Most SEO experts focus only on keyword strategy. After all, it’s the building block for making your website rank high in the SERP. However, while doing keyword research, they often ignore one important thing: What is that?

It’s keyword mapping.

If you own a dental clinic, the keywords you want to include in the content would be dentist, teeth whitening, braces, etc. These are common keywords, but what about keywords that aren’t equally obvious?

Cramming those keywords into the content can lead to cannibalization of your website pages. You don’t want your website competing with yourself when thousands of competitor sites exist, right?

That’s where keyword mapping gives you a precise idea about keyword phrases and their right position on your website. But it’s not that simple, so we have created this guide to help you understand complete keyword mapping for SEO.

So keep reading.

What Is Keyword Mapping?

Keyword mapping is assigning a specific keyword to every website page. Keywords and pages are arranged in keyword clusters.

It creates the topical structure of the website.

The goal of keyword mapping is optimizing page content according to the target keyword you want to rank for. In SEO, a typical keyword mapping includes:

  • Main Keyword (Focus Keyword): The primary term or exact keywords that clearly describe the page’s topic.
  • Keyword Variations: Different forms or search terms closely related to the main keyword.
  • Supporting Keywords: Additional related keywords that enhance the context of the main topic.

Why You Should Focus On Keyword Mapping

Now that you know about keyword mapping, you might wonder if it is really important. Can’t you just skip it?

The answer is NO.

With comprehensive keyword mapping, you can systematically organize your content. It also makes it easier for Google to understand the relevancy of your URL with the specific search phrase. In addition, content creators can create easy-to-understand content for readers.

It does an important job of maintaining the internal link-building strategy. An internal link contextually links one relevant page to another.

But what’s its significance?

This allows search engine crawlers to index your pages easily. So, your page will show up if a visitor is looking for a relevant query. The biggest reason for doing keyword mapping is to prevent keyword cannibalization. When multiple pages of a site target the same keyword, they start competing with each other.

That way, you become your biggest enemy.

Keyword mapping solves this problem and prevents your SEO efforts from diluting. It assigns unique primary keywords to each page, eliminating this issue. Furthermore, it provides structure to the site, and you can see significant improvement in SEO performance.

It’s an essential factor in increasing conversion rates and traffic volumes. Analyzing multiple pieces of content helps in content strategy planning. 

Step-By-Step Guide To Mapping Keywords

Search Engine Optimization requires patience and research. To do keyword mapping for your website, you need to understand the nitty-gritty so you don’t make any mistakes. Follow this complete guide with actionable steps for keyword mapping for your website.

1. Do Keyword Research

Start by making a list of core topics that are relevant to your business. Suppose you’re running a fitness blog. Then core topics might be:

  • Nutrition
  • Weight Loss
  • Fitness Gears
  • Workout Routines

You can use sites like SEMRush, ahrefs, or other keyword research tools. While doing keyword research, find keywords for which your site already ranks on Google. You can find this information in Google Search Console.

After creating a list of target keywords, it’s time to look at what your competitors are doing. It can help you identify gaps in content strategy. For example, if a competitor ranks well for HIIT workout routines for beginners, consider creating content targeting that keyword.

Pro Tip: Don’t prioritize keywords based on search intent alone. Instead, check their volume, keyword density, and relevance as well.

2. Combine The Keywords In Groups or Pillars

After making a list of keywords, you can proceed to the next step. Organize them by making specific groups of keywords based on search intent and relevance. So, how can you know if assigning a specific keyword to the landing page is a good idea?

A quick and effective way to check it is by looking at the Google search results. Check the intent of the keyword and add only if it aligns with the landing page. Choose one keyword as primary while others become specified as secondary.

You can determine the site’s structure. Because you’re creating a logical pathway for search engine spiders and readers, think about the URLs of your pages, as they’re a crucial part of keyword mapping. It’s best to include your main keyword in the URL structure.

3. Create a Keyword Mapping Spreadsheet

Now, let’s build a keyword map. Get a clear idea of the hierarchy of your website. After outlining it, you need to make a subdirectory for every page on your site. But that can be a bit confusing. That’s why SEO experts use spreadsheets to keep data organized. Make the columns for these:

  • Primary keyword
  • Meta description
  • Page URL
  • Target keyword
  • Search volume
  • Keyword difficulty score

You can also make more extra columns for secondary keywords and tertiary keywords. If you’re optimizing a site that has already published content, then also add columns for

  • H1 tags
  • Current rankings
  • Updated versions

To make the spreadsheet more effective, add notes regarding improving the content. Having this map is also a great way to track progress. Double-check to ensure you’re not repeating any keywords, and that uniqueness is maintained. You can also use keyword mapping templates for this SEO strategy. 

4. On-Page Optimization Framework

While creating keyword mapping spreadsheets, you’ll notice a lot of gaps and opportunities to improve your website’s SEO. These issues can vary, but you may encounter some of them.

  • You may have noticed you don’t have a page for a very important keyword. This missing content issue can be solved by creating a high-quality new page.
  • Check if any technical issues are preventing your page from ranking. These include poor response time, bounce rate, HTML tag issues, or noindex tags.
  • Sometimes, multiple pages of a site answer the same search query. To correct this, just merge the pages. So now you’ve one detailed page related to the primary keyword.
  • Look for any opportunities and improvements in the internal linking strategy. Add anchor text and maintain link hierarchy.
  • Delete all irrelevant pages related to services or products you no longer offer.

5. Regularly Update Keyword Map

You must update your keyword map regularly—once a month is recommended. When your website grows, you’ll need to publish more content. You can’t afford to publish content using the same keyword repeatedly, right?

Outdated Keyword Map = Poor SEO Results

With the map, you won’t make this mistake. The relevancy and density of keywords might change over time. During the research, you may find new trends in phrases your target audience is interested in.

Best SEO Keyword Mapping Tools

To improve your keyword map, you should use online tools. They’ll save a lot of time and provide maximum accuracy. Here are some of the tools that are recommended by experts.

  • SEMrush: It is an SEO tool that provides advanced keyword mapping features. It allows you to perform competitor SEO analysis, keyword research, website audits, keyword clusters, relevance checks, and more.
  • Ahrefs: It’s mainly used for backlink analysis, but you can also use it for keyword research. Identifying content gaps and keyword opportunities and creating effective keyword maps are easier with ahrefs.
  • Moz: Moz is your best choice if you’re a beginner. It includes rank tracking, keyword research, and on-page optimization tools to improve your website’s SEO performance.

Wrapping Up

You must continue the keyword mapping process regularly to ensure your website content stays fresh and high-quality. The entire process is time-consuming, but the results are worth the effort.

It helps you identify and eliminate weak spots in the content strategy. Never ignore keyword mapping if you want to stay on top of Google, attract your target audience, and enhance user engagement.Do you still have any questions about the keyword mapping strategy? Do you want to share your opinion on SEO?

Want to know more about creating Pillar Pages and Topic Clusters? This strategy should go hand in hand with your Keyword Mapping.