Choosing the Right Keywords Is Worth the Work

September 15th, 2007 - Posted in Keywords and SEO - by Ansar

Much has been said about the importance of choosing the right keyword. Whether you are a novice or an expert, you would be pretty much aware about the role of keywords in increasing the page ranking of a website. More often, people realize the tougher part of keyword selection only when they get closer to the things! This is where the good old practice of research comes into a role. Turn your attention to the words of connoisseurs in the field or just observe how top ranking sites remain just that – top ranking!

Keyword is the basic foundation to your search engine marketing. Before getting started with your search keep in mind that keyword research doesn’t mean choosing the most searched phrases. It is all about finding the keyword that defines your business in a unique way. If you are opting for the keywords, you are putting your site against a tough competition. On the other hand, when you choose a popular keyword with limited competition, no strain is required from your side to take the site to the top listings. Yes, keyword research is all about common sense and in-depth research. However, before getting started with your search, there are certain things that are too important to ignore.

Keyword Types:

Let us begin with the types of keywords. If keywords are to be classified, you would come across generic and branded keywords.

  • Generic keywords

If your prospective clients are not familiar with the brand name of your company or products, it is advised that you stick to generic keywords. Yes, for those who are in the initial phase of product launch and campaigning, generic keywords can do the perfect job. In such cases, you can use keywords that are directly related to your business.

  • Branded keywords

If you have already created a mark of your own in the online media, choosing branded keywords could do wonders in your search engine marketing. When campaigning with branded keywords, you can begin with your company name, its products and services. You can also mix branded keywords with generic ones and create unique key phrases.

Keyword research comes with its own set of jargons. It is advised that you have a better understanding about what means what!

Popularity: As the name says, popularity refers to the number of people searching for a particular keyword or keyword phrase. Whichever keyword you choose, make sure that it has high popularity ratings.

Competition: A wide majority of the people, especially newcomers to SEO, offer ignore the importance of keyword competition. Optimizing for a competitive keyword could make it more difficult for your site to get top rankings. Thus the mantra here is to choose popular keywords with less competition.

Relevance: The keyword you choose should be relevant to your business and services. If increasing business conversions is your goal, you certainly should pay attention to the relevance of the keyword to your site.

Tools to Choose

It is advised that you get the assistance of keyword research tools like Wordtracker and Overture for your research. When Overture lists the highest number of searches on overture during the previous month, Wordtracker provides the results in predicted number of searches over all the engines per day. The keyword results in Wordtracker are combined from Metacrawler and Dogpile. SEO virtuosos recommend that you combine the efficiency of both these tools to uncover powerful keywords unique to your business. You can also get the assistance of Google’s Keyword Tool for your research.

Tips that click

  • The main thing that you should keep in mind is to ‘think like a layman’. Don’t expect people to be aware of the technical terms and jargons involved with your business. Think from the perspective of your potential customers and begin the search. At the same time, you should not completely avoid the technical jargons. Yes, try to strike a balance between both.
  • Don’t spread your focus to multiple customer groups. Target a particular customer group and design your research parameters accordingly.
  • Give equal importance to secondary keywords.
  • Gather research information about your industry and keep yourself updated with the latest search engine marketing strategies.
  • Don’t use single keywords, using keyword phrases could do a better job!
  • You can also try localizing your keywords i.e., take advantage of the geographic location; this could make your keywords more specific.

Remember, keyword research is just the beginning of the journey and you have miles to go to create a mark of your own in the World Wide Web. Good Luck!

2 Responses to “Choosing the Right Keywords Is Worth the Work”

  1. SEO Manager’s Weekly » WDVL: Choosing Keywords Says:

    […] SEO Guruji » Choosing the Right Keywords Is Worth the WorkKeyword is the basic foundation to your search engine marketing. Find out the types of keywords, keyword research tools and keyword research guidelines in this article. […]

  2. Stan Munsey Says:

    This article was very helpful. I am a newbie to the application of keywords and key word phrases. You have opened my eyes up to a lot of possibilities.


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