An Introduction to Keyword Generation

After selecting a Web site topic, keyword generation is the first and arguably most important step of the search-engine-optimization, or SEO, process. The bulk of your Web site, from the directory and file names to the title tags and page copy, is built around the words and phrases you choose during the keyword generation phase. The process of keyword generation is very important to a successful SEO campaign and should never be rushed or taken lightly. Initially, you want to generate a potential keyword list that is as large as possible, with the keywords organized by search volume. Volume refers to the number of searches performed on a unique keyword over a period of time. A large list ensures that you have a healthy mix of keyword terms. Selecting only keywords with little search volume, or keywords with rankings dominated by established authority sites, could spell disaster for your SEO efforts before they have even gotten off the ground. In this chapter, you learn about various tools that help make your keyword research and generation process highly successful. Moreover, you learn numerous tips about competitive research that can save you time and money.

Select Keywords

Analyze Your Competition with Compete.com

The first step in the keyword generation process is to strategically select keywords that you want your Web site to rank for on the major search engines. There are two kinds of keyword terms, head terms and tail terms. Head terms refer to short keywords, usually one to two words in length that tend to have very high search volume. Tail terms are the longer keyword terms, typically three or more words that tend to have a much lower search volume than head terms. An effectively executed SEO strategy sets out to generate large amounts of quality Web site traffic by targeting a blend of head terms and tail terms.

Keyword Research with KeyCompete

KeyCompete is a tool that allows you to see the exact keywords your competition is targeting through pay-per-click campaigns. By carefully analyzing the keywords your top competitors are bidding on, you can save considerable time and energy during the initial stages of generating relevant keywords for your Web site. KeyCompete allows you to download reports and aggregate data from multiple competitors. A comprehensive analysis of the individual keywords used by all your competition provides you with a best estimate of what keywords are likely to perform for your Web site. You can take the keywords generated through your KeyCompete analysis and combine them with many of the other tools discussed in this chapter to formulate your own optimal keyword list. This list can then be used for both SEO and pay-per-click, or PPC, advertising.

Compete.com is a keyword research service that allows you to analyze your competition, including the keywords your competitors rank for on search engines, as well as how Web site users interact with your competitors' Web sites. This unique data is made possible through the distribution of the Compete toolbar, which collects information as a user surfs the Web. Despite being only rough estimates, the data Compete.com provides can be incredibly useful to your SEO campaigns. This tool provides a glimpse of the actual value of a keyword in terms of visitor interaction and site usage. After all, simply getting users to your Web site is only the first step. Having them interact with your Web site, digest your content, and eventually take your call to action for your monetization strategy is the ultimate goal. Knowing what keywords can send active users to your Web site can provide you with a powerful advantage during the keyword generation process.

Analyze Your Competition with Seodigger

Seodigger is a free analytical tool that allows you to see the keywords your competition is ranking for within the top 20 organic search results on major search engines. Seodigger allows you to scan both Google and MSN to see where a site is ranking for thousands of terms. You can perform two separate types of searches with Seodigger. One returns only the terms that the home page is ranking within the top 20 results. The second option is a deeper search, which also scans all the subpages of the Web site and returns their rankings as well. To perform a deep search, you must register for a free account, which requires a valid e-mail address.

Using Wordtracker's Keyword Tool

Wordtracker offers a free version of their subscription fee-based keyword tool that is ideal for doing quick keyword research. The Wordtracker tool provides you with a list of related terms to your base keyword as well as the estimated daily search volume for each individual keyword. The paid version of the tool is more robust and allows you to save keyword lists for later use and editing.

Using the Google Keyword Suggestion Tool

Google offers a powerful no-cost keyword suggestion tool that provides you with access to historical user search behavior from the largest and most powerful search engine in the world, Google.com. The Google Keyword Suggestion Tool provides you with powerful keyword research data, including individual keyword search volume, as well as a comparative evaluation of how much competition exists for a given keyword within Google's pay-per-click product AdWords. Although the Google Keyword Suggestion Tool does not give exact numbers in terms of search volume, it does provide a useful, at-a-glance take on how competitive a given term will be in PPC advertising.

Research Keywords with Keyword Discovery

Keyword Discovery is a subscription fee-based keyword tool that allows you to examine the estimated search volume for thousands of keywords. Keyword Discovery pulls data from more than 180 search engines and has an extensive keyword database with considerable historical information dating back several years. Keyword Discovery also has several other databases beyond the major search engines, which include searches from eBay, as well as other popular shopping sites and foreign search engines. Keyword Discovery allows you to examine comparatively which engines send the majority of volume for each keyword.

Analyze Keywords with Keyword Discovery

Keyword Discovery allows you to analyze the keywords you develop during the research phase, including the number of pages where the term occurs, as well as the keyword effectiveness indicator, or KEI. The keyword effectiveness indicator is a comparison between the search volume of keywords and the amount of sites that use those same keywords. Ideally, you want to find keywords with substantial volume and minimal competition. These terms have a low KEI number as the Keyword Discovery research tool demonstrates.

Filter Keywords with Keyword Discovery

Another feature of Keyword Discovery is a filter tool. You will find filter tools very useful when expanding on existing keyword lists. With a filter tool, you can quickly add common prefixes and suffixes to large keyword lists in seconds. You can also use a filter tool to do a mass find-and-replace with common synonyms. Filter tools are ideal for adding "buying" words like buy, order, and so on to your keyword list. Filter tools can also instantly double the size of your keyword list by swapping your main keyword with a common synonym.

Continue reading here: Using the Google Keyword Suggestion Tool

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