Use of multiple keywords that are similar for one local site

[CamperConnect14]

Hi

I thought that if I wanted to rank a local site for the core Keyword, 'Landscaping Location' that variations of this keyword should be used on the same page. But I recently read that if I wanted to rank for:

Landscaping Location
Landscaping in Location
Landscaping Services in Location

that I should use separate page for each term. Is this correct? A small local website will probably only have a few pages and so making up pages solely to go after Keywords can't be right. But then would opportunities be missed?

Thanks for your help with this!!

[RuthBurrReedy]

Matt is correct - building pages in a way that adds value to the user is the way to go. Building a separate page for each variation of a keyword is not only unnecessary, it can lead to lower rankings overall since Google has stated that these are not the kinds of sites they want to rank.

I would recommend very strongly against scraping content from other sites, or posting the same content on mulitple sites that you own, as well. Spend that time and effort on creating unique, expert, trustworthy content that adds value for your audience instead.

I haven't read the book you mention, but it might be time to find a different resource to learn about content marketing.

[CamperConnect14]

Great- thank you, I'm sure it was Joe Pulizzi's book 'Content Inc' that was leading me down the wrong path. It also states that you can use duplicate content (scraped from other sites) and I'm not sure that's right either.

[MattRoney]

You're right—building separate pages for each of those terms is most definitely not a good idea, and would appear spammy to search engines (not to mention your visitors!). Build the site in a way that will be useful and make sense for humans. If you can work the keyword variations into your content in a way that reads naturally, go for it, but keep in mind that the search engines are getting better and better at recognizing search intent. It's better to make your site clear and usable than to work in every possible variation of your terms.

Some materials that should help:

A Visual Guide to Keyword Targeting and On-Page SEO

Keywords to Concepts: The Lazy Web Marketer's Guide to Smart Keyword Research