Topic Clustering: Keyword Research to Boost Search Results

Deploying SEO-driven content is the primary goal for enterprises and website owners. The fundamental aim is to win the Google algorithm and make your content rank the best. To make this possible digital marketers are leaving no stone unturned. They are almost on the verge of trying anything and everything. Topic clustering is one such formula to make this happen. 

What Are Topic Clusters? 

Topic clustering is a technique used in search engine optimization (SEO) to improve keyword research and boost search results. It involves grouping related keywords into clusters based on relevance and topic similarity. 

Every topic cluster has the following three parts,

Pillar Page/Content: Pillar page/content is the web page content that offers a complete overview of the topic.

Cluster Pages/Content: Cluster pages/content are web page content that covers subtopics discussed under the subheadings of the pillar content.

Hyperlinks: Hyperlinks create the bridge between pillar content and cluster content by interlinking them.

For example, a travel blog site may choose the topic “US National Parks Trip Planning” as a pillar topic and create content clusters on associated topics like ‘Best Time to Visit US National Parks,” “How To Access US National Parks,” etc.

Topic clusters can help identify new keyword opportunities and improve content organization, eventually letting you understand the focus of your website & rank it higher in relevant search results.

RankWatch is an efficient AI-enabled SEO tool that can assist you to find relevant keywords that you can further use in a group to implement the topic cluster strategy for your website. To track the output of the given strategy, you can use our site analyzer to evaluate website speed, traffic and other aspects. 

Why Are Topic Clusters Important?

Content clustering allows you to create multiple high-quality content revolving around the pillar topic. That, in turn, boosts your keyword rankings and topical authority.

That is also essential from Google’s E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, Trustworthiness) point of view.

Topic clusters are essential because they help organize content in a structured manner, making the users and search engines comprehend the main themes and topics that a  website covers. This can improve a website’s SEO and improve its feasibility threshold in SERPs, leading to generating more organic traffic.

Additionally, having a clear topic structure can also enhance the user experience by allowing users to quickly find the information they are looking for, improving user engagement and reducing bounce rates.

How To Create Topic Clusters?

Here are some steps to upgrade your keyword research with powerful topic clustering:

Identify The Core Topic 

The first step towards creating an effective content cluster is to choose the main or pillar topic.

It would help if you consider the following points while choosing the core topic for your cluster content,

1. The topics that are essential and relevant to your product or service.
2. The list of topics that performed well for you previously.
3. The list of your existing content that can be used as cluster content.
4. The topics loved by your target audience.
5. The recent and trending topics covered by your competitors.

Conduct Keyword Research

Use a reliable keyword research tool like RankWatch, Google Keyword Planner, Google Trends, or SEMrush to find keywords related to your main topics. Make a list of the keywords that have high search volume and low competition.

Group Keywords into Clusters 

Take the list of keywords you have generated and group them into clusters based on their meaning and relevance to your topic. 

For example, if you are writing about sports brands, you could create a cluster of keywords related to sports shoes and jackets, another cluster for sports supplements, and another cluster for winter sports gear.

Create a Content Strategy 

Define the main topics you want to cover and the target audience you are writing for. Determine how to use keywords to support these topics and target your audience.

Prioritize Clusters 

Look at the search volume and competition for each keyword cluster and prioritize the clusters that have high search volume and low competition. These clusters are likely to be the most valuable for your website.

Create SEO Pillar Pages 

Produce a top-notch, coherent content that covers significant insights of the topic. This pillar content should comprise of all the related keywords of the given cluster.

Create Cluster Content 

Develop additional content that is composed of the given keywords of each cluster. Interlink the cluster pieces with the pillar content to show the inter-relation of the topic. 

By following these steps, you can use content clustering for elevating your keyword research and improve the search engine optimization (SEO) of your website. This can increase your visibility of your content as per SERP algorithm for more organic traffic and a better user experience.

Optimize Search Engine Content 

Assure optimized content for search engines with sustainable keywords in the titles and headings. 

Use internal linking to connect the pillar and cluster content and to exhibit the relationship between the topics.

How Topic Clustering Solves Search-focused Issues? 

SEO topic clusters solve search-focused issues by organizing a website’s content around specific themes or topics. This makes a search engine perceive the overall content structure of the website and identify the main topics covered on the site.

As a result, the website tends to rank better because of more related keywords, leading to increased visibility and organic traffic.

Additionally, topic clustering can help uplift the user experience by making it convenient for users to search the target information. 

By organizing content into clusters around specific topics, users can quickly navigate to the pages most relevant to their needs, reducing the time they spend searching for information and increasing their engagement with the site.

Overall, creating content clusters is a powerful SEO technique that can help websites achieve higher search engine rankings and improve the user experience, leading to increased traffic and engagement.

What Are the Ways to Discover & Use Keyword Clusters?

Here are some ways to discover and use topic clusters SEO:

Keyword Research: 

As we discussed, get a quick start with proper keyword research on the topic you are willing to produce on. Use tools like RankWatch to find keyword ideas and draft the tentative keyword volume feasible for the content. 

Analyze Search Results: 

Get RankWatch to analyze the search results for your keywords. Look at the top-ranking websites and identify the keywords and topics they focus on. This can help you determine which topics and keywords you should focus on and what type of content you need to create to rank for your target keywords.

Look for Patterns in Keyword Groups: 

Group related keywords together into clusters based on their meaning and relevance to your topic. For example, if you are writing about healthy habits, you could create a cluster of keywords related to detoxifying diets, another for weight loss diets, and one for fats-free diets.

Optimize for SEO Topic Clusters: 

Optimize your content for each keyword cluster by using the keywords in your titles, headings, and throughout the text. Use internal linking to connect each cluster’s pages and demonstrate the relationship between the topics.

Monitor Search Performance: 

Monitor the search performance of your content clusters using tools like Google Search Console or RankWatch Console for better results. This can help you view which clusters are driving traffic and which clusters need improvement.

By following these steps, you can discover and use keyword clusters to improve SEO scale and SERP visibility factor. This will consequently give the perpendicular growth to the organic traffic. 

Do Topic Clusters Actually Impact SERPs? 

Yes, topic clusters can positively impact complete SERPs

Post organizing a content around specific themes or topics, topic clustering dilutes the required effort for search engines to digest the overall content structure of a site and to identify the main topics covered on the site. 

This can improve a website’s SEO as per the result page, leading to growing more organic traffic.

However, there are innumerable factors that can impact SERPs, and topic clustering is just one of many techniques that can be used to improve SEO. 

So, learn seo free online with an impactful tool like RankWatch and strategize your SERP like never before. 

To see a significant impact on SERPs, it’s important to use content clusters as part of a comprehensive SEO strategy that also includes other techniques such as keyword research, content optimization, and link building. 

Additionally, it may take some time for topic clusters to impact SERPs, as search engines typically take time to crawl and index new content.

How To Measure The Performance Of Your Topic Clusters And Boost Topical Authority?

If you want to measure the performance of your topic clustering, you need to remember the main aim of creating topic clusters. 

The main motto of topic clusters SEO is to drive organic traffic and improve your content’s SERP rankings.

Hence, you need to focus on two main SEO topic cluster metrics: rank tracking of your targeted keywords and organic traffic driven by them.

The Rankwatch rank tracking feature provides you with a one-stop solution for that.

First, you must log in to your RankWatch account using your credentials.

Then, you need to enter the domain name of your pillar or cluster page (depending on which page’s performance you want to track) in the ‘New Project’ box at the top.

Next, click on ‘Rank Tracking’ from the left side menu.

If you click on the ‘Ranking’ tab, the page will provide you with all the tracking data you need to monitor, including the total number of keywords, ranking keywords, average rank, share of voice, and much more.

The tool also suggests potential keywords for ranking locally and low-hanging pages that can boost traffic quickly.

Scrolling down further will provide you with a list of ranking URLs, search volume, share of voice, and many more.

Wrapping Up: RankWatch is the best way out!

So, this is all about using topic clusters to boost your search result to the maximum. 

Today, a wide range of global digital marketers rely on tools like RankWatch. It is quick, simple, and easy to use. 

So, next time you want to skyrocket your website traffic, do use this SEO propeller to make the best out of content strategy. Right away from topic cluster to backlink analyzer, RankWatch is capable for every SEO thrust. 

Hope this piece of information is useful for you.

Happy Reading!