What are Branded Keywords?
Branded keywords are any search queries that are directly associated with your brand, products, or services. Most often, they contain brand names. For example, "Ranktracker SEO tool" and "Ranktracker blog" are branded keywords for Ranktracker.
Why are Branded Keywords Important?
It may seem counterintuitive to try to optimize for your branded keywords. If the searcher already knows about your brand, then isn’t the work already done?
On the contrary, the searchers who are already aware of your brand are some of the most critical to attract. Because they’ve already passed the first stage of the buyer’s journey, it’s low-hanging fruit to get in front of them and help move them further down the funnel.
Branded searches usually have navigational intent, so ranking for your branded keywords can help your potential customers find you faster.
You may also wonder: shouldn’t my site automatically rank highly since my brand is unique to me? While you may rank for your short-tail brand name, it’s possible that other sites may be outranking you for your long-tail branded keywords.
How to Optimize for Branded Keywords
1. Identify Your Branded Keywords
Before you start optimizing for branded keywords, you need to identify all the branded keyword variations that you can rank for.
To find the keywords you rank for, open the Performance report in Google Search Console and type in the words/phrases denoting your brand or products in the filters. Export this list into a spreadsheet for further analysis.
If you don’t have access to Search Console, you can use tools like Ranktracker's Keyword Finder to find more branded keyword ideas, including those you don’t rank for.
2. Choose Which Keywords to Target
There are several types of branded keywords worth targeting:
- Underperforming Keywords: Identify any keywords that rank lower than #1 and see if there’s a way to optimize content for them.
- Pages with Mismatched Intent: Adjust your content to ensure the page with the right intent ranks #1 for the keyword.
- Valuable New Keywords: Target high-search-volume keywords to increase traffic.
3. Add Internal Links
Anchoring your branded keywords with internal links can help Google understand your site structure and reinforce your branded keywords. Some high-impact areas to add internal links include:
- Site navigation
- Important pages
- Pages where you mention branded keywords
Examples of Branded Keywords
- Fashion Brand: "Zara summer collection"
- Technology Company: "Apple iPhone review"
- Food Company: "Coca-Cola ingredients"
Benefits of Optimizing Branded Keywords
- Enhanced Visibility: Helps your brand appear prominently in search results.
- Increased Traffic: Drives more targeted traffic to your site.
- Brand Affinity: Strengthens the connection between your brand and your audience.
For more tips on optimizing your branded keywords, visit the Ranktracker Blog and check out our comprehensive SEO Guide. Additionally, familiarize yourself with key SEO terms and concepts in our SEO Glossary.
