Terms

Generic Keywords

Generic keywords are broad, non-branded search terms that describe a product's general function, category, or purpose. People use these terms when they don't have a specific brand in mind and are instead searching based on a need or interest. For example, a user might search for 'photo editing app' or 'fitness tracker' rather than a specific company's product.

Importance of Generic Keywords in SEO

Generic keywords are vital for reaching new audiences who aren't familiar with your brand. They boost your visibility in search results by targeting users looking for a general solution, not a specific product. This strategy helps capture a wider segment of the market and drives significant long-tail traffic to your site.

Strategies for Using Generic Keywords

Effectively using generic keywords involves a multi-pronged approach to capture users at the top of the funnel. The goal is to increase visibility and attract new customers who are searching for solutions rather than specific brands. A solid strategy combines competitor research with careful keyword placement.

  • Long-tail: Focus on less competitive, low-volume keywords that cumulatively drive significant traffic.
  • Competitors: Analyze which generic keywords are driving installs for your competition and target them.
  • Placement: Optimize metadata fields with relevant generic keywords that describe your product’s features or category.
  • Acquisition: Use generic terms to reach new, untapped audiences who are not yet familiar with your brand.

Generic Keywords vs. Broad Keywords

While often used interchangeably, generic and broad keywords serve distinct functions in a search strategy.

  • Generic Keywords: These are non-branded terms describing a product, like 'photo editing app'. They are crucial for SEO, helping new and mid-market companies gain visibility and enterprises reach untapped audiences. However, they can be highly competitive and often have lower conversion rates than branded terms.
  • Broad Keywords: This typically refers to a 'broad match' setting in paid ad campaigns. It offers the widest reach by targeting variations of a keyword but can result in lower-quality traffic and wasted ad spend. Enterprises might use it for maximum brand awareness, while mid-market companies may prefer more targeted approaches.

Common Mistakes with Generic Keywords

While generic keywords are powerful for reaching new audiences, they come with common pitfalls that can undermine your strategy. Misusing them can lead to wasted effort and poor visibility. Avoiding these frequent mistakes is key to a successful campaign.

  • Repetition: Repeating keywords across metadata fields, which offers no ranking benefit.
  • Irrelevance: Targeting terms not closely related to your product, leading to poor conversion rates.
  • Neglect: Ignoring the long-tail by not targeting a diverse set of specific generic keywords.

Analyzing the Impact of Generic Keywords

Evaluating generic keywords shows their significant role in expanding audience reach despite lower conversion rates.

  • Visibility: Increases your presence in broad, category-level searches.
  • Traffic: Captures a high volume of users through long-tail queries.
  • Conversion: Results in lower conversion rates compared to branded searches.

Frequently Asked Questions about Generic Keywords

How do generic keywords impact my ad spend?

They can be expensive in paid search due to high competition. The real value often comes from organic SEO, where they drive top-of-funnel traffic and build brand awareness over time without a direct per-click cost, making them a long-term investment.

Are generic keywords too competitive for smaller brands?

Not necessarily. Instead of targeting broad, high-volume terms, focus on long-tail generic keywords. These more specific phrases have less competition and can attract highly relevant users who are closer to making a decision, leveling the playing field.

How can I measure the ROI of generic keywords?

Look beyond direct conversions. Track metrics like organic traffic growth, new user acquisition, and brand visibility. Generic keywords fill the top of your funnel, so their impact is often seen in assisted conversions and long-term brand recall.

Other terms

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Sales Territory

A sales territory is a specific group of customers or a geographic area that a salesperson or sales team is responsible for managing.

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Qualified Lead

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HubSpot

HubSpot is a customer relationship management (CRM) platform with tools for marketing, sales, and service, all aimed at helping businesses grow.

HubSpot

Agile Methodology

Agile methodology is an iterative approach to project management and software development, focusing on delivering value in small, incremental steps.

Agile Methodology

Return on Investment (ROI)

Return on Investment (ROI) is a key performance metric that measures the profitability of an investment relative to its initial cost.

Return on Investment (ROI)

Request for Proposal

A Request for Proposal (RFP) is a formal document that outlines a project's needs and invites qualified vendors to submit bids to complete it.

Request for Proposal

Proof of Concept

A Proof of Concept (PoC) is a small exercise to test whether a business idea or project is technically feasible and has real-world potential.

Proof of Concept

Drupal

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Drupal

Upsell

Upselling is a sales tactic encouraging customers to purchase a higher-end version of a product or related add-ons to boost revenue.

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Responsive Design

Responsive design is an approach where a website's layout adapts to the user's screen size, providing an optimal experience on any device.

Responsive Design

Intent leads

Intent leads are prospects who show buying signals through their online actions, indicating they're actively looking to make a purchase.

Intent leads

Brag Book

Learn about brag book, including crafting your outstanding brag book, essential components of a brag book, & brag book vs. resume: unveiling the differences.

Brag Book

Lead Nurturing

Lead nurturing is the process of developing and reinforcing relationships with buyers at every stage of the sales funnel.

Lead Nurturing

Prospecting

Prospecting is the process of identifying potential customers, or prospects, to build a sales pipeline and generate new business opportunities.

Prospecting

Product Champion

A product champion is an internal evangelist who drives a product's adoption and success by ensuring it solves real problems for their team.

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Sales Funnel Metrics

Sales funnel metrics are key data points that track how effectively you're moving potential customers from awareness to a final purchase.

Sales Funnel Metrics

Sales Operations Management

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Sales Operations Management

Sales Pipeline Velocity

Sales pipeline velocity is a metric that measures how quickly deals move through your sales funnel to generate revenue for your business.

Sales Pipeline Velocity

Account Mapping

Account mapping is comparing your customer list with a partner's to find common prospects and unlock new sales opportunities.

Account Mapping

Integration Testing

Integration testing is a software testing phase where individual modules are combined and tested together to verify their interaction.

Integration Testing

CI/CD

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CI/CD

Payment Processors

Payment processors are companies that handle card transactions, connecting merchants with the banks needed to complete a sale.

Payment Processors

Stress Testing

Stress testing is a type of software testing that determines a system's robustness by pushing it beyond its normal operational capacity.

Stress Testing

Lead Conversion

Lead conversion is the process of turning a prospect into a customer by getting them to complete a desired action, such as making a purchase.

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Account-Based Sales

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Account-Based Sales

Account-Based Analytics

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Account-Based Analytics

User Interface

A User Interface (UI) is the point where humans and computers interact. It encompasses all visual elements like screens, icons, and buttons.

User Interface

Edge Locations

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Edge Locations

Decision Buying Stage

The decision stage is where a well-researched buyer chooses a vendor. They compare specific products and pricing before making their final purchase.

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Conversational Intelligence

Conversational intelligence (CI) is AI technology that analyzes customer conversations to find insights that help sales and support teams improve.

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B2B Intent Data

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Scrum

Scrum is an agile framework that helps teams structure and manage their work through a set of values, principles, and practices.

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Touchpoints

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Sales forecast accuracy is a key metric that compares your predicted sales revenue against the actual sales revenue you ultimately achieve.

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B2B Contact Base

Learn about B2B contact base, including building an effective B2B contact base, & strategies for expanding your contact base.

B2B Contact Base

Buying Cycle

The buying cycle is the journey a customer takes from first realizing they have a need to making the final purchase decision.

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Customer Acquisition Cost

Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) is the total cost a business spends to gain a new customer. It includes all sales and marketing expenses.

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Browser Compatibility

Learn about browser compatibility, including understanding the importance, common challenges, best practices, & tools for testing.

Browser Compatibility

Brand Awareness

Learn about brand awareness, including understanding its importance, building an effective strategy, key metrics to track, & examples in the real world.

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Persona Map

A persona map visually outlines a target customer, detailing their goals, behaviors, and pain points to help your team build genuine empathy.

Persona Map

Marketing Analytics

Marketing analytics involves measuring and analyzing marketing data to understand campaign performance and improve return on investment (ROI).

Marketing Analytics

Customer Relationship Management Systems

A Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system is a tool that centralizes customer data to help manage interactions and nurture relationships.

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Lead Scoring

Lead scoring is the process of assigning points to leads based on their attributes and actions to determine their sales-readiness.

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Customer Journey Mapping

Customer journey mapping is the process of creating a visual story of your customers' interactions with your brand across all touchpoints.

Customer Journey Mapping

Text message marketing

Text message marketing is a strategy where businesses send promotional messages, offers, and updates to customers via SMS or MMS.

Text message marketing

Programmatic Advertising

Programmatic advertising uses AI and real-time bidding to automate the buying and selling of digital ad space, targeting specific audiences.

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Inside Sales Rep

An inside sales rep sells products or services remotely from an office, using digital tools like phone and email to connect with customers.

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Marketo

Marketo is a marketing automation platform used by B2B marketers to manage lead generation, nurturing, email marketing, and analytics.

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Sales Engineer

Sales Engineers blend deep technical knowledge with sales acumen, demonstrating a product's value and solving customer problems to drive revenue.

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Cybersecurity

Cybersecurity is the practice of protecting computer systems, networks, and data from digital attacks, theft, and unauthorized access.

Cybersecurity

Warm Outreach

Warm outreach is contacting prospects with whom you have a pre-existing connection, like a mutual contact, making your message more personal and effective.

Warm Outreach

Value Gap

A value gap is the difference between the value a customer expects from a product and the actual value they receive, often leading to churn.

Value Gap

Unit Economics

Unit economics are the direct revenues and costs of a business calculated on a per-unit basis, revealing its fundamental profitability.

Unit Economics

Accessibility Testing

Accessibility testing is a software testing method that verifies an application is usable by people with disabilities, like vision or hearing loss.

Accessibility Testing

Stakeholder

A stakeholder is any individual, group, or party that has an interest in an organization and the outcomes of its actions.

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Sales Velocity

Sales velocity is a key metric measuring the speed at which your company makes money. It shows how fast deals move through your sales pipeline.

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Revenue Operations (RevOps)

Revenue Operations (RevOps) is a business function that aligns a company's sales, marketing, and customer service teams to drive predictable revenue.

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Sales Process

A sales process is a structured set of steps that a sales team follows to move a prospect from an initial lead to a closed customer.

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B2B Leads

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B2B Leads

End of Quarter

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Sandboxes

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Consumer Relationship Management

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Elevator Pitch

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Content Curation

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RESTful API

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Programmatic Display Campaign

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Programmatic Display Campaign

Virtual Private Cloud

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Virtual Private Cloud

Warm Email

A warm email is a message sent to a prospect with whom you have a pre-existing connection, like a mutual contact or a prior interaction.

Warm Email

Sales Training

Sales training is the process of honing a salesperson's skills and knowledge to enhance their effectiveness and drive sales success.

Sales Training

Channel Partner

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Serviceable Obtainable Market

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Serviceable Obtainable Market

Value-Added Reseller

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Value-Added Reseller

80/20 Rule

The 80/20 rule, or Pareto Principle, posits that 80% of results come from just 20% of the effort. It's a key concept for prioritization.

80/20 Rule

Objection Handling

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Objection Handling

Landing Pages

A landing page is a standalone web page created for a marketing campaign. It’s where a visitor “lands” after clicking an ad or email link.

Landing Pages

Sales Cycle

A sales cycle is the series of steps a company takes to close a new customer. It starts with prospecting and ends with a signed deal.

Sales Cycle

Gone Dark

Going dark is when a once-responsive prospect suddenly stops all communication, leaving you wondering what went wrong.

Gone Dark

CSS

CSS, or Cascading Style Sheets, is the code that styles a website. It controls the colors, fonts, layout, and overall look of a web page.

CSS

Inbound Lead Generation

Inbound lead generation is the process of attracting potential customers to your business with valuable content and tailored experiences.

Inbound Lead Generation

Predictive Analytics

Predictive analytics uses historical data, statistical algorithms, and machine learning to identify the likelihood of future outcomes.

Predictive Analytics

Sales Presentation

A sales presentation is a formal pitch by a salesperson to a prospective customer, showcasing a product or service to secure a sale.

Sales Presentation

Sales Enablement Technology

Sales enablement technology refers to software and tools that equip sales teams with the resources they need to close more deals efficiently.

Sales Enablement Technology

Bad Leads

Learn about bad leads, including identifying bad leads, warning signs of bad leads, impact of bad leads on sales, & strategies to minimize bad leads.

Bad Leads

Analytics Platforms

Analytics platforms are tools that collect and analyze data from various sources, helping businesses track key metrics and make informed decisions.

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Predictive Lead Generation

Predictive lead generation uses data and AI to find prospects most likely to buy, helping teams focus their efforts on high-value leads.

Predictive Lead Generation

SDK

A Software Development Kit (SDK) is a set of tools that allows developers to create applications for a specific software package or platform.

SDK

Contact Discovery

Contact discovery is the process of finding accurate contact details for potential leads, including names, emails, phone numbers, and job titles.

Contact Discovery

Direct Mail

Direct mail is a marketing method where businesses send physical promotional materials directly to potential customers' mailboxes.

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Cloud-based CRM

A cloud-based CRM is a customer relationship management tool hosted online, letting teams access and manage customer data from anywhere.

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Corporate Identity

Corporate identity is the visual and verbal persona of a company, encompassing its logo, color palette, communication style, and core values.

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Cold Emailing

Cold emailing is sending unsolicited emails to potential customers you haven't contacted before, aiming to start a business conversation.

Cold Emailing

Logo Retention

Logo retention is a key B2B metric that measures a company's ability to retain its customers, or 'logos,' over a specific period.

Logo Retention

Ransomware

Ransomware is a type of malicious software that encrypts a victim's files, holding them hostage until a ransom is paid for the decryption key.

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Escalations

Escalations are the process of moving a customer issue or sales opportunity to a more senior or specialized team member for resolution.

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CRM Integration

CRM integration connects your CRM software with other tools, creating a unified system for all your customer data and business processes.

CRM Integration

Total Audience Measurement

Total Audience Measurement (TAM) provides a holistic view of content consumption, tracking viewership across all platforms and devices.

Total Audience Measurement

Digital Strategy

A digital strategy outlines how your business will use online channels, data, and technology to achieve its goals and connect with customers.

Digital Strategy

Follow-up

A follow-up is a communication sent after an initial interaction to continue the conversation, provide more value, or prompt a response.

Follow-up

Data-Driven Marketing

Data-driven marketing uses customer data to inform marketing decisions, optimize campaigns, and deliver personalized experiences to consumers.

Data-Driven Marketing