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You may wonder, “What is entity search SEO?” But, more importantly, you might want to know why you should care.
Entity search SEO is a form of on-page optimization that can help improve your website’s ranking in SERPs.
It goes beyond keyword optimization and focuses more on content/context optimization. It is not just about the keywords that are on your website. It is about the bigger picture that those keywords form. For example, if you looked at all of the keywords you are optimizing for on your website, could you create a picture of what you do or who you are? To learn more about entity search SEO, keep reading.
Understanding Entity Search SEO
In truth, entity search SEO should be something that your company takes a look at. Entity search SEO is not a secret. The role of the practice is heavily documented across the internet. Still, the topic doesn’t trend as much as local SEO or keyword selection.
Easier-to-digest topics get all the media limelight. However, that doesn’t mean entity search SEO isn’t valuable. In reality, it could mean the difference between average and outstanding search results for your brand.
Here, you’ll see why it is essential and, you’ll learn how to develop a content strategy with entity search SEO in mind. In short, it’s defined and distinguishable. An entity is a singular, unique, well-defined concept. An entity can take many forms. For instance, Google might consider the following items entities:
• Books
• Brands
• Companies
• Domains
• Events
• Ideas
• People
• Places
How Entity Based Search Fits into the Mix
Of course, keywords are an essential part of search engine optimization. However, they can prove limiting. Singular or one-off keywords don’t provide the same benefits as entity optimization when ranking in search engine results-based pages.
When you pursue an entity-based optimization strategy, you focus more on your content. As a result, you create a catalog of rich content.
This SEO strategy offers a greater return on investment. The heavy lifting is done when sketching out the big picture.
There are a few things you should think of as you plan your content strategy. First, you can think of entities as topics. Then, you can make those topics well defined by referencing other related topics.
For instance, there’s a Springfield in 34 states of the United States. However, you can make your content explicit to Springfield, Missouri, by creating related content to the one you are targeting in Missouri.
Remember, an entity is a singular concept. There are many Springfields, but only one Springfield, Missouri.
For instance, you might create content about the Dickinson Park Zoo. Alternatively, you might develop content about the Air & Military Museum of the Ozarks.
Both of these landmarks are specific to Springfield, Missouri. How your content mentions, Springfield concerning other landmarks makes it explicit to the one located in Missouri.
This is where the magic will start happening. As you develop your well-written, unique content, the search engines will associate the site with that location or entity. Are you starting to get the picture?
What’s the Google Knowledge Graph?
The Google Knowledge Graph is closely related to our topic of entities. Therefore, you can glean information about known Google entities from the Knowledge Graph.
You might use the Google knowledge graph/knowledge panels to see a list of notable entities matching specific criteria.
The name is a bit misleading. It does not provide a graph of entities. Instead, it returns the results of entities that meet your search criteria.
Google provides a guide that allows anyone to access the Google Knowledge Graph API and knowledge panel. The API allows anyone to perform an entity search query. Developer help might be needed.
What’s important to understand about the Google knowledge graph is the IDs field. An entity ID is a machine-generated identifier (MID). It’s a unique identifier for an entity. This is what ties concepts together.
Yes. Your Content Still Matters
An entity search SEO is about specificity. However, it’s also about context.
Entities are essential to search engine result pages. It makes it possible for them to connect the world’s information. This helps SERPs deliver more relevant results in user searches.
One great way to provide the correct context for entities searched for by users is to link your website to knowledge graph entities. These entities should have high Google EAT.
Google EAT means Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. So, for instance, you might link to a well-known entity such as a Wikipedia page.
However, not all entities are within the pages of Wikipedia. As expected, there are many other kinds of entities on the internet.
For instance, business marketers may want to promote a website for a brand or company. In this case, they’d link to that business’s LinkedIn for entity SEO.
Here, however, it’s essential to realize that a link to LinkedIn won’t necessarily boost your page rank. It might, however, establish a connection that the content being written is about a company that has a listing on a trusted site. If these connections are made consistently, an association might start to be inferred by the SERPs.
Key Entity Metrics
When it comes to entity rank, Google doesn’t just look at one signal. It examines the totality of an entity’s contributions to a topic and assigns a score. With this in mind, Google search considers four key points. These points are:
1. Relatedness
2. Notability
3. Contribution
4. Prizes
Relatedness refers to co-occurrences on the web. It’s a measure of how frequently your entity gets mentioned.
The Google algorithm, in part, determines entity notability. It uses various criteria to form Google’s understanding of the value of the entity.
Performance in this area is counterintuitive. Here, entities competing in a lower value category will typically perform better. This is because they’ll usually receive a higher notability score.
Google determines an entity’s contribution based on external signals. For example, the signs might include links and reviews. In other words, an entity’s contribution ranking is a measure of its contribution to a topic.
Finally, prizes—as the name suggests—relate to relevant accolades attributed to an entity. Thus, for example, an entity may have won an Oscar or a Nobel prize.
This metric is not counterintuitive. The larger the prize, the higher the value Google attaches to said entity.
Partnering for Entity SEO Success
Entity search SEO provides benefits. However, Google’s understanding of natural language also has drawbacks. For example, the natural language processing capability of the Google algorithm can confuse the SERPs. In this regard, you need to use the Google knowledge panel to de-reference certain entities so that users will get routed to the right topic, despite which synonym they used to find it.
As you can imagine, managing something as crucial as entity SEO can serve as a full-time job. Many companies hire a professional marketing firm for this reason.
Choosing the right marketing partner might seem like a straightforward task. But, like anything else, you could simply start out using Google search and conduct as much research as possible.
However, if you’re like most business owners, you want a marketing partner that will show you how to increase margins. Remember, these are the professionals that will update and promote your site.
Accordingly, you want to choose an experienced team that’s familiar with your industry. Furthermore, it’s crucial to establish clear goals.
Start Growing Your Online Presence Today
Now you know more about entity search SEO. What you need now is a digital marketing partner who checks all the boxes.
E-Marketing Associates is a digital marketing agency that helps small businesses grow.
Our team of experts will help you create and execute the perfect plan to get your brand in front of more people, drive conversions, and increase revenue. You can count on us for expert advice and personalized service every step of the way.
We can serve as your go-to partner for all things digital marketing. We offer a wide range of services, including SEO, PPC, social media management, email campaigns, and much more! But, more importantly, we specialize in helping businesses like yours get the most out of their online marketing.
Contact E-Marketing Associates today at (626) 444-9111 or connect with us online to claim your free business marketers report.
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