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Keywords Can Be Harmful when Misused

Check Your Hubs for Unnatural Use and Overuse of Keywords

Keywords (words and phrases that describe what your Hub is about) are one of the main ways that search engines recognize your content, and they are a great way to help search readers find your work. However, SEO best practices have changed a great deal over the years, and some things that used to help are actually harmful to your articles these days.

Keyword stuffing and misuse are fairly common problems in older Hubs, and keyword issues can cause Hubs and accounts to lose traffic as well as reducing the quality of the site as a whole. This week I'd like to encourage Hubbers to take some time to review older Hubs for keyword issues. A few things to look for:

• Do your Hubs have a very high overall keyword density? If your Hub is about "vegan chocolate cookies," how often do you repeat this phrase or very similar phrases like "vegan-friendly chocolate cookies," "vegan chocolate cookie recipe," etc? Try to simplify and diversify rather than repeating the same words and phrases very often.
• Does your Hub sound natural? Hubs should be written to make sense to readers, not to squeeze every possible related keyword in. If your keywords make your Hub sound awkward when you read it out loud, it's time for a serious edit to improve the experience to make sense for your readers.
• Does your Hub use keywords inappropriately? If you've included misleading keywords or keywords that are only tangentially related to your subject, it's time for an edit.

Christy Kirwan
Marketing & Community Manager

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