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  • SEO Power Words: Ultimate List & Guide

    SEO Power Words: Ultimate List & Guide

    “Good words are worth much, and cost little.” 

    —George Herbert

    Good Words Quote

    Search engine optimization (SEO) has many factors. It considers everything from your site structure to the words you use in your copy.

    This SEO guide focuses on how you can use power words to boost SEO. We’ll explain what they do and give you a full list of power words to choose from. This way, you can drive reader engagement and optimize your content for the web.

    When it comes to online writing, you need to use words that not only target your audience but target their emotions. That’s why we segment our power word list by which emotion they appeal to: the reader’s sense of trust and community as well as their curiosity, pride, laziness, fear, lust, greed, and anger.

    We’ve scoured the web for the best power words to compile the most comprehensive list out there. It’s the only SEO power word list you’ll ever need.

    Let’s dive in.

    What is an SEO Power Word?

    So what exactly is an SEO power word? Similar to SEO power pages, these are words (and sometimes phrases) aimed at triggering a psychological or emotional response in the reader. Ideally, power words appeal to our emotions and senses to persuade us to take action.

    Power words are used all over. In email marketing, landing pages, social media, and content marketing. Copywriters and advertisers alike employ them to drive traffic, conversions, and ultimately sales.

    What makes power words good for SEO? Well, search engines reward sites that draw organic traffic. Think about it. If a web page consistently attracts engagement and longer dwell times for a certain keyword, Google assumes that visitors are deriving value from it. That the page satisfies them. And that’s what Google is about above all—satisfying search intent.

    So if you can increase traffic with alluring power words, you’ve won half the battle. You’ve widened your traffic funnel. The trick is to then make sure your content actually delivers. It must add value to the reader. Otherwise, you’ve led them down a misleading path, and they’ll bounce from your page, which will drop your dwell time rate and actually hurt your SEO.

    The 80/20 Rule

    Power words are especially important in headlines. After all, headlines are the first thing readers see. So you need to make them as click-worthy as possible. Headlines follow the 80/20 rule. Also known as the Pareto principle, the 80/20 rule states that 80% of your results will come from 20% of your work. Even though headlines only make up a small piece of what goes into a piece of content, they can make or break it. A weak headline will lose the reader, and they won’t click. But a powerful headline can persuade the reader to learn more.

    When it comes to SEO, power words increase your bottom line. They get readers to click and discover the high-quality content you have to offer. Plus, they help your copy throughout. Visitors will be more inclined to keep reading if you speak to their emotions.

    That’s why we’ve laid out the best 1,274 power words for you. And we’ve segmented them by the emotion to which they appeal for your easy reference.

    So without further ado, here they are:

    Trust SEO Power Words

    above and beyond ensured reliability
    absolutely expert research
    according to facts, factual research-backed
    accredited fail proof results
    accurate faith, faithful risk-free
    actionable flawless rock solid
    actual foolproof safety
    admiration, to admire fully refundable scientific, science
    advantage genuine scientifically proven, science-backed
    anonymous guarantee, guaranteed secure
    approved guilt-free sensible
    authentic improved should
    authoritative, authority ironclad studies show
    automatic legit, legitimate super
    backed lifetime superior
    backed refund money-back supported
    bankable no doubt sure-fire
    because no fail survive
    best no obligation(s) tested
    bestselling no questions asked that never fails
    better no risk thorough
    bona fide no strings attached track record
    cancel anytime obvious true, truly
    case study official trustworthy
    certified patented try before you buy
    clockwork pay zero ultimate
    complete percent unconditional
    confirmed permanent unparalleled
    data privacy unquestionable
    definite professional verified, verify
    definitive promise well beyond
    delightful protected well respected
    dependable proven world-class
    detailed recession-proof worldwide
    don’t worry recognized worry-free
    effective refund worthwhile
    endorsed reliable

    Community SEO Power Words

    become a member community safe
    become part of connect support
    circle group team
    come along join together

    Curiosity SEO Power Words

    ancient hidden sneak peek
    astonishing hilarious spoiler
    backdoor hilarious strange
    banned hush-hush stunning
    be an insider illegal super secret
    be the first illusive thought-provoking
    become an insider incredibly top secret
    behind the scenes insane trade secret
    bizarre insider tried to hide
    black market interesting unauthorized
    blacklisted invitation only unbelievable
    blacklisted join uncensored
    bootleg key uncharted
    censored learn unconventional
    clandestine limited uncover
    class full little-known under the radar
    classified login required under the table
    cloak and dagger lost under wraps
    closet members only undercover
    concealed myths underground
    confessions never seen before under-the-table
    confidential odd undisclosed
    controversial off limits undiscovered
    covert off the record unexpected
    cover-up on the q.t. unexplained
    crazy outlawed unexplored
    cringe worthy priceless unheard of
    dark private unique
    discover privy unlock
    distinct psycho unreachable
    elusive remote unspoken
    exclusive restricted unsung
    exotic ridiculous untold
    extraordinary sealed unusual
    eye-opening secluded unveil, unveiled
    forbidden secret wacky
    forgotten shh! withheld
    from the vault shocking zany
    harness smuggled

    Pride SEO Power Words

    A+ excellent phenomenal
    adorable excited pluck
    affable extraordinary power-up
    ahead of the game eye-opening praise
    amazing fabulous prevail
    amplify faith prosperous
    ascend fantastic radiant
    astonishing fearless remarkable
    astounding ferocious revel
    at the top fierce rule
    attractive flawless sassy
    audacious force saucy
    awe-inspiring fortunate score
    awesome foxy seize
    backbone free sensational
    badass fulfill smart
    beat genius spectacular
    beauteous glory, glorious splendid
    beautiful good-looking spunk
    belief gorgeous staggering
    bliss, blissful graceful strengthen
    bold grateful striking
    booming greatest strong
    boost grit stunning
    boss guts stunt
    brassy handsome stupendous
    bravery happy successful
    brazen heart superhuman
    breathtaking hero supreme
    bright, brighten honor surprising
    brilliant hope tender, tenderness
    celebrate, celebrated incredible terrific
    cheer, cheery jaw-dropping thrive
    cherish jovial thwart
    classy joy, joyful, to enjoy titan
    clever jubilant tough
    colossal kick-ass tremendous
    command knockout triumph, triumphant
    conquer kudos turbocharge
    courage legend, legendary ultimate
    crowned life-changing unbeatable
    daring love, loveable, falling in love unbeaten
    dazzling luck, lucky unbelievable
    defeat magic undefeated
    defiance marvelous unforgettable
    delight master unique
    devotion, devoted mind-blowing unleash
    dignity miracle, miraculous uplifting
    dominate money-making valiant
    drop-dead new valor
    ecstatic next level vanquish
    effective noble victory
    effortless notable, noteworthy virtuoso
    elegant nurture, nurturing wealthy
    elite open-hearted win
    empower optimal wonderful
    enchant perfect wondrous
    epic persuade

    Laziness SEO Power Words

    accessible free, freebie nothing to it
    all-inclusive gift now
    amazing guide on demand
    basic how-to painless
    building blocks in less than pattern
    cheat sheet in record time piece of cake
    child’s play index plain
    cinch ingredients printable
    clear instant, instantly quick
    complete itemized ready
    components kick-start replicate
    comprehensive life-changing report
    copy light roadmap
    downloadable list simple
    easy magic simple as abc
    economical manageable smooth, smooth sailing
    efficient mere snap
    effortless minutes steal
    elementary, elements miraculous steps
    empower model straightforward
    factors mold swipe
    fail proof no nonsense template
    fill in the blanks no problem tools
    formula no sweat uncomplicated

    Fear SEO Power Words

    abuse epidemic plunder
    agony fail plunge
    annihilate failure poison
    anxiety feeble poor
    anxious fired prison
    apocalypse foil pummel
    armageddon fool punch
    assault fooled pus
    backlash frantic pussyfoot
    banned freaking out reckoning
    beating frightening revenge
    beware fugacious risky
    blinded gambling sabotage
    blood gullible savage
    bloodbath hack scary
    bloodcurdling hazardous scream
    bloody hoax searing
    blunder holocaust shame
    bomb horrific shatter
    buffoon horror shellacking
    bumbling hurricane shocked
    burning out inferior silly
    cadaver injure slaughter
    cataclysmic insidious slaughtered
    catastrophe invasion slave
    caution jail smash
    collapse jeopardy steal
    corpse last chance stolen
    cowardly lawsuit strangle
    crazy looming stupid
    cringe worthy lost opportunity suck
    cripple lunatic suffering
    crisis, crises lurking tailspin
    danger massacre take advantage
    dangerous meltdown tank
    dark menacing targeted
    deadly mired teetering
    death miserable terror
    deceiving miss out threat
    despair mistake torture
    destroy murder toxic
    devastating nerd tragedy
    disappointment nightmare trap
    disaster painful trauma
    disastrous pale vaporize
    distressed panic victim
    doom peril volatile
    drowning piranha vulnerable
    dumb pitfall warning
    embarrass plague worry
    embarrassed played wounded
    embarrassing plummet wreaking havoc

    Lust SEO Power Words

    ache impure scandalous
    allure, alluring indecent seduce, seductive
    arouse intense sensual
    bare intoxicating sex, sexy
    begging intriguing shameless
    beguiling itching sinful
    brazen juicy sleazy
    captivating kinky sleeping
    charismatic kiss sleazy
    charm lascivious sneak peek
    cheeky lewd spank
    climax lick spellbinding
    compelling lonely spicy
    covet longing steamy
    crave, craving love, lovely stimulating
    delight lure striking
    delirious luscious strip
    depraved lush sweaty
    deprive lust tantalizing
    desire magnetic taste
    dirty mind-blowing tawdry
    divine mischievous tease
    ecstasy mouthwatering tempting
    embrace naked thrilling
    enchant naughty tickle
    enchanting nude tight
    engaging obscene tingle
    enthralling obsession turn on
    entice orgasmic unabashed
    entrance passionate uncensored
    excite pining untamed
    exotic pinning untouched
    explicit pleasure, pleasurable urge
    exposed promiscuous voluptuous
    fascinate, fascinating provocative vulgar
    flirt racy wanton
    forbidden raunchy wet
    frisky risqué whip
    goosebumps riveting wild
    hanker rowdy X-rated
    heavenly salacious yearn, yearning
    hottest satisfy you
    hypnotic saucy yummy

    Greed SEO Power Words

    ahead of the game first noteworthy
    amplify fortunate now
    at the top fortune optimal
    attractive foxy pay zero
    bank free premiere
    bargain freebie price break
    beautiful frenzy prize
    before frugal profit
    best genius prosperous
    big get more quadruple
    big deal gift quick
    big time giveaway reasonable
    billion golden reduced
    bold good-looking rich
    bonanza gorgeous running low
    bonus greatest running out
    booked solid guilt-free sale
    booming handsome sale ends soon
    boost high-paying sassy
    boss huge save
    brassy hurry save money
    bright immediate savings
    budget inexpensive scarce
    cash instant, instantly six-figure
    cheap jackpot skyrocket
    clever kick-ass slashed
    costly knockout smart
    crowned last chance soaring
    dazzling legendary special
    deadline limited successful
    discount lowest price superhuman
    dollar lucky surge
    don’t miss out lucrative treasure
    double luxurious triple
    earn more marked down turbocharge
    economical massive ultimate
    effective monetize unbeaten
    elegant money undefeated
    elite money-draining upsell
    exclusive, exclusivity money-making value
    expires, expiring money-saving waste
    explode more wealth, wealthy
    extra nest egg while they last
    fast never again whopping
    feast new you
    final notable

    Anger SEO Power Words

    abhorrent hate, hated, hatred repugnant
    abuse high and mighty revile
    agitate horrid revolting
    agonizing hostile rotten
    annoy, annoying hysterics rude
    arrogant infuriating ruined
    backstabbing irritating ruthless
    bankrupt jealous savage
    barbaric kick scam
    bash kill scold
    beat down knock screw
    big mouth knock out sick and tired
    bitter know-it-all sink
    blatant lies slam
    boil over livid slander
    broke loathsome slap
    brutal lollygag slash
    buffoon loser slay
    bully lying smash
    cheat maul smear
    clobber miff smug
    clown misleading sneaky
    cocky money-grubbing sniveling
    corrupt morally bankrupt snob
    coward nasty snooty
    crooked no good snotty
    crush obnoxious spiteful
    curse oppressive spoil
    debase pain in the ass steal
    defile panic stink
    delinquent payback stuck up
    demolish perverse suck
    deplorable pesky suck up
    desecrate pest sulk
    desperate phony tantrum
    despicable pissed off terrorize
    diatribe pitiful thug
    diminish pollute trash
    disgusting pompous trounce
    dishonest pound tyranny
    distorted preposterous underhanded
    evil pretentious untrustworthy
    exploit provoke up to here
    flare up punch useless
    force-fed punish vengeful
    foul quixotic vicious
    freaking out rage, raging victim
    frenzy, frantic raise hell violate
    fury, furious rampant violent
    greedy rant waste
    gross ravage weak
    grumpy rebel worst
    harass repelling wounded

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    Feel free to bookmark this list for future reference. That way, you can easily get back to it the next time you’re writing a blog post or you’ve hit a writer’s block.

    Of course, there’s a lot more to SEO than just power words. From link building to on-page SEO, there are several knobs to adjust and levers to pull in order to make your website rank high on Google.

    That’s where SEO.co can help. Our experts have over 20 years of experience working with top clients in industries ranging from real estate to healthcare to travel and more. To take your digital marketing to the next level, reach out today to schedule a free consultation.

    Chief Revenue Officer at SEO Company
    Industry veteran Timothy Carter is SEO.co’s Chief Revenue Officer. Tim leads all revenue for the company and oversees all customer-facing teams for SEO (search engine optimization) - including sales, marketing & customer success. He has spent more than 20 years in the world of SEO & Digital Marketing leading, building and scaling sales operations, helping companies increase revenue efficiency and drive growth from websites and sales teams. When he's not working, Tim enjoys playing a few rounds of disc golf, running, and spending time with his wife and family on the beach...preferably in Hawaii.

    Over the years he's written for publications like Forbes, Entrepreneur, Marketing Land, Search Engine Journal, ReadWrite and other highly respected online publications. Connect with Tim on Linkedin & Twitter.
    Timothy Carter