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CONTACT: comp@e-kinetic.com
How To Research Keywords For Search Engine Marketing
by Dan J. Fry, c.
2003-2004, All rights reserved.
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 itsown. 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.
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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 <a href="http://www.e-kinetic.com">Home
Business Resources and Tips</a> site. He can be reached at mailto:comp@e-kinetic.com .
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