How To Select Keywords For Search Engine Optimization

One of the most important decisions while beginning search engine optimization is the selection of the correct keywords. It can make or break your website. Potential customers search the web for desired sites using he keywords. The right methods of selecting a keyword will aid in creating and supporting a site-wide SEO strategy. The wrong methods will run you in circles, wondering what went wrong.

Determining keywords is an art. To create a list of keywords you need to know your website backwards and forwards including what the site features, and what it doesn’t’ feature. It’s best way is to put yourself in the customer’s shoe. While writing the content you should remember to use words that are not only related to the content, but are popular search words as well. This is called keyword optimization, or choosing the most searched keywords related to your content.

Follow the following for keyword optimization:

Create a great keyword list: To begin with, spend some time listing all of the words and phrases related to your website content, taking ideas from everyone you can think of and list them all. Once the list is prepared visit competitors' sites to find the meta tags used.

Lengthen the List: Once a good list of pseudo-generic keywords is found, the next step is lengthening that list by using a Keyword tool like Overture. The moment a keyword is plugged in the tool, it will return the number of searches conducted for that term over a given period of time as well as suggest similar keywords from the tool’s database. Now go through the list given by the keyword tool and compare with yours. Copy any and all similar terms as well as their corresponding search values, which relate directly to the site you’re optimizing. Then, paste them to a spreadsheet program so that they can be further edited later.

Narrowing the List: In order to narrow the list three variables should be considered:

1. The number of searches on a particular keyword
2. The Amount of Competition
3. Will the keyword lead to conversions