Google AdWords represents one of the best free tools you'll ever find for optimising your website. The Keyword Tool provides a wealth of data that most companies would insist you paid for - but it's free market research that costs time alone.
It's not rocket science and a lot of companies use this technique regularly. It costs you nothing but getting used to what to look for is key in utilising the KeyWord Tools feature. To begin with, create yourself a Google AdWords account if you don't already have one. Next, do the following:
1. Go to Campaign Management
2. Click on Tools
3. Click on Keyword Tools
Ultimately, you're now in a section of Google that allows you to see who is searching for what, how often, who advertises to capture those keywords, and how much the advertising costs them. But you don't want to pay - you want to find out what hits are there for the taking.
In the left hand column you'll see two options:
1. Descriptive words or phrases
2. Website content
Leave it set to descriptive words or phrases and then click in the box in the middle column. Leave the 'Use synonyms' box ticked. It's in this box that you type the words or phrases that you want to see search volumes for. This is where we pause. Assess what it is you're really wanting to see.
If you're a florist you might want to find out how many times your store is searched for. That's a very specific search. Put yourself in the shoes of your potential visitor. They may not know your store exists. It's for this reason that we suggest you use the Keywords Tool extensively. You can type multiple lines in the box (each word or phrase must be on a new line) that will give page upon page of results that are difficult to assess. We stick to 3-5 lines at a time because Google takes less time to return the results and they're easier to read.
Once you've entered the words and phrases, click on Get Keyword Ideas
After a few moments you'll notice that the scroll bar of your browser has changed. Depending on the number of results Google has found will depend on how much the page will now scroll. Scroll down and take a look.
Ignore the Estimated Ad Position and CPC columns. They're not particularly important for the purpose of this exercise. However, you should pay specific attention to the content of:
1. Advertiser Competition
2. Approx Search Volume (month)
3. Approx Avg Search Volume
4. Search Volume Trends
5. Highest Volume
The key to using AdWords effectively for optimising your website is in assessing the combined impact of these columns for every search word/phrase they refer to. Singular readings don't mean much at all. If you have 50,000 searches a day for florists, then you might think thats great. However, it's not specific to an area and there is a very good chance there will be a high volume of advertiser competition. If, however, one of your phrases was 'florists in oxford' then you're being much more specific and if Google shows an exact match for that term then you can read a lot into the volume columns.
But - people don't search like you do. Remember that, because it is vital. Google will have suggested alternative keyword phrases similar to yours. These are often very revealing. Look for volumes that are lower, but for very specific search terms, with low advertiser competition and then look at the trend. It might not be very appropriate for a florist as your business will need more volume, but if you sell a high end product you could well find that you can uncover a treasure trove that others haven't found yet.
We're often asked why to look at this if all you're doing is looking to optimise your site and not to advertise. The reason is simple - the number of advertisers is always indicative of the chance of your site not being noticed because of the plethora of advertisements that will appear at the top of the search page and to the far right of it (the traditional location of ad placement on Google). You should also look because it is common to find that lower search volume phrases aren't being targeted by advertisers, and you may find you can capture them with paid for AdWords very cheaply indeed.
We've read many an article with companies recommending that you should go for medium to high search volume returns. Yet the lower end of searches carries just as much 'per hit' value and often even more. It's well known that a good volume of search terms can be discounted by the sheer fact it is down to companies regularly checking where they appear in Google rankings! We tend to suggest disallowing at least 10% of the volume in certain industries. Web design is a classic example of this because web companies check their rankings much more frequently than almost any other sector.
Make a point of doing a Keyword search for your competitors company name. Then, do so and suffix the name with the name of the Town or City they're located in. You'll get an immediate idea of how many users search for someone in direct competition to you. Then, visit their website and look at the source code behind the home page - and check their keywords. It can often be the case that your competition don't have well optimised sites (more often than not). However, as you now know how many people search for them every month - target the company name on your own website. Include it in your keywords if it isn't present on their own website. You'll be amazed how many of your competitors potential visitors can be captured in this way.
Let's start with our florists again. Start with one line in the Keyword box being their company name only. Then, on the next line, type their name followed by their Town/City. Next, suffix that search on a new line with the word 'Lillies' or whatever is appropriate. As another example, do a keyword search for 'Garden Furniture'. Then, make the next line the same but suffix it with 'Wood', or a brand name, or both. Doing this is an excellent exercise in understanding how users search. People rarely search for very wide topics. If they're looking for a used car they rarely type 'used cars' and leave it at that. They're more likely to type 'used ford cars' or 'used ford cars in oxford' etc. By building your Keyword searches you'll find the returns much more accurate, more useful and more valuable. You'll be able to identify opportunities for specific targeting much more easily too - and hence increase the likelihood of bringing worthwhile visitors to your site.
The volume of hits on some search returns shouldn't be dismissed. You may operate in a low volume market. We recently saw examples where the high volume search terms were returning 2,800 searches per month. There was high advertiser competition for the main keywords related to the sector. However, deeper investigation revealed that 110 searches per month were on very specific search terms indeed - common to the sector. We were able to capture those words for our client at nil cost using the exact methods described in this article. The results were 12 enquiries in the following week. Twelve might sound pitiful - but when the item you sell costs £4,500 per unit you can quickly see why any volume is good volume! Don't dismiss low search terms like your competitors might.
For those of you that can't be bothered to read everything!
Distance yourself from your sector/site when using AdWords - think like a customer.
Look for low volume search returns, check the advertiser competition, check the trend to ensure if they are regularly used - and then capture them. Hits add up over the period of a year. Don't ignore them.
Be specific with phrases. Internet users who search for very specific terms are much more likely purchasers of a product or a service. They know exactly what they want and where they are looking - specific and low volume keyword phrases can often be very valuable.
Know your audience - try to take specific keyword phrase traffic to a specific page on your website. Use free tools such as Google Analytics to track traffic to that page. It'll show you the location of visitors and you are able to gauge the effectiveness of your Keywords much more accurately. Monitor for any increases in traffic - daily for the first 2 weeks, then monthly. Fine tune your Keywords based on what Analytics reports.
Use 3-5 lines of searches at a time. It makes the results easier to assess and you're much less likely to overlook the one line that really matters.
Build your Keyword searches carefully. One word at a time if possible. The search return is likely to decrease on every line returned, but the results tend to be of much more value in respect of getting worthwhile visitors to your site.
Search for your competition in a structured manner. Then, check their website keywords and target their traffic if the opportunity is there. People who search for specific companies are a higher value hit as they have already begun the process of restricting their choices. They may not even know you exist - make sure they do.
Keep a log of search volumes for phrases and track your own site position in relation to these searches. Pre-plan your targeting to optimise specific terms when the trend shows volume to generally be higher.
Check mis-spellings. It's an age-old trick but you'll be amazed how many mis-spelled searches are performed every month. Check the figures and allow for them. Someone, someday, will specialise in mis-spelled searches for their sector - and they'll probably get a lot of hits!
Remember to run this exercise regularly - if you know a product is being released, a new service is soon to be offered, or that something is on the horizon - optimise for it in advance. Use AdWords to check search volumes now, next month and so on. Watch for increased searching and you'll be well prepared ahead of the competition.
If you use very generic search terms (single or two words) don't forget to discount the volumes shown to allow for people checking their site rankings and falsely inflating search figures.
People use local and regional terms a lot. Make sure you check the volumes and allow for variances in the wording for how people refer to Towns and Cities. Locations in the UK in particular are regularly suffixed by 'on the' or 'upon' if they are located by rivers - optimise for both full and shortened names.
Remember to run Google searches outside of AdWords (i.e. a standard search on Google.com) to check to see what has worked for others. Don't just rely on AdWord figures alone.
Hard work pays off. Don't think you'll fly to the top of Google if you spend 10 minutes on the job. It takes time and effort but rewards those who put the hours in.
Just when you begin to think that SEO stands for 'Search Engine Optimisation' you'll begin to realise it is more appropriately termed 'Spot Every Opportunity'. The opportunities exist if you spend the time looking for them.
