Understanding and keeping track of keyword rankings has become important to the best marketing strategies in the ever-changing digital landscape. Keywords are the lifeline that connects the user queries with relevant content on web pages, and hence it is a main tool used by businesses to make them achieve exposure online and draw targeted organic traffic.
This technical exercise turns into a powerful insights-driven strategy by applying strategic keyword ranking tracking and could be instrumental in turning the fortunes of digital marketing.
In this in-depth article, we’ll look at how to track keyword rankings
From understanding the different types of keywords to utilising free as well as paid tracking solutions, find out how proper keyword tracking can become your competitive advantage in the crowded digital marketplace.
What Are Keywords?
Keywords are particular words or phrases that others type into search engines while looking for information, goods, or services online.
They serve as a middleman between user searches and the most relevant web pages, filling the gap between what a person is searching for and what websites are offering.
Keywords are essential in SEO as they help websites optimise their content to rank better in search results, eventually driving targeted organic traffic.
To use keywords effectively, one must comprehend search intent, integrate terms organically into content, and strike a balance between competitive, high-volume keywords and more specialised, long-tail keywords that can draw in more niche audience segments.
Different Types of Keywords
- Informational Keyword: When a user wants to learn more about a particular subject, they use an informational keyword.
- Navigational keyword: When a user wishes to locate a specific website or web page, they use a navigational keyword.
- Transactional keyword: When a user wants to do something, like buy something or sign up for a service, they use a transactional keyword.
- Commercial keyword: When a consumer is looking into a product or service, they use a commercial keyword.
What is Keyword Ranking?
Keyword ranking refers to the position of a website or web page in search engine results for a particular keyword or phrase.
Results from a search on Google or any other search engine are ranked based on factors such as user experience, authority, relevancy, etc.
The higher ranking increases organic traffic and potential conversions by making your website more apparent to potential consumers.
Importance of Keyword Ranking in SEO
- Improved website visibility and potential traffic: The higher keyword ranking directly correlates with increased website visibility, and the top 3 searches receive approximately 54.4% of all click-through-rate traffic.
- Improved credibility and user trust: As users trust the top-ranked searches on Google, a higher ranking can improve the credibility of a brand and trust among potential users.
- Competitive advantage: higher ranking offers a straightforward metric to compare against competitors and helps to create new opportunities for improvements.
How to Track Keyword Rankings
Free Tools for keyword ranking tracking
It offers important keyword research capabilities like the number of searches, competition levels, and potential bid ranges.
It helps identify new keyword opportunities, understand search trends, and provides baseline data for tracking potential keyword performance.
Google Search Console
Google Search Console will show your actual keyword rankings, click-through rates, and search appearance, so you can understand how Google views and ranks your content.
It indicates the types of queries that bring users to your site and leads to the highlighting of potential optimisation opportunities.
Google Analytics
It is an analytics platform, and besides tracking keyword insights, it shows organic search traffic, user behaviour, and conversion data associated with different keywords.
Google Analytics helps you understand not just rankings but how efficiently your ranked keywords drive meaningful website interactions and business goals.
Paid Tools for keyword ranking tracking
SEMrush
A fully-featured SEO tool that provides detailed keyword tracking across several search engines and locations.
SEMrush offers extensive competitor analysis, rank tracking, and advanced insights into search volume, keyword difficulty, and possible traffic.
Ahrefs
Ahrefs offers the most accurate keyword ranking tracking. It is known widely for carrying out comprehensive backlinks and keyword research.
The tool is one of the favourites of SEO experts since it provides comprehensive analytics such as keyword difficulty, search traffic, and the ability to watch ranks across different devices and locales.
Moz Pro
It is an excellent tool for offering comprehensive SEO insights.
Moz Pro gives better keyword tracking with its special capabilities of calculation of domain authority and keyword difficulty evaluation.
Other than competitor analysis and rank tracking, it also provides sound suggestions for improvement of keyword performance.
Keyword Rankings For Digital Marketing Success
- Strategic decision-making: Keyword ranking tools assist in strategic decisions that provide actionable insights into the performance of content and enable the determination of both successful and unsuccessful content strategies.
- ROI measurement: Keyword ranking tools measure how successful marketing efforts are, have tools and resources available to the stakeholders that clearly show them the value of SEO, and directly tie SEO efforts to possible business outcomes.
- Adaptability to Search Engine Changes: Keyword ranking tools furnish immediate responses to changes in ranking and assist in the retention and improvement of search visibility based on tracking the impact of algorithm updates.
- Targeted Content Development: Based on discovering content strategy gaps and exposed terms that are bringing traffic, keyword ranking tools help to guide future content optimisation and production efforts.
How to Track Keyword Rankings: Step-By-Step Guide
Keywords Research and Selection: The first step in proper website optimisation is to find relevant keywords that are associated with your corporate goals.
Choose a balanced mix of short-tail and long-tail, local and commercial intent keywords, keeping in mind the search intent behind them.
Setting Up Keyword Tracking: Set up a keyword tracking spreadsheet to record starting ranks.
Then, to make the tracking process easy, incorporate all those keywords in the SEO tools of your choice and also set up an optimal tracking frequency for your keyword rankings to measure the results effectively.
Tracking Methods: Keyword ranks can be manually monitored by regularly reviewing search engine results pages.
Automated tracking solutions can also be used alternatively, which are more accurate and time-saving.
Consider the ranking for desktop and mobile devices as well as local and national searches when monitoring.
Analysing Keyword Ranking Metrics: Look at your keyword ranking data frequently to identify trends, fluctuations, and areas of improvement.
Analyses the performance of specific keywords to monitor the rankings of your competitors as well as recognise market trends and potential business opportunities.
Best Practices for Keyword Ranking Tracking
Continuous monitoring and reporting
To capture live performance patterns, check keyword rankings once or twice every week.
Creating a consistent reporting structure that highlights crucial updates, high-performing keywords, and areas that need immediate attention is essential.
Frequency of Regular Tracking Schedule
Implement a systematic schedule for jotting down the keywords, like on the first day of each month or at the onset of every Monday morning.
Use automated solutions to generate reports automatically so that you never miss any important ranking updates or possible opportunities.
Getting to Know Ranking Volatility
Understand that changes to search engine algorithms, competition activity, and content lead to natural fluctuations in keyword ranks.
Focus on long-term trends instead of daily fluctuations, and try not to get too worked up over small ranking changes.
Changing Plans in Light of New Information
Analyse ranking data frequently to spot trends and areas that could use improvement.
Optimise underperforming content by using insights. Increase your focus on high-performing keywords and find fresh material.
Conclusion
An important component of SEO strategy in the current digital era is keyword ranking. You may optimise your website to draw in more natural visitors by knowing how to track keyword rankings and the various kinds of keywords.
Consider combining both free and commercial tools to track your keyword ranks efficiently. Google Analytics, Google Keyword Planner, and Google Search Console are all great free choices. Use premium tools like Ahrefs, Moz Pro, or SEMrush for more sophisticated capabilities.
Keyword ranking is a continuous process. The maintenance and enhancement of your website’s visibility depend on ongoing observation and analysis. You may efficiently monitor your keyword rankings and increase organic traffic to your website by following a step-by-step keyword ranking tracking guide.
