In today’s era of content marketing, keywords are still essential to a working strategy.
Keywords help search engines like Google categorize content, of course, but that’s far from all. They are also there to help guide real users – potential customers – to what you offer.
If you don’t consider what search engines want at all, you’ll be hard-pressed to get your quality content discovered. However, there is too much of a good thing, and that’s never more the case than when it comes to keywords.
If you have no keywords, you won’t get far.
But: If you stuff too many into a single piece of content, it won’t help, either!
Let’s look at the truth behind this vital, but misunderstood topic.
Debunking Today’s Two Biggest Myths About Keywords and Keyword Density
Myth: There’s a specific density you should try to reach with keywords.
Fact: Keywords should be represented in your content. It’s a good idea to have a focus keyword in your main headline, some subheaders, and of course, within the text.
However, they don’t need to be there at a certain density. If anything, having keywords appear naturally throughout your whole body of content only strengthens SEO results.
Search engines are getting better at making connections between different keywords, phrases, and subjects – they no longer need the hand-holding of a specific level of keyword usage.
Every page in your entire site has an impact on your results, so natural language is best. 
Myth: The more keywords on a single page, the better for your SEO
No matter how careful you are in the way you use language, you’ll definitely have more than one “keyword” per page. Search users will find ways to phrase things you may never have thought of before, and they’ll end up on your site – as your analytics will tell you.
That said, when you have a clear keyword strategy, it’s usually best to narrow down to one or two of your target keywords per page.
It isn’t just about technology: There’s a simple user experience reason.
Every piece of content you write should have a clear purpose, value, and topic. A focus keyword helps you determine what those are and deliver on the implicit promise of each content piece.
Keywords still matter, but providing helpful, informative, useful content is paramount.
Match your content – its structure, length, and keywords – to its intended purpose. Then monitor your results through analytics, solicit real user feedback, and continuously refine your approach.