What are branded keywords and why are they so important for content marketing?
Posted: Thu Jan 23, 2025 7:10 am
A Content Marketing strategy seeks consistent results and leads that are aligned with the business's differentials. In more advanced stages of your funnel, therefore, the correct choice of branded keywords will make the difference. After all, there's nothing better than knowing the terms that are most related to your brand , right?
This is because those who use them already recognize the brand, make an association with its product or service and will only be looking for some additional information, or even a shorter way to make the online purchase. Therefore, it is necessary to carefully choose the branded keywords , the information they will bring in their results and even where they will be directed.
Is it worth investing in positioning your branded keywords in the SERPs or even exploring the teacher database terms associated with your competition? If you want to know the answer to this question, as well as the concept and importance of these words for your brand strategy and Content Marketing campaigns, this post brings all the information you need. Read it until the end!
What are branded keywords?
What is the importance of branded keywords?
What are the differences between branded keywords and non-branded keywords?
Is it worth sponsoring your results?
How to find branded keywords?
How to use branded keywords when building a Content Marketing strategy?
What tips can improve the use of branded keywords?
What are branded keywords?
Branded keywords are keywords or phrases that a company's potential customers use to search for more specific information about an item or service . In other words, they already know that this product can be found in the brand's mix of offerings, but they need additional information to make a decision, make a comparison, and recommend it to third parties, among other things.
As you can see, these are inquiries made close to the moment of a conversion and which boost a sales opportunity. For this reason, they have great strategic value for the company and must be correctly worked on and balanced with the rest of the keywords and phases of the marketing funnel .
They can include the brand and its product, such as “buy Apple iPhone”. In the case of long-tail brand keywords, we have: “Apple iPhone 12 price in Mexico” or “Apple iPhone 12 delivery time”.
In these cases, leads are not looking for the best smartphones of today, smartphones with the best cameras on the market or the most important features of a mobile phone, which would be needs and concerns at the beginning of the marketing funnel, right?
The searches in the example above are already aimed at information that will encourage or clarify a possible purchase. For example, the price in the specific region and the delivery time for receiving the product.
As a result, in addition to increasing the traffic and audience of a web address , more specific and bottom-of-the-funnel keywords are actively used to show the processes to complete the purchase.
What is the importance of branded keywords?
But, in practice, what is the importance of these keywords for your strategic planning ? The benefits are many and can contribute to the improvement of your pages and adopted strategies . So that you have no doubts about the importance of branded keywords, we have listed the most relevant points. Take note!
Greater segmentation
Segmentation is essential for an efficient Content Marketing strategy or even for paid media. The more specific your material is, the more likely it is to have a relevant impact on your persona . Your message is tailored to your audience’s expectations, increasing the potential for achieving a conversion.
After all, the trend is for communication with the audience to be more precise. Instead of focusing on interactions that add little value to the search for loyalty , opt for more natural, friendly and relevant communications for your audience, which take into account your branded keywords.
Understanding the main needs of your audience
In order to offer a positive experience to users, it is important to understand what their main needs are. Since these are more specific terms, branded keywords allow you to attract qualified traffic and also motivate people to interact and raise their concerns, thus identifying their main pain points and problems.
New emerging opportunities
With increased traffic, your marketing team can identify new business opportunities. By sensing growing demand from your audience based on searches with branded keywords, the department will know which pain points to attack, which topics are closer to conversion, and other aspects of interest.
In conclusion, these keywords will expand your business possibilities and, perhaps, show you paths that you have not yet explored.
Identifying faults in products or services
Another very interesting alternative that branded keywords will provide you with is searching for customer feedback and ratings on your products and services. The idea is to identify which topics are most affected by criticism and complaints , for example.
When you notice that a specific product is suffering from negative feedback, you can make the necessary changes. For those pursuing a bigger and better digital presence, it is important to understand which terms are most closely related to the products and services and what is being said about them.
Tracking your competitors' performance
Keeping an eye on your competition is also key to creating more impactful campaigns and actions. Nothing beats getting straight to the point and looking for branded keywords related to your competitors, either to understand which products and services are most relevant to their audience, or to track and understand their attraction mechanisms.
In addition, it can be very useful for your paid media strategy, helping you understand which are the most searched terms for your competitors and how much you will gain from investing in positioning them.
This market monitoring ensures that you are always up to date and looking for alternatives so as not to lose space within your segment .
What are the differences between branded keywords and non-branded keywords?
This is a very simple difference, after all, for SEO strategies , you need to consider how the algorithms analyze and process the keywords. Therefore, the point of differentiation is whether or not the brand, product or company is mentioned in the keyword .
The other keywords will therefore address the product's differentials, the needs it satisfies, the pains customers experience before using it, what its benefits are, trends, and other information that will help the potential customer make their decision.
But, thinking from a strategic point of view, there is another important difference: it communicates with a lead that is already well-nourished and oriented towards the product or service offered. This means that, in addition to the objectivity of the keywords, the pages that will receive your referrals must also have clear and essential information for the final conversion.
Which ones are more important?
From a strategy perspective, both branded keywords and more general keywords are essential for the success of Content Marketing, precisely because they fulfill different objectives at their respective stages.
Keywords used at the start of lead nurturing, i.e. customer acquisition, are aimed at gaining a number of readers and visitors to blogs. This will increase your ranking in search results, for example.
Branded keywords, on the other hand, will be crucial in the more advanced stages of lead nurturing, that is, when you already understand who the potential companies and brands are to solve your problems.
Considering that you have other solutions to turn to, securing a quick and definitive answer to your search can make all the difference in winning that potential purchase. So, in this case, it is the branded keyword that will lead you to success.
Is it worth sponsoring your results?
The most correct answer to this question is: it depends on the strategy, the results obtained and the objectives. Some experts believe that in a search result where the keyword is already contextualized with the company name, it does not need sponsorship, don't you think?
But it is necessary to consider that the competition can use this resource to attract your potential customers opportunistically, since, in the search experience, users always end up clicking on the first results. That is, your competitors may be highlighted in SERPs with the specific name of your company.
On the other hand, investing in keywords not associated with the brand can generate more sales opportunities to filter and manage the user in the rest of the process, promoting a successful closing. If the budget is limited, it will also be necessary to make such considerations, okay?
How to find branded keywords?
We've already shown that monitoring branded keywords is very important for your planning. But how do you find them? Check out our tips!
Use Google Alerts
When it comes to keywords and relevance to your brand in the SERPs, Google always has a go-to, right? The good news is that Google Alerts can help you get those answers.
Instead of searching for terms related to your business, this free tool will send notifications every time your brand is mentioned on the Internet , generating valuable information.
Explore social media
Social media can also be an important source of information for those looking for branded keywords. One of the most relevant tools for carrying out these searches is Twitter.
The "Advanced Search" feature allows you to find exactly what you are looking for. You can customize your search by searching for an exact phrase or just a specific term .
Bet on specific tools
In addition to organic search methods for branded keywords, you can find them using specific tools for this task.
One option is SproutSocial, which has a feature to display terms related to your business. Additionally, tools like SEMRush can also be useful to enrich your searches.
How to use branded keywords when building a Content Marketing strategy?
They have the same formats and, ultimately, the same objectives as other keywords, namely, to help attract leads and help them find the content that will help them move forward in the purchasing journey. So, how can you use branded keywords alongside other relevant terms and in your overall strategy? Let's see!
Include them, naturally, in the planning of keyword generation
As expected, they should be chosen together with the other keywords of the project and following the same quality standards, such as relevance to the product or service offered and search volume on the main search engines, with Google at the top.
In addition to search volume, the level of competitiveness and cost per click, among other qualitative indicators, can be evaluated with Adwords and other tools, such as SEMRush.
Ensure the segmentation of content produced by the company
If the company offers different products or services, you should make sure that their different combinations of keywords, page addresses and branding are considered in the strategy and take the right directions.
Therefore, making a complete list of all the elements and making a combination of words is essential, as well as testing how much they are searched for on mechanisms such as Google.
Use them also to increase the visibility of the company's website or blog.
It is also possible to develop content specific to brand keywords . You can do this by creating a sort of smart FAQ on the main questions that may arise in a potential customer’s decision-making process, such as available locations or stores, payment methods, exchange policies, refunds, shipping methods, etc.
In addition to increasing conversion rates, monitoring the performance of these keywords also allows companies to identify key concerns and unanswered questions in the rest of their content strategy.
This information can help calibrate the content of the next steps and make the materials focus on the conversion processes.
This will give your business more visibility, strengthen its content and give it prominence in search engines, not only by bringing your answers, but also by promoting possible interactions, engagement and sales conversions, in the case of internal links that lead to that objective.
Optimize content descriptions with these words
In addition to investing in paid ads, it is also necessary to consider the quality of information on the pages. This will ensure organic traffic.
Using the meta description of the pages with the right keywords can also contribute to the success of the strategy. In SERPs, summarized information helps direct the potential customer to what they are really looking for, i.e. data about your brand.
What tips can improve the use of branded keywords?
In addition to all these alternatives, what can be done to improve the use of branded keywords? Check out some of our tips!
Optimize your pages
The first step is a basic, but very relevant, piece of advice about Content Marketing: optimize your pages. Using the right terms when setting up your strategy is just one example of this; in addition, you must invest in the user experience that accesses your site, through better techniques.
Do the right research
It is also essential to set a goal for your branded keywords strategy so that you can direct your efforts during searches. The goal is to avoid wasting time on irrelevant terms. To do this, rely on the tools we showed above to optimize this step.
Producing content from branded keywords
Branded keywords can also be used as references for producing relevant content. Have you noticed that many users have questions about your products or services? Why not create an FAQ that clarifies these issues and can work the term correctly?
Don't forget about social media
Social media can also be very useful in making branded keywords more effective for your digital marketing strategies. Using the most frequently used terms in your profile descriptions is just one example of how these keywords should be explored to boost results.
Never stop monitoring
Tracking is also another important tip to make the use of branded keywords positive for your business. No matter how good the results are so far, there is always room for improvement, and it is essential not to let your competitors get close and exploit your flaws.
The strategic value of a branded keyword reinforces brand management and development. And not only that! In the digital context, these words are a springboard that leads to strengthening social media, SEO and the relationship with the user.
This is because those who use them already recognize the brand, make an association with its product or service and will only be looking for some additional information, or even a shorter way to make the online purchase. Therefore, it is necessary to carefully choose the branded keywords , the information they will bring in their results and even where they will be directed.
Is it worth investing in positioning your branded keywords in the SERPs or even exploring the teacher database terms associated with your competition? If you want to know the answer to this question, as well as the concept and importance of these words for your brand strategy and Content Marketing campaigns, this post brings all the information you need. Read it until the end!
What are branded keywords?
What is the importance of branded keywords?
What are the differences between branded keywords and non-branded keywords?
Is it worth sponsoring your results?
How to find branded keywords?
How to use branded keywords when building a Content Marketing strategy?
What tips can improve the use of branded keywords?
What are branded keywords?
Branded keywords are keywords or phrases that a company's potential customers use to search for more specific information about an item or service . In other words, they already know that this product can be found in the brand's mix of offerings, but they need additional information to make a decision, make a comparison, and recommend it to third parties, among other things.
As you can see, these are inquiries made close to the moment of a conversion and which boost a sales opportunity. For this reason, they have great strategic value for the company and must be correctly worked on and balanced with the rest of the keywords and phases of the marketing funnel .
They can include the brand and its product, such as “buy Apple iPhone”. In the case of long-tail brand keywords, we have: “Apple iPhone 12 price in Mexico” or “Apple iPhone 12 delivery time”.
In these cases, leads are not looking for the best smartphones of today, smartphones with the best cameras on the market or the most important features of a mobile phone, which would be needs and concerns at the beginning of the marketing funnel, right?
The searches in the example above are already aimed at information that will encourage or clarify a possible purchase. For example, the price in the specific region and the delivery time for receiving the product.
As a result, in addition to increasing the traffic and audience of a web address , more specific and bottom-of-the-funnel keywords are actively used to show the processes to complete the purchase.
What is the importance of branded keywords?
But, in practice, what is the importance of these keywords for your strategic planning ? The benefits are many and can contribute to the improvement of your pages and adopted strategies . So that you have no doubts about the importance of branded keywords, we have listed the most relevant points. Take note!
Greater segmentation
Segmentation is essential for an efficient Content Marketing strategy or even for paid media. The more specific your material is, the more likely it is to have a relevant impact on your persona . Your message is tailored to your audience’s expectations, increasing the potential for achieving a conversion.
After all, the trend is for communication with the audience to be more precise. Instead of focusing on interactions that add little value to the search for loyalty , opt for more natural, friendly and relevant communications for your audience, which take into account your branded keywords.
Understanding the main needs of your audience
In order to offer a positive experience to users, it is important to understand what their main needs are. Since these are more specific terms, branded keywords allow you to attract qualified traffic and also motivate people to interact and raise their concerns, thus identifying their main pain points and problems.
New emerging opportunities
With increased traffic, your marketing team can identify new business opportunities. By sensing growing demand from your audience based on searches with branded keywords, the department will know which pain points to attack, which topics are closer to conversion, and other aspects of interest.
In conclusion, these keywords will expand your business possibilities and, perhaps, show you paths that you have not yet explored.
Identifying faults in products or services
Another very interesting alternative that branded keywords will provide you with is searching for customer feedback and ratings on your products and services. The idea is to identify which topics are most affected by criticism and complaints , for example.
When you notice that a specific product is suffering from negative feedback, you can make the necessary changes. For those pursuing a bigger and better digital presence, it is important to understand which terms are most closely related to the products and services and what is being said about them.
Tracking your competitors' performance
Keeping an eye on your competition is also key to creating more impactful campaigns and actions. Nothing beats getting straight to the point and looking for branded keywords related to your competitors, either to understand which products and services are most relevant to their audience, or to track and understand their attraction mechanisms.
In addition, it can be very useful for your paid media strategy, helping you understand which are the most searched terms for your competitors and how much you will gain from investing in positioning them.
This market monitoring ensures that you are always up to date and looking for alternatives so as not to lose space within your segment .
What are the differences between branded keywords and non-branded keywords?
This is a very simple difference, after all, for SEO strategies , you need to consider how the algorithms analyze and process the keywords. Therefore, the point of differentiation is whether or not the brand, product or company is mentioned in the keyword .
The other keywords will therefore address the product's differentials, the needs it satisfies, the pains customers experience before using it, what its benefits are, trends, and other information that will help the potential customer make their decision.
But, thinking from a strategic point of view, there is another important difference: it communicates with a lead that is already well-nourished and oriented towards the product or service offered. This means that, in addition to the objectivity of the keywords, the pages that will receive your referrals must also have clear and essential information for the final conversion.
Which ones are more important?
From a strategy perspective, both branded keywords and more general keywords are essential for the success of Content Marketing, precisely because they fulfill different objectives at their respective stages.
Keywords used at the start of lead nurturing, i.e. customer acquisition, are aimed at gaining a number of readers and visitors to blogs. This will increase your ranking in search results, for example.
Branded keywords, on the other hand, will be crucial in the more advanced stages of lead nurturing, that is, when you already understand who the potential companies and brands are to solve your problems.
Considering that you have other solutions to turn to, securing a quick and definitive answer to your search can make all the difference in winning that potential purchase. So, in this case, it is the branded keyword that will lead you to success.
Is it worth sponsoring your results?
The most correct answer to this question is: it depends on the strategy, the results obtained and the objectives. Some experts believe that in a search result where the keyword is already contextualized with the company name, it does not need sponsorship, don't you think?
But it is necessary to consider that the competition can use this resource to attract your potential customers opportunistically, since, in the search experience, users always end up clicking on the first results. That is, your competitors may be highlighted in SERPs with the specific name of your company.
On the other hand, investing in keywords not associated with the brand can generate more sales opportunities to filter and manage the user in the rest of the process, promoting a successful closing. If the budget is limited, it will also be necessary to make such considerations, okay?
How to find branded keywords?
We've already shown that monitoring branded keywords is very important for your planning. But how do you find them? Check out our tips!
Use Google Alerts
When it comes to keywords and relevance to your brand in the SERPs, Google always has a go-to, right? The good news is that Google Alerts can help you get those answers.
Instead of searching for terms related to your business, this free tool will send notifications every time your brand is mentioned on the Internet , generating valuable information.
Explore social media
Social media can also be an important source of information for those looking for branded keywords. One of the most relevant tools for carrying out these searches is Twitter.
The "Advanced Search" feature allows you to find exactly what you are looking for. You can customize your search by searching for an exact phrase or just a specific term .
Bet on specific tools
In addition to organic search methods for branded keywords, you can find them using specific tools for this task.
One option is SproutSocial, which has a feature to display terms related to your business. Additionally, tools like SEMRush can also be useful to enrich your searches.
How to use branded keywords when building a Content Marketing strategy?
They have the same formats and, ultimately, the same objectives as other keywords, namely, to help attract leads and help them find the content that will help them move forward in the purchasing journey. So, how can you use branded keywords alongside other relevant terms and in your overall strategy? Let's see!
Include them, naturally, in the planning of keyword generation
As expected, they should be chosen together with the other keywords of the project and following the same quality standards, such as relevance to the product or service offered and search volume on the main search engines, with Google at the top.
In addition to search volume, the level of competitiveness and cost per click, among other qualitative indicators, can be evaluated with Adwords and other tools, such as SEMRush.
Ensure the segmentation of content produced by the company
If the company offers different products or services, you should make sure that their different combinations of keywords, page addresses and branding are considered in the strategy and take the right directions.
Therefore, making a complete list of all the elements and making a combination of words is essential, as well as testing how much they are searched for on mechanisms such as Google.
Use them also to increase the visibility of the company's website or blog.
It is also possible to develop content specific to brand keywords . You can do this by creating a sort of smart FAQ on the main questions that may arise in a potential customer’s decision-making process, such as available locations or stores, payment methods, exchange policies, refunds, shipping methods, etc.
In addition to increasing conversion rates, monitoring the performance of these keywords also allows companies to identify key concerns and unanswered questions in the rest of their content strategy.
This information can help calibrate the content of the next steps and make the materials focus on the conversion processes.
This will give your business more visibility, strengthen its content and give it prominence in search engines, not only by bringing your answers, but also by promoting possible interactions, engagement and sales conversions, in the case of internal links that lead to that objective.
Optimize content descriptions with these words
In addition to investing in paid ads, it is also necessary to consider the quality of information on the pages. This will ensure organic traffic.
Using the meta description of the pages with the right keywords can also contribute to the success of the strategy. In SERPs, summarized information helps direct the potential customer to what they are really looking for, i.e. data about your brand.
What tips can improve the use of branded keywords?
In addition to all these alternatives, what can be done to improve the use of branded keywords? Check out some of our tips!
Optimize your pages
The first step is a basic, but very relevant, piece of advice about Content Marketing: optimize your pages. Using the right terms when setting up your strategy is just one example of this; in addition, you must invest in the user experience that accesses your site, through better techniques.
Do the right research
It is also essential to set a goal for your branded keywords strategy so that you can direct your efforts during searches. The goal is to avoid wasting time on irrelevant terms. To do this, rely on the tools we showed above to optimize this step.
Producing content from branded keywords
Branded keywords can also be used as references for producing relevant content. Have you noticed that many users have questions about your products or services? Why not create an FAQ that clarifies these issues and can work the term correctly?
Don't forget about social media
Social media can also be very useful in making branded keywords more effective for your digital marketing strategies. Using the most frequently used terms in your profile descriptions is just one example of how these keywords should be explored to boost results.
Never stop monitoring
Tracking is also another important tip to make the use of branded keywords positive for your business. No matter how good the results are so far, there is always room for improvement, and it is essential not to let your competitors get close and exploit your flaws.
The strategic value of a branded keyword reinforces brand management and development. And not only that! In the digital context, these words are a springboard that leads to strengthening social media, SEO and the relationship with the user.