“Words are more treacherous and powerful than we think” – John Paul Sartre
I’m not ashamed to admit that I am a Harry Potter fan. One of my favorite parts of story are the silly faux-Latin spells that the young wizards use to work their magic.
Blogus Postus Writus…
Is the post done? no? Too bad Harry Potter spells don’t work for Muggle bloggers…
Spells may not work to magically complete blog posts– but word choice is a very powerful internet marketing tool indeed.
Using the “right” keywords in your posts and on your site can help get your information in front of more of your ideal clients. The more people who see what you are up to – -the better chance you have of making a connection.
When I talk to my clients about keywords, the reaction I usually get is either –”what I do is so unique – I wouldn’t even know where to begin to find keywords” or “I know I should be paying more attention to keywords – but using them seems too complicated to me”. There is almost an aura of magic and mystery surrounding the whole keyword concept.
It really isn’t magic — and using keywords doesn’t have to be complicated.
The quickest path to keyword success is to use the words in your content that your potential client types into google to find the solution to their problem.
The trouble is… if you’ve been “doing your thing” for quite a while– it is sometimes hard to know (or remember) how someone who isn’t immersed in your topic would describe what you do.
Here are some tips for finding those magic keywords:
1. Ask A Question One of the most effective ways I have found to elicit keywords from clients is to include a short “ask me a question survey” as part of my opt-in process. I put the survey either on the “you need to confirm your e-mail address” page or on the thank you page after they’ve confirmed their address.
2. Get Social Spend some time on social media (reading people’s blogs, twitter, facebook, etc.) – how are people talking about your subject area? Those are the same words they will use to find you.
3. Use Internet Marketing Ninja Tricks Since keywords are so important – there are tools to help you find what people are actually searching for. A very good place to start is google’s free keyword tool. This tool analyzes your website (or a competitors website) and suggests keywords. It also gives you an idea of how many people are searching for that particular keyword AND how many people are buying pay per click advertising around the term.
Another great tool is Market Samurai. Market Samurai can give you a bounty of keyword ideas, tell you which words actually translate to more sales, give you a sense of who your competitors are for given keywords, find affiliate programs for you based on specific keywords and more. I have used Market Samurai for about 6 months. I find it to be really helpful – even though I feel like I’ve barely scratched the surface of all of its features. Market Samurai offers a 2 week free trial.
In the end, there is no real magic in keywords. Listen to your customers and use their language to describe your offerings.
I come across a lot of small business owners locally who have had designers who didn’t understand SEO and therefore did little to nothing in terms of keyword research or use.
One of the best things about platforms like Blogs is that you can really focus a post on a specific topic. This technique is great for targeting longtail keyword phrases, especially those that include a major keyword phrase you are targeting.
Another good tool for finding what is current is Google trends. It lets you look at what is rising seasonally to better target blog posts or social media.
Thanks Randall – good info…