One of the first steps to search engine optimization is a keyword analysis. For any search engine optimization or paid search campaigns, it is still an essential first step. In order to drive traffic to your site, you need to know how people are searching for your product or service. You need to use the words people use when they're searching (not the ones you use, your boss uses, your sales team uses- but the ones that your potential customers are using!)
How to use your key word analysis:
- Copy writing
Write relevant and compelling website copy by incorporating terms that people immediately identify with. Use the phrases in your keyword analysis to speak the same language as your customer, not the lingo of your industry. Don't limit it to your web copy, create a consistent message with your email copy, or print copy, or ad copy- you get the idea...
- Pay-Per-Click Campaigns (PPC)
Plan profitable pay-per-click campaigns by building up a broad range of
keyword phrases that will capture your market. There is no need for guesswork- develop your PPC strategy around your key word list and offer.
- Content Strategy and Management
Develop the content that directly addresses your customers' needs. Is there a large search volume surrounding particular phrases? Review your web site content to see how you address those needs and fill in the gaps.
- Customer Behavior Marketing
Understand your customers' behavior and concerns by analyzing the words that they use. Are their search terms more general, indicating that they are early in their buying process, or are they more specific? Are they searching on ‘how to' or ‘best' or ‘compare'? A keyword analysis gives you the clues you need to understand their motivations.
- Market Research
Measure the size of a potential online market by the number of searches conducted. Determine the competitive landscape by the number of occurrences that appear for the same key words.
- Business Expansion
Develop new revenue streams by using popular keywords to inspire new product
and service ideas. An example that comes to mind is the custom luxury home builder who asked me to set up their PPC campaigns for them. After finishing their key word analysis we found a large number of searches focused on custom home design. The builder wisely decided that in order to gain the building contracts that they needed, they would need to have a designer or architect on staff to bring people in.
Ok, I know the post title says 5, but I just could not leave out the last one.
And one more tip- a keyword analysis is not something you do once and then forget it. Ideally a key word analysis should be updated quarterly so that you can see where trends are going, see how volume has changed, and pick up on any new phrases that are emerging.
Whenever someone comes to me overwhelmed by all the components of internet marketing, this is where I tell them to start. A good key word analysis is the rock solid foundation of any successful internet marketing initiative.
