapping strategy in the early days of setting keyword strategies for a site. Also, you can make changes in live pages to align them with the keyword mapping.
1. Optimizing Content Based on Keyword Mapping
After you complete the keyword mapping strategy and collect some in-demand keywords with high search volume, intent, and balanced competition. You can use these keywords in your existing pages i,e. Headings, meta titles, meta descriptions, body text, and more.
2. Keyword Mapping In New Contents
You can create new content to fill keyword gaps in your content. Filling content gaps can help your users explore more on your site and get meaningful insights.
3. Avoid Cannibalization In Keyword Mapping
Make sure you do not target the same keyword for different content on your site, as it might lead to content competing with each other for the same keyword. It lowers the positive user experience on the site as it might confuse your visitors about which page to visit.
4. Improvise Anchor Text
You can add relevant terms in your anchor text to help search engines understand the content you want to deliver. You can use interlinking on your site to let users explore more of your site.
SEO Tools For Keyword Mapping
Even after understanding how to perform keyword mapping, many people face difficulty while choosing the right SEO tool for keyword mapping. Let’s have a look at some of the most popular and most used keyword mapping tools, which can help you create a map.
- Google Keyword Planner: It is used for initial keyword researchÂ
- Semrush: It is used for identifying pillar and cluster keywords, and it allows you to search up to 10 terms per day for free in its ‘Keyword Magic Tool’ and ‘Keyword Overview’ sections.
- Ahrefs keyword difficulty checker: It is another great option for finding keywords for freeÂ
- Google Search: the most common yet a tool that involves most brainstorming is searching for keywords through Google Search.
Keyword Mapping Examples
Keyword mapping might seem complex or difficult in the beginning, but once you understand it, it can have a huge impact and improve your SEO rankings. Let’s understand, with the help of an example, how keyword mapping actually works.
Let’s suppose you have a digital marketing agency and your website offers digital marketing services, so in such a case, your keyword mapping could look like the following
If the Pillar Page is for SEO services, then it can include keywords like
- Keyword research services
- Link-building packages
- Local SEO company
If the Pillar Page is about paid advertising, then the keywords can be
- Google Ads management
- Facebook Ads services
- LinkedIn Ads campaigns
For a Pillar page of content marketing, the main keywords can beÂ
- Blog writing services
- Video marketing agency
- Email marketing campaigns
Keyword Mapping FAQs
Q1. What is keyword mapping in SEO?
Ans: Keyword Mapping is a process of matching the right keywords with the right pages of a website to prevent multiple pages of a single website from competing for the same keyword. It also helps to improve visibility and rankings on search engines.
Q2. How to create a keyword map?
Ans: To create a keyword map, first of all, start by researching keywords, then group them on the basis of topic or intent. After all of this is done, you can assign the most relevant keywords to each page of your site.
Q3. What tools can be used for keyword mapping?
Ans: There are various tools that you can use for keyword mapping. However, some of the most used tools include: Google Keyword Planner, Semrush, Ahrefs, Google Sheets/MS-Excel (for mapping and organizing keywords).
Q4. How often should I update my keyword map?
Ans: You must update your keyword map every 3 to 6 months to stay up-to-date and keep up with the latest trends and business goals.
