Understanding how to use SEO is a trick, and it’s an evolving process. Unfortunately, that leads to many misconceptions. One of them is keyword frequency. So many people, even copywriters, believe that more is always better with keywords.
Why Does Keyword Frequency Exist?
When the internet first began and search engines came into existence, they were rudimentary. By today’s standards, they were also woefully simple. That meant only direct keyword matches ranked, and the engine results thought that the more a word showed up, the more relevant it was.
That’s where the idea of direct keyword frequency came in. People could get their websites ranked simply by putting a bunch of words on a page. Obviously, this was not what people wanted, and the algorithms evolved.
How Keyword Frequency Has Evolved
The search engines have gradually changed their practices and tried to eliminate the loopholes. In other words, they gradually became more content forward. However, the companies are trying to teach an algorithm what good content is, which is not easy.
First came the changes to how keywords are recognized. That included a ban on too many of the same keywords in an article. There had to be actual content on the web pages. The web also started using links between sites to measure trust and crack down on black hat linking.
Eventually, more analytics became involved. Things like bounce rates and session times helped the algorithm figure out if people liked the content. More advanced marking allowed even more control. Accessibility features came into place. However, people continued to try to game the search engine algorithms.
What to Do with Keywords Instead
Keyword frequency is not an easy subject. Generally, having 1% to 2% of the text should be keywords. However, keyword frequency is not nearly as clear cut as it once was. The algorithms also recognize synonyms, key phrase parts not next to each other, and more these days.
In general, it’s best to focus on writing engaging content for people, not the algorithm. Choosing a keyword or key phrase is fine, as is confirming that the keyword frequency is not too much. However, trying to game the algorithm may bite businesses with the next change or the one after that.