I have interacted with a lot of marketers and I still see that their definition of latent semantic indexing is not clear, so I thought I will write today about latent semantic indexing to make it simple for marketers to understand.
LSI was implemented in 2004 in Google algorithm to deliver more relevant results to users.
What is Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI) in SEO?
Latent Semantic Indexing is a method which search engines use to analyse the relationship between two different words which users use surrounding a specific topic.
What are LSI Keywords?
LSI keywords are those keywords which define the intent of the search query. Let’s take an example and understand this with the below two keywords
- Tiger
- Tiger Woods
Now both the keywords have tiger in it. But the first keyword is tiger so the intent of the user is to find results related to tiger as an animal, whereas the second keyword is Tiger Woods, where the intent of the user is to view results related to Tiger Woods who is a Golfer.
Why Does Google USE LSI Keywords?
Google takes into LSI keywords because this helps Google to trigger relevant search results basis users search query.
Another simple example is of Apple, apple has multiple products on it’s website as below
- Apple Iphone X
- Apple iPad
- Apple Airpods
- Apple store etc
So apple as a term is common with all the keywords but all keywords are defined for different products, so Google reads the intent of the entire search term and triggers those pages which are relevant to the uses search query.
Where All Should You Use LSI Keywords in SEO?
LSI keywords can be used for your on page tags as below
- Title Tag
- Meta Description
- Heading Tags
- Anchor Tags
- Alt Tags
- Content Piece
How to Find LSI Keywords ?
There are different approaches which you can follow to find LSI keywords, let’s understand few of them by taking an example of business which is Resort in Goa and you want to identify different LSI keywords
1. Google Search Related Terms
Use Google search related terms option, which appears at the bottom of the search result page to identify different search terms, so for our example, we can see below related terms related to resorts in goa. Now from here basis our product we can choose different terms which could act as LSI keywords for our business.
Also, you can use the suggestions which appear while search on Google search as below to identify LSI keywords
2. Using Google Keyword Planner
Google keyword planner is one of the effective tool for keyword research, you can use Google keyword planner to identify LSI keywords for your product or service, so for our example of resorts in goa, I can see below terms which can be added as LSI keywords on the website
3. Using LSI Graph
Another way to identify LSI Keywords is by using LSI Graph tool to identify LSI keywords. For our example, below are the suggested LSI keywords by LSI graph, you can observe the most relevant one to your business and select to move ahead.
Benefits of Using LSI Keywords
There are a couple of benefits of using LSI keywords which are as below:
1. Decreases Bounce Rate
LSI keywords helps you to decrease bounce rate because you are diverting high intent traffic on website from the search terms.
2. Increases Time Spent
As we drive high intent users on our website through LSI keywords, they tend to spend more time on our website and are highly engaged with our content.
3. Improves Conversion Rate
As the intent is high of the user, the chances to conversions are higher on a product page or a service page. The more relevant the page is the higher the conversion rate will be, but the conversion rate also depends on the competition, the price point and the attributes of the product which we are offering.
4. Improves Search Ranking
Usage of LSI keywords helps us to improve search ranking as Google algorithm triggers most relevant search results to the users basis the search query. So to improve search ranking it’s important to use LSI keywords in Title, meta description, alt tag, heading tags and content
Conclusion:
Use of LSI keywords in important which doing SEO because it will help you to trigger your web pages for intent driven searches on Google. It’s important while defining keywords to your web page to consider LSI keyword strategy by understanding different search patterns and combinations which are relevant to your product or service page on website!
