SEO Book Keyword Tool
In fact, we′ll carry out the keyword research in two steps:
- First, we′ll make a huge list of words to choose from.
- Then, we′ll sort them out and make a short list of the most profitable ones.
Here, I have a thing to tell you: as ever, there are options, both winning, to choose between.
First on every step, I describe a free but tedious way to get what you need. It′s free but it takes one or two working days each time you go through it. Still even if you′re going to save your time and stick with the faster option, you′d better not skip other pages. You won′t regret reading them, as you′ll have a great chance to learn how Search Engines and special SEO software work.
After that, I′ll get down to the faster option: a smooth keyword tool that makes keyword research a snap and also makes a lot of work for you at further steps.
So let′s start.
Make your first list of keywords
As of now, you have to exercise your brains a while. So get ready, it′s time for brainstorming. To start with, make a list of every word or phrase you can think of that people might use to find what your site offers. Ask anyone you can to give you ideas — you never guess what alternatives your colleagues can offer.
Just like my boss often searches for Search Engine marketing — and I prefer website promotion, any of your colleagues or friends may have a different idea of how your product can be found. If there is no one to ask, use to search for synonyms.
And, use an Excel spreadsheet to put each keyword as a separate record in it, as you′ll need to do some calculations later.
Think of some keyphrases
After you have a list of single words, think of keyphrases. Try to combine the words you have on your list, or add other relevant words that better describe your product or service. Again, ask your friends and colleagues for input and try to find people that are within your site′s target audience to get an idea of how they would search.
Also, take into consideration variations in terminology as determined by one′s age, profession, what part of the world they are from, and so on. Remember that there are often several ways of saying the same thing.
The simple example is headphones. My dad rather calls them . And Mike often says earphones.
And, first and foremost, my advice here is:
Answers can come from most unexpected places. Want an example?
You already know about my son Mike. Now it′s time to introduce his younger brother, Andy. He′s 9 and I call him an SEO genius.
Maybe I am cheating, but maybe I′m just a good father :) — you decide. The thing is, we sometimes play a game. I give him a word or a couple of words — and his task is to think of all possible word combinations that relate. Yeah, I′m a practical guy :), but he gets some pocket money in return!
And you never guess what ideas this little cunning brain can have! I′d never coin such combinations with my 42–year background. Besides, it′s a way to develop Andy′s imagination. Maybe he′ll turn the #1 rich guy on the planet?
And the thing is: the fewer things people know about SEO, the better keyword ideas come to their minds.
Use the web to get more
Once you have a good starting list of 20–40 words, use Search Engine databases to refine it and see what people have actually searched for when looking for similar sites. Here′re the three most popular resources for doing that:
— Quite a useful thing. Select to generate keyword ideas with Descriptive Words or Phrases. Enter a keyword for the start and go ahead to get a nice list of keywords.
The good thing about Google Trends is that it provides keyword data for a selected time period and thus lets you see which keywords are seasonal. As they say, forewarned — forearmed. Knowing when people search for your targeted keywords and when they don′t will help you foresee potential traffic (and, consequently, conversions and profit) drops and increases.
Google Trends for "buy headphones"
