{"id":17150,"date":"2020-03-31T10:20:36","date_gmt":"2020-03-31T15:20:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/?p=17150"},"modified":"2020-09-01T10:54:31","modified_gmt":"2020-09-01T15:54:31","slug":"keyword-research","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/blog\/keyword-research\/","title":{"rendered":"Keyword Research: Trust the Process (and the Right Tools) For SEO Success"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n<div class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;padding-top:0;padding-bottom:0\">\r\n<article class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"padding-top:0;padding-bottom:0\">\r\n<section class=\"wp-block-group alignfull is-style-beige has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-772205c6 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained is-style-beige--1\" style=\"padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50)\">\r\n<header class=\"wp-block-group c-breadcrumbs aligngrid has-global-padding is-content-justification-left is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-61973aa6 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0\">\r\n<header class=\"wp-block-group aligngrid is-content-justification-left is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-d68226ec wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30)\">\r\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large is-resized\" style=\"margin-bottom:5px\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/mediavine-dev.d1.moderntribe.qa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/chevron-left2.svg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-542\" style=\"aspect-ratio:9\/16;object-fit:contain;width:auto;height:20px\"\/><\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<p class=\"is-style-small is-style-small--2\"><a href=\"\/blog\/\">Back to Blog<\/a><\/p>\r\n<\/header>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity aligngrid\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0\"\/>\r\n<\/header>\r\n<\/section>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<section class=\"wp-block-group alignfull is-style-default has-neutral-20-background-color has-background has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--70);padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--60)\"><div class=\"aligncenter aligncenter wp-block-tribe-terms\"><ul class=\"wp-block-tribe-terms__list\"><li class=\"wp-block-tribe-terms__term\"><span class=\"wp-block-tribe-terms__link t-category\">SEO<\/span><\/li><\/ul><\/div>\r\n\r\n<h1 style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--10);\" class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-post-title\">Keyword Research: Trust the Process (and the Right Tools) For SEO Success<\/h1>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-content-justification-center is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-9b38c6d9 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\" style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--30);margin-bottom:0;padding-top:0;padding-bottom:0\"><div style=\"margin-bottom:0;margin-top:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;\" class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-post-author-name\">Eric Hochberger<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n<p>\u2022<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"padding-top:0;padding-bottom:0;padding-left:0;padding-right:0;margin-top:0;margin-bottom:0;margin-left:0;margin-right:0;\" class=\"has-text-align-center wp-block-post-date has-10-font-size\"><time datetime=\"2020-03-31T10:20:36-05:00\">March 31, 2020<\/time><\/div><\/div>\r\n<\/section>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<section class=\"wp-block-group alignfull has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"padding-top:0;padding-bottom:0\">In this week&#8217;s installment of Mediavine&#8217;s SEO series, we&#8217;re taking our ongoing discussion of keywords to a whole new level.\n\nWe began at the start, with the basics of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/what-is-a-keyword\/\">what is a keyword<\/a> \u2014 a more complicated question than many people might think.\n\n<!--more-->\n\nFrom there we delved into <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/long-tail-keywords\/\">long tail keywords<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/cornerstone-content\/\">cornerstone content<\/a>, the two types of keywords we are most focused on.\n\nArmed with that knowledge, now&#8217;s the time to really get down to business with keyword research, or keyword planning.\n\n<em>How do you actually, you know, pick the keywords?<\/em>\n\nBefore we answer that, the first step is to make sure we&#8217;re on the same page when we talk about what keyword research is.\n\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-17232 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Backlinks-7.jpg\" alt=\"Keyword research - Learn how to trust the process and what the right tools are for SEO success. (Pinterest images)\" width=\"735\" height=\"1102\" data-pin-title=\"What is Keyword Research? \" data-pin-description=\"Keyword Research is an important tool for SEO strategy. We're talking about the process of selecting the keyword your post will target, or what your focus keyword for that post will be.\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Backlinks-7.jpg 735w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Backlinks-7-200x300.jpg 200w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Backlinks-7-307x460.jpg 307w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 735px) 100vw, 735px\" \/>\n<h2>What is Keyword Research?<\/h2>\nWe&#8217;re talking about the process of selecting the keyword your post will target, or what your focus keyword for that post will be.\n\nIf you find that multiple keywords could describe a particular post, that&#8217;s great, but with our strategy, you&#8217;re going to pick one.\n\n<strong>We like to focus on one keyword per post<\/strong>. Definitely make note of the other keywords and add them to your content schedule \u2014 writing lots of related content is also an important component of our strategy \u2014 which we&#8217;ll get to in a bit.\n\nFor now: Focus in on one keyword, or key phrase, per post.\n\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-9255 size-mv_create_no_ratio\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/developer-working-735x490.jpg\" alt=\"photo of someone doing keyword research on a laptop in a home office\" width=\"735\" height=\"490\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/developer-working-735x490.jpg 735w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/developer-working-441x294.jpg 441w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/developer-working-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/developer-working-690x460.jpg 690w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/01\/developer-working.jpg 800w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 735px) 100vw, 735px\" \/>\n<h2>The Keyword Research Process<\/h2>\nThe first step is honing in on what you want to write about. <em>What would a user type into a search engine to try and find this content?<\/em>\n\nIf you&#8217;re writing a recipe for something popular, odds are there&#8217;s a universal, or at least fairly common name for what you&#8217;re making.\n\nBy contrast, if you&#8217;re making something original and aren&#8217;t sure what to call it, you may want to be less creative than you think.\n\nEither way, <strong>people are searching for it<\/strong>. Whatever the topic is, put yourself in the shoes of would-be readers \u2014 the ones researching it.\n\nThe key here is to be as generic as you can, because you&#8217;re about to receive a crucial boost from someone who knows Google the best:\n\nGoogle itself.&nbsp;\n\nOnce you narrow down the most generic words that a reader might use to search for your content, you&#8217;ll be ready to pick your keyword.\n<h2>Keyword Planning Tools<\/h2>\nA keyword planning tool is essential to doing keyword research, and fortunately, there are free keyword planning tools.\n\nBetter yet, they&#8217;re actually all by Google.\n\nThe catch? None of these tools are going to give you the exact numbers you&#8217;re after, but they&#8217;re helpful nonetheless.\n\nLet&#8217;s break down the most popular:\n<h3>Free Keyword Planning Tool: Google Keyword Planner<\/h3>\nThis is the most official keyword tool from Google, and no one will ever accuse <a href=\"https:\/\/ads.google.com\/home\/tools\/keyword-planner\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Keyword Planner<\/a>&nbsp;of not living up to its keyword-rich name.\n\nIt&#8217;s a tool designed for people purchasing Google AdWords, particularly for buying ads that appear in Google Search results.\n\nYou&#8217;ll need to sign up for a Google Ads account, but don&#8217;t worry \u2014 you won&#8217;t need to actually buy ads to use this keyword tool.\n\nAs you type in generic terms, Keyword Planner will offer keyword suggestions, with data such as approximate monthly searches.\n\nWarning: The data provided will likely be broad and inexact, but it should give you a strong starting point and, well, it&#8217;s free.\n\nThere are some other Google tools you can use to find additional keywords, such as &#8220;People Also Ask&#8221; and &#8220;Related Searches,&#8221; which you will find in Google search results.\n\nWe&#8217;ll come back to those when we dive into our related content strategies, because they&#8217;ll be much more useful within that context.&nbsp;\n\nFor raw \u2014 and free \u2014 keyword planning, use Google Keyword Planner. If more and stronger data is what you want, you&#8217;re going to have to pay.&nbsp;\n\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-8249 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/typing.jpg\" alt=\"woman's hands typing on a keyboard while doing keyword research\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/typing.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/typing-441x294.jpg 441w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/typing-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/typing-690x460.jpg 690w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/11\/typing-735x490.jpg 735w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/>\n<h3>Paid Keyword Planning Tools<\/h3>\nWe&#8217;ll have more on these in future blog posts, but three popular options publishers use are SEMrush, Ahrefs and Keysearch.\n\nI personally use SEMrush, but all three of these are powered by very similar datasets pulled from the same search engines.\n\nTheir results should be fairly similar, so it becomes a matter of personally weighing the costs and different tools they provide.\n\nI&#8217;m a fan of lots of the other features of SEMrush, which is ultimately why I went that route, but it&#8217;s a matter of preference.\n\nMore to come on paid options down the line. For now, what matters is that you&#8217;re utilizing any keyword planning tool. Onward!\n<h2>How to Use a Keyword Planning Tool<\/h2>\nHopefully after trying out a few generic terms to describe your post, you&#8217;ll get a feel for what users have been searching for.\n\nWhat&#8217;s important is utilizing the related keyword and broad search features to make sure you&#8217;re headed down the right path.\n\n<strong>To illustrate, let&#8217;s use the post you&#8217;re reading right now.<\/strong>\n\nVery meta, I know. So as I sat down to write this post, my first thought might&#8217;ve been to title it: &#8220;How to pick a keyword?&#8221;\n\nOr not. If I typed &#8220;How to pick a keyword&#8221; into Google Keyword Planner, I&#8217;d end up with a small volume of search (10-100).\n\nFortunately, Google offered to help me broaden with the term &#8220;keyword,&#8221; so I added that to the mix. Game changer.\n\nAll of a sudden, I&#8217;m looking at a lot of keywords that still describe my post, but with far more monthly search volume:\n\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-17158 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Screen-Shot-2020-03-29-at-8.33.01-AM.png\" alt=\"Keyword Planner results for keyword and How to Pick a Keyword\" width=\"1158\" height=\"1066\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Screen-Shot-2020-03-29-at-8.33.01-AM.png 1158w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Screen-Shot-2020-03-29-at-8.33.01-AM-326x300.png 326w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Screen-Shot-2020-03-29-at-8.33.01-AM-500x460.png 500w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Screen-Shot-2020-03-29-at-8.33.01-AM-768x707.png 768w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/03\/Screen-Shot-2020-03-29-at-8.33.01-AM-735x677.png 735w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1158px) 100vw, 1158px\" \/>\n\nYour mind may immediately gravitate toward the results with the most searches, but think back to our long tail keyword post.\n\n<strong>The key is to find the right balance by weighing these factors:<\/strong>\n<ul>\n \t<li>Does your keyword describe your article (including user intent)?<\/li>\n \t<li>Does it have enough searches to warrant your attention?<\/li>\n \t<li>Is it actually winnable (realistically competitive)?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\nIn this case, you may think wow, &#8220;Keyword Planner&#8221; has great volume (10-100k) and accurately describes my blog post.\n\nSpoiler: If you&#8217;re reading this, you know I didn&#8217;t choose that. Why did I skip on down to Keyword Research (1-10k)?\n\nBecause raw volume doesn&#8217;t tell the whole story, particularly when thinking about this through the lens of user intent.\n\nMoreover, the third bullet point above \u2014 a very simple competitive analysis \u2014 steered me toward &#8220;Keyword Research.&#8221;\n\nDo a Google search for &#8220;Keyword Planner.&#8221;\n\n<em>(NOTE: Make sure you search via Private Browsing mode, or Incognito in Chrome, so Google shows you what the general population sees instead of personalized results based on your own browsing history.)<\/em>\n\nYou&#8217;ll find all the top search engine results are for keyword planning tools, with Google&#8217;s own Keyword Planner at the top.\n\nGoogle nailed the user intent of these queries \u2014 people looking for actual keyword planning tools, not my blog post. (Rude.)\n\nSince the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/mediavine-2020-preview-road-map-for-a-new-decade-of-video-and-much-more\/\">Mediavine roadmap<\/a> doesn&#8217;t include offering a keyword planning tool with this article (or any time soon), I ceded that term and moved on.\n\n&#8220;Keyword Research&#8221; is next in line, still with fairly significant volume. Let&#8217;s head back to Google to see the results there.\n\nThe first three organic results are all <strong>articles about how to do keyword research and use keyword planning tools<\/strong>.\n\nWow, I can do that, I thought. Good job, me.&nbsp;\n\nSo now I&#8217;ve got a keyword that fits the user intent and meets the criteria of reasonable traffic volume. But it&#8217;s not over yet.\n\n<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter wp-image-5591\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/plugin-audits-665x460.jpg\" alt=\"woman wearing a striped shirt and glasses using a laptop on a desk in a home office\" width=\"801\" height=\"554\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/plugin-audits-665x460.jpg 665w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/plugin-audits-434x300.jpg 434w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/plugin-audits-768x531.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/04\/plugin-audits.jpg 1000w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 801px) 100vw, 801px\" \/>\n<h2>Keyword Competitive Analysis<\/h2>\nOkay, let&#8217;s head back to Google, still in Incognito mode, to search for &#8220;keyword research.&#8221; This time we&#8217;re looking at the results a bit differently:\n\n<em>Who ranks in the top 10 for this search term?<\/em>\n\nIt looks like Moz, Yoast and Neil Patel, the usual suspects in the world of SEO blogging. What you&#8217;re looking for in this or any example are websites similar to your own that are ranking highly.\n\nWhat does &#8220;similar&#8221; mean in this context?\n\nIn general terms, it&#8217;s sites with a comparable format, PageRank, level of expertise, etc. If you consider these sites your &#8220;peer set,&#8221; typically writing about and ranking on similar topics, you&#8217;re on the right track.\n\nYou can also use the total number of search results (as shown by Google) to gauge how much competition is out there. (This won&#8217;t necessarily indicate the quality of the competition, so I typically stick to the top 10).\n\nNote that this process is more of a gut check, so to speak, than an official checklist. Many of the aforementioned factors aren&#8217;t things you can easily look up about other websites with certainty.\n\nWith that said, in our example those blogs are formatted and producing content in line with the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/what-is-seo-introducing-the-mediavine-search-engine-optimization-series\/\">Mediavine SEO<\/a> strategy, and we feel they&#8217;re likely similar in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/pagerank-why-links-are-so-important\/\">PageRank<\/a> as well.&nbsp;\n\nIn other words, I&#8217;m not scared. The usual suspects are great resources, but I believe Mediavine has a lot to offer along with them, and can compete in this particular space.&nbsp;\n\nYou know who would scare me in the SEO blogging world? Google. Remember them? The little company that dominated spots 1-3 for Keyword Planning? Hard pass.&nbsp;\n\nWhen doing your own competitive analysis, consider this factor: Are household names and legacy brands dominating the top 10, or are those spots held by bloggers and independent content creators like you?\n<h2>Warning: Do NOT Use Competition Numbers From a Keyword Planning Tool<\/h2>\nThose of you who have used keyword planning tools in the past have probably noticed a &#8220;competition&#8221; column there.\n\nDo NOT use this.\n\nAll of these tools are getting their data from <em>paid search<\/em>, and they&#8217;re showing you competition for <em>buying<\/em> keywords.\n\nPaid and organic search results are completely different things, and the competition for them is unrelated. Ignore.&nbsp;&nbsp;\n<h2>Do I Have to Do This For Every Blog Post?<\/h2>\nYes, but often times in your keyword research, you&#8217;re going to find there are more terms than you&#8217;re writing about.&nbsp;\n\nStock those away in your long term content strategy. In future posts, we&#8217;ll be talking a lot more about content strategy and how to make use of these other related posts to boost search results.\n\nFor now, though, yes. It may seem like a lot of effort, but it&#8217;s worth it. Remember above? If we didn&#8217;t put in the work and trust the process, we might have squandered the ranking potential of this very post.\n\nBesides, conceptualizing and creating the blog post itself will require the bulk of your energy. Look at keyword research as the final step to ensure that hard work doesn&#8217;t go unnoticed \u2014 by Google and your readers.\n\nNext up we will be covering <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/keyword-prominence\/\">keyword prominence<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/stop-words\/\">stop words<\/a>. Don&#8217;t miss our big list of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/mediavines-seo-resources\/\">SEO Resources<\/a> if you&#8217;d like to learn more.&nbsp;<\/section>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<section class=\"wp-block-group has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"margin-top:0\">\r\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-09aec4f2 wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50);padding-right:0;padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--60)\">\r\n<p class=\"is-style-small is-style-small--3\">About the author<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--20);\" class=\"wp-block-post-author\"><div class=\"wp-block-post-author__avatar\"><img alt='' src='https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/152dc08941c75895b80ffc4d0f79236a870658434ec66e25f227ffe962e70114?s=96&#038;d=blank&#038;r=g' srcset='https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/152dc08941c75895b80ffc4d0f79236a870658434ec66e25f227ffe962e70114?s=192&#038;d=blank&#038;r=g 2x' class='avatar avatar-96 photo' height='96' width='96' \/><\/div><div class=\"wp-block-post-author__content\"><p class=\"wp-block-post-author__name\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/blog\/author\/eric\/\" target=\"_self\">Eric Hochberger<\/a><\/p><p class=\"wp-block-post-author__bio\"><\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<div class=\"wp-block-group has-global-padding is-layout-constrained wp-container-core-group-is-layout-7c04bf6b wp-block-group-is-layout-constrained\" style=\"margin-top:0\">\r\n<p class=\"is-style-small is-style-small--4\">Share this page<\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<ul class=\"wp-block-outermost-social-sharing has-normal-icon-size has-icon-color is-style-logos-only is-content-justification-left is-layout-flex wp-container-outermost-social-sharing-is-layout-9d3a6402 wp-block-social-sharing-is-layout-flex\" 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7.3748594 8.6425625 7.375 8.4765625 7.375 z\"><\/path><\/svg>\t\t<span class=\"wp-block-outermost-social-sharing-link-label screen-reader-text\">\n\t\t\tShare on WhatsApp\t\t<\/span>\n\t<\/a>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/section>\r\n<\/article>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n<aside class=\"wp-block-group aligngrid  is-animated-on-scroll-25 tribe-animation-type-fade-in tribe-animation-direction-bottom is-layout-flow wp-block-group-is-layout-flow\" style=\"margin-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40);margin-bottom:0;padding-top:var(--wp--preset--spacing--60);padding-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--50);--tribe-animation-speed:0.6s;--tribe-animation-offset:50px;--tribe-animation-delay:0s;--tribe-animation-easing:var(--easing--ease-out-sine)\">\r\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading is-style-small is-style-small--5\" id=\"h-related-posts\" style=\"margin-top:0;margin-bottom:var(--wp--preset--spacing--40)\">Related Posts<\/h2>\r\n\r\n\r\n<div style=\"margin-bottom:0;\" class=\"b-related-posts 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https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/AdobeStock_443672686-2048x1163.jpeg 2048w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/AdobeStock_443672686-1170x664.jpeg 1170w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/AdobeStock_443672686-375x213.jpeg 375w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/AdobeStock_443672686-800x454.jpeg 800w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/AdobeStock_443672686-569x323.jpeg 569w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/AdobeStock_443672686-353x200.jpeg 353w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/AdobeStock_443672686-288x164.jpeg 288w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/AdobeStock_443672686-335x190.jpeg 335w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/AdobeStock_443672686-347x197.jpeg 347w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/AdobeStock_443672686-520x295.jpeg 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How to handle the modified and published date may&#8230;<\/p>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/blog\/should-i-republish-content-theres-a-better-way\/\" class=\"c-post-card__link-overlay\" aria-label=\"Read more about Should I Republish Content? There&#8217;s a Better Way\"><\/a>\n<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<article class=\"c-post-card c-post-card__layout-vertical\">\n\t<div class=\"c-post-card__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"c-post-card__image aspect-ratio-cover aspect-ratio-3-2\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"682\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-1024x682.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"man standing up using a desktop computer\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-320x213.jpg 320w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-1536x1023.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-2048x1364.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-1170x779.jpg 1170w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-375x250.jpg 375w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-800x533.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-555x370.jpg 555w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-344x229.jpg 344w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-281x187.jpg 281w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-335x223.jpg 335w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-347x231.jpg 347w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-520x346.jpg 520w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-640x426.jpg 640w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-960x640.jpg 960w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/SEO-Like-a-Slab-of-Beef-04-1080x719.jpg 1080w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"c-post-card__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"c-post-card__primary-category t-category\">Mediavine<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"c-post-card__title t-display-xx-small t-transparent-underline\">SEO is a Garden a.k.a. The Parboil Strikes Back<\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"c-post-card__metadata\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-post-card__metadata-author t-body-small\">Eric Hochberger<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-post-card__metadata-separator t-body-small\">\u2022<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-post-card__metadata-date t-body-small\">Oct 11, 2021<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"c-post-card__excerpt\">Back to Blog \u2022 Today on the Mediavine blog, we&#8217;re throwing it back to 2017, famously known to SEO experts across the web as the Year of the Parboil. It was never actually known as such, of course, but an experiment from back then remains instructive and shapes our SEO strategies today. A blog post&#8230;<\/p>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/blog\/seo-is-a-garden\/\" class=\"c-post-card__link-overlay\" aria-label=\"Read more about SEO is a Garden a.k.a. The Parboil Strikes Back\"><\/a>\n<\/article>\n\t\t\t\t\t<article class=\"c-post-card c-post-card__layout-vertical\">\n\t<div class=\"c-post-card__inner\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"c-post-card__image aspect-ratio-cover aspect-ratio-3-2\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" src=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/woman-looking-at-her-laptop-sitting-on-the-couch.jpg\" class=\"attachment-large size-large\" alt=\"woman looking at her laptop sitting on the couch\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/woman-looking-at-her-laptop-sitting-on-the-couch.jpg 800w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/woman-looking-at-her-laptop-sitting-on-the-couch-320x213.jpg 320w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/woman-looking-at-her-laptop-sitting-on-the-couch-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/woman-looking-at-her-laptop-sitting-on-the-couch-375x250.jpg 375w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/woman-looking-at-her-laptop-sitting-on-the-couch-555x370.jpg 555w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/woman-looking-at-her-laptop-sitting-on-the-couch-344x229.jpg 344w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/woman-looking-at-her-laptop-sitting-on-the-couch-281x187.jpg 281w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/woman-looking-at-her-laptop-sitting-on-the-couch-335x223.jpg 335w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/woman-looking-at-her-laptop-sitting-on-the-couch-347x231.jpg 347w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/woman-looking-at-her-laptop-sitting-on-the-couch-520x346.jpg 520w, https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/07\/woman-looking-at-her-laptop-sitting-on-the-couch-640x426.jpg 640w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 800px) 100vw, 800px\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"c-post-card__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"c-post-card__primary-category t-category\">SEO<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<h3 class=\"c-post-card__title t-display-xx-small t-transparent-underline\">Should You Delete Content or Just Stop Linking? An SEO Dilemma<\/h3>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"c-post-card__metadata-readtime\">8 minutes<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"c-post-card__metadata\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-post-card__metadata-author t-body-small\">Eric Hochberger<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-post-card__metadata-separator t-body-small\">\u2022<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"c-post-card__metadata-date t-body-small\">Jul 13, 2021<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"c-post-card__excerpt\">Back to Blog \u2022 If you&#8217;re a new blogger, bookmark this and come back in a few years. But if you&#8217;ve been blogging for awhile, you may have already asked yourself this SEO question: Should you delete content that&#8217;s old and\/or not doing a lot for you? Looking for a quick answer? Sorry. We&#8217;re going&#8230;<\/p>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mediavine.com\/blog\/should-you-delete-content-or-just-stop-linking\/\" class=\"c-post-card__link-overlay\" aria-label=\"Read more about Should You Delete Content or Just Stop Linking? An SEO Dilemma\"><\/a>\n<\/article>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/aside>\r\n<\/div>\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Back to Blog \u2022 In this week&#8217;s installment of Mediavine&#8217;s SEO series, we&#8217;re taking our ongoing discussion of keywords to a whole new level. We began at the start, with the basics of what is a keyword \u2014 a more complicated question than many people might think. In this week&#8217;s installment of Mediavine&#8217;s SEO series,&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":11129,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_searchwp_excluded":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17,93],"tags":[],"audience_post":[],"class_list":["post-17150","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-seo","category-seo-like-a-ceo"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO Premium plugin v27.1 (Yoast SEO v27.1.1) - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-premium-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Keyword Research: Trust the Process (and the Right Tools) For SEO Success - Mediavine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Keyword research is an important part of SEO strategy. 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