Moz Q&A is closed.
After more than 13 years, and tens of thousands of questions, Moz Q&A closed on 12th December 2024. Whilst we’re not completely removing the content - many posts will still be possible to view - we have locked both new posts and new replies. More details here.
Does combining keywords in the page title help or hurt you?
-
I am working on a site which sells elliptical equipment. I used Google Adwords to determine number of searches on the following keywords:
Elliptical trainer – 3.,600 searches
Elliptical machine – 14,800 searches
Elliptical trainer machine - 22 searches
I am currently optimizing “elliptical trainer” – but after seeing results above would also like to optimize “elliptical machine”. My question is: if I add “machine” to “elliptical trainer” will Google now only read “elliptical trainer machine” or will it read “elliptical machine” in addition to “elliptical trainer”. How do you know what word or “chunk” of words Google picks up?
-
I'm going to go against the grain here and say that I don't think you need or want separate pages. These are synonyms. The phrases are obviously semantically related. When I type "elliptical machine" and search on Google I see results with the world "elliptical trainer" in bold as well. If it were me and I had one category page to optimize I would title it something like:
Elliptical Machines - StoreName Has the Best Elliptical Trainer Brands in Stock for Less!
Or some variation that allows you to get both of those two-word phrases in there once.
If you do have the opportunity to optimize more than one page, and both are equally relevant to the searches (e.g. Home page and category page), then I agree that you should target one per page, though I would intersperse the other variation here and there on each page too.
Product pages are likely going to rank best for the brand/model of machine/trainer so you can just write naturally and use each keyword interchangeably (e.g. The BrandX elliptical machine is an excellent value, combining affordability with the features, style and durability of the more costly elliptical trainers on the market...)
-
I agree completely...and yes I think when it's not possible to have individual pages, combining but doing so strategically and sparingly is key here. You want to maintain good keyword density for your most lucrative keywords.
-
While I agree with the above comments, it's not always that easy i.e. an ecommerce product page when there is more than one way of naming the product. Also, 1000+ words of unique content on each page in that scenario may look a little bit odd (most people just want a product description and specifications, if necessary).
If she can make two pages, terrific! If not, is it better to combine your keywords?
-
Create a page with your keywords properly optimized for each keyword. Make sure you create 1000+ words of valuable content and build links to each individual page. Another thing you might consider is scrolling down to the bottom of Google for those keywords and creating more pages based on keywords Google suggest. Internally link all your pages together using variations of your keywords.
-
Hi Christle,
I too agree with SEO5 response. All the best.
Ben.
-
Hi Christie,
Based on the search volume, both the keywords warrant their own individual pages. I would suggest sticking with one keyword per page for optimization for best chances to rank for that keyword.
Cheers,
SEO5
Got a burning SEO question?
Subscribe to Moz Pro to gain full access to Q&A, answer questions, and ask your own.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
Tool for wildcard keyword suggestions
Like others, I have also been oblivious to the options which were uncovered in this article, using stars or underscores to uncover more keywords suggestions. However, I am trying to find a way to avoid the manual labour. Did any of you find a successful tool that automatically adds all the possible combinations of these wildcards to give a comprehensive lists of suggestions? I am looking for a tool that also included my country (.nl).
Keyword Research | | Entertainment0 -
Setting Up a Keyword Matrix
Greetings MOZ community!! My real estate web site contains about 500 pages with perhaps 70 pages targeting low volume, somewhat valuable but not very competitive keywords. Three to four URLs target very competitive terms. The following terms are among the most valuable: New York City office space,
Keyword Research | | Kingalan1
New York office space,
Manhattan office space,
NYC office space Such variants as: Office space in New York City,
Office space in New York,
Office space in Manhattan,
Office space in NYC
ETCETERA convert really well How would I match different terms to different URLs? For example I have just re-written the following two critical URLs: www.nyc-officespace-leader.com (home page)
http://www.nyc-officespace-leader.com/commercial-space/office-space (product page) Would it make sense to use "Manhattan office space" and variants on the home page while excluding "New York City office space" variants? At the same time I would use "New York City office space" variants on the "office-space" product page while excluding all mention of "Manhattan office space". Is this logical and does it conform to SEO best practices? For the "NYC office space" terms I would add them to http://www.nyc-officespace-leader.com/listings. This URL has almost no text but a strong potential to rent because of a high number of incoming internal links. Is this approach sensible? In general what measures should I take to prevent URLs from competing for the same keywords? Also, is there a software package or tools that I can use to come up with keyword variants? As a non SEO professional, can I create my own keyword matrix or is this really in the realm of a professional SEO consultant? Thanks, Alan0 -
How can improve my keywords ranking?
My keywords are not in top in 50.So, what kind of activity we do to get in top in 50 rank?
Keyword Research | | surabhi60 -
Keyword Conundrum...
I have 3 keywords that I am targeting. Assume for the time being that they are all equally competitive. Includes local exact match monthly searches: Managed IT Services - 3600 IT Managed Services - 720 Managed IT Support - 170 They are all exactly synonymous, not to mention other keywords such as IT Managed Support, Managed IT Service, IT Managed Service, Managed IT Service Provider, etc.. My current strategy is to target the top 3 all on one page. The problem then is the title tag: Managed IT Services | IT Managed Services | Managed IT Support Pretty spammy. I could build pages for all 3, but how would I incorporate them into the website since they are all synonyms. Can I get some recommendations on how to handle this? What would you use for a title tag? How would handle separate pages with synonymous content?
Keyword Research | | CsmBill0 -
Keyword Moderator List
Hi Moz Community, I'm wondering if anyone has a comprehensive list of keyword moderators that they could share? For example: online
Keyword Research | | IrishTimes
buy [keyword] online
cheap
cheapest
best
top
free
[country name]
[area name]
store
shop
purchase etc... I always find that it's useful to run [keyword + moderator] for search volumes as it sometimes uncovers some exact match surprises that you may not have thought of. Thanks everyone! Gavin1 -
Ignore keywords that have no data in the Google Keyword Tool?
Hello, There are some keywords that have no monthly search data in the Google Keyword Tool. In many cases, this is because there have been very few searches for the keyword. Would you recommend focusing on other keywords that do have search data in the Google Keyword Tool? Perhaps focusing too far out on the long tail of search results can be less productive than focusing on keywords that have proven that at least some people care about them. What do you think? Thanks!
Keyword Research | | nyc-seo0 -
How many keywords/key phrases to use on main page
Hi all! I'm a bit new to the SEO process. My question is about keywords. Now, I realize that in a perfect world you would want to target one keyword/key phrase per page - or so I've heard. How many keywords/key phrases should I target for my main page? I'm working on a Dallas real estate firm website. They focus on luxury real estate in Dallas, high rises, ect.. So I was thinking of focusing on "Dallas luxury real estate" for the main page but wasn't sure if I should focus on 2 or 3 other terms for the main page. Any thoughts or suggestions? Thanks!
Keyword Research | | strategit0 -
How To Optimize Similar Product Pages
I found some really good resources on here regarding how to optimize for product pages, however I have one question. We carry about 20 different products lines. EX: Cold Saws, Band Saws, Press Brakes etc. For the cold saws product line we have Manual Cold Saws and Automatic Cold Saws. Same for Band Saws. Since the products are very similar and people are technically only search for manual cold saws, manual coldsaws, manual cold saw machines etc. Each product line has between 10 and 50 machines. How do we optimize each product page for 1 keyword phrase.? Can I have about 5 manual cold saw pages target the same keyword phrase or does each page have to be targeting completely different key phrases? like, manual coldsaws, manual cold saws, affordable manual coldsaws, etc.
Keyword Research | | hfranz0