Quick and Easy Keyword Research
Keyword research is an essential part of building a website. Keywords are an important part of website optimization, so keyword research is an important step. But don’t worry, research doesn’t have to take a long time or cost a lot of money. Here are a few resources to help you decide on your keyword list.
Use Competing Websites for Keyword Research
There’s no harm in friendly snooping. Make your competitors a part of your keyword research by viewing the keywords they selected. This helps you see which keywords are most popular in your field, and which words helped your top competitor reach that spot.
This type of keyword research requires the assistance of your competitor’s source code. Once the source code is located, you’ll be able to see the keyword meta tags. Not all websites use keyword meta tags, but if they do, the keywords will be easy to spot. It’s not as difficult as it sounds. Just visit a competitor’s website, and then in your browser select "view" and "source code" or "source." If you see a tag that reads "meta name="KEYWORDS" content=," that’s what you want. The list of words following "content=" are the keywords for that page.
Use Your Own Knowledge
No one ever said keyword research was restricted to online activity. Your potential website visitors are human just like you. So what keywords would you use to find a website in your field? Open your browser and do a quick search. If you specialized in selling affordable antique jewelry, you might use words like, "cheap jewelry, affordable antiques, heirlooms," and so forth. You are a valuable keyword research resource.
Keyword Research Tools
There are both free and paid keyword research tools available. If the above methods don’t yield pleasing results, you will want to consider alternative means. Professional keyword research tools can provide possible combinations you may not think of otherwise. Most people focus on single keywords when performing keyword research, but phrases are also acceptable keywords.
Consider your Location
It’s a good idea to keep your physical location in mind when performing keyword research. Locations such as your city, state, or neighborhood can be among your keywords. If you sell widgets in Miami, possible keywords include "Miami widgets," "widgets in Miami," etc...
Take Advantage of Misspelled Words
This is a biggie that most people overlook during keyword research. Humans are prone to make mistakes, spelling errors included. Why not use that to your advantage? Take a moment to type a few misspelled words into your favorite search engine. There’s a chance you will receive hundreds of results. An added bonus is that the competition for misspelled words will be lower than for words spelled correctly.
Once your keyword research is finished, put the information to good use. Work the keywords into your website content as naturally as possible. You want the search engines to take notice, but you also want visitors to read your content and come back from more.
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