finding the right keywords for your website
DESCRIPTION
You know how important SEO is for your website but have you chosen the right keywords for your optimization efforts? The internet is an extremely competitive place and you may be missing out on traffic by not choosing the words that are right for your business. In this presentation, you'll learn how to: * Use keyword tools for validation and keyword ideas * Manually test the search space to check keyword competitiveness * See which terms your competitors valueTRANSCRIPT
Finding the Right Keywords for Your
Website
Who We Are
Kasi GajtkowskiOrganic Search [email protected]
Hall Web Serviceswww.hallme.com
• 11 Years in Business• Over 80 Search Marketing Clients• 98% of Customers "Very Satisfied"
Got Questions?
• Use GoToWebinar “Chat” or “Ask a Question”
• Twitter with #SEOvision tag
About You:
What You'll Learn:
Use keyword tools for validation & ideas Manually check the search space for competitiveness See which terms your competitors value
You know what keywords are You understand where keywords go on websites You want to implement SEO on your website You already have SEO on your website
4 Easy Steps to Researching Keywords
1. Make a keyword list.
2. Use a keyword tool for validation and new ideas.
3. Manually test your list and refine it.
4. Evaluate your competition.
alcomm
Step 1: Make a Keyword List
What words will people use to find you?
Brainstorm – write down all the words/phrases you can think of!
Ask your coworkers for their ideas
Talk to family & friends – it's helpful to get the perspective of outsiders
Step 2: Use Keyword Tools There are free & paid keywords available:
I like to use Google's free keyword tool
Validate: See if people are actually using those words
Add/Refine: Get ideas for other words you didn't think of
Step 2. Use Keyword Tools (continued)
Realistic Goal:
Look at keywords that have between 1,500 and 20,000 searches per month.
Step 3. Manually Test Your ListAssess the Sector:
• How many web results appear?
• What types of sites are on the first page?
• Do the results look relevant?
Step 3. Manually Test Your List (continued)
Things to Look for:
• Over 1,000,000 sites is very competitive
• Wikipedia, About, Amazon, etc are very authoritative
• Home pages from companies are relevant results
Step 3. Manually Test Your List (continued)
Refine Your List Based on Findings:
• Depending on competitiveness, you may need to focus on longer phrases
• Add your location whenever applicable to narrow scope
• Hard to compete with national brand names, sites with large numbers of backlinks, and domain age
Step 4. Evaluate Competition
Closer Look at Top Ranking Websites:
• How do the sites look?
• What sets you apart from these websites?
• What can you improve on?
Danard Vincente
Bonus: Spy on Your Competitors
You Don't Need a Special Tool to Spy:
• Check title tags on important pages to see which ones are valued
• Check the keywords tag in the source code (less relevant)
• Online vs. Offline competitors
You don't need to be #1 for everything.
You need to be #1 for what matters.
Re-cap
Photo: http://www.flickr.com/photos/5-0_og/1304841776/
• Brainstorm words• Use keyword tools• Check the search sector• Evaluate competition• Look at competitor keywords• Keep everything in perspective!
Weekly Webinars
Next week:
Amanda – What is a Social Media Policy and Does My Company Need One?
Two Weeks:
Jenika – Driving Traffic to Your Website
Learn More!• Web Vision Blog - http://www.hallme.com/blog
• Webinars – http://www.hallme.com/webinars
• Follow Hall on Twitter - @Hall_Web
• Follow Kasi on Twitter - @kasi_marie
• Email me: [email protected]