SEO is an ever-evolving need of the digital age.
And keeping up with the latest trends can be a challenge. And out of the many SEO concepts, one of the most interesting ones is Latent Semantic Indexing.
Some people consider Latent Semantic indexing as not so important and believe that it has lost its relevance to some extent. But even so, for some, it’s an interesting concept to know.
So, what exactly is LSI? Why is it creating so much buzz? And how does it affect or influence your SEO strategies?
So let’s take a closer look at what makes Latent Semantic Indexing so powerful and its connections with SEO.
Latent Semantic Indexing Is
Latent Semantic Indexing is an algorithm that uses natural language processing (NLP) to analyze and learn the relationships between words in a body of text.
Now, Natural Language Processing is a subfield of artificial intelligence that deals with understanding language.
And LSI analyzes the words and understands the context of the body of text by using this natural language processing. It looks for patterns that indicate how a given the word or phrase is related to another word or phrase.
For example, if you’ve written a post about ‘Startup Marketing’, the LSI algorithm can link the word ‘Startup’ or ‘Marketing’ with words like ‘Entrepreneur’, ‘Business’, ‘Content’ and so on.
It will make a connection with several other words that are related to ‘Startup’ & ‘Marketing’ like social media marketing, digital marketing, and more. Then will come to the conclusion that they are part of the same concept or topic.
And when it is determining relationships between words, it looks at the context they are used in.
The purpose of Latent Semantic Indexing is to help search engines better understand the context of a website. Which is important for returning relevant search results.
This means that search engine algorithms can better understand the meaning and intent of a page
What Is LSI’s Purpose
LSI has a purpose. Yes, it helps search engines better understand the context of a website, as we mentioned above. But why exactly is this important?
Well, initially, when search engines, namely Google was first developed, it was built to focus on keywords.
However, as technology has advanced, search engines have become more sophisticated. With time the algorithms of search engines have also evolved.
Nowadays, Search engines no longer rely solely on keywords but rather use upgraded algorithms to interpret the context of a page and its content.
For example, let’s say you type the keyword “organic vegetables” into a search engine.
The results it would return are not only based on these keywords. Rather, the algorithm looks at the context of other related words like “organic farming” or “sustainable agriculture”.
And gives you results that are more accurately related to your query.
And this has been possible because of LSI, which rides on Natural Language Processing. And we know what NLP is right, it is an AI that understands and analyzes language. It is already mentioned in the beginning.
How Does LSI Affects SEO & What Are LSI Keywords
How is Latent Semantic Indexing connected to SEO?
Well, as we have already mentioned above. LSI helps search engine algorithms better understand the context of a page and its content. So by understanding more about the content of the page, it can return more relevant results for queries.
In other words, it can help make sure that your pages rank higher in SERPs (Search Engine Result Pages).
SEO is all about optimizing web content to make sure it appears higher in SERPs.
And one of the ways to do this is by using LSI keywords.
LSI keywords are basically just related keywords or synonyms to the primary keyword.
For example, if the primary keyword is ‘Marketing Strategies’ then some of the LSI keywords could be ‘Digital Advertising’ or ‘Content Promotion’.
But know something – don’t consider LSI keywords as synonyms because they are not. They might be related to the primary keyword, but they are not synonyms. These keywords are something that comes under the umbrella of primary keywords or topics.
For instance suppose, if you’re writing about ‘Copywriting Tips’, then the primary keyword will be ‘Copywriting’ and some of the LSI keywords would be ‘Content Writing’, ‘Blogging’ or ‘Marketing Strategies’.
These words are related to your topic and are not synonyms,i.e. they don’t mean the same thing.
By including related words & topics in your content, you can improve the relevance of your page for a certain keyword.
And as a result, your page will rank higher in SERPs and that’s the whole objective of SEO.
Using LSI keywords in your web content will help search engine algorithms understand the context of your page better.
And by understanding the context, it will be able to rank your page higher for related queries.
Ways To Find LSI Keywords
- One of the easiest ways to find LSI keywords is by using a keyword research tool like Google Trends or Keyword Planner. You can type in your main keyword, and the tool will return related keywords.
- Another great way to find LSI keywords is by using the search engine autocomplete. Simply start typing the keyword in a search engine like Google and it will show you a list of related keywords.
- You can also find LSI keywords by looking at the related topics and/or related searches section on a search engine result page. Just go to the bottom of the SERP and look for related topics/searches.
- Or you can go for Ask the Public or similar tools. FYI Ask the Public is a keyword research tool that works by analyzing what people are searching for on the web.
Tools That Help With Creating Content With LSI Keywords In Detail
Once you have your list of LSI keywords, the next step is to use them in your content.
But how do you know which keywords to use and where? This is where tools like Keyword Magic Tool – SEMrush, Serpstat Text Analysis, or SurferSEO come in.
Keyword Magic Tool – SEMrush
Anyone who has used SEMrush would know that this tool is a powerhouse of SEO. It provides tons of useful information on keywords, rankings, SERP analysis, content optimization, etc.
For example, its keyword difficulty analysis tool can help you identify the competition level of a keyword.
It even comes up with keywords that are in line with your goals. A feature that I’d stress is CPC (cost per click) rate. This feature helps you find out the advertiser’s revenue associated with a keyword.
As for the pricing, SEMrush is a premium tool and it comes with several pricing plans.
The lowest one is Pro which starts from $119.85 per month.
Serpstat Text Analysis
A product of Serpstat, the Text Analysis tool helps you analyze the content of your competitor’s website and come up with topics, keywords, etc.
It even comes up with detailed search phrases and their frequency, helping you create better content. If you just type in a topic and the tool will give you tons of LSI keywords that could be used in the content.
This is also not free as Serpstat comes with different pricing plans. It has plans starting from $69 on a monthly basis.
SurferSEO
It is one of the most reliable keyword research tools available right now.
SurferSEO gives you an estimate of how many words each page should contain based on its SERPs analysis.
This way, you can make sure that your content contains all the relevant keywords and phrases in sufficient quantity. If you use SurferSEO, you’d see the SEO score of your content and the keyword density too.
If you have a higher SEO score the chances of your content appearing on the first page of Google increase considerably.
So these are some of the tools that can help you craft content with relevant LSI keywords.
By using LSI keywords in your content, you could make sure that you don’t miss out on any related queries and rank for more keywords on the SERP.
But remember don’t stuff your content with irrelevant keywords, as that could negatively affect user experience and confuses search engines.
Again a tool with various pricing plans, the lowest one being Basic starting from $49 per month.
Using LSI for Content Planning and Optimization
LSI plays a key role in marketing and content planning. It can help content creators and content heads organize content into clusters and more. Let’s look at specific ways that you can use LSI for better content and SEO.
- Use LSI for content planning: LSI techniques can identify related keywords and phrases to include in your content. You can better understand the context of the topic you are writing about and can ensure that your blog posts and social media posts cover a variety of content topics.
- LSI and topic clusters: Organize your content into topic clusters by identifying critical keywords and phrases that belong to certain themes. Doing so will boost your website’s overall SEO and increase user engagement.
- Content optimization: You can ensure that your content is optimized for multiple relevant search terms, which can help improve your website’s search rankings.
- LSI and content strategy: Inform your content strategy by developing content that aligns with your audience’s interests and needs. LSI will help you discover related topics, products, and problems.
In this way, LSI has a key and direct role to play in marketing. I suggest using a content planning tool to help outline your content strategy. You’ll get a visual means to whether you’re applying your LSI-generated information and boost traffic.
Bottom Line
Latent Semantic Indexing has been revolutionary in the case of SEO and content marketing. If you use it correctly, it can help you rank higher in search engine result pages.
And the best way to do that is by finding LSI keywords and using them in your content.
You can find such keywords by using the methods and tools mentioned in the article.
From the Keyword Magic Tool of SEMrush to SurferSEO, there are numerous tools available that can help you craft content with relevant LSI keywords.
So, go on with your SEO game. Go ahead and use LSI keywords to make your content more SEO-friendly.
