Sometimes, a service can have a quirky name and still deliver amazing results. Such is the case with the TK Carsites Power SEO “Bucket System.”
Designed in 2009 to allow for an ever-growing list of keywords that needed to be optimized, the Bucket System is both extremely simple to understand while simultaneously being an extremely robust and effective method to organize and optimize. The only thing that wasn’t given much thought was the name – it fit what were doing, so it stuck.
In essence, the bucket system classifies keywords in a way that allows the TK Carsites SEO department to always be focusing on the most important keywords at any given time. It keeps the team on point at all times and expands the reach of our clients continuously.
For the first time, we are publishing the way the Bucket System works publicly.
Finding the Right Keywords. All of Them.
The first and often most important aspect of automotive SEO is selecting and organizing the keywords. First, we research the area, the brands, and the subtle nuances for every rooftop we are optimizing. Then, we meet with the dealer to help put the keywords into perspective. Understanding the techniques and trends is our job. Knowing the market area and the competitors is something the dealer helps us with.
Once we have the list, we stack-rank the keywords from most important to least. Importance is determined by search volume, relevancy to the brand and dealership, and input from the dealer.
Once we have the list, we form the three buckets.
The On-Deck Bucket
All of the keywords start here. This is the repository, the ever-growing list of keywords that are going to be optimized some time in the future.
When the keywords are first organized, those that are already ranked in the top position on the search engines are moved over to the Victory Bucket (more on that later). The top of the stack-ranked list is moved to the Active Bucket. What remains is the On Deck Bucket, the area where keywords wait patiently until we are ready to optimize the dealership websites for them.
Some On Deck Buckets can be hundreds or even thousands of keywords deep. Our goal is to keep adding to the list, but more importantly we want to keep removing from there. When we pull keywords from the On Deck Bucket, that means we’ve had another victory.
The Active Bucket
This is where the action is. The Active Bucket will always have the most important keywords for which the dealer is not ranked number 1 on the search engines. We attack the biggest keywords first. It’s that simple.
There could be 5 keywords in the Active Bucket. There could be 30 at a time. It all depends on the focus and challenge facing each individual keyword. For example, if our dealer wasn’t ranked #1 for “Denver Ford,” we would keep our Active Bucket smaller so that we could focus more attention on this high-volume, highly relevant keyword. Later down the line, once these tough keywords are dominated, we would likely expand the number of keywords within the Active Bucket to go after lower-volume keywords that are less challenging.
The goal is to achieve the best rankings in as many searches as possible starting with the ones that are most important to the dealership.
The Victory Bucket
When we win, you win. Once a keyword achieves its desired ranking (which is almost always #1) we move that keyword from Active to the Victory Bucket. At this point, we stop optimizing for that keyword.
Once you’re at the top, you can’t move any higher.
This bucket is closely monitored. We will know if there is ever an instance where we are no longer ranked at the top, in which case the keyword is immediately moved back to the Active Bucket until we regain the position. This rarely happens, but it’s important for us to stay diligent at all times.
A keyword moved to the Victory Bucket triggers keywords from the On Deck Bucket to be moved to Active. This is how we are constantly able to optimize more keywords as the service progresses.
There are a few exceptions to the “#1 or bust” rule. Top-level keywords where #1 is unachievable will have lower ranking triggers to be moved to the Victory Bucket. For example, a we have dealers that rank on the first page for the term “Toyota Dealers.” While this is nice, it’s not a very relevant keyword, nor would it be possible to get ranked higher than the Toyota website itself.
The Bucket System and You
Learn how you can take advantage of the TK Carsites Bucket System. You don’t need to have a TK website to use our service, Power SEO. We are able to help websites on any platform rank higher and increase traffic. It only takes a willingness to take the next step. Learn more about Automotive SEO and how we can help make yours better.
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Excellent information. We’re a fan!