Ah, keyword research: the foundation of any successful website.
Wow, that's a strong statement, isn't it?
Well, it's true. For those of you who give it little or no thought OR don't understand the great importance of keywords, the keyword research you do before you launch a single website will have a huge impact on how well you market to your target audience. .
No pressure.
So why is this keyword research so damn important, you ask?
Let's say you and I are standing behind a curtain. You are probably the most respected speaker in your field. I will pull back the curtain and direct you to come up to the stage and speak to an audience of about 200.
No problem. You pull out some notes from your pocket, confidently place your hands on the microphone and speak so convincingly for about 35 minutes.
After you finish, the crowd gives a nice round of applause… almost out of obligation. You don't understand, It was actually one of your best presentations yet! You were persuasive, but not very sale. You presented the problems, outlined the available solutions, and then presented your perfect product that fits your bill.
So what happened?
This audience wasn't waiting for you... in fact, they were waiting for someone else to talk about a completely different topic. They don't even know what you were talking about.
So...this wasn't YOUR audience. This was not your target market.
You had everything ready…you had everything perfectly laid out so that it was a “slippery slope” that led straight to the obvious solution…your product. But… you talked to the wrong people.
How does this relate to keyword research?
The visitors you get are directly proportional to what keywords your site is known for. If you tell the search engines that your website is known for “special widget solutions” or use other keywords like your name, your business name….. That is not what your market is looking for.
The keyword research you need to do is to determine what phrases people are searching for and which have a problem for your solution. They are looking for "perfect posture" or "correct golf swing" not "Extreme Putter". They don't even know your Extreme Putter even exists!
And if you don't do effective keyword research, they never will.
So how do you do the right kind of keyword research? Put yourself in their shoes. If you were someone with a problem that your product solves, what would you be looking for?
"How to train my dog"
"Popular 30 Places in L.A."
“Modern Art in Seattle”
“Ping golf clubs”
These are the things potential buyers are looking for… just have the right keywords as bait to catch them before they go surfing around.
Now that you've learned how to appear in search results, let's determine which strategic keywords to target in your website content and how to create that content to satisfy both users and search engines.
The power of keyword research lies in better understanding your target market and how they search for your content, services or products.
Keyword research gives you specific search data that can help you answer questions like:
What are people looking for?
How many people are searching for it?
What format do they want this information in?
In this chapter, you'll gain tools and strategies for uncovering this information, as well as learn tactics to help you avoid keyword research mistakes and create powerful content. Once you discover how your target audience searches for your content, you will begin to discover a whole new world of strategic SEO!
You must be logged in to post a comment.