[SEO Dictionary] Latent Semantic Indexing

Latent semantic indexing, or LSI, is the process by which search engines index groups of associated words in a document. These words are commonly called long-tail keywords or long-tail searches.

Google uses latent semantic indexing to find out how valuable a webpage will be to a user. It uses patterns of word distribution and determines how often words appear together.

Latent semantic indexing uses complex mathematical formulas that tell crawlers where a webpage fits in relation to a variety of keywords. Words with similar meaning tend to occur together, and LSI takes advantage of that to determine how relevant a page is for a particular query.

Because words can be grouped through the mathematical formulas LSI depends on, long-tail search queries, such as “10-minute healthy breakfast recipes,” will deliver results that include interconnected terms – both those used in the search and those the Googlebot has learned are related to healthy breakfasts.

LSI can help your firm stand out from your competitors online. The key is creating clear, concise copy that answers searchers’ queries.