I’ve been trying to work out how to describe the process by which I research keywords so it’s actually intelligable. Well, as of last night that problem is solved. Not a shadow of a lie here, I had the most lucid, clear dream in which I was back at school and sat along with my well behaved, keen classmates (that’s how I immediately knew I was dreaming). We were being asked to participate in a hugely fascinating lesson.
The teacher was in front of the board, chalk in hand. The essential days learning?
This Is How We Research Keywords Boys & Girls!
So Are You Paying Attention Class?
Good. Then we shall begin our class on how to effectively research keywords for online marketing.
Now, as we all know, choosing the correct keywords is a drastically important function of online marketing. As affiliates, it’s important to winkle out absolutely every possible keword variation so as to identify some niche keywords that can be got at a reasonable cost per click.
So class, today we are going to perform a hypothetical keword exercise. It’s a little like a word game in which you find as many ways as possible to describe an object or series of related objects (henceforth referred to as “products”)
OK boys and girls… let us pretend that we are promoting beanbags that people seem to like to use to furnish their living areas in a casual manner. How many different ways might we find to describe them? Who’s going to start?
**Now it’s at this stage your beloved author in her dreamlike state is that irritating kid in the class who always had their hand in the air “oohhh, miss miss, I know… pick me!!”**
“Yes, McCubbin?”
“Size miss, what about size? For Example Big beanbags, large beanbags, giant beanbags, sofa beanbags, enormous beanbags”
“Well Done McCubbin. Anyone else? No? OK, McCubbin. You again.”
“Oooh miss, colour. Blue, Yellow, Green, Orange etc oh, and
Texture or fabric - Suede, furry, cotton, cord, corduroy, leather, suedette”
“Goodness McCubbin. This is the most we’ve heard out of you since that alcohol awareness class last week when we asked for the names of alcoholic beverages. Right. What else?”
“Umm…. shapes. Round, square, oval, oh, and all of the above plus generic buying terms like cheap, discount, online, buy”
“Right then. Can you think of anything else?”
“Yes Miss. Always make sure there isn’t more than one way of describing your original product. For example the two word “bean bag” variation. But that’s all I can think of now.”
“OK, now what we do is to go and enter all of those variations into your local friendly keyword research tool. Grab them, and pop them in a spreadsheet. Also, keep your eye out for any search terms that might either give you clues as to current hot sellers or perhaps to a keyword grouping that you haven’t found in your initial efforts.”
Phew!! I feel better for having got that out. That is basically the initial technique I use to find keywords. I sit with my notepad and come up with as many word groupings around an individual product or group of products as I possibly can and then follow the above steps. I tend to use a combination of Overture Search Term Suggestions (although they’re hideously out of date at the moment) and Google’s KeyWord suggestion tool.
Once that process is complete, I start it all over again with any additional variations that may have popped into my head as I worked my way through the results from my keyword research tools.
I don’t know if that will help anyone or not, but that’s how I do it… and finding niche keywords is a skill I pride myself on. I do wonder if I’m working a bit too much though. I mean seriously, dreams about keyword research? Medic!!
November 22nd, 2007 at 5:35 pm
Kirsty you are a complete legend for this one! Very useful for someone who hasn’t got a clue about keyword research (me).
November 22nd, 2007 at 5:40 pm
No worries, although I must say I’m still very, very upset that you’re not actually a naked affiliate. Umm… let me see. here are some key terms for you: -
naturist
naturists
naturist holidays
nudists
nudism
nuidist beach
nudist vacation
November 22nd, 2007 at 6:08 pm
You can usually get more visitors to your by deliberately mis-spelling keywords. This can particularly useful when it’s the sort of word most people have difficulty spelling
November 22nd, 2007 at 6:26 pm
Yes, this is a well known technique. Kris Jones of Pepperjam fame recommends that when you use commonly mis-spelled words you spell them wrong in your ad text as well, cos your users will be expecting to see them the way they should be mis-spelt.
November 22nd, 2007 at 8:11 pm
Your posts are a joy to read, a different slant on explaining it. But just how I like it, keeping it simple! Wordtracker can be pretty good but I have never paid for the full version, just used the free trials. Their popular keyword email very week is good though.
November 22nd, 2007 at 8:42 pm
Thanks Edward!
November 22nd, 2007 at 9:38 pm
Kirsty, you’re soooo funny! Reading your posts always makes me laugh (in a good way). Keep your style and your Britishness please =).
Ummm! Do you have any sort of automation when doing keyword research? I mean, spreadsheets + thousands of keywords = headaches, and I wonder if you manually group all those keywords by hand?!
How many keywords per ad group by the way?
Also, I’ve been meaning to ask: while all of us would obviously love those 5 cent keywords, we know it’s not possible to get them every single time, and what’s your personal take on this? Do you just aim for at least “OK” Quality Scores and settle with this? =)
November 23rd, 2007 at 12:18 am
lol, thanks Franklin, I’m awfully glad that I’m keeping you chaps entertained.
There can be a degree of automation (ish) when creating keyword spreadsheets. There’s a function in excel called “concatenation” which allows you to “stick together” content from adjoining cells. I use this frequently where I know there is a set formula fo 80% to 90% of keywords for a merchant. i.e. “product name” cheap, “productname products” “productname uk”.
Keywords per adgroup… well, how long is a bit of string? Depends how many keywords there are! Although there is a lot to be said for keeping things small and beautiful when you are just starting out. Easier to manage.
I never aim for “OK”, I get a LOT of 3p traffic and even more in the 5p to 10p range. This is where researching your long tails comes in, and also where writing a really killer ad is of huge benefit. The better your CTR the more you can reduce your bid without losing position.
This sounds complex, but trust me it is something you will rapidly build a feel for as you progress. It’s almost intuitive with me now, hence the problems I sometimes have putting methods to paper!
November 23rd, 2007 at 12:54 am
Thanks for the superb tips Kirst! As usual….
I agree…asking how many keywords in an ad group is like asking how long is a bit of string (although I read somewhere that the average length of English words is about 8 to 10 characters each, he he). I should’ve asked if you have a sort of a guideline to go for? For me, I personally keep at most 20 (broad match) keywords per ad group. With each keyword also having phrase and exact matches, that totals to about 60 per ad group, but I wonder whether that’s too much or just okay…..
The second last paragraph of your last comment is a gem! Thanks!
Greetings to you from the SNOWYYYY and cold Canada!
November 23rd, 2007 at 10:26 am
lol Franklin, your 60 per adgroup strategy is probaby dead on. Mind you, I’ve plenty that have the 2,000 maximum adgroup limit (but to be honest it’s rare that they all generate traffic). If you keep it highly relevant, and focus on niche words you can get for a good price then you won’t go wrong. Make sure all the keywords are related to each other also, it will help with your adrank.
Weed out any that create a lot of impressions without generating much in the way of clicks. If you must, transplant to another adgroup. I generally move anything that has a ctr below 1%
I’m in Scotland Franklin, no snow… but we sure do know how to put on some icy and freezing cold weather!
November 23rd, 2007 at 11:16 am
Yes, you work too much. Absolutely no doubt. But someone’s gotta pay for the bubbly, dresses and tiaras, eh? Top blog, top tips, top gal
Hope all is well on your side of the country. It’s a clear, sparkling, wintry day here too.
November 23rd, 2007 at 11:27 am
No doubt about that. I’ve got the most awful insomnia right now as I’ve so many bloody projects on (the above is a symptom of what’s keeping me awake!)
It’s clear and beautiful here also. I’m driving up to Stirling today to do viewings on two letting properties I have up there… so it looks set to be a nice day for a drive. So long as there’s no bloody fog in Stirling!
November 23rd, 2007 at 1:22 pm
November 23rd, 2007 at 1:36 pm
[...] Phew, so now you all know why I can’t sleep at night and have weird dreams about how to explain keyword research! [...]
December 6th, 2007 at 7:57 am
You have described the process in a very original and inspireing way.
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