How To Research Keywords For Search Engine Marketing

Dan J. Fry

The core element of any type of marketing utilizing the
search engines is the keyword. Why is it so important?
In terms of general marketing principles keyword search
is equivalent to targeting a niche. It can help you focus
your advertisements on certain key areas that will already
have an interest in what you are offering.

Targeting proper keywords or key phrases, groups of 2 to 5
keywords, is the way to market successfully with pay-per-click
search engines and obtain high ranking in search engine indexes.
It is a rather arduous task, but one that can yield massive
returns in ranking, traffic, and sales if done correctly.

So where do I start?

Many free resources exist to research which keywords
you should target. The two deciding factors are the number
of searches performed on a particular keyword or key phrase,
and the number of sites currently targeted these. Its nothing
more than supply and demand.

Overture

The premiere pay-per-click search engine who previously
supplied search results to several major search engines, is
now on its own. The free search tool can be found at:
http://inventory.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion/

Search results are displayed only for the previous month.
This should be sufficient. The internet changes so quickly
that what happended 6 months ago is not of much importance.
What makes Overture's tool king in my view is that it
provides hard numbers on how much a phrase was searched,
allowing you to directly compare with the number of sites
targeting each phrase.

Google Suggestion

Google has their own keyword suggestion tool. If you have
an Adwords account then you are already familiar with this
resource. Check it out at
https://adwords.google.com/select/main?cmd=KeywordSandbox

This tool also provides related keyword information. It
provides synonyms that might be used to target areas
relatively untouched by others.

7Search

This PPC engine is steadily gaining in popularity. I have
used it in the past to build my subscriber base and saw
modest results. To use their keyword tool simply create a
free account and log on. Then click on "Edit Bids" and go
to "Keyword Suggestions".

Teoma

This search engine provides related search results and
keyword suggestion in the results returned to the searcher.
It can open up new avenues of keywords and phrases not thought
about before. This resource can be found at
http://teoma.com/ .

Web Host Statistics

Unless your site is free, i.e. a free several page site
through your ISP, you will most probably have . Have a look.
My service is through StartLogic. The statistics are compiled
through AWStats, which by the way is a free program for
analyzing web site access. When I log into the server, I can
view the statistics using AWStats. It also shows me which
keywords and key phrases people are using to find my site.
One great advantage I have found with this method is that you
can come up with keyword ideas that you would have never
thought about. Because people are finding you with these
keywords the search engines must have you indexed.

Online Dictionary and Thesaurus

Well, you may have wanted to stay away from them in
school, but, crack them open. These can provide you with
additional ideas to then use in Overture, 7Search, etc..

Word Tracker

This service is packed with many rich features to assist
in keyword research. It starts at $6US per day. For $225US
annually you are free to use it as much as needed. There is
also a free version which does not have many of the
extended features. I however recommend starting with this
version. It will give you a taste of how it works.

Ranking.com

Use this resource to investigate how much traffic a site
is receiving. You cannot research individual keywords and
key phrases.

As a final note put the required time into researching
keywords and key phrases prior to submitting your site
or starting a PPC campaign. Otherwise you are feeling
around in the dark trying to find your niche. It is time
expensive, but not so for your wallet. This fares well for
online home businesses where time is usually not a concern.

For more information on keyword research I suggest
checking out ClickZ.com. They offer a lot of advice on
search engine marketing.

About the Author:
Dan J. Fry is an independent researcher and owner of
e-Kinetic.com, a site devoted to providing resources
for small budget home businesses. He has a PhD in Physics
and is married with two daughters and two cats. Subscribe
to his free E-Zine on home business resources at
mailto:e-kinetic@GetResponse.com or by visiting his Home
Business Resources and Tips site. He can be reached at
mailto:comp@e-kinetic.com.

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