Organic search #5: why should a keyword phrase contain at least 3 words?

In previous articles, we covered some starting points for embarking on organic search optimisation, including the importance of links and the composition of keyword phrases.

Today we briefly revisit the latter.

What is a keyword phrase?

As a reminder, a keyword phrase is a group of words that users are likely to search for on Google. By creating pages on your site that contain these phrases, you optimise your chances of appearing in users' search results.

For example, David is looking for a bakery on the route between his home in Lyon 9 and his mother-in-law's house in Oullins. He will therefore search on Google for "Bakery in Oullins".
Pages that contain this phrase and have worked on their organic search accordingly will then have a chance of featuring among the top search results.

"Bakery in Oullins" constitutes a keyword phrase here and contains three keywords; the distinction between keyword phrases and keywords is important.

This brings us to today's question: why must a keyword phrase contain at least 3 keywords for it to be effective?

At least 3 keywords per phrase — 3 reasons for this:

1. A keyword phrase that is too short is too vague

To keep the example of David looking for a bakery in Oullins: if he searches for just "Bakery" on Google, the results will show him all bakeries in France — or at least all those in the Lyon area if David's device is geolocated. David will be lost in the information, distracted by bakery sites in Villeurbanne or Vénissieux when he is only interested in Oullins.

Moreover, if you have optimised your organic search with only the keyword "Bakery", you will be casting too wide a net. Assuming your business is in Oullins, you do have a chance of reaching users like David, but you also risk appearing in results for Stéphanie in Paris, who has no interest in a bakery at the other end of the country.
On the one hand, you weaken your chances of reaching users like David, potential prospects, and on the other, you increase the risk of reaching people like Stéphanie who do not match your target.
A longer phrase allows you to focus your efforts more precisely.

2. Users search for multiple words

The second reason, a direct consequence of the first: a user rarely searches for just one keyword.
To keep David's example, he would have no reason to search for "Bakery" without specifying the geographical area of his choice. He knows from experience that the results would be too broad. And almost all users today are like David.
Your keyword phrase must therefore closely mirror the searches your target users will carry out.

3. Competition

The single keyword "Bakery" puts you in competition with all the bakeries in Lyon — or even in France. The phrase "Bakery in Oullins", in addition to narrowing your scope to prospects who can physically reach your bakery, frees you from competitors outside Lyon.

How can you refine a keyword phrase beyond geographical criteria?

The example chosen concerns a physical business — a bakery. But what about a purely digital business, for instance?
The same rules apply. But other criteria replace the geographical criterion to refine users' searches and spare you unnecessarily high competition.

Concretely, let us take the example of selling jewellery specifically online — no geographical restriction here.
How might a user find such a site?

If they search for "jewellery", they will find a thousand results and not only retail sites.
"Buy jewellery" will spare the user from drowning in sites that trace the history of jewellery, for example, narrowing their search to jewellery retail.
"Buy jewellery online" will remove physical boutiques that do not sell online from their results.
To refine further still, you can differentiate yourself through distinctive criteria. Is the jewellery you sell in this example entry-level or particularly luxurious?
A user looking for premium products might search for "Buy luxury jewellery online". Conversely, a user with a tighter budget might search for "Buy cheap jewellery online".
If you sell entry-level jewellery, you will have no reason to appear in premium search results, and vice versa.

To summarise, a keyword phrase must be as close as possible to the typical searches of your target users, adapting to their language and habits. It must therefore be precise enough to reach its target, on what one might call a "niche" demand, and avoid spreading your reach to users who have no chance of becoming prospects.

Http5000 is a web communications specialist. Website creation, day-to-day management, dedicated social media and web content writing are our daily work. Contact us to find out more.

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