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We all know about keyword mapping and keyword optimisation as essential practices in On-Page SEO. Normally in our search for finding effective keywords to implement on-site, we often focus on low-competition keywords with moderate to high search volume. This has been going on for a lot of years.
However recently SEO has evolved well beyond search volumes and competition to focusing on entities and search intent.
What is an Entity?
The term “entity” has become increasingly significant as search engines like Google evolve in their ability to understand and interpret content. While Google rarely uses the term “entity” explicitly, it does focus heavily on the concept of topics and entities, which is crucial for marketers to understand to enhance content visibility and relevance.
According to Google, an entity is essentially a well-defined object or concept that is easily identifiable and distinguishable. Entities can be anything from a person’s name, a geographical location, a product, a brand, or even an idea. The key to entities is that they are distinct and refer to something specific, often recognized in the broader context. Google uses these entities to enhance search results, ensuring that users find the most relevant and authoritative content related to their queries.
Entities are central to how Google understands and ranks web content. Traditionally, Google would match keywords to web pages, and rank them based on factors like keyword frequency, backlinks, and overall content quality. However, Google’s search algorithms have become much more advanced, particularly with the introduction of its Knowledge Graph, which is designed to understand relationships between various entities and offer more contextually relevant results.
Why Does Google Use Entities?
Google’s main goal is to provide users with the most useful and relevant results. To achieve this, Google shifted from purely relying on keywords to understanding the broader context of what a search query means. This transition allows Google to move beyond simple keyword matching and focus on the intent behind a user’s search.
By recognizing and identifying entities within content, Google can understand the relationships between those entities. For example, when someone searches for “Steve Jobs,” Google can immediately associate the term with the well-known person who was the co-founder of Apple, thus providing content related to his life, work, and legacy rather than just any random occurrence of the words “Steve” and “Jobs.”
The focus on entities also helps Google present information in a more structured way. This is why Rich Snippets, Knowledge Panels, and Featured Snippets often appear in search results, pulling in entity-driven data directly from trusted sources.
Entities vs. Keywords
For many years, SEO strategies focused on optimizing content around specific keywords. However, as Google’s algorithms evolved, the focus has shifted towards creating content around topics and entities.
Instead of targeting just a word or phrase, content creators are now encouraged to focus on the broader semantic meaning behind those words. Google understands relationships between entities, so creating content around a topic and covering all related entities (people, places, brands, etc.) leads to better rankings.
For instance, if you’re writing content about “iPhones,” you’d not only optimize for the keyword “iPhone” but also incorporate related entities such as Apple, iOS, smartphones, and technology. By covering all these related entities, you’re helping Google understand the full context of your content, which ultimately increases the chances of ranking higher for the search query.
How to Leverage Entities in SEO
To leverage entities effectively in your content strategy, focus on the following steps:
- Understand Search Intent: Create content that answers specific user queries, addressing their needs by covering topics and entities that are most relevant to the search query.
- Use Structured Data: Implement schema markup or structured data on your website. This makes it easier for Google to identify entities and understand the relationships between them.
- Build Topic Clusters: Instead of focusing on individual keywords, build content clusters that explore a central topic in-depth, incorporating all related entities and concepts.
- Optimize for Knowledge Graph: By optimizing for entities, you can increase your chances of appearing in Google’s Knowledge Graph, Featured Snippets, or other rich results, which can greatly enhance your visibility.
- Use Contextual Relevance: Use contextually rich content and reference other related entities. This can be in the form of linking to authoritative sources, mentioning other related figures, products, or services, and giving comprehensive answers to questions that users commonly search.
Using TF-IDF to Identify useful Keywords or Entities
What is TF-IDF?
Let’s learn about TF or Term Frequency. As the name suggests it is a measure of the number of times a particular keyword occurs in a document.
TF = (No. of times a keyword appears in a document) / (Total Number of Words)
DF Score or document frequency = (Number of docs) / (Total Number of documents where the keyword appears in a Database)
IDF = log(DF)
When TF is multiplied by the IDF, then the resulting score is lower for commonly used words and higher for niche-specific or intent-specific topics.
When we use keywords that have high TF-IDF scores, those words indicate to Google the context of the page more than regular words.
How to use the TF-IDF tool to find Useful Competitor Keywords to target and Implement?
Now that we know the significance of TF-IDF, let’s understand some of its practical applications.
Normally a keyword with more topical significance or let’s say an entity would occur more times
on the web than other relevant words.
If we could find all relevant entities with the highest TF-IDF Score and channel used by our competitor against our target query, we would hit a golden list of important terms which can be implemented on the Landing page to better improve its relevancy against that particular search query.
The list we sometimes refer to as the champion list.
Here’s a Step by Step Guide to Creating one:
Step 1: Enter the Target Query in SERP.
Step 2: Pick the Top Ten relevant organic listings from SERP. (Remember to pick only Competitors)
Step 3: Pick your keyword-mapped Landing Page.
Step 4: Open TF-IDF Tool in Webtool.
Step 5: Generate TF-IDF Report against each competitor url one by one putting our target URL and taking the keyword suggestion with the most TF-IDF score. Maintain in an Excel Sheet as below.
Step 6: Take the union of the keywords by removing the duplicates.
Step 7: Implement these Keywords on your Landing Page as suitable.
Results for ThatWare
| expertusarank websitewebsiteworkrequest | experiencekeywordouterboxtechnologyagency |
Using these words on the intended landing page rest assured we have used all-important authoritative words that our competitors are using for the target keyphrase.
Through various experiments and case studies we have found that optimizing our content with relevant keywords, identifiers and entities and properly marking them with schema markup, bring a lot of impact on Seach Engine Rankings.
Enhancing Your SEO with TF-IDF and Entity Optimization
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a crucial digital marketing strategy that enhances the visibility of a website in search engine results pages (SERPs). By optimizing a website’s content and structure, SEO helps attract organic traffic, which can lead to increased brand awareness, higher conversion rates, and ultimately, greater revenue. Keyword optimization is a fundamental aspect of SEO, involving the careful selection and strategic placement of relevant keywords throughout a website’s content. This process ensures that search engines understand the context and relevance of the content, thereby improving its chances of ranking higher for specific search queries.
Transition to Focus on Search Intent and Entities
While traditional keyword optimization remains important, the evolving landscape of SEO requires a deeper understanding of search intent and entities. Search intent refers to the underlying purpose behind a user’s search query, whether they are looking for information, seeking to make a purchase, or trying to navigate to a specific site. Optimizing for search intent involves creating content that directly addresses the user’s needs, thereby enhancing user satisfaction and engagement.
Entities, on the other hand, are specific and distinct concepts, such as people, places, organizations, and things, that search engines recognize and understand. By focusing on entities, SEO strategies can align more closely with how modern search algorithms interpret and categorize information. This shift towards search intent and entities represents an advanced approach to SEO, prioritizing user experience and semantic relevance over mere keyword frequency.
Understanding Search Intent and Entities
Search intent, also known as user intent, is the underlying purpose driving a user’s search query. It refers to what the user is hoping to achieve when they type a specific search term into a search engine like Google. Whether the goal is to learn something new, find a product, or locate a website, understanding search intent is critical for SEO professionals and content marketers, as it helps ensure that the content they create aligns with the user’s needs and expectations. As search engines become more sophisticated, they increasingly prioritize delivering results that best satisfy the user’s intent.
The modern SEO landscape has evolved to prioritize relevance over simply ranking for keywords. In fact, search engines now consider entities—specific concepts, objects, or things that are well-defined and recognized in the real world—as crucial to understanding search intent. This approach goes beyond keyword matching and helps ensure that search results are comprehensive and contextually relevant to the user’s query.
The Four Types of Search Intent
Search intent is often categorized into four distinct types, each representing a different user goal. Understanding these types helps create content that addresses the user’s specific needs, leading to better user experience and improved SEO performance.
1. Informational Intent
Informational intent is the most common type of search intent. When users have informational intent, they are looking for answers to specific questions or general information on a particular topic. These users are typically not interested in making a purchase or taking any commercial action; they simply want to learn more about something.
Examples of informational search queries include:
- “How to make a chocolate cake?”
- “What is SEO and why is it important?”
- “Symptoms of the flu”
- “Best places to visit in Singapore”
To satisfy informational intent, content creators should focus on producing high-quality, in-depth, and well-researched articles or guides that provide answers to users’ questions. For example, an article titled “How to Bake the Perfect Chocolate Cake” could cover every aspect of the recipe, from ingredients to baking tips, helping users solve their problem. This content is not meant to sell a product but to educate or inform, meeting the user’s needs directly.
2. Navigational Intent
Navigational intent occurs when a user is trying to find a specific website or webpage. In these cases, the user is usually familiar with the brand, company, or website they are trying to access and simply needs to navigate to it.
Examples of navigational search queries include:
- “Facebook login”
- “YouTube”
- “Amazon homepage”
- “Twitter sign up page”
For businesses, understanding navigational intent is crucial because it often indicates that users are looking for their brand specifically. To optimize for navigational intent, make sure your website is easily discoverable and that users can easily find it by typing its name or a common query related to your brand. Clear and optimized URLs, strong branding, and a well-maintained presence across various platforms can help users land on your site quickly.
3. Transactional Intent
Transactional intent signifies that the user is ready to make a purchase or engage in a commercial transaction. These users are looking to buy something, subscribe to a service, or take some other financial action. Typically, these searches are linked to product or service names, brand terms, or specific offers.
Examples of transactional search queries include:
- “Buy iPhone 14 online”
- “Best deals on laptops”
- “Order pizza near me”
- “Book a flight to New York”
To effectively address transactional intent, businesses should focus on creating product pages, landing pages, or sales offers that clearly highlight their value propositions. Optimizing for transactional intent involves not only having the right products or services but also ensuring your content leads users toward completing the purchase or transaction. Features like easy-to-use eCommerce functionality, competitive pricing, and secure payment options are critical in satisfying transactional search intent.
4. Commercial Investigation Intent
Commercial investigation intent is a bit of a hybrid between informational and transactional intent. Users with commercial investigation intent are looking to research products or services but are not yet ready to make a purchase. They might be comparing options, reading reviews, or gathering more information before making a decision.
Examples of commercial investigation queries include:
- “Best smartphones of 2025”
- “Top SEO tools for small businesses”
- “Compare electric cars”
- “Customer reviews of the iPhone 14”
To satisfy commercial investigation intent, content should focus on detailed product reviews, comparison guides, and informational content that addresses the needs of users who are in the research phase of their buying journey. For example, a blog post titled “Top 10 Smartphones of 2025: Features, Specs, and Reviews” would help users decide which product is best for them. While this content is not directly focused on selling, it serves to guide the user toward a purchase decision by presenting them with all the relevant information.
The Role of Entities in Understanding Search Intent
As search engines have evolved, understanding entities has become a key part of interpreting search intent. An entity is a distinct concept or object that can be clearly identified and understood. It can be a person, place, product, service, or even a specific idea or concept. For example, Apple (the company), iPhone 14 (a product), and Steve Jobs (a person) are all entities that search engines recognize as unique objects in the world.
When users perform searches, Google often tries to understand not just the words but also the relationships between those words (or entities). For instance, a search for “iPhone 14” can trigger results about the product itself, reviews, pricing, and related entities like Apple, iOS, and even specific features such as camera specifications or battery life.
Understanding search intent and how entities are related is critical for SEO professionals. By structuring content around these entities, optimizing for them, and addressing the specific intent behind users’ queries, businesses can create content that is not only more relevant to search engines but also more valuable to users.
Understanding Search Intent and Entities
Search intent, often termed user intent, signifies the purpose driving a user’s inquiry on a search engine. It is the primary goal a user has when typing a search term. Understanding and addressing search intent is crucial in modern SEO because it ensures that the content not only ranks well but also meets the needs and expectations of the searchers. There are four main types of search intent:
- Informational Intent: The user is looking for information or answers to specific questions. For example, “How to make a chocolate cake” or “What is SEO?”
- Navigational Intent: The user wants to find a specific website or webpage. For example, “Facebook login” or “YouTube.”
- Transactional Intent: The user intends to make a purchase or engage in a commercial transaction. For example, “buy iPhone 14” or “best deals on laptops.”
- Commercial Investigation Intent: The user is researching products or services but is not yet ready to make a purchase. For example, “best smartphones 2025” or “top SEO tools.”
Importance of Entities in SEO:
- Improved Search Understanding: By recognizing entities, search engines can better understand the context and relationships between different pieces of information. This leads to more accurate and relevant search results.
- Enhanced SERP Features: Entities often appear in special search features such as Knowledge Panels, rich snippets, and featured snippets. Optimizing for entities can increase the chances of appearing in these prominent positions.
- Voice Search Optimization: Entities are crucial for voice search, as users tend to ask specific questions that involve distinct concepts. Optimizing for entities can improve visibility in voice search results.
- Semantic Search: Entities contribute to semantic search, where the focus is on the meaning and intent behind the search query rather than just the keywords. This aligns with the modern search engines’ emphasis on delivering more relevant and high-quality content.
Advanced Strategies for Content Optimization
While basic keyword integration involves placing keywords in titles, headers, and body text, advanced techniques take a more sophisticated approach to ensure content is both user-friendly and highly relevant to search engines. Here are some advanced strategies:
- Latent Semantic Indexing (LSI) Keywords: LSI keywords are terms and phrases that are semantically related to the main keyword. Including these in your content helps search engines understand the broader context. For example, if your main keyword is “apple,” LSI keywords could include “fruit,” “nutrition,” and “health benefits.”
- Long-Tail Keywords: These are more specific, longer phrases that capture niche search intents. They usually have lower search volume but higher conversion rates. For instance, instead of targeting “SEO,” you might use “best SEO practices for small businesses.”
- Keyword Clustering: Group related keywords into clusters and create comprehensive content that addresses all the keywords in a cluster. This approach ensures your content covers a topic thoroughly, increasing its relevance and authority.
- Natural Language Processing (NLP) Optimization: Tailor your content to align with how people naturally speak and search. This involves using conversational phrases and questions that users might enter into voice search.
- Content Silos: Organize content into thematic clusters or silos, where each silo covers a broad topic and contains multiple interlinked articles on subtopics. This structure helps search engines understand your site’s hierarchy and topical relevance.
Embrace Advanced SEO Strategies for Enhanced Search Performance
- Evolution of SEO: Emphasize the shift from traditional keyword optimization focusing on search volume and competition to a more refined approach that considers search intent and entities.
- Understanding Entities: Reinforce the importance of entities in SEO, explaining how they help search engines better understand content context.
- Role of TF-IDF: Summarize how TF-IDF (Term Frequency-Inverse Document Frequency) is used to identify significant keywords and entities that can enhance content relevance and authority.
- Creating a Champion List: Recap the step-by-step process for generating a champion list of keywords using TF-IDF, including competitor analysis and practical implementation.
- Impact on SEO: Mention the positive results observed from optimizing content with high TF-IDF keywords and relevant entities, including improved search engine rankings.
Encourage Readers to Start Implementing These Strategies
Motivate readers to apply the discussed techniques to their SEO efforts by:
- Actionable Steps: Encourage them to start by performing keyword mapping and understanding their target audience’s search intent.
- Utilize TF-IDF Tools: Suggest experimenting with TF-IDF tools to uncover valuable keywords and entities used by top competitors.
- Optimize Content: Recommend integrating the identified keywords and entities into their content, ensuring they use schema markup to provide additional context to search engines.
- Monitor and Adapt: Advise readers to continuously monitor their SEO performance, using tools like Google Analytics and Search Console to track improvements and make necessary adjustments.
Conclude with a motivational note, emphasizing that by adopting these advanced SEO strategies, they can achieve better visibility, higher rankings, and ultimately drive more organic traffic to their websites. Encourage them to stay updated with SEO trends and continue refining their approach for sustained success.
Thatware | Founder & CEO
Tuhin is recognized across the globe for his vision to revolutionize digital transformation industry with the help of cutting-edge technology. He won bronze for India at the Stevie Awards USA as well as winning the India Business Awards, India Technology Award, Top 100 influential tech leaders from Analytics Insights, Clutch Global Front runner in digital marketing, founder of the fastest growing company in Asia by The CEO Magazine and is a TEDx speaker and BrightonSEO speaker..
