Keyword Density Tips
by Desmond Mantor
http://www.havetraffic.com

There are an incredible amount of companies offering services to increase search engine ranking on the market at the moment. This is because, anyone who uses any Internet marketing methods already knows that search engine optimization is the the key to success. Search engine marketing works since almost everyone uses search engines to find what they are looking for on the Net. However, the reality is that none of these companies that promise search engine ranking can really guarantee success. Search engines use complicated algorithms that are simply too difficult to ever really crack. And if someone did manage to figure out the precise algorithm, it wouldn't matter, since the search engines periodically, update their algorithms to prevent a breach to their integrity.

It is known that Google takes into account over 100 different variables when creating an algorithm for ranking. Whilst we may wonder how to master each and every one of these facets, we can be sure that keyword density is one of the most important variables and should be the first to consider to optimize our site. Keywords are the words and phrases that are entered into search engines so that they can produce the results that the surfer is looking for. It is the work of the search engine to find relevant information based upon these keywords. So if we enter the keyword 'bicycle' into the search engine, we do not want to look at an article that has this word mentioned only once throughout. In this case, it is unlikely that the result would be relevant at all. This is reason for the importance of keyword density as a variable. Obviously, if the article mentions the keyword 'bicycle' ten times, then it is a much better match for the keyword search since it is likely to contain the information that the searcher seeks.

The Keyword density can be expressed as a percentage of the total number of words found on a particular web page. It represents the number of times the keyword is mentioned and can be determined by dividing the number of keyword occurrences by the total number of words on the page. So if you had an article with 200 words and 10 of those were the keyword, then there would be a keyword density of 2%. It is generally accepted that a keyword density of between 2 and 5 percent is optimum. This may vary between search engines but it is a good rule to follow. It is also a good idea to include the keyword within the title as most search engines consider a keyword title more relevant. However, be careful with the use of your keyword since the search engines will penalize you if you overuse it, so its a good idea not to exceed the 5% density level.

Primary keywords are the precise phrases keyed into the search engine. Tier one keywords are those that are the same as the primary keyword, but with a slight change in grammar. "Bicycle parts" would be a tier one keyword for "bicycle part". Ideally, they should be used only once in the first or second paragraph. Tier two keywords are words that one would relate to the primary keyword. For "bicycle part", tier two keywords would be things like: seat, handlebars, spokes, wheels, or any other word that may be in an article related to bicycles. These words should simply appear naturally throughout the article without any emphasis on keyword density. The last component is keyword variations. For "bicycle part", they would be: bicycles, part, parts, and bicycles. These need to be used throughout but should not exceed 4% in total density.

Again, the success of these tips will vary from search engine to search engine. However, following these guides will boost rankings by telling the search engine that your article is relevant to the keyword typed in by the surfer. You will need to experiment with the formula to find the best way to boost your rankings. Attaining an optimal keyword density is not the only variable in scoring high on the search engines, but it is one of the most important ones so be sure to take the time to find the keyword density formula that works best for you.

Desmond Mantor is the Sales Director for Have Traffic a company that provides high quality traffic for commercial websites. Have Traffic provides targeted visitors which in recent tests have converted to sales at a higher rate than major pay per click sources.

Go to http://www.havetraffic.com  to find out more.