In the past, people would usually search for terms like “pizza delivery” or “refrigerator” on search engines like Google. A single word—absolutely simple—would then provide the answer to their question. Or not.
Search behavior has changed dramatically. While people used to search for individual words, as described above, today they search for more precise answers from Google and other search engines using at least four words. So now, “best pizza delivery Stuttgart” or “cheap refrigerator with freezer” appears in the search bar, depending on what they really want to find.
The fact that search behavior now consists of four words or more is due to voice search. Around 20% of users use Alexa, Siri, Cortana, Google Assistant, etc. to help them with their searches. This automatically results in a longer search query than usual.
But how does Google decide which pages rank higher and are relevant for such a search query?
It’s simple: To achieve a certain level of search engine authority, you link all your subtopics that even remotely fit together to a “main page.” This page is usually longer than regular blog posts or similar.
How does improving topics help rankings?
The more extensive a page is, the more topics are likely to fit it and can be linked accordingly.
You can imagine the whole thing like a book. A table of contents structures the chapters. For a website, this means there’s a main topic on a single page, linked to the corresponding supporting topics via hyperlinks.
But what does Google do with it?
Google loves comprehensive information (see link reaffirmed as a ranking factor – content length is a ranking factor). The web is extremely chaotic, as many pages are difficult or even impossible to categorize, or don’t provide the information a searcher is looking for. Linking related topics to a main topic allows you to organize your website. And Google likes that! So, the more comprehensive your website is, the more popular it is with Google, and the higher it will rank.
Why does this approach improve rankings for the topic keywords?
Google recognizes the relevance of internally linked topics to each other.
Search engines can filter out irrelevant pages and only display content that the algorithm considers important. The more a topic is linked to relevant subpages and the more relevant keywords from the main pages link back to the subpages, the more likely the main topic will appear in the search results.
Which tools help in developing a keyword-optimized topic page?
Considering all possible keywords would probably take forever. Therefore, some tools can help you find relevant aspects.
- https://buzzsumo.com/ finds existing, well-functioning examples on social media.
- https://keywordtool.io/google Search in Google’s keyword search autocomplete.
- https://answerthepublic.com/ Find related questions and keywords.
and much more.
The tools listed are just a few examples that provide a quick overview.
While answerthepublic.com provides very comprehensive information, buzzsumo.com shows a variety of the most popular search queries and how they are spread online through social platforms such as Facebook or Twitter.
The role of semantic search and thematic depth
In 2024, the way Google evaluates and ranks content has evolved. Search engines like Google are increasingly relying on semantic search to better understand user intent, not just individual keywords. This means that content that is thematically deep and well-structured continues to benefit greatly. Google not only analyzes the keywords on a page, but also their semantic relevance to each other.
For companies, this means they should continuously adapt their content strategy. Regularly analyzing user intent is crucial to understanding what type of content the target audience is really looking for and how to optimally present it. The better the content is tailored to user needs and the clearer the thematic structure, the higher the page will rank.
Conclusion
To improve rankings, long main topics with long content should be linked to a variety of related and similar topics.
If the main topic is linked to the supporting topics, Google recognizes the connection. If the main topic is integrated into the page structure as a pillar, the entire website becomes more relevant to the chosen topic. This enables better ranking.
If you pay attention to these points, optimizing topics for ranking will be successful. Important: Content is only one aspect of ranking factors. Of course, the most important ranking factors should be addressed.