Finding Keywords and Search Phrases

Arguably the most important part of the optimization process is finding the correct keywords to target. A keyword is usually a word or phrase that people use to search for your type of website. If you target the wrong keyword you may end up as number one in the search engine rankings for that term. However, if no one searches using this keyword then your site will not be discovered and you have wasted your efforts.

How to Decide Which Keywords To Target?

Draw up an initial list by the following methods:

• Brain storm - draw up an initial list of keywords relating to your website and your business that you think customers may be using.
• Plagiarize - visit your competitor sites and see which keywords they are targeting.
• Server logs - use a log analysis program and find out the phrases your current visitors are using to find your site.

Now list possible modifiers including:

• Location - your city, state, and zip code. Some potential customers prefer to deal with a local company even though it's an online business.
• Adjectives - affordable, best, cheapest, quality, etc.
• Descriptors - do you just sell one type of widget? Do you focus on one aspect of a service?

The more specific your keywords are the less competition there will be and the more targeted your visitors you will receive. Why be #50 for 'widgets' when you can be top 10 for 'blue widgets'!

Now you have a list of keywords and modifiers you need to see whether anyone searches using the terms. Overture and Google both have free tools that will tell you how often people search using a keyword. Overture's service is available without an account. Google's needs an account however account creation is free.

Word Tracker, is one of the most popular keyword tools. It is not free but it is an excellent source of keywords and search counts. They also provide a thesaurus to provide keywords that you may have missed. Word Tracker does offer a free trial so you can try it out.

My next article will focus on how to integrate your new list of keywords and phrases into your site.

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