What is keyword density?

In creating content-driven websites, keyword density is a term that always pops up. On its own, the term seems scary and overwhelming to non-technical people, especially when Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is mentioned. So what is it really and how does it relate to generating key words for SEO? Why is it important and why do websites need to create blog articles just to increase keyword density?

SEO is all about websites making popular search engines like Google, Yahoo! and AOL increase their ranking in search results. This basically means that the more your website is optimized, the higher your ranking is on the search results, directing more traffic into your website. Search engines use key words/phrases that state in simple words what the site is all about to search for the most relevant results. The more a website uses a number of key words/phrases, the more the search engine pulls up the website when that specific key word is used. For example, when you enter “internet usage” in Google and hit search, you’ll see a page that displays the top ten websites. In order for websites to be able to get on the first page of the search results, their site needs to repeat the key word “internet usage” as much as possible.

Keyword density is simply the number of times the key words are repeated in proportion to the other words contained in the web page. So, the greater the proportion of the key words as compared to other words in the web page, the greater the key word density. This translates to a higher ranking in search engines and more traffic to your website.  Of course, you can’t just keep on repeating the key words nonsensically. It doesn’t work this way. For the search engines to recognize your key word density, they must be contained within a meaningful context.

So how can you increase keyword density? You need to increase the content of your website so that each page is populated with meaningful content wherein the key words are scattered throughout. This is also why websites start blogs—so that they’ll have more articles that contain the key words. BUT you also have to remember that keyword density is diluted when there are a lot of other words in the page. So, you need to keep on reusing and repeating your designated key words. Avoid using synonyms and pronouns to increase keyword density. Don’t think too much about the aesthetic quality of your writing; instead focus on increasing keyword density.