How To Build A Topical Map For Your Business Website
Are you tired of feeling lost in the vast landscape of SEO? Do you want to boost your website’s visibility, relevance, and ranking in search results? Building a topical map is the answer!
A topical map is a strategic plan that outlines how different topics on your website relate to each other, providing a clear structure for your content and helping both users and search engines navigate your site with ease. In this article, we’ll demystify the process of creating a topical map in 6 simple steps, guiding you towards an authoritative, user-friendly, and SEO-optimized website. So, let’s get started!
Key Takeaways:
- Understand the Purpose of a Topical Map: A topical map is a strategic plan that outlines how different topics on a website relate to each other, helping both users and search engines navigate through the site with ease.
- Identify Key Topics and Subtopics: To create a dynamic topical map, identify your main topic, brainstorm related subtopics, and organize them into categories, ensuring each subtopic fits under one category and has a clear link to the main topic.
- Establish a Hierarchy and Visual Representation: Determine the hierarchy among subtopics, creating a pyramid-like structure, and produce a visual representation of your topical map to enhance user experience and engagement, and to signal to Google your site’s depth of knowledge on the topic.
What is a Topical Map?
The concept of a topical map may seem unfamiliar, but trust us, it’s a game-changer for your SEO efforts. So, let’s dive in and explore what it’s all about.
Definition and Purpose
For those new to the term, a topical map is a strategic plan that outlines how different topics on a website relate to one another. It’s like a mind map for your website content, only more focused on how different topics – main topics, subtopics, and related keywords – are intertwined and organized on your website.
Benefits of a Topical Map
Any website looking to boost its SEO efforts can benefit greatly from a well-structured topical map. By having a clear plan in place, you’ll be able to improve visitor navigation and engagement, increase your site’s SEO value, and even gain topical authority in your niche.
With a topical map, you’ll be able to identify content gaps, prevent content duplication, and create more comprehensive and relevant content around your primary topic. It efficiently guides your content planning and creation, ensuring a holistic, comprehensive content coverage on your main topic. Plus, it helps you visualize your website’s structure, making updates and revisions more manageable, and ensuring congruity in your content.
Why is a Topical Map Useful?
While creating a topical map may seem like an additional task, it’s an imperative step in optimizing your website for search engines and improving user experience. A well-executed topical map will help you enhance your site’s SEO in several ways:
A topical map is like having a trusted trail map whilst journeying through the vast landscape of SEO. When designed and utilized well, this humble navigator complements your SEO journey, propelling your website towards an authoritative, user-friendly, and SEO-optimized power hub.
Improves Visitor Navigation and Engagement
The hierarchical structure of a topical map presents a clean, logical organization to your users. They can quickly find the information they are looking for and even discover additional relevant content, thereby increasing engagement on your website.
Increases SEO Value
The structured foundation of a topical map is more likely to get noticed by search engine crawlers, thereby boosting your site’s visibility, relevance, and ranking in the search results.
Engagement and relevance are key metrics that search engines use to evaluate a website’s authority. By creating a topical map, you’re signaling to search engines that your website is a trusted source of information on a particular topic, which can lead to higher rankings and increased traffic.
Improves Content Optimization
Value lies in the ability of a topical map to help you identify content gaps and prevent content duplication, enabling you to create more comprehensive and relevant content around your primary topic.
Plus, a topical map efficiently guides your content planning and creation, ensuring a holistic, comprehensive content coverage on your main topic. This results in a more cohesive and authoritative content strategy that resonates with your target audience.
Helps in Gaining Topical Authority
Helps you increase your chances of being recognized as an authority in that field by Google by having well-linked, in-depth content on a particular topic.
Topical authority is crucial in today’s SEO landscape. By creating a topical map, you’re demonstrating your expertise and showcasing your website as a go-to resource for information on a particular topic, which can lead to increased credibility and trust with search engines and users alike.
Facilitates Efficient Site Management
Engagement and navigation are not the only benefits of a topical map. It also helps you visualize your website’s structure, making updates and revisions more manageable, and ensuring congruity in your content.
Authority and credibility are built on a solid foundation of well-organized and regularly updated content. A topical map helps you maintain a consistent tone, style, and quality across your website, which is imperative for establishing trust with your audience and search engines.
How to Create a Topical Map
Once again, it’s time to get started on creating a topical map that will revolutionize your SEO efforts. In this chapter, we’ll break down the process into six manageable steps. Follow along, and you’ll be well on your way to crafting a comprehensive topical map that boosts your website’s visibility and authority.
Identify the Main Topic
Any successful topical map begins with a clear understanding of your main topic. This central theme serves as the foundation of your map, connecting all related subtopics and keywords. Take your time to research and identify a topic that resonates with your target audience and aligns with your brand’s message and values.
Find Related Subtopics
Identify the subtopics that branch out from your main topic. These subtopics should be directly related to your main subject, providing more detailed information or exploring different aspects of the topic. Explore variations of your main keyword, and utilize online resources like Q&A websites, industry-specific forums, and Google’s “People also ask” and “Related searches” sections to uncover potential subtopics.
Main subtopics will naturally emerge as you explore deeper into your research. These subtopics will form the backbone of your topical map, guiding your content creation and organization.
Organize Subtopics into Categories
Any well-structured topical map requires categorization of subtopics into logical groups. Identify overarching themes among your subtopics and group related ones together. This process will help you create a clean, compact, and easy-to-navigate structure for your website.
Into these categories, you’ll be able to organize your subtopics, creating a clear hierarchy of topics and subtopics. This structure will not only enhance user experience but also signal to search engines the depth of knowledge on your website.
Set the Hierarchy of Subtopics
An important step in creating a topical map is establishing a clear hierarchy among your subtopics. This hierarchy will ensure that broader, more comprehensive subtopics take precedence, providing a logical path for users to explore deeper, niche subjects.
Subtopics will naturally carry more weight based on their breadth and depth. Identify primary subtopics, followed by secondary and tertiary topics, depending on the depth of your content. Ensure the hierarchy makes logical sense and aids user navigation.
Produce a Visual Representation
Related to your topical map, a visual representation can greatly enhance user experience and engagement. Convert your topical map into a user-facing sitemap or create infographics that map out subtopics, helping users visualize relationships between topics and deepen their understanding of your content.
Understanding how to present your topical map visually will help you stand out, deliver value to your audience, and ultimately boost your website’s authority.
Review and Revise Frequently
Subtopics and trends can shift over time, and search engines constantly update their algorithms. To maintain a topical map that remains relevant and effective, it’s crucial to review and revise it frequently.
Produce a schedule to regularly tend to your topical map, pruning outdated topics and incorporating new ones. This ongoing process will ensure your website stays fresh, relevant, and optimized for search engines.
Identifying the Main Topic
For any successful topical map, identifying the main topic is the foundation upon which everything else is built. This main topic serves as the central hub of your topical map, with all other subtopics and related keywords branching out from it.
Understanding Your Audience
Your audience is the key to unlocking the perfect main topic. What are they searching for online? What problems are they trying to solve? Answering these questions will help you choose a topic that meets their needs and resonates with them.
Researching Keywords
An crucial step in identifying your main topic is researching keywords. You can use online tools like SEOmator’s Free Keyword Research Tool to find popular keywords in your field and get insights into what your target audience is searching for.
With keyword research, you can uncover hidden gems and identify patterns in user behavior. This will help you refine your main topic and create a more targeted approach to your content.
Filtering Out Unrelated Topics
Unrelated topics can dilute the focus of your main topic and create confusion for your audience. It’s crucial to filter out topics that don’t align with your brand, message, or business.
The goal is to create a cohesive and focused topical map that showcases your expertise and authority in a specific area. By filtering out unrelated topics, you can create a clear and concise message that resonates with your audience.
Finding Related Subtopics
To dive deeper into your main topic, you need to brainstorm related subtopics. These subtopics will form the foundation of your website’s content, providing valuable information to your users and search engines alike.
Exploring Variations of the Main Keyword
Variations of your main keyword can lead to a treasure trove of subtopics. For instance, if your main topic is “SEO”, variations could include “SEO strategies”, “how to measure SEO success”, and “SEO tools”. These variations can help you create a more comprehensive content strategy.
Using Q&A Websites and Industry-Specific Forums
Using Q&A websites like Quora, Reddit, and industry-specific forums can provide valuable insights into what real users are asking or discussing around your main topic. These platforms are gold mines for spotting subtopics that resonate with your target audience.
Exploring these platforms can help you identify patterns and trends in user behavior, allowing you to create content that addresses their pain points and interests. By doing so, you’ll be able to create a more user-centric content strategy that resonates with your target audience.
Analyzing Google Search Results
Search engines like Google can provide valuable insights into related subtopics. When you perform a search on Google, scroll down to the “People also ask” section, which shows related questions that people often ask about your main topic. Similarly, at the bottom of Google’s search results, look at the “Related searches” section for potential subtopics.
Plus, analyzing Google search results can help you identify gaps in your content strategy, allowing you to create more comprehensive and relevant content around your main topic. By doing so, you’ll be able to improve your website’s visibility, relevance, and ranking in search results.
Organizing Subtopics into Categories
All your hard work in identifying subtopics will pay off when you organize them into categories. This step is crucial in creating a logical structure for your website content.
Identifying Overarching Themes
Subtopics can be overwhelming, but by identifying overarching themes, you can group related subtopics together. For instance, if your main topic is digital marketing, you might have subtopics like social media marketing, email marketing, and content marketing. Notice how each of these subtopics can be classified under a broader category?
Grouping Related Subtopics
Organizing related subtopics into buckets or clusters helps you keep everything compact, clean, and under control. Once you’ve spotted these themes, group related subtopics together. If you’re using a physical or digital whiteboard, you could use sticky notes for each subtopic and group them.
Overarching themes help you create a logical structure for your website content. By grouping related subtopics, you ensure that each subtopic fits under one category, and there’s a clear link between each subtopic and the main topic. Think of your main topic as the sun, and your subtopics as the planets in your website’s solar system. They must all orbit around the main topic to have a coherent topical map.
Creating Logical Categories
Subtopics that fit under one category should have a clear connection to the main topic. For instance, if your main topic is SEO, you might have categories like technical SEO, on-page SEO, and off-page SEO. Each subtopic under these categories should revolve around your main subject, either explaining it in greater detail, exploring its different aspects, or providing related information.
For instance, under the category of technical SEO, you might have subtopics like website speed optimization, mobile-friendliness, and SSL certificates. These subtopics are directly related to technical SEO and provide more specific information on the topic. By creating logical categories, you ensure that your website content is well-organized, making it easy for users to find and consume content.
Final Thoughts
Ultimately, creating a topical map is a crucial step in optimizing your website for search engines and providing a better user experience. By following these six steps, you’ll be able to create a comprehensive and structured topical map that showcases your expertise and authority in your niche.
Remember to review and revise your topical map regularly to ensure it stays relevant and aligned with your goals. With a well-crafted topical map, you’ll be well on your way to improving your website’s SEO, increasing engagement, and establishing yourself as a thought leader in your industry.
FAQ
Q: What is a topical map, and how does it benefit my SEO efforts?
A: A topical map is a strategic plan that outlines how different topics on a website relate to one another. It’s like a blueprint of your website content, showing which topics are connected and how deeply they are related to your overall content theme. A well-executed topical map can improve visitor navigation and engagement, increase SEO value, enhance content optimization, help gain topical authority, and facilitate efficient site management.
Q: How do I identify the main topic for my topical map?
A: To identify your main topic, you need to understand your audience and their needs. Research online to find out what keywords your potential audience is using, and filter out topics that aren’t in line with your brand, message, or business. You can use online tools like SEOmator’s Free Keyword Research Tool to find the perfect keyword for your topic.
Q: How often should I review and revise my topical map?
A: Your topical map needs frequent nurturing to stay fresh and relevant. Review and revise your topical map regularly to ensure it stays up-to-date with trending topics and algorithm updates. This will help you prune outdated content, add new topics, and maintain a strong SEO strategy.
Cliff Tillery, MBA is the Chief Operating Officer and SEO Director at Make It Loud which is a digital marketing firm located outside of Atlanta Georgia. More than 14 years ago, he started search engine optimization at this award-winning agency and has taught digital marketing skills to business owners at the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce, the Gwinnett Entrepreneur Center, and other groups.
