What makes search engine marketing unique is the fact that the effort is to provide relevant information, products or services to users who are actively seeking them. When a user enters a search term into a search engine, the search engine provides them with sites and ads that are relevant to the search terms. The users get what they want in just a few seconds. According to experts in the search engine marketing Dubai sector however, the key is to convince search engines that a particular website holds answers for users with specific queries or search keywords. 

There’s good potential for sales for a business, while users get what they want. It’s a win-win. The search engine just gets the two parties to meet online. It’s not a complex process to figure out. However, many mistakes can make a website remain invisible to users. 

One such mistake pertains to keyword research. The right keywords ensure search engines that a website holds information on specific queries that users would find valuable. The wrong ones do the opposite. The process of finding the right keywords can be quite challenging. There are many pitfalls, the likes of which that can reduce the effectiveness of search engine marketing campaigns. 

Here are 4 keyword research mistakes companies make when selecting keywords for their online marketing campaigns. 

Focusing on keywords that people never use

There are still companies unknowingly targeting phrases that visitors seldom use to search for something. There are many reasons why they make this mistake, primarily the practice of using insider jargon within that business itself that the outside world doesn’t use much. People associated with that business might have been using those phrases for a long time, enough to have them engraved in their vocabulary. But for the rest of the world, such a phrase won’t make much sense. 

Another mistake is actually intentional. There are many SEO companies that willfully target obscure keywords so they can guarantee rankings on those phrases. There isn’t much competition for such keywords. They may in time succeed in getting the search rankings up for those keywords. But because visitors don’t use those keywords normally, there wouldn’t be a lot of traffic which translates to low sales potential. 

If your SEO firm is guaranteeing rankings, you should do some research on their plan of action, and the keywords they’d be focusing on. However, there are still many trustworthy companies in the SEO services Dubai sector that can legitimately help your website rank higher on search engine result pages. 

Not considering user intent

To identify the right keywords, you should understand a user’s intent when typing words into a search engine – what they want, why do they want it, what they expect from it etc.

If you look closely, each phrase that a user enters conveys a specific intent or the user’s state of mind to say the least. For example, if a user enters ‘laptop reviews’, he/she might be in the research phase trying to find a good product. If the user enters ‘buy laptops without emi’, he/she is ready to buy but prefers a payment option without emi.

Going for single word keywords

Single word keywords are considered a good choice only in certain occasions and under certain circumstances. For most businesses in general, targeting single word keywords can be quite expensive not to mention competitive. 

Neglecting the competition

The competitive landscape of a keyword is just as important as the keyword itself. Many businesses tend to neglect the competition of the keywords they choose. It’s wise to check out and take notes on the shortlisted keywords by searching them on a search engine. You should note the site’s ranking for the term, examine the domain extension of competitors, how they are optimized, backlinks etc. This should give you an idea whether you can afford to target those keywords and get results relatively quickly.

If you cannot afford to spend time researching keywords, their competitive landscapes, and traffic-driving potential, the wise approach would be to have an experienced SEO consultant Dubai do it for you.