Keywords have become a vital part of online marketing. Whether done to ensure Search Engine Optimization or make looking up information easier, keywords are an essential aspect of online business. Knowing what keywords to include on product descriptions or information pages can make a big difference in visibility and ease of searching.

Advanced Searches

As important as keywords are to include in content, they can also be crucial to exclude, so people’s searches don’t get overly clogged with related, but not relevant, material. The use of keywords to exclude items from a search is called negative keywords. These are the words placed into the “exclude from search” section of an advanced search.

How To Use

Negative keywords are useful for narrowing searches by clearing out related material that is not part of the search itself. This sort of tool is beneficial because many search systems use algorithms, and not having negative keywords can make the algorithms get a little too broad in their results. On the other end of the issue, negative keywords that are too narrow can mess with results in an unhelpful way.

For example, suppose a kitchen appliance company excludes “washer” from searches for their products because they don’t want results for clothes washers. In that case, they risk losing people looking for dishwashers. As with most forms of keywords, careful marketing is required to make sure the words are correctly used.

Caution

Some might question in that case if it’s even worth using negative keywords if they can impact results in a wrong way. The fact is that the internet is an expansive place, and searches can yield millions of results. Negative keywords are vital to helping narrow those down. Algorithms are notoriously finicky when it comes to searches, some more than others.

Algorithms

The use of negative keywords helps algorithms refine their searches and produce more accurate and reliable results. This filtering is incredibly useful to help companies make sure their products and content are found easily and quickly by those searching. Algorithms are from perfect and negative keywords help reduce the number of possible search results. They may take a bit of work to refine, but that is the case with most marketing tools and methods.


Contact StickyLeads

Not using negative keywords can easily lead to a flood of results appearing to potential customers, making it hard to find the desired content. Reduce the deluge and make sure the right content appears through the aid of negative keywords. If you need help with using negative keywords correctly, contact StickyLeads. We’ll work to increase your leads with the proper keywords. Call 757-390-0748.