Picking the Right Keywords as a Christian Blogger

If you’ve been blogging any amount of time, you’ve undoubtedly heard of this thing called “SEO.” But what is exactly is it and how do you do it? SEO is the foundation of how your Christian blog posts get found in search results. Learning how SEO works is so important for getting your faith-filled content in front of people who need it most. One of the first steps in implementing SEO for a blog post is first picking the right keywords.

silver laptop on a wooden desk with a cup of coffee and purple flowers

Understanding SEO as a Christian Blogger

SEO is short for Search Engine Optimization. This means that you are optimizing your content to make it easier for search engine crawlers to “crawl” your content, index it (file it away), and retrieve it for displaying in search results when someone does a Google search. SEO encompasses a spectrum of things both on the blog (on-page SEO) and away from your site (off-page SEO).

SEO is not a black and white process. That means that there is no exact thing to do that will “guarantee” your post will make it to Page One. There are, however, a checklist of things you can do on your blog/blog posts to give it a much better chance of getting there.

Picking the Right Keywords for Your Christian Blog Posts

The first step in optimizing a blog post for SEO is to find the best keyword phrase to try to rank the post for. To do this, you’ll want to think in terms of “If I were looking for this type of content on Google, what would I type into the search box?” This question is fundamental in understanding which keywords to use in your post. If people aren’t searching for the term you are trying to rank for then it won’t be provided in search results (because there are no searches happening!).

To help you figure out whether others are searching for a particular keyword, the easiest tool to use is the Keywords Everywhere browser extension. Unfortunately, this only works on a desktop computer (they haven’t created an app for it yet).

You may have heard of many other keyword search tools, but this one is the best value for the cost ($10/100K credits) and much more convenient than the others. This is the only search tool I use for writing my posts here on Kingdom Bloggers. Once you download and install it on your computer, you will see search volume for every single search query you type into Google. (See below)

seo keywords

You can also use other free tools such as:

  • Google Keyword Planner
  • Ubbersuggest
  • KWFinder

So instead of having to open up a new website to do your keyword research, you can do it all right there in Google. This makes it so much easier than some of the other sites that have a lot of other data showing in their keyword search process.

Key Terms to Understand

You may have heard of terms like search volume, competition, and CPC. The only one you need to look at is SEARCH VOLUME. The other 2 apply to if you are paying for ads (which I don’t recommend).

  • Search volume – this is the average number of monthly searches for that term.
  • Competition – This metric refers to the competition for paid ads using that keyword. You always want to use keywords with a low competition because you don’t want to compete with paid ads.
  • CPC – This is short for “cost per click” and refers to the amount paid per click for ads using this keyword.

** I don’t recommend paying for ads to promote your content! You can get your Christian content ranking on page one without ever paying for ads. 

There is one metric that isn’t reflected anywhere and that is the competition among other content creators/bloggers. This is the one you want to consider most when choosing the best keyword for a post.

There are some topics in certain niches that have very high competition because everyone is writing about them. Also, certain niches, by nature, are more competitive. As a result, it may take longer for some content to rank than it does for other content.

Common Questions About SEO and Picking the Right Keyword

I know some of this SEO stuff can be a bit confusing so I tried to answer some of the most common questions that I get asked. It is important that you know what is fact and what is fiction and how all the parts work together for the overall optimization of your site.

What is the best search volume for a keyword?

Other than there actually being search volume for your topic, the SV for the keyword doesn’t really matter. Why? Because your blog post isn’t about a single keyword. It is about the TOPIC and you should incorporate a variety of variable and related keywords into the content.  

Related: How to Write a Blog Post That Ranks

The truth is that it doesn’t matter what keyword you place in the Yoast/RankMath box as long as the overall content is optimized for the topic.

What is a longtail keyword?

A longtail keyword is a longer version of something.  You will have much better success when writing about more specific topics than just going for the general.  In these 3 examples, you can see that the first one is so broad that it doesn’t really address a single issue. But the last one is very specific. This is how people would most likely search for their content. This is how you truly satisfy the search query!

  • Base keyword: having faith
  • Longtail keyword: having faith in God
  • Better longtail keyword: having faith in God during hard times

Your base keyword is part of the longer versions using that keyword. More often, the content you write is written from a specific perspective. When people are searching for something on Google, they are also searching for things in a particular context or perspective. You will be better able to rank using the longer, more specific versions of a keyword. You will also be able to reach those looking for the specific perspective you are writing about.

How many times do I need to use the keyword?

Yoast will tell you that you need to use your main keyword (the one you put in the keyword block) a certain number of times based on the total wordcount of the post. Instead, use a variety of keywords that relate to the topic. If your main keyword is “growing in faith,” you can use variables interchangeably when they make sense (grow in faith, grow stronger in faith, get closer to God). These all mean the same thing and Google understands that. When you use the same keyword over and over (to make Yoast happy), your content sounds forced.

Does the green light on Yoast mean my SEO is great?

While Yoast is an important tool for helping with your keyword optimization, most bloggers don’t fully understand exactly how it works. Getting the green light is something you should strive for, however, what you put into it (the chosen keyword) is more important. You can put a term in it that no one is searching for and still get a green light. You read more on the truth about the Yoast plugin here.

SEO Matters for Christian Bloggers

SEO is such a crucial step in sharing your faith-inspired content with the world. While it may seem a bit overwhelming at first, taking the time to learn keyword research so you are picking the right keywords to rank for will really pay off for your long-term blog reach. Be sure to check out SEO for Christian Bloggers which will walk you through the steps of implementing backend SEO, followed by detailed instruction on doing keyword research and formatting your posts for SEO.

Be sure to also read:



Sharing is caring!

Scroll to Top