Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI) Keywords: Do They Help With SEO?

Businesses across the globe collectively spend billions of dollars on content marketing. However, it all comes down to rankings and the tactics they use to ensure high rankings. One such factor influencing your webpage ranking on the search engine result pages is the usage of Latent Semantic Indexing keywords. Now, you must be wondering what LSI keywords are, how they work, and whether they are significant? Fret not!

Below, we have discussed Latent Semantic Indexing keywords, why they are important, and how to use them!

What Are LSI Keywords?

LSI stands for Latent Semantic Indexing. LSI keywords are terms used by search engines to analyze and understand the webpage content. You should know that only those terms classify as Latent Semantic Indexing keywords that are based on similar concepts or are relevant.

LSI is a patented process that you can use to retrieve textual data objects. It will help you categorize the content's topic using related keywords.

Does Google's Algorithm Prioritize Latent Semantic Indexing Keywords?

Well, you will be surprised to know the answer- probably not! In 2019, a Google representative stated that they do not believe in anything such as LSI keywords. Therefore, it's false information that Google uses Latent Semantic Indexing keywords in its algorithm.

In fact, Google follows its own detailed method to determine the webpage's relevancy. Apart from a set of keywords, it considers various other factors. While analyzing your page, it considers the page as one entity to learn about the content topic.

Google can evaluate all the other non-keyword terms on the webpage to determine the page ranking, contributing to your SEO.

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Note: Several marketers and SEO experts believe that adding any set of related phrases is the same as adding Latent Semantic Indexing keywords. However, it is not correct as LSI keywords are highly specific in nature.

Why Are Related Words and Phrases on a Page Important?

Gone are the days when search engines would determine the topic of the webpage content solely based on the keywords used in the content. For instance, if you repeatedly used the word content marketing' in the text, it would categorize the topic as content marketing', making keyword density essential. It means if you did not use the keyword multiple times, Google would not figure out that the term is the primary topic of the content.

However, now, Google is way smarter! It deeply analyzes to understand the overall topic of the webpage content. For this, it also studies semi-related phrases or words to evaluate the content.

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For instance, you publish a blog about hats'. Google will verify if you have incorporated the keyword hat' in your content, image alt text, title tag, and other necessary sections. But, it will also look for related works like summer, jute, and colorful. Locating these related keywords in the content will help Google gain confidence that the content is about hats'.

Recently, a Google research revealed that it looks for collocation words to determine the main topic of the content.

You should know that semantically-related keywords are not synonyms; they are words frequently used with your target keyword. For instance, let's take a word- job. Now, the word occupation' is a synonym of the word job'. So, it will not be counted as a related term. However, you can use the synonyms in your blog as it will help you with the on-page SEO. Related terms for job' are: sales', interview', and questionnaire'.

On that note, let's learn how to identify these semantically related keywords.

How to Find LSI Keywords?Ā

Below, we have listed some of the best ways to find semantically related keywords!

1. Google Autocomplete

Google Autocomplete, by Google, is one of the premier platforms organizations can use to identify the keyword-related terms that you can incorporate into your content. It will make the process easy and quick.

Enter the keyword into Google, and you will see some bold words showing up in the suggestion results. These bold words are semantically related keywords that users frequently search for. Therefore, you should include these terms in your content.

You can also use other tools like UberSuggest or Keyword Tool. They will give you multiple options as semantically related keywords. Having said that, remember, Google is known to give the best and most relevant suggestions. Therefore, using any of these tools will also be sufficient and helpful enough to optimize your content to the maximum.

2. Related Google Searches

It is like Google Autocomplete, where Google suggests keywords every time you search for something. If you scroll down on the search engine results page, you can view a lot of related terms at the bottom.

For instance, let's say your primary keyword is plagiarism checker. It is an extremely competitive keyword; therefore, you must nail your Latent Semantic Indexing keywords, or else you will not rank high in the search engine results. That is why you should type plagiarism checker' in the Google search bar and scroll down to the bottom. You will find various terms in bold. Now, you have to determine which of these terms will perfectly blend into your content and use them. It is pretty straightforward.

3. LSIGraph

There are various effective tools for generating keywords, LSIGraph being one of them. You have to only insert the keyword you want your content to rank for. Then, you get a set of related keywords that you can incorporate into your content.

4. Google Keyword Planner

Several marketers and SEO experts have voted Google Keyword Planner as their favorite as it helps them look for target keyword-related terms.

For instance, if you insert plagiarism checker' in the Google Keyword Planner, it will display a list of different keywords. Some of them will have a similar meaning as your keyword, while others may differ in meaning but be conceptually related to the keyword. However, if you invest enough time in research and carefully study the list, you will find some unique and effective keywords that you may not have found any other way.

Remember, you do not have to necessarily type the keyword into this tool; you can also look for Latent Semantic Indexing keywords through a landing page. An ideal technique will be using your top competitor's landing page that is ranking higher than you in the search engine result pages. If you do so, Google will analyze the page and uncover keywords relevant to the content topic.

5. Terms in Bold in the Google Snippet Texts

This is an effective process to get conceptually-related keywords from Google.

Whenever you search for something on Google, you get various relevant results. However, there is one thing common in all those results showing up. Google displays a few results in bold in the result snippets. But what are these terms? Well, the terms in bold in the snippets either match your keywords or are similar to them.

For instance, you search on Google for phone repair'. Now, Google will bold all the exact terms in snippets. But, other related terms, like mobile repair, will also be in bold. It means that these are the Latent Semantic Indexing keywords, and you must use them while developing your content.

6. Google Image Tags

Google images has launched a new feature that you may not know about. But, when it comes to determining keyword-related terms, it is no less than winning a lottery!

You have to type your keyword into the Google images search section. Google will show you a few keyword-related terms right above the images. You can follow the same technique with Pinterest. However, we suggest you use Google Images for this process.

Use Related Terms Throughout Your Article

By now, you should have a complete list of the Latent Semantic Indexing keywords. But, the real question is how to incorporate those keywords into the content? Is there any specific process or pattern that you must follow?

Honestly, the answer is no! It does not matter how you use these keywords in your content. You only need to ensure that these terms are used in your webpage content. That's what Google cares about!

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Use the Latent Semantic Indexing keywords in:

• Image Alt Ext
• Title Tag
• H1
• H2 or H3 Subhead
• Main Body

In Conclusion

You must have understood that Latent Semantic Indexing keywords are conceptually related words that help search engines categorize your content's topic. You must have also got an answer to the million-dollar question of whether Google appreciates Latent Semantic Indexing Keywords. However, LSI keywords are essential for better ranking of the webpage as they help Google deeply analyze your content and determine the main topic. There are various ways to find LSI keywords for your webpage content, like Google Autocomplete, LSIGraph, and Google Images tags. Ideally, you should use these conceptually related terms throughout the content and ensure they camouflage well!

It may get too overwhelming for you to understand the usage and importance of LSI keywords. That is why you should work with a white-label services company to make things smoother for you and get effective results.