Choosing Keywords That Work

By: Jeff Alderson


Coming up with ideas for the best keywords to use on a website can be a difficult process for many to grasp. If a little common sense comes into play and some basic rules of the road are followed, the effort doesn't have to be insurmountable.

Keyword research and selection should be done prior to copywriting. Creating tons of content and having to go back and optimize it is time consuming and counterproductive.

There are several things that should be focused on when picking out keywords. The most important is the fact that not every person searches in the same manner. There are a number of ways to say exactly the same thing using a variety of different word combinations. The methods a particular person uses to find a website can be impacted by gender, age, profession, education and even country of origin and so on.

Make sure to choose only those keywords that are relevant to your site. Sure, you can get traffic with loaded keywords, but the practice is a bit dishonest. Plus, it can turn visitors off, decrease sales potential and it might even result in those who advertise on your site (if you have ads) becoming dissatisfied with the results.

The best place to start in selecting keywords is with a pad and pen. Dream up every possible word and phrase you can that relates to your site and its pages. Then ask others you know to do the same. It can be very helpful to seek out people who fall into your site's targeted audience, too.

Once you have a potential keyword list created, hit the Internet to refine and revise it. Search engine databases can be very useful for seeing what words are used to find sites like yours. AdWordAnalyzer.com, Wordtracker, Google and Overture can all be helpful tools to this end. These sites can give you an idea of what kinds and how many sites come up when you search for the keywords and phrases you've chosen.

With this done, employ a little common sense to the revised list. Consider your desired audience and think about the terms they would really use to find your site. Keep in mind that conversational language is much more likely than marketing terminology in searches. Think basic, short phrases that sum up what you do or offer. Focus in on these terms.

Once you have a solid list refined and revised, it is wise to keep in mind that no optimization goes smoothly on the first go around. This process is generally an ongoing evolution. Search trends change, and your products, services or focus might, too.

With a tentative list in hand, it's time to create copy that's relevant, keyword rich and actually useful. Steer clear of keyword stuffing and only use as much content as is necessary. Make sure keywords appear in headlines, but don't worry about going overboard with them on every single line. Copy that's clear, concise and relevant tends to pull in more traffic.

Finding the right keywords the first time out can be a tough proposition. It does get easier with practice. Look at is as an ongoing process and the job will seem a little less daunting.

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Information about the Author:

Author Jeff Alderson develops newbie-friendly SEO software. He specializes in boosting traffic and sales. Jeff suggests using Ad Word Analyzer to find internet keywords for your website.
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