Choosing anchor text, plural or singular?

Discussion in 'Google' started by Raikiri, Feb 21, 2009.

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  1. #1
    When choosing anchor text, would using the plural of a keyword sort of kill two birds with one stone?

    I noticed when I search for the singular 'forum,' Google highlights the word 'forums' when the search results appear, so if I chose the plural of a keyword, would that give me a high rank in say 'forum' and 'forums' ?

    thanks
     
    Raikiri, Feb 21, 2009 IP
  2. ragesw

    ragesw Peon

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    #2
    Not necessarily and its extremely hard to provide an answer for this question.

    Google can determine plurals and synonyms on its own for search terms. So it <i>shouldn't</i> be something you have to worry about.

    http://www.google.com/support/websearch/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=136861
     
    ragesw, Feb 21, 2009 IP
  3. lycos

    lycos Well-Known Member

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    #3
    Depends on which keyword you are aiming to rank well. Run it through the keyword external tool to find the search volume and choose which one is worth going after.
     
    lycos, Feb 21, 2009 IP
  4. thinkdj

    thinkdj Peon

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    #4
    People tend to search more of singular terms in search queries.
    However, search engines can easily determine singular/plural and show results accordingly. You dont have to bother. But for very highly competitive keywords, I think it matters
     
    thinkdj, Feb 21, 2009 IP
  5. Cmendes71

    Cmendes71 Guest

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    #5
    Search volume is the way to figure this out...wordtracker and keyword discovery are good ways to check that.
     
    Cmendes71, Feb 21, 2009 IP
  6. Camay123

    Camay123 Well-Known Member

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    #6
    go for both, if you are asking yourself the question, it migth be because both keywords are worth the effort.
     
    Camay123, Feb 21, 2009 IP
  7. vansterdam

    vansterdam Notable Member

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    #7
    In most cases it would be worthwhile targeting both singular and plural. It may be as simple as getting some backlinks with both the singular and plural versions of the keyword. For uncompetitive keywords you can probably get rankings for both versions without putting much effort into one version. It looks more natural to the search engines to get links with multiple forms of a word/phrase. In general it is a good idea to vary link anchor text and target multiple phrases concurrently.
     
    vansterdam, Feb 21, 2009 IP
  8. freebiefinder

    freebiefinder Peon

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    #8
    try both then see which keyword works. good luck
     
    freebiefinder, Feb 22, 2009 IP
  9. DJMC

    DJMC Peon

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    #9
    You can use me as an example:

    My two highest KW are in my signature, notice I say "Weddings" in the plural form.

    If you search the term "Sacramento Wedding" (#9) or "Wedding in Sacramento" (#4)--- I'm usually ranking in the top 2 non-sponsored for "Sacramento Weddings" in the plural form.

    I say "KILL TWO BIRDS WITH ONE STONE"

    note also, that in my niche-- people search for the plural because they want to find more than ONE Disc Jockey.

    They search the "plural" (DJs) because they want to have more options to choose from.
     
    DJMC, Feb 22, 2009 IP
  10. ayaw

    ayaw Peon

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    #10
    Go for both.... Varying your anchor text will also dodge the sandbox penalty. But don't over do it...
    Here I have the formula : 30% for single, 30% for plural, 30% for other variations
    and 10% for 'http://www.yoursite.com/' - 'click here' - 'read more' - etc.... :p
     
    ayaw, Feb 22, 2009 IP