How to Select Keywords - An In-Depth Guide

When beginning a Search Engine Optimization campaign, there are a few basic steps that every SEO knows to take before they begin. The first is always to build a keyword list of which there are varying methods of doing so. The right methods will aid you in creating and supporting a site-wide SEO strategy. The wrong methods will run you in circles, wondering what went wrong.
It is the intent of this article to teach an effective method of keyword selection that will enable you to land more keywords on the first page with less work.
Getting Started: Know the Site
To create a great keyword list, you will need to know your website backwards and forwards. You should know what the site features, and just as importantly, you should know what it doesn't feature.
The first step is to brainstorm a list of somewhat generic keywords. For example, if you are a shoe store in Poughkeepsie, the temptation will arise to try and rank number 1 for the term "shoes." Well, that's a start, but ranking for the word "shoes" is probably aiming a little too high for a mom and pop shop in Upstate New York, which is why it's very important that you know the site well enough to come up with a good list of pseudo-generic "modifiers" for your keyword:
* Location (Poughkeepsie shoes, shoes upstate New York, shoes 12601)
* Price (cheap shoes, affordable shoes, quality shoes, comfortable shoes etc)
* Types (running shoes, walking shoes, jogging shoes etc)
* Industry specific (anti-pronation shoes)

Lengthening the List

At this point you should have a good list of pseudo-generic keywords. The next step is lengthening that list using your favorite Keyword tool (I will be using Overture in this example).
Each time you plug a keyword into your tool of choice, it will return the number of searches conducted for that term over a given period of time. It will also suggest keywords from the tool's database that are similar to the one you entered.
The basic idea now is to go through the list returned by the keyword tool and copy any and all similar terms as well as their corresponding search values, which relate directly to the site you're optimizing. Then, paste them to a spreadsheet program so that they can be further edited later.
Once you have copied and pasted, just go through the list row by row. Delete keywords that don't have to do with the website you're optimizing (which is why it's important to know what the site doesn't feature) and repeat with the next pseudo-generic keyword on your list. The idea is to identify as many keywords as possible.

Narrowing the List

So you have a long keyword list; it's time to narrow it down. I narrow my lists by deciding if the potential gain for a keyword is relative to the competition. In order to make that decision, I need to know three variables:
1. The number of searches on a particular keyword (already got those from Overture)
2. The Amount of Competition (I'll show you how to find your competition in this section.)
3. Will the keyword lead to conversions (this is up to you)
Below is a method for thoroughly determining competition for various keywords:
1. Do a search for one of your keywords
2. On the first SERP find the last listing with the keyword in the title tag that is either a homepage of any kind or is a sub-page which is not associated with a domain whose Pagerank is greater than 6. (This is the page you will need to beat, if one does not exist, ranking will generally be easier)
3. Find out how many unique links with the keyword in the anchor text whose linking page has a Pagerank of 1 or higher for the competitor (This is how many quality backlinks you'll need to acquire)
The aforementioned is a meticulous method for determining the competition for all of your keywords, and unless you're planning on building a tool that will automate this process, I would suggest taking a more general approach by using advanced search strings in the search engine of your choice.
The technique that I am about to demonstrate uses the following string:
intitle:"Keyword Phrase" inanchor:"Keyword Phrase"
This string will return the total number of pages with, largely, the two greatest factors contributing to ranking for a keyword:
* Having the keyword in the page title
* Having the keyword in anchor text pointing to the page
It's a down and dirty method for assessing competition. This is how it's done:
1. Go to http://www.startlaunch.com/research/.
2. Copy your list of keywords into the box, click "submit".
3. Click on each link.
4. Find and copy the number of pages that the search engine returns for this query from the top right of the SERPs to a new column next to the corresponding keyword in your keyword list spreadsheet (this is your competition).
5. In another new column, divide the number of competitors by the number of monthly searches for each keyword.
6. Sort the table from low to high (ascending) using that column.
What you have done is created a ratio of competitors to searches. When determining competition, you generally want the keyword to be searched on more times than there are competitors for that word. So the closer the ratio is to 0, the better the keyword.
These techniques will point out which terms have the most competition, but competition alone should not dictate which words make the final list.

Keyword Layout

Remember when selecting keywords: words on a higher competitive level should be placed on pages that will receive deep links in groups of 2 or 3 where all of the keywords are very similar like:
*Running shoes, Shoes for running and buy running shoes online
*Web design in Atlanta, Atlanta Georgia web design, Atlanta web site design
This way, you won't have to remove highly competitive, but potentially lucrative terms from your list, provided that you make a concerted effort to perform link-building for the pages on which those terms reside.
For smaller terms, in my opinion, the more the merrier. They can be given their own pages or be mentioned on other highly trusted pages of your site.
That's it. You should have all the information you need to select a strategically viable keyword list. Remember, keyword research is the cornerstone of a successful SEO campaign. Knowing the competition for your keywords will aid you in site layout, as well as focusing effort on SEO only where it is necessary. Ultimately, it will make your optimization process more efficient, allowing your sites to rank for more keywords with less work, which is a goal that all SEOs strive to attain.

Looking Beyond SEO

SEO, or Search Engine Optimization, is one of the most highly talked about topics between Webmasters and marketers. It is probably also the single topic that more webmasters obsess over than any other (in terms of their website anyway!). However, while SEO can be an excellent resource for targeted traffic, all website owners should concentrate their efforts on more than trying to squeeze one more percent out of keyword density, or beg one more PR5 link from an authoritative site. As well as sapping energy, causing breakdowns in family relationships, and being responsible for the onset of male pattern baldness it also causes us to lose sight of our ultimate goal.

You Mean There's More To Online Life Than SEO?

The ultimate goal for the vast majority of websites is to either make money or promote a service that makes money. How the site goes about it is entirely up to the Webmaster. Whether you choose to make money through affiliate links, PPC advertising, product sales, dropshipping, or any other method the single most important aspect of your website is your visitor. Visitors are those people that you attempt to attract to your site and they are the ones that will essentially make you some cash.

Don't Forget The Real People

The biggest problem with concentrating on SEO is that while the search engine spiders might be difficult to please they are a walk in the park, a piece of cake, and an absolute breeze when compared to real-life, living, breathing, walking, talking visitors. Search engines rely on mathematical algorithms to determine the quality of your site whereas the visitor relies solely on personal opinion. The next time you're attempting to inject 2 or 3 more instances of key phrases like "California Mesothelioma lawyer attorney" into your content try to remember that some poor soul might actually have to try and make sense of what you're writing.

Some Search Engines Are Complying

Fortunately for you and I, of course, some of the mathematical search engines are also coming round to this way of thinking. Google, in particular, want to offer users natural search results. They want to promote natural web pages, with natural content, using natural keywords, gaining natural links. This means that Webmasters are able to start obsessing over a number of other factors now instead:

Optimizing Your Content For Conversions

Conversion rates are not a part of SEO but should be a part of your business strategy. Consider how many people visit your site and the percentage of those people that either click through the links on your page or purchase a product. It is virtually impossible to predict with any certainty what your conversion rate SHOULD be but you should always strive to improve it. Your content should convert, your newsletter should convert, your mailing list should convert, and your emails should convert.

Improving Customer Retention Rates

Customer retention is also important. Once you sell a product or provide a service, even if you persuade a visitor to click a link and make a purchase you should do everything you can to ensure that you retain your customer base and they return to make purchases again. A big part of every successful business is repeat custom and without it you will always be fighting an uphill struggle to generate new leads and convert those leads into customers.

Ensuring that you offer the best service, the best prices, the best results, or the best information and help can generate good customer retention. However this isn't all of it. Company or website branding also plays a part, and following up with after sale emails and contact is also vital if you have the relevant information to hand. Use business cards and compliment slips whenever possible and always ensure that you include a company signature in all your email communications.

Generating Sales And Marketing Methods

Sales are obviously vital and without sales you will never achieve customer retention. In order to make sales it is important to acquire or generate leads. SEO is obviously a very beneficial way of generating leads but it isn't the only way. PPC, or Pay-Per-Click, advertising is a good way to instantly drive traffic to your site. SEO can take months to begin to generate results whereas you can truly hit the ground running with an effective PPC campaign. Ensure that you have a compelling advertisement lined up and also ensure that your website content is geared toward the conversion of any visitors you do receive.

Banners And Text Ads

Banner advertising and text advertising (I'm trying to ignore the temptation to mention their use in SEO) have taken a back seat to SEO and PPC, but for some sites they still have their uses. Find websites or newsletters that offer information relevant to your product or your service and then try out a small advertising campaign before you inject large amounts of money in a campaign that may not bear any fruit whatsoever.

Offline Advertising Methods

Offline advertising is also an option, though it can prove costly. For geographically targeted campaigns it may prove particularly beneficial. Local radio stations, local newspapers, and even billboards are options that do still generate results. These can cost money though. Bear in mind that some websites have been known to take this a step further with skywriting and other unusual tactics. These are best left to the behemoth sites like Ebay in all honesty.

Conclusion

SEO is not the be-all and end-all of a website. It is a powerful online marketing technique that can in time generate large amounts of targeted traffic. However, it is important to remember that once that traffic arrives your site must be optimized for conversions and sales. You should also consider using other forms of advertising in order to gain more site visitors and a more diverse range of traffic.

Search engine optimisation - it's all in the writing

I now propose to go right out on a limb and say that design has very little to do with search engine optimisation. This is a sweeping generalisation, I admit, and one to which my designer friends will take instant umbrage. But it is true to all intents and purposes. Design can certainly assist in achieving good optimisation. By that I mean it will assist if it doesn't hinder the process with acres of code that the robots need to wade through in order to find the potatoes and gravy. Or if the navigation throughout the site is logical and easy to achieve. Or if the pages are designed to load quickly.Other than that, optimisation is all in the writing.

Now, I am a copywriter with around 10 years' experience of the advertising business; and there can be few people in the world who know less about design than I do. But my entire working life seems to have been spent arguing with designers about the length of copy in relation to the size of the pic in any given piece of work. And I confess that I mostly lost, thereafter seeing my words relegated to four lines of 8-point Myopic beneath an illustration the size of a house.In website terms, however, the tables have been nicely turned. Here's why.

To optimise a website, you first need to take a good, long look at the HTML meta tags of Title, Description and Keywords. Do you see what I see? Yes, they are words. And all of these words require researching and embellishing. Likewise, take a peek under that all-singing, all-dancing Home page banner - and what do you see? More words. These words, unlike those used in the meta tags above, are written for both search engine and potential human customer alike.Search engines love words. Great, isn't it?

Given all of this, it is pretty clear that all you need in order to properly optimise a website is a lexicon of well thought out words - keywords and keyphrases - sprinkled like generous confetti throughout the meta tags and the body copy. Well, almost.

In the first place, those words must be relevant. They must state clearly what it is you are selling and where you are selling it. The general marketing principle is: (a) product description, (b) product benefits, (c) region of operation. What you don't need are turgid explanations about the size of your company and who the product is designed for. Your potential customers will mostly be bright enough to know whether or not they are in the market for what you are offering. So to say, for instance, that your 'range of gardening gloves is ideal for gardeners' is a touch obvious, not to mention redundant and a waste of valuable space. In all promotional writing, brevity and clarity are the two most important attributes. But I digress.

So how do you go about collating these key words and phrases? First, you could invest in software that generates your meta tags and keywords for you. Fair enough; there are some good programmes around, and I would be the first to applaud any device that makes life a touch easier. On the other hand, you could take the more intellectually satisfying route and do it yourself."Oh, no," you cry, reaching for the gin bottle. "I don't do writing!" To which I answer: "You don't have to. Someone has already done it for you." I should tell you, straight away, that I am not an advocate of plagiarism. However, it is not theft to take a good, long look at somebody else's literary ideas and adapt them to your own ends. I will cite John Donne's penchant for re-working William Shakespeare as a good example of this. And what is good enough for Mr Donne, is certainly good enough for me. So, to formulate your keywords and phrases, why not research what your competitors are doing, then adopt and adapt? By competitors, I mean serious competitors, the people who are listed at No. 1 on Google, Yahoo and MSN in your sphere of activity. Delve into their meta-tags, analyse their body copy, figure out what it is that convinces the search engines to place them at No. 1.

If you feel that such a ploy is a little devious, you can console yourself with the thought that the writers of the No.1 material probably pinched it from someone else in the first place. So that's all right then.

And now for the denouement to this piece, which is the most important bit of all.

We have established with some certainty, I think, that a website stands or falls in the listings stakes by the quality of its words. Of course, that quality is determined by the search engines, not your old professor of English. So the judgment is in algorithm terms rather than literary terms. That's fine; we are simply trying to accommodate the engines, not win a Nobel Prize.

Further, in my not so humble opinion, every Home page should carry a stick of keyphrase-rich body copy. And this stick of copy should be placed where it can be seen, read and acted upon by the search engines. As close to the top of the page as possible.

Sadly, so many Home pages don't have this attribute. The page designs leap from whiz-bang banner to product list or string of pics with no intervening tit-bits of information - in the shape of copy - designed to feed the search engine robots. There is little for the robots to get their shiny little teeth into.

Let me prove the point. On several occasions recently, I have been asked to optimise websites on which the Home pages were bereft of any meaningful copy. Within an hour or two, the copy was written and the sites posted to the engines. Within a couple of days, the sites in question were featuring nicely on the first couple of pages of the major engines. Previously, they were barely indexed.

There's nothing magical about any of this. Because, guess what, search engine optimisation is all in the writing. If this has been helpful, maybe you'll let me know.

Pay-per-click Marketing Strategy Can Boost Your Sales

Every business out there is competing hard with others offering like products or services, thanks to the way the world has opened up and provided consumers with access to many different resources. Thanks to the pay-per-click marketing strategy found across the internet, someone requiring a service in Canada can easily hire a business in Florida or a product manufactured in Colorado can reach an end user in Australia. This is great, because the opportunities for higher sales and income are vast, compared to previous decades where your business was only locally known or only popular in the surrounding cities.

Stiff competition, however, has also meant that anyone with a business needs to promote and market their company effectively, encouraging and enticing surfers to visit their site and hopefully purchase their product or service. Having a pay-per-click marketing strategy to make sure your website gets seen and receives plenty of hits is integral to your business's success, because if you're not receiving traffic to your site, you've got a seriously struggling venture on your hands.

There are plenty of ways to boost sales and promote your website these days. Information is the current trend in tempting surfers to click links and reach your site. Articles posted on your website that teach people something new or give them pertinent information are helpful to draw in clientele. Press releases can also be effective to bringing attention to your business or company. Thanks to the way that individuals quickly turn to computers and the internet for their information, the written word and fundamental text has become the strongest venue to drawing in business.

Pay-per-click or PPC advertising is another growing method of boosting hits to your website. This principle of marketing is a venture of cooperation between websites, as you ask other sites to display a link for your website. When individuals are attracted to an ad displayed on a website, they click to follow the link through to your business portal. The company advertising your link receives income that you supply. In effect, this pay-per-click marketing strategy is paying someone to promote your company.

For someone adept with computers and having great interpersonal and negotiation skills, pay-per-click can be set up by an individual. Most people, however, don't have the know-how or the time to work through the steps needed to set up this type of advertising. The best thing to do is to hire a PPC consulting firm that has all the resources and networking skills to build an effective promotion program. Not only that, hiring a pay-per-click consulting firm means that you don't have to worry about links on dead sites, maintenance or creating a catchy advertisement.

Companies devoted to PPC consulting will work with you to develop a strong pay-per-click marketing strategy to know what product or service you're trying to sell. From there, they'll define your market target and develop surveys to help with the set-up of the promotion program. Once they've achieved result from these surveys, pay-per-click consulting firms will create advertisement that reaches the people you want it to and test the results. Revisions are sure to come into play, and businesses geared to pay-per-click consulting will compare their marketing against solid results. Considering the amount of work involved in this type of promotion, you certainly don't want to go less than the full distance by trying to set up pay-per-click advertising yourself.

Reputable consulting firms that specialize in creating a pay-per-click marketing strategy for businesses are ones that are geared to website promotion. Every type of industry has experienced and skilled experts and the common jack-of-all-trades individual won't be able to pull off such an intensive networking to boost your sales. If you're serious about a successful business, you should hire companies that provide exactly what you need and you'll soon be able to see that the cost of their time and efforts pays for itself over and over again as your sales increase.