Most searchers use two-word searches, reports OneStat.com, a provider of real-time intelligence web analytics.
- One-word searches account for 15.2 percent of queries.
- Two-word searches account for 31.9 percent of searches.
- Three-word searches account for 27 percent of searches.
- Four-word searches account for 14.8 percent of searches.
Instances with five (6.5 percent); six (2.7 percent); seven (1.1 percent); eight (0.5 percent); nine (0.2 percent); and 10 (0.1 percent) words are used in fewer searches.
Where and how do you use that information? First, you review the content on your home page and landing pages you use for PPC. Still not using Pay-Per-Click? Now is the time to start.
Are you effectively using search terms that your prospective customers would use to find your product or service? Take a look at your current pages. Does the content accommodate two, three, and four word searches? Google ignores some common words called ’stop words,’ such as the, on, where, how, de, la, as well as certain single digits and single letters. Remember and take advantage of that when writing content for landing pages, and you’ll benefit from proximity as related to search terms. There will be some out there that feel this advice is really reaching, but every little advantage can add up when it comes to Google’s Quality Score.
For those of you using PPC, you may find that some four-word (or more) search terms can be much more cost-effective. The also deliver you a reasonably well-qualified visitor. If you wrote your content well, and they find you via a multiple-word search, they likely are looking for what you offer.
Bottom-line is that we all need to really think about how our potential visitors search for what we offer. Then, we need to put that knowledge to good use writing content that includes those search terms.
Do a good job of describing your product or service, using two, three and four-word terms, and you have done some search engine optimization without trying.