This step-by-step guide has everything you need to get started with keyword mapping.
What Is Keyword Mapping?
Keyword mapping is the act of grouping target keywords and assigning them to specific pages of your website. Creating a precise keyword map ensures that your SEO approach remains consistent and gives your site an advantage in search engine results pages (SERPs).
Benefits Of Keyword Mapping
• Improves the site experience for both visitors and search engines.
• Reduces bounce rates.
• Creates a powerful internal connection structure.
• Helps prevent keyword cannibalization.
• Identifies keyword gaps.
Keyword mapping assists in avoiding cannibalization, maintaining a strong internal link network, and designing content that meets user needs.
The process begins with a content strategy that focuses on ideal customer profiles and includes key content pillars including SEO, content marketing, link development, and digital marketing. The existing content library is reviewed to verify that everything remains relevant and accurate.
Then, new keyword research is conducted based on audience insights and competitive data to identify new article themes.
How To Perform Keyword Mapping In 5 Steps
The primary columns are:
• Pillar pages and cluster themes (primary keywords)
• Keyword variants (secondary keywords)
• Volume and keyword difficulty (KD)
• Target URL, status, and the last update date
Find Keywords For Mapping
You will need three keyword lists:
1. Keywords for the pillar page
2. Cluster theme keywords
3. Keyword variants
Begin with the main topic.
Pillar Page Keywords
Pillar pages are detailed instructions that cover key topics. Use a keyword tool such as Semrush or Google Keyword Planner to locate relevant keywords.
For example, "gardening tips" receives 1,600 monthly searches and a "difficult" KD score.
Pro tip: If your website is new, choose keywords with lower complexity.
Check the search intent: informational, navigational, commercial, or transactional. Save the keyword in your list.
Cluster topics are subtopics that support a pillar page. Long-tail keywords do better since they are more specialized and have a lower difficulty.
Add Keywords To Your Map
Then, calculate overall search volume by adding the volume of the main term to the sum of all variations. This helps to prioritize material with the highest potential traffic.
Match each row of keywords to a page on your website. If the page exists, type its URL into the column. If not, leave it blank and select "To Create." Use "To Optimize" for published but unoptimized pages, and "Updated" for properly optimized pages.
When optimizing a page, add the "Last Updated" date. Repeat the process for each keyword. Your keyword map now indicates what is completed, what is pending, and what is incomplete.
Use Your Keyword Map To Optimize Website Pages
Begin with your existing pages. Optimize your page by employing the main keyword in the:
- Title tag
- Meta description
- Introduction
- Subheaders
- Image alt text
Include secondary keywords naturally throughout the material.
When you optimize or publish new material, update your template's "Status" and "Last Updated" fields.
Rows without URLs indicate content gaps, or potential subjects to develop.
Working with a best seo agency can help ensure these steps are implemented efficiently.
Free SEO Tools For Keyword Mapping
1. Google Keyword Planner: For the initial keyword research.
2. Semrush Keyword Tools: To identify pillar and cluster keywords. 3. Ahrefs Keyword Difficulty Checker: To estimate difficulty.
4. Google Search: For topic brainstorming.
