KEYWORDWhy RESEARCHIsn’t as Hard as You Think:A Handy

Guide toKEYWORDRESEARCH4-step

Research: You dreaded it in high school, you learned

to loathe it during college or university, and you

swore an oath to avoid it as much as possible after

graduation. Now you've started your own business,

and you're working on optimizing your website for

search engines. You can't help but notice that the

word "research" keeps creeping up everywhere. It's

not just any research—it's keyword research, and you

have no idea how to do it. You don't want to know

how to do it. You swore off formal research long ago,

and you're determined to stick to your convictions.

Introduction

Well, my stubborn friend, it's time to start

breaking some oaths, because keyword

research is an inevitable necessity of search

engine optimization (SEO). Here is a simple

guide to teach you how to do keyword

research. I promise to make it seem as little

like research as possible, though I do have to

point out that your reading this article is

actually research. (Sorry to burst your

"keeping-my-oath-no-matter-what" bubble.)

Introduction

Step #1:

USE COMMON SENSE

You've used a search engine before, right? Unless

you've been living in a cave for the last two decades (in

which case I applaud your business aspirations), there's

no way you aren't extremely familiar with search

engines like Google. Because you already have lots of

experience as a searcher, the initial stage of keyword

research is easy. All you have to do is think about what

you would search for if you were looking for content like

the content you're trying to optimize. So, first you need

to pick the page(s) you're optimizing.

Step #1: Use Common Sense

Step #1: Use Common Sense

Let's start with an obvious one—your

home page. If your company sells

energy-efficient lightbulbs, your home

page is basically going to say, "We sell

this specific type of lightbulb because it's

better than other lightbulbs." So what

would a searcher type in if they were

looking for a company like yours that

they didn't yet know existed? Make a list

of possible search terms.

Step #1: Use Common Sense

You can also conduct keyword research before you

write a blog post. Think broadly about the topic you're

hoping to write about. Again, make a list of possible

words and phrases people could type to get them to a

blog post about that topic. If you complete your

keyword research before writing something, you can

integrate those keywords more organically into your

prose, which will help you avoid keyword stuffing

(which is including keywords too frequently, making

your writing sound awkward and unnatural).

Step #2:

START YOUR RESEARCH

Step #2: Start Your Research

Now that you have a general list of keywords

to investigate further, you're going to need to

use a keyword tool. The most common tool

for keyword research is the

Google AdWords Keyword Planner. Plug the

list of potential keywords and phrases you

came up with in the first step into the

Keyword Planner.

Step #2: Start Your ResearchThe first thing you need to look at is the average monthly search volume for each

keyword or phrase you've searched. Discard low-volume keywords. You might

also need to get rid of keywords with extremely high search volumes, especially

if these words are not directly related to your page.

For example, the keyword "lightbulb" will have a much higher search volume than

"energy efficient lightbulbs," but the latter will be more likely to attract the right kind of

visitors to your site: visitors who are more likely to convert to leads and then to

customers. Finally, check the level of competition for each search term; the higher the

competition level, the less likely you are to rank high for that keyword.

Step #3:

CHECK OUTYOURCOMPETITION

Step #3: Check Out Your CompetitionOkay, so you've narrowed your first list down

according to search volume. You should have a

considerably shorter list to work with now. The next

step is to see what your competition is up to. This part

is simple. Just search for each potential keyword, and

see what results you get. If the results page is

dominated by major brands or giant companies, don't

use that keyword. You're not going to beat gigantic

brands for the top spot, and if your site never makes it

into at least the top 10 of the search page results, no

one is going to click on you. You'll have better results if

you use a less popular keyword but make it into the

top results for that keyword.

Step #3: Check Out Your CompetitionThe other thing you need to do in this stage is to ensure

that your keyword or phrase means what you think it

means. If your search term tends to get results about

something completely unrelated to what your company

is selling, you need a new keyword.

If you complete the third step and find that none of your

original keyword ideas work, never fear! Go back to the

second step, and look at the keywords suggested by

Keyword Planner. Then proceed to the third step again.

Step #4:

THE FINAL STEP

The Final Step

Congratulations! You've learned how to do keyword

research. The next step is integrating those keywords

into your copy for maximum SEO benefits. Check out

this article to learn where you can place those well-

researched keywords you've decided to use.

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