better a business guide to research, customers: better keyword

A Business Guide toA Business Guide toA Business Guide toKeyword GenerationKeyword GenerationKeyword Generation

Better Research,

Better Customers:

Foreword ................................................................................................ 1

Introduction to Keyword Generation .......................................................... 2

Business Benefits of Keyword Research .................................................... 4

A Customized Approach to Keyword Research ............................................ 7

Top Challenges (and Solutions) of Keyword Generation ............................. 10

Getting Started with Keyword Research and Generation ............................ 11

Quickstart Guide for the Keyword Generation Project Sponsor ................... 15

Quickstart Guide for the Keyword Researcher .......................................... 19

Additional Resources ............................................................................ 46

Better Research, Better Customers:

A Business Guide to Keyword Generation

Better Research, Better Customers: A Business Guide to Keyword Generation | 1

No matter what you plan on doing, from creating a website or social profile to a comprehensive search optimization strategy or pay-per-click advertising campaign, it is essential that you start with keyword research. Your best keyword phrases should be used everywhere from your elevator pitch to your latest social updates.

Once you find out what people are searching for in your industry, you have unlocked the key to succeeding in all areas of online marketing. Let’s take blogging for example. Busi-ness blogs help drive traffic, leads, and great search rankings for long-tail keywords — phrases that usually include three or more words, have lower search volume, but are searched for by a very relevant target audience. If you start with a great keyword list for your business, you will also have a list of great topics to blog about. Then, when you expand upon your main keyword phrases, you will be able to create great content that searchers and search engines alike will love.

Next, let’s think about social media. You can take advantage of the keywords you’ve generated through your research and use them in a variety of ways. For example, you can help ensure that people looking for businesses in your industry will find you by using those keyword phrases in your profiles and updates. You can also use those keyword phrases as search terms to monitor on sites like Twitter so that whenever someone is discussing that keyword phrase, you will be able to jump into the conversation.

Not last, and certainly not least, is search engine optimization (SEO). If you complete your keyword research before you start your website, you will be able to build perfect on-site optimiza-tion by gearing your pages, content, meta tags, and all other elements toward your most important keyword phrases. With this sturdy optimized foundation, you can continue with your off-site SEO via a strong link-building campaign built on creat-ing backlinks for pages using the best optimized keywords.

The best part about performing your keyword research at the earliest date possible is that you can begin your online marketing campaign in the right direction. You’ll lose a sub-stantial investment in your online marketing if you start out targeting terms that are not profitable for your business – so why wait?

If you’ve not yet done the proper keyword research for your company, now’s the time to learn more about it and get started today!

– Kristi Hines

Kristi Hines is an online marketing consul-tant, freelance writer, blogger, and social media enthusiast. Learn more about her at KristiHines.com.

“Keyword research is the foundation of any online marketing campaign.”

Foreword

http://www.kristihines.com


What Is Keyword Generation?Keyword generation is a research and analysis process that helps you find the best words and phrases to use in your marketing

content (e.g., website content, search engine ad copy, product brochures, case studies, sales collateral). The goal is to help you

better reach specific target markets via search engine results.

The keyword generation research process leverages existing knowledge that your marketing team has already built over time,

but also looks at how your products, services, and business benefits are described by competitors, prospects, and experts in the

market. With the use of keyword suggestion tools and keyword combination generation techniques, this list of keywords can be

expanded even further to capture the long-tail versions of the relevant keywords universe.

Why Do You Need Keyword Research?Keywords are used to optimize your content and other online channels. Put simply, the more you use your target keywords

throughout your online content, the easier it will be for your targets to find you. In the end, you will increase traffic to your

website while your company becomes more relevant in the minds of potential prospects.

Discovering the best keywords for your company and using them effectively is necessary for companies to

compete in the market today. Keyword research is no longer the exclusive domain of high-priced specialists;

there are many tools available that your marketing staff can use to execute a keyword generation project.

There are [ 5 ] primary steps involved:

Generate a list of keyword candidates from various sources

Determine a prioritiza-tion scheme based on the intended use of the keywords

Gather keyword metrics to be used in the prioritization process

Select the top key-words using data and your prioritiza-tion scheme

Deliver the keywords

Introduction

to Keyword Generation


“ I often talk about the importance of putting our audience at the center of everything we do and creating

customer-focused marketing plans. Keyword research is fundamental to that process because it allows

marketers to get inside the minds of our buyers — not just in understanding what they are looking for,

but the actual words they are using. Magic happens when businesses create content that

maps directly to their needs and uses our buyers’ own language.”

Michael Brenner Author, B2B Marketing Insider and Senior Director of Inbound Marketing, SAP

Of course, executing on this strategy is no easy task. For example, it can often be a challenge to:

» Ensure comprehensive coverage of keywords and keyword data sources

» Collect accurate, up-to-date keyword data

» Develop a logical, appropriate prioritization system to identify the top keywords

» Obtain buy-in from your organization and ensure that the keywords are being used properly

The first stage of a keyword generation project typically involves researching and collecting data from a number of primary

and secondary sources, and using automated keyword suggestion tools to generate a comprehensive list of possible keywords.

Next, the keywords are prioritized, taking into account the following three factors and/or their proxies, if actual metrics are

hard to calculate or are unavailable:

1. Search volume: The number of searches being done on a particular keyword over a given period, which indicates the potential volume of search-originated traffic for that keyword.

2. Competition: A measure of the difficulty to generate a unit of search-originated traffic for that particular keyword.

3. Audience relevance: A measure of the quality of the traffic generated by that particular keyword.

Remember, keyword selection is not a one-time project, and should be incorporated into a regular update and refresh schedule.

http://www.b2bmarketinginsider.com/


Identifying and using the most effective keywords enables

you to optimize your marketing efforts in several ways:

Paid search engine marketing will benefi t immediately from keywords with lower cost-per-click (CPC) or higher conversion rates.

Strategic and consistent use of keywords throughout your online content will undoubtedly allow your site to attain better organic search engine visibility (i.e., higher rankings in search engine result pages).

Business Benefits of Keyword Research

1.

2.

The top keywords should form the core of your messaging in other mediums

as well, including social media. Your non-textual content,

such as videos and podcasts, can be tagged with relevant

keywords and linked to other online content.


Keyword Research Tips for Online Marketers

Keywords are the lifeblood of your SEO campaign; pick the wrong ones and you won’t get very far. For

your SEO efforts to be successful, you must properly identify the terms that your site should be target-

ing to ensure maximum ROI and conversions. To get you started, here are five keyword research tips that

online marketers should take advantage of.

1. Use Your Noggin. First, brainstorm all the terms that you think a customer would type into a search bar

when trying to find you. Stay away from jargon and buzzwords, and hone in on the phrases that describe your

products, your company, and what you do. Make note of research-related terms, buying-oriented terms, and

terms that cover the gamut of what you offer to customers. If you were searching for you, what terms would

you use?

2. Use the Right Tools. Employing keyword research tools can help you discover additional opportuni-

ties, while also allowing you to see search activity for those terms. This will tell you whether or not a particular

phrase is worth prioritizing and how competitively it will likely rank. Tools like Google AdWords, WordStream,

Wordtracker, and SEMRush are invaluable for this purpose.

3. Use Your Analytics and Site Search Data. Between site analytics and log files, marketers are able

to find two very important bits of information: the keywords that are currently sending traffic to the website and

the terms users are searching for once they get there. Armed with this information, site owners can find oppor-

tunities to increase traffic for terms that are already converting, as well as identify new keyword opportunities

based on what users are searching your site for.

https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal

http://www.wolf-howl.com/go/wordstream/

http://www.wordtracker.com/

http://www.wolf-howl.com/go/semrush/


4. Use Social Media. Be it Twitter, Facebook, or a popular blog/forum, your customers are coming together

online to talk about their industry. When they do, what terms are they using? How are they describing what

you do, what you sell, and what you offer? What language are they using? One of the great things about social

media is that it allows you to observe your customers without them knowing it. As a result, they act and speak

more naturally. By carefully monitoring and then using customers’ natural language, you’ll be able to target

stronger keywords.

5. Use Others. You’re an expert at what you do. Because of that, you may have difficulty thinking like

“normal users” and speaking their language. To help, ask people who aren’t experts what they would type into

a search bar to find you. Consult friends, colleagues, current customers, and so on. You can also “ask” Google

what terms it finds most relevant to your business by noting the related searches Google populates at the bot-

tom of your results page. If Google thinks two terms are related, it’s because users have told them so through

the way they search.

Lisa Barone Chief Branding Officer Outspoken Media

http://outspokenmedia.com/


You should launch your keyword generation project by following the basic framework of conducting research, analyzing data,

and prioritizing keywords. The scope and depth of the project, however, will depend on the intended use of the output.

Therefore, your keyword generation process should start off with a clear definition of the scope.

Typical scoping factors include the desired number of keywords to be generated as well as the number of products and market

segments your content focuses on. More often than not, it is best to generate a separate set of keywords for each product and

market segment. This will help ensure that your keywords and content are as focused as possible on the appropriate prospects,

and hence bring about the best outcome for your online search marketing efforts.

Desired Roles for a Keyword Research Project

The project sponsor, typically a VP of marketing or director of online marketing, who is responsible for setting the goals and scope of the project and ensuring that its outputs are leveraged in the manner intended.

The keyword researcher, who is responsible for executing or leveraging other resources to execute the research and analysis steps in the project.

The online content manager (and/or social media manager), who is responsible for ensuring that the keywords are used in online content. While not required, it could be helpful to have this person involved in the research process, as he or she will ulti-mately help ensure that the keywords found in the research are used in practice.

A Customized Approach to Keyword Research

There are three primary roles in the keyword generation

process:


Criteria for Success

The success of a keyword generation project will depend on the quality of the keywords that are

identified, and whether the keywords are used correctly to optimize online marketing content,

hence leading to higher traffic to the site.

Examples of metrics include:

» Increased organic search traffic for selected keywords.

» Increasing prominence of each target keyword in search engine results.

» More site visitors because of each target keyword increase.

» A low bounce rate and a high conversion of visitors from the target keywords.

» Decreased average cost per click.

Keep in mind...Even with the right set of keywords, traffic may not increase if the keywords are not used correctly. Therefore, an increase in

organic search traffic might only be a consequence of good keyword selection — not necessarily a result — and thus is not

really a good success metric per se.


In the old days (2009), keyword research was fairly straight-

forward. You researched what folks were searching for and

generated a targeted page of content around those phrases.

You then did your SEO, built some links, and hoped to rank.

If you were successful, you could scale this process. Many

content farms rose to prominence and dominated search

results by producing tens of thousands of pages target-

ing every keyword phrase imaginable. The quality of this

content wasn’t always the best, and many prominent people

complained to Google about the value of its search results.

In early 2011, Google responded by releasing what has

become known as the Panda Update. The most sophisticated

algorithm update in search engine history, Panda affected

more than 12 percent of Google’s search results and took

direct aim at content farms.

Panda uses human quality raters to look at sites, then

employs complex machine learning to mimic those human

rates to evaluate millions of pages across the Internet. If a

quality rater (or Google’s search engine) sees page after page

of similar looking content, or content based on slight key-

word variations, it could count as a strike against your site.

In the age of Panda, keyword research isn’t about produc-

ing junk content around every conceivable variation of a

keyword. Today, we recommend finding the best “natural”

keywords that your visitors are searching for, and creat-

ing comprehensive, high-quality content around a tightly

focused topic.

Supplemental keywords can be used to enhance your focus.

Instead of “stuffing” your content with the same keywords

over and over, fill it with highly relevant text that contains

semantically related language. For example, if your key-

word phrase was “Houston auto insurance,” you could use

Google’s Keyword Tool to find related phrases like “auto

insurance comparison” and “full coverage” that might help

strengthen your contextual signals for targeted keywords.

The best advice in the age of Panda is to use keyword

research to create the best, most comprehensive quality con-

tent that you can. Don’t game the system. This is a practice

that works best for both search engines and humans, and

will continue to improve as search engines evolve.

There are many common challenges and pitfalls that can

derail a keyword research project. On the following page

are just a few examples, with ideas for getting around each.

Cyrus Shepard

SEO Navigator, SEOmoz

What Does Google Panda Mean for Keyword Research?

http://blog.openviewpartners.com/does-google-panda-signal-the-end-of-seo-as-we-know-it/

http://www.seomoz.org/


1. Incomplete Coverage. With a research-dependent process such as keyword generation, a common pitfall involves not having complete coverage of input sources or prioritization data, which will result in incomplete or deficient output. To alleviate this, the keyword generation team needs to be exhaustive in its planning of research activities, be open to input from all staff members so they don’t miss any major data sources, and stick to their research plan even it requires additional time or resources.

2. Faulty Prioritization Criteria. A poor understanding of the prioritization process can lead to the wrong/ inappropriate prioritization criteria being applied. To avoid this, use the tried-and-true prioritization scheme described by experts in the field as a reference, and make sure that each factor in the ranking process makes logical sense.

3. Inaccurate Data. Bad data (e.g., outdated data sources, data entry errors, and data corruption) can be intro-duced at a number of points in the process, particularly during calculation or prioritization. To alleviate this, the keyword researcher should always check for a data source’s last date of update/refresh, check for data entry mis-takes, and keep backups of data files during the process.

4. Lack of Buy-In. The prioritization process and its final outputs might not be completely accepted by the stake-holders. This is expected, as team members who do not participate directly in the process may have questions about the prioritization criteria and research process, or might simply have strong opinions about particular key-words. To address this, keep all stakeholders on the same page, be extremely transparent about the research and prioritization process, and make clear that keyword generation is an iterative process, whereby after each “run,” further inputs and feedback are collected to be incorporated the next time.

Top Challenges (and Solutions) of Keyword Generation


Your company can initiate a keyword generation project immediately if you put the proper focus on the effort. The following

resources include high-level process guides and checklists that will help the people in each role perform their activities rela-

tively quickly.

» Checklist for the Keyword Generation Project Sponsor (page 12)

» Checklist for the Keyword Researcher (page 13)

» Checklist for the Online Content and/or Social Media Manager (page 14)

» Quickstart Guide for the Keyword Generation Project Sponsor (page 15)

» Quickstart Guide for the Keyword Researcher (page 19)

We’ve also provided a number of templates and sample questionnaires to be used during the research and analysis phases.

They are:

» Sample Primary Keyword Research Questionnaire (page 31) — Use this spreadsheet to record data collected during interviews, material reviews, and database mining.

» Keyword-Driven Website Content Analysis Framework (page 35) — A guide that shows you how to analyze website content to discover keywords.

» Sample Keyword Research Output Spreadsheet (page 44) — Use this template to record detailed information about keywords, including their sources.

Getting Started with Keyword Research and Generation


Checklist for the Keyword Generation Project SponsorThe sponsor is responsible for setting the goals and scope of the project and ensuring that its outputs are leveraged in the

manner intended. This short checklist can help ensure that the keyword prioritization scheme is clear and well understood.

I have developed and finalized a project execution plan.

I have finalized the prioritization scheme with input from other stakeholders.

I have finalized the adoption plan of action to ensure the effective use of keywords.

I have worked with the keyword researcher to produce a presentation that will deliver the final keywords and develop a plan

to update them in the future.


Checklist for the Keyword ResearcherThe researcher is responsible for executing or leveraging other resources to execute the research and analysis steps in the project.

This checklist can help the researcher generate the highest quality keyword list.

I have a project execution plan that has been approved by the project sponsor and agreed upon by other team members.

I have taken the following steps to ensure primary and secondary research success:

» Scheduled interviews with relevant staff members

» Reviewed prior keyword research results

» Reviewed our present marketing materials

» Secured access to data sources such as website analytics, paid search analytics, site search analytics, and referral analytics

» Compiled competitors’ names, websites, and publicly available materials

» Compiled industry reports

» Compiled lists of the most important websites in the selected segment(s)

The research and prioritization processes are transparent and accessible to all stakeholders.

The data is high-quality and the output is sound.

I have in place:

» A standardized data entry template

» A standardized data entry procedure

» A standardized research output template

I have conducted a rigorous data review.

I have incorporated feedback and input from all stakeholders on the output of the project,

and will incorporate their feedback as appropriate.

The keyword list is the best list possible.


Checklist for the Online Content and/or Social Media ManagerOf course, generating a list is only half the battle. The next step is to make sure the right keywords are used properly in online

content. This basic checklist can be used by the content and/or social media manager to maintain a practice for implementing

your overall keyword and SEO strategy.

I have vetted and am comfortable with the project execution plan.

I have developed an adoption plan of action for the output of the project.

I will participate in key primary research steps in the project:

» Interviews with relevant team members

» Review of existing marketing content

» Review of competitors’ marketing content

» Review of previous keyword research


Quickstart Guide for the

Keyword Generation Project SponsorIn this guide:

» Finalizing the Project Execution Plan — Covering all the keyword generation bases

» Finalizing the Prioritization Scheme — How to obtain feedback from other stakeholders

» Finalizing the Adoption Plan of Action — Tips to promote the effective use of keywords

» Delivering the Final Keywords — Developing a plan to update your keyword list in the future

FINALIZING THE PROJECT EXECUTIONAs the keyword generation project sponsor, it is your responsibility to work with the keyword researcher to develop a detailed

execution plan, ensure that the plan proceeds as expected, and resolve any issues along the way. Foresight will be extremely

important while reviewing the plan and making adjustments. It will be important to ensure that the execution plan:

» has a concrete timeline for each step in the process, as well as a clear end point

» takes into account other team members’ input and feedback

» allows for a rigorous prioritization process as agreed upon in principle by the stakeholders

» allows for the review and iteration of the output with feedback from stakeholders

» is realistic and achievable

» allows for a smooth transition to the next stage of the project (implementation and adoption of keywords)

Managing an SEO Project (Joseph Phillips, ProjectSmart.co.uk)Additional resource:


FINALIZING THE PRIORITIZATION SCHEMEThe prioritization scheme can be the most contentious step in the process, as it has far-reaching consequences for keyword

output and adoption. As the project sponsor (and ultimately the person in charge of the output), you should actively seek out

feedback from stakeholders, in particular team members who will be using the keywords.

Fortunately, prioritization schemes are not a completely unknown area; there are many well-known, well-tested prioritization

criterion sets that have been created and refi ned over time by keyword research experts. Use these as a starting point while

developing your own prioritization criteria.

Any prioritization process will require that large amounts of data be collected and analyzed, and the prioritization scheme will

determine the scope and depth of this research. If time and resources are limited, you may want to choose a less rigorous,

less data-driven approach to prioritization.

You can also structure your prioritization process so that there are rounds of short-listing, each one more focused than the

previous, with each round requiring more data points on a smaller set of keywords than the previous. This approach enables you

to optimize your data collection process, as the keyword researcher only has to collect the full set of data points for the most

important keywords instead of doing it for every single keyword found.

Keyword Effectiveness Index (KEI) with Google Keyword Data (Vince Law, Maverick Web Creations)

Additional Prioritization Variables to Consider (Russ Altman)

Keyword Selection (Astra Consultants)

How Do I Prioritize Keywords For My Search Campaign? (Jeff Shi, clickTRUE)

Determining Keyword Value: A Recipe for Prioritizing Page Optimizations (Nuno Andrade, SEOmoz)

Keyword Selection for SEO Part III: Prioritizing Your Keywords (SEO Site Checkup)

Additional resources:


FINALIZING THE ADOPTION PLAN OF ACTIONDeveloping a list of keywords is the starting point, but the real measure of success will be how the keywords are used, adopted,

and leveraged in your content. To ensure that the keywords are used effectively, you need an adoption plan of action. It will

be your responsibility to develop this plan, or if you have an online content manager involved in the project, he or she should

develop the plan and get your approval on it.

Key questions to ask while developing the adoption plan of action are:

» Who will be using the keywords after they are developed and finalized?

» How will the adoption of those keywords have a positive impact on the team?

» How do we measure that positive impact?

A typical adoption plan of action will include the following components:

» A clear definition of adoption goals and measures, based on milestones. For example, a milestone can be: Rewriting all webpage titles to include selected keywords, when appropriate, by Week 4.

» A clear definition of all tasks required to achieve the milestones and the team member(s) responsible. The tasks include:

- Training team members on the use of keywords in content writing

- Creating content guidelines to help ensure that keywords are adopted

- Updating website content based on new keyword guidelines

» A clear set of reviews and meetings to ensure that milestones are being met and success is being measured.


DELIVERING THE FINAL KEYWORDS AND PLANNING FOR UPDATESBesides the project kick-off meeting, the final delivery of the keywords (i.e., the output) is the single most important meeting.

Here are some tips to make sure you’re prepared:

» Have a clear agenda

» Schedule time for questions and feedback

» Review the final presentation carefully and ensure that it communicates both the output and the research process clearly and succinctly

» Send out the presentation in advance to give attendees a chance to review and formulate their feedback beforehand.

Finally, conduct a mini-planning session with the keyword researcher to plan for a future update of the keyword list. Market

conditions change very quickly, and your keyword list can become obsolete in a short period of time.

Exactly how often you refresh your keyword list will depend on your company’s resources, priorities, and operational rhythms.

But at the very least, schedule a future meeting to review your results, as this will give your team an opportunity to decide

whether to adjust the keyword list. Also, communicate your plans well with the stakeholders so they are aware of your future

intentions.


Quickstart Guide for the

Keyword ResearcherIn this guide:

» Working With the Project Sponsor — Understanding the goals for the project and the adoption plan of action

» Compiling a Comprehensive List of “Candidate” Keywords — How to develop a list from primary and secondary resources

» Categorizing Keywords — Organizing keywords by type, content, and source

» Generating Additional Keywords — How to use keyword suggestion tools

» Defining a Prioritization Scheme — Developing a plan based on the intended use of the keywords

» Collecting Prioritization Data — How to determine the value of your keywords

» Applying the Prioritization Scheme — How to shortlist and rank the keywords

» Organizing/Presenting the Keywords — Tips for incorporating feedback from stakeholders

» Maintenance — How and why to keep your keyword list constantly updated

WORKING WITH THE PROJECT SPONSORThe project sponsor is responsible for developing the project execution plan, working with you to finalize the prioritization scheme,

developing and finalizing an adoption plan of action, and helping to develop the presentation where you deliver the final outputs

(keywords). Make sure you are collaborating closely along the way, so that you understand all the goals for the project.

The project sponsor is a resource for you when you need access to data sources, input and feedback from other team members,

as well as resources from the company. The key to a successful collaboration is to establish a regular working rhythm with the

sponsor so that you can communicate your needs and he or she can review your work and provide feedback. A project like this

tends to involve a lot of detailed data; try not to get the sponsor too involved with the data collection and analysis during the

review and feedback meetings, as that will prevent them from staying focused on the higher-level outputs and methodology

(i.e., “the big picture”).


COMPILING A COMPREHENSIVE LIST OF “CANDIDATE” KEYWORDSAs the keyword researcher, your first step is to gather an extensive list of keywords and key phrases from primary and secondary

resources. You can do this through interviews and review/analysis of existing materials.

INTERVIEWS

You should interview people in your organization to identify keywords they use to describe, market, and position your product.

Consult the following to ensure a multi-faceted response:

» Members of the marketing team: How do we message to our prospects?

» Members of the sales team: What are the key selling points of our product?

» Members of the customer service team: How do customers derive value from our products?

» Senior executive team: What is our organization’s vision?

» Product managers: What is the vision/future of our product and what is the market’s reaction?

» Senior members of marketing, product management, and management teams: What specific branded keywords (and phrases) would we like to feature prominently in our content, regardless of the prioritization process?

Note: If you have an online content manager on staff, he or she should be the person who conducts these interviews. This will

help the online content manager develop a better understanding of the perspectives and inputs of each team member, result-

ing in a better understanding of how the keywords can be used while generating content in the future.

REVIEW AND ANALYSIS

Of your marketing materials — to identify keywords already in use, effectively leveraging prior research and analysis done by

your marketing department and/or outsourced consultants. Typically, these materials include, but are not limited to:

» Results and data files of prior keyword generation/keyword research projects

» Website content: home page, product page, features description, testimonial page

» Downloadable content: white papers, blog posts, case studies

» Sales collateral: sales presentations, sales e-mail scripts, call scripts

» Any market research outputs such as survey responses, interview transcripts, etc.

» Product marketing and marketing strategy documents or outputs


Of your competitors’ publicly available marketing materials — to identify keywords used to describe your competitors’ products

and positioning in the market, effectively leveraging their product marketing and market research results. Competitors can typi-

cally be segmented into the following groups:

» Direct pure play competitors: Competitors that directly compete with the products/services you offer in the segment that you are targeting.

» Direct non-pure play competitors: Competitors that directly compete with the products/services you offer, although they also compete with other product/service offerings outside of your scope.

» Substitute product/services: Vendors that do not compete directly with you, although their products/services are considered alternatives or substitutes for your products/services.

» Mindshare competitors: Vendors that do not compete directly against your products, but whose marketing and sales activi-ties compete for the mindshare of your target prospects, capturing buzz and attention that would otherwise benefit your sales and marketing effort.

Collecting and analyzing competitors’ material is harder than reviewing your own, so the review should be more limited in

scope, typically involving:

» Website content, website keywords, website text links, features description

» Communications (newsletters, blogs, social media content, white papers, case studies)

» Search engine marketing (paid keywords, paid search copywriting)

Of important industry reports and related resources — to identify keywords that are used and widely accepted in your industry.

If your timeline and resources allow, consider the additional research step of interviewing key industry experts and influencers.

Of internal data sources — that provide information on your company’s website visitors’ and customers’ behavior, such as:

» Website analytics data, in particular data around key searches being performed by users on your website, keywords/links that lead visitors to your website (search referral)

» The Customer Relationship Management (CRM) software database, which typically contains information about prospects’ interaction with marketing and sales channels

» A customer support database, such as a support ticketing system, which contains rich first-hand data on customers’ expe-riences and reactions with your product and services

» A customer forum (if your company has created a customer community), which gives you a great, low-cost way of getting in touch with customers to gather their input on the potential keywords for your organization and product


CATEGORIZING KEYWORDSAs you gather keywords, categorize them by type, content, and source. Most keywords found while compiling an initial set fall

under one of the categories discussed below. Record the category as you collect and enter keywords into the master keyword

list. Be sure to consider all of these categories as you analyze materials to help you identify potential candidate keywords to

add to your keyword list:

» Proper names/trademarks — These are proper or trademarked names of organizations, processes, or products that are more or less widely accepted and understood and are used to describe other similar or related products. For example, the keyword “Microsoft Outlook plug-in” can be understood easily because everyone is familiar with Microsoft Outlook, which is trademarked software.

» Product/service generic description — These keywords provide generic descriptions of the products or services that a com-pany provides; they are typically high-level, general, and do not convey a lot of distinction. For example, “spend manage-ment software.”

» Product/service features — These keywords describe the qualities and characteristics of a company’s products or services in non-technical terms. For example, “time tracking” or “task delegation.”

» Problems that the product/service solves — The pain points that drive customers to purchase the products or services offered. For example, “communication overload” or “spam.”

» Technical terms/technical terminology — Technical terms can be found in the classification of the product/software, as well as in industry reports, industry websites, and resources where more generic, standardized key phrases are used to describe the product or service. For example, “cloud computing platform,” “cloud-based storage” or “.NET development platform.”

» Business benefits — The benefits a business/user will enjoy from using a company’s products or services. For example, “faster processing” or “easy file access.”

» Emotional reactions — For certain product categories, the emotional reaction of the user/buyer is important, and therefore keywords that describe these responses are important. For example, “happy computing” or “awesome project management software.”

» Branded keywords — These are specific keywords that are identified or prioritized for a “branding” reason, in accordance with a company’s marketing and market strategy. For example, a company’s product name, unique tagline, or a unique description of the product can constitute “branded” or “chosen” keywords that need to be prioritized outside of the normal prioritization process.


Keyword Sources

While gathering keywords, it’s also important to note their source of origin. A keyword might be found across

multiple sources (e.g., in interviews with marketing and sales team members, Web visitor search terms, a top

competitor’s website, and so on). The sources not only signify the prevalence of the keyword, but also help identify

the audiences that will respond well to the keyword. As such, the sources might become an important factor

during the prioritization process, as they will relate to the “audience relevance” factor.

This guide contains three template documents to help you get started on this process.

Sample Primary Keyword Research Questionnaire (page 31)

Use this data collection tool to

record information you obtain

during interviews, material

reviews, and database mining.

It is designed to help you struc-

ture the interview process with

your organization’s staff, indus-

try experts, and influencers.

Figure 1: Screenshot of the Keyword Generation Input Workbook }

1.

Keyword-Driven Website Content Analysis Framework (page 35)

Use this guide when analyzing website content to uncover keywords; it shows you how to review HTML sources as well as down-

loadable content such as white papers, testimonials, and case studies.

Sample Keyword Research Output Spreadsheet (page 44)

Use this template to record detailed information about each keyword and its source(s).

2.

3.


1. Go to the following link to access the Google AdWords

Keyword Suggestion Tool:

https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal

2. Enter one or more keywords that have been found

through the previous steps into the box.

3. Complete the Captcha requirement.

4. Click on the “Search” button.

5. A list of suggested key phrases will appear.

Keyword suggestion tools tend to over-deliver in that they

provide keywords that are rarely used, or single-word key-

words that are overly used. To counter that, do not record

single-word key phrases or any key phrases with more than

three words when using the Google Keyword Suggestion Tool.

For example, “remote online backup” and “online backup”

should be recorded, while “backup” and “Arizona backup

online data services” should not be recorded.

Note

GENERATING ADDITIONAL KEYWORDSIf you’ve followed the fi rst two steps, by now you probably have a very large set of keywords. However, to be comprehensive, you

will need to round up the “long tail” (the lesser known keywords) by using keyword suggestion tools.

Keyword suggestion tools take a keyword or a list of keywords and return a number of keywords that are related or similar. By

running each of your initial keywords through a keyword suggestion tool, you will develop a far more comprehensive list of key-

words. To see how this works, check out Google’s free tool by following these steps:


Other similar tools include:The WordStream Keyword Tool (http://www.wordstream.com/keywords/)

The Wordtracker Keyword Suggestion Tool

(http://freekeywords.wordtracker.com/)

You can create an even more comprehensive

list of keywords by generating them based on

combinations of existing keywords, or by add-

ing adjectives and other modifi ers to existing

keywords. This tactic, however, should only

be used when your goal is to generate a list of

thousands of long-tail keywords.

3 Steps to Turning Hundreds of Keywords into Millions (Search Engine Land)

How to Organize Your Keyword Modifi ers to Create Long Tail Keywords (Search Engine Land)



DEFINING A PRIORITIZATION SCHEMEThe prioritization scheme can be the most contentious step in the process, as it has far-reaching consequences for keyword out-

put and adoption. Therefore, be sure to work closely with the project sponsor to develop the scheme, and seek out direct input

from other team members as well.

The first step is to understand more deeply the intended use of the output. Understanding how a keyword will be used will help

you see what makes a keyword potentially “better” or “worse” for a particular use. For example:

» If the keywords are meant to be used in an upcoming pay-per-click campaign with the goal of lowering conversion cost while maintaining total conversions, then average cost-per-click is a direct indicator of the conversion cost of the keywords. The number of searches done will matter as well, as keywords with very few searchers are not likely to help prevent a drop in total conversions.

» If the keywords are meant to be used in a website SEO makeover, then the current website’s Google organic search ranking position for those keywords will be a factor.

When considering a keyword, evaluate its potential by examining three main categories:

1. Search volume, or the number of searches being done on a particular keyword over a given period, which indicates the

potential volume of search-originated traffic for that keyword.

2. Competition, a measure of the difficulty to generate a unit of search-originated traffic for that particular keyword.

3. Audience relevance, a measure of the quality of the traffic generated by that particular keyword.

Typically, a keyword ranks higher if it has greater search volume, lower competition, and high audience relevance.

A prioritization scheme takes into account these factors in one form or another, but this combination can also take several

forms. For example, many SEO specialists use the Keyword Effectiveness Index (KEI) to prioritize keywords. The definition

of the KEI is as follows:

KEI = Number of Monthly Keyword Searches/Number of Pages in Google Results

Here, the ranking formula employs two factors: search volume and competition.


The logic behind this is simple: If a keyword is searched more often (higher number of monthly searches), then there is a better

chance of your content being found through Google. On the other hand, the more pages in Google Results, the more “competi-

tion” there is for a webpage to stand out and be found. This inverted relationship translates directly into the KEI formula above.

But the KEI is clearly not a magic formula that can be used in any situation, nor is it an absolute measure of “goodness” of the

keyword. In fact, the KEI only helps rank keywords relative to each other. Furthermore, it also considers them equal in attract-

ing visitors of the same relevance, while in reality, this is not the case.

Other prioritization schemes might not be based on a formula at all, but on a set of conditions and ranking criteria. These are

more appropriate when non-numerical values are considered, such as when the keyword type and source are taken into account

when prioritizing.

The following is a list of typical metrics and factor types used most commonly in keyword prioritization (note that the last two

metrics might be indicative of two factors at the same time, and should be used with caution):

Metric Factor Type Typical Usage Source of Data

Keyword Length Search VolumeSearch Engine Optimization, Content Creation

Number of Monthly Searches

Search VolumeSearch Engine Optimization, Search Engine Marketing

Google Keyword Tool

Trend of Number of Monthly Searches

Search Volume Search Engine Marketing Google, Hitwise, Compete

Number of Google ResultsCompetition (for Organic Search Keyword Generation)

Search Engine Optimization, Other Online Marketing Initiative

Google.com

Advertiser Competition (number of advertisers bidding for the same keywords)

Competition (for Paid Search Keyword Generation)

Search Engine Marketing, Search Engine Optimization

Google Keyword Tool


Metric Factor Type Typical Usage Source of Data

Average Cost-per-ClickCompetition (for Paid Search Keyword Generation)

Search Engine Marketing, Search Engine Optimization

Google Adwords, Paid Search Report

Content Type Audience RelevanceSearch Engine Optimization, Market Research

Research Output Workbook

Source Audience RelevanceSearch Engine Optimization, Market Research

Research Output Workbook

Current Average Click-Through Rate

Audience Relevance/Com-petition

Search Engine MarketingWebsite Analytics, Public Site Analytics (from Com-pete.com for example)

Number of Referred VisitorsVolume/Competition Search Engine Optimization

Search Engine Marketing, Market Research

Website Analytics, Pay-Per-Click Analytics

How to Take the Guesswork Out of Keyword Selection (Web Pro News)

Selection of Best Keyword: A Poisson Regression Model (Journal of Interactive Advertising)

Factors to Consider When Selecting Keywords (Helium)



COLLECTING PRIORITIZATION DATAOnce you have defined the prioritization scheme, the next step is to collect relevant data points (i.e., examine the data sources)

for each keyword. This is another resource-intensive step, as the keyword numbers at this stage often run to hundreds or even

thousands, and not all data points are readily available. Some sources have limits on the number of searches or data requests

per day, and therefore it takes longer to collect the data.

In situations where there are a large number of keywords to be processed, collecting all of the prioritization data for every single

keyword would be impractical. An alternative would be to use an iterative approach.

Here’s how it works:

Let’s say there are 1,000 keywords to be prioritized based on a set of five factors, of which three are easy to quantify and two

are not. You might want to first collect data on the three easy factors for the whole set of 1,000 keywords. Using these data

points, you can apply your prioritization scheme, while ignoring the steps that involve the two hard-to-quantify factors.

The result is not a fully prioritized list, but one that is prioritized enough to let you immediately remove the bottom 500-600

words. With the remaining words, you can continue getting data points from one of the remaining factors, using that data to

help you prioritize the list again. After this step, once again you can shortlist the set to 100-200 words. At this step, you can

finally add the last set of data points, and fully prioritize the remaining words.

APPLYING THE PRIORITIZATION SCHEMEOnce keyword metrics have been collected, the next step is straightforward: apply the prioritization scheme to the list and iden-

tify the top keywords.

A lot of data will be manipulated and updated in the process. Therefore, keep an audit trail of each intermediate step, so that

when requested, the raw data files can be presented. This helps ensure maximum transparency in the process, and also creates

backup data files that you can use to identify and correct any data errors that may be discovered after the process is completed.

ORGANIZING AND PRESENTING THE KEYWORDSOnce the keyword list is generated, you might want to add other information required to support the adoption plan of action for

these keywords. Recheck the adoption plan of action to identify any missing “actionable” data.


For example, to make sure that a list of keywords can be used while creating SEO website content, you will need to organize them

by topics, or themes, and identify ones that are exchangeable. With the list organized this way, the content writers can choose the

appropriate keywords to include in their materials with the right keyword density and avoid repeating the same keywords.

Together with the project sponsor (and the online content manager, if the role is present), you can develop a presentation that

explains the project’s scope and goals, the research process used, and how you prioritized the keywords. Schedule a generous

amount of time at the end of the presentation for questions and answers, and for any feedback from stakeholders.

Actively seek out feedback from stakeholders, especially those who will be using the keywords, as this is the best way to

ensure collective buy-in and a sense of ownership of the output. If there are a lot of questions, schedule a follow-up meeting to

address them; in the meantime, you can do additional work to incorporate the feedback obtained during the presentation.

MAINTAINING A CONSTANTLY UPDATED KEYWORD LISTKeyword research is not a one-off project. Even as you wrap things up, think about how your process, templates, and data can

be reused for future keyword generation projects. Perhaps there are other products or target segments for which your company

will need to generate effective keywords in the future. In fact, you already may have found many of these keywords while gener-

ating your initial list. Therefore, make sure you index all data fi les, interview notes, and any other materials you collected during

the initial process, and organize and store them in a location accessible for retrieval later.

Consider building a master list/database of all keywords found in the process (not just the prioritization process, but all key-

words identifi ed through research and via keyword suggestion tools), including all prioritization data you have collected for each

keyword. Over time, this will be where you store all keywords relevant to the segments and products your company is targeting,

allowing you to build upon the existing knowledge and data you’ve collected for future projects.

As the project ends, work with the project sponsor (or online content manager, if the role is present) to plan for a refresh of the

keyword list. Depending on your company’s resource allocation and operational rhythm, plan to rerun the process in six months to

one year to ensure that your keyword strategy is not outdated. In many organizations, there is a dedicated keyword manager who

constantly updates the keyword list based on continuously capturing and analyzing feedback and input from the market. At the

very least, schedule future tasks to measure the success of your keywords in terms of achieving their intended usage.

Building a Smart Keyword Infrastructure (WordStream)Additional resource:


Sample PRIMARY KEYWORD RESEARCH QUESTIONNAIREThis data collection tool can be used to record keyword information obtained during interviews, material reviews, and database

mining. It is designed to help structure the interview process with your organization’s staff, industry experts, and influencers.

Companies with multiple customer segments should focus on the following questions as they relate to the selected segment/

product market for the project. It’s also important to determine whether you are targeting a business or a consumer. Keep this

in mind when asking the following questions and skip the areas that do not apply to your target focus.

NOTE: Ask your interviewees to try to answer the following questions with keywords/phrases or listings of names and products

as much as possible.

CUSTOMER PROFILE

General Characteristics » If applicable, describe the typical industries/verticals that your customers work in. Order this list (if there are multiple industries) by the percentage of your current customer base in that industry.

» If applicable, describe the geographical distribution/concentration of your customers.

» If applicable, describe the typical age group of your customers.

» If applicable, describe the typical gender of your customers.

» If applicable, describe the average income range of your customers.

Organizational Characteristics » Describe the job titles/positions of your company’s typical customers. Order this list (if there are multiple titles/positions) by the percentage of your customer base in each particular position.

» List the departments in which your company’s typical customers work. Order this list (if there are multiple departments) by the percentage of your current customer base in each department.

» Describe the typical roles and responsibilities of your customers with respect to their companies/organizations.

» Describe the business model that your typical customer tends to follow (e.g., product manufacturer, product vendor, product reseller, professional services, etc.).

» Describe the size of organizations that your company typically targets. Describe this by either number of employees, revenue, or classifications such as small business/medium business/enterprise.

» Describe the number of locations or branches, if there are more than one, in your target customer’s organization.


Industry

» How do your customers describe the products and services offered?

» If your customers target individuals or organizations that belong to a particular association or have specific affiliations, please list.

» If applicable, list specific compliance requirements your customers are expected to satisfy (e.g., Sarbanes-Oxley).

» If your company is targeting customers that use a specific methodology/process/approach, list all terms that are used to describe each methodology/process/approach. For example, if a customer takes an agile approach, you might write “agile development,” “scrum,” “extreme programming,” etc.

» Do your target customers hold any certifications? If yes, list them in priority order.

Technology

» If applicable, describe the typical IT environment of your customers (e.g., Windows Server, Linux Server, networked PC machines, etc.).

» Describe the industry or vertical-specific software and technologies that are used by your customers (e.g., Dentix is used exclusively by dental practices).

» Describe the typical level of IT expertise your customers have (e.g., IT administrators, non-technical end users, etc.).

» What is the typical IT budget allowed by your customers’ organizations? What is your customers’ typical IT budget if they are individual consumers?

» If applicable, list other IT technologies that are being used by your customers (beyond standard software applications commonly found in other corporate environments).

Other Characteristics

» List any additional keywords/phrases that describe your target customers. List any keywords/phrases or short descriptive sentences that describe them.

» If applicable, list the publications that your customers typically read.


PRODUCT PROFILE

Product Features

» List the main features of your company’s products/services. If there are additional names used to describe these features, please list.

» List the typical pain points that your solution resolves.

» List alternative solutions to similar pain points addressed by your product(s) (i.e., solutions that do something radically different than the solution(s) that both you and your competitors offer).

» List additional benefits that your products/services offer to businesses that may not have been previously listed when describing overall functionality or pain points.

» List any special characteristics associated with your products/services that have not been listed elsewhere. Keep in mind descriptive or definitive keywords/phrases about the product and list them here.

Product Technical Characteristics

» How would you categorize your product as compared to the overall software industry?

» If your product is specific to a particular industry/vertical, how would you describe that industry/vertical?

» How do you describe the overall functionality of your software? What is its application to the customer’s business?

» How does your product/service reach its audience (e.g., SaaS, installed, hosted, on demand)?

» What operating system is your product compatible with?

Product Market Characteristics

» List keywords/phrases that are commonly used to describe the product market in which your company competes.

» Briefly describe or quote how the product market is being positioned by industry analyst reports.

» How is your product related to other software applications in the market? What is the granular breakdown of your product’s immediate market?


POSITIONING

» Briefly state your main value propositions to your target customer’s segment.

» List all of your messages and taglines here.

» Describe your pricing model and strategy around pricing. Provide details on how your pricing compares to that of your com-petitors (e.g., cheaper, more expensive, etc.).

» Describe your distribution model. What is the structure of your model (i.e., partner characteristics)?

» What is your company’s mission statement?

» What are your company’s core values?

» What is your company’s vision?

» List sources of analyst reports that discuss your company’s positioning or the positioning of the market in which your com-pany participates. If specific authors, contacts, or websites are known, list them as well.

COMPETITORS

» Who are your direct pure play competitors? - List all competitors that directly compete with the products/services that you offer. List both the competitors and their

corresponding websites.

» Who are your direct non-pure play competitors? - List all competitors that directly compete with the products/services that you offer, though also compete with addition-

al product/service offerings. List both competitors and their corresponding websites. Make notes about the competitive product/service offerings if appropriate.

» Who are your substitute product/service competitors? - List all competitors that do not compete directly with you, though offer products/services that are considered alterna-

tives or substitutes to your products/services. List both the competitors and their corresponding websites. Note the products/services that these competitors offer.

» Who are your mindshare competitors? - List all other vendors in the market that might not compete directly with you, but whose offerings are causing a

lot of buzz and/or discussion in the market, at your organization’s expense. List the products/services that these competitors offer.


Keyword-Driven Website Content Analysis Framework

This guide can be used when analyzing website content to uncover keywords. It shows you how

to review HTML sources as well as downloadable content such as white papers, testimonials,

and case studies. There are at least six sections on a company’s website where keywords can be found:

1. About Us (might also be referred to as “Our Mission,”

“Company Overview,” or “Who We Are”)

2. Testimonials (might also be referred to as

“Customer Success Stories” or “Case Studies”)

3. White Papers (might also be referred to as

“Research Articles”)

4. Articles/Press Releases (might also be referred to

as “News”)

5. Product/Solution/Technology (might also be referred to

as “Solutions” or “Features”)

6. HTML source of the home page and other main pages

on the website

ABOUT US

Look at the About Us section of the company website. Identify the paragraph that describes the company.

Search for the following types of keywords within this section:

» Company name

» Product or service name — The name of the product(s) or service(s) that a company provides

» Product or service features — The qualities and characteristics of a company’s product(s) or service(s)

» Pain points — The pain points that drive customers to purchase the product(s) or service(s) offered by a company

» Business benefits — The benefits a business will gain from using a company’s product(s) or service(s)


From the example on the previous page, you could take out the following keywords:

» Constant Contact (company name)

» E-mail marketing (feature)

» Online survey tools (feature)

» E-mail newsletters (feature)

» Online surveys (feature)

In the next example (below), you could take out the following keywords:

» Hosted voice broadcasting platform (feature)

» Dedicated capacity, on-demand (feature)

CallFire — a hosted Voice Broadcasting platform

Our system allows you to run multiple campaigns at the same time, at different call volumes, and with different sound

prompts and transfer locations. Managing multiple outbound campaigns has never been this easy.

Immense capacity & enterprise reliability

Our system allows you to run at 100s of phone lines, per campaign. That means you get dedicated capacity, on-demand. Do you need to get your campaign to bring in thousands of leads per day? CallFire.com’s voice blast can do it.


TESTIMONIALS

If the site includes testimonials, success stories, or case studies, scan both the titles of the testimonials and the content for

possible keywords.

Search for the following types of keywords within this section:

» Company name


» Product or service feature – The qualities and characteristics of a company’s product(s) or service(s)



From the example on the right, you could take out the following keywords:

» Easy-to-use interface (feature)

» Online survey (feature)

» QuestionPro (product name/company name)

» Survey projects (feature)

» Questionnaire design (feature)

» Sample management (feature)

» Data analysis and presentation (feature)

» Start-to-finish package (feature)

» Responsive and fast (feature)

» User-friendly tool (feature)

» Quickly define and distribute surveys (business benefit)

» Gain timely and valuable information regarding customer satisfaction rates (business benefit)


WHITE PAPERS

Look through the website to locate white papers, which are

downloadable educational reports or articles that companies

often offer for free on their websites. White papers are commonly

listed under tabs such as “Learning Center” and “Library.” }

If the site includes white papers, a link will probably be provided for you to access each available white paper

(see the following examples): �

If you can’t find white papers on the site, locate the

website’s search function and search for the term

“white papers.” �


White papers are often in Adobe Acrobat (PDF) format, which requires you to download them before they can be opened.

After you open the file, scan the titles of the white papers and the content for possible keywords in the following categories:

» Company name


» Product or service feature — The qualities and characteristics of a company’s product(s) or service(s)


» Technical terms — Technical terms can be found in the classification of the product/software, as well as in industry reports, industry websites, and resources where more generic, standardized keywords are used to describe the product


When searching within the white paper, scan all text for keywords, but pay special attention to the following as sources of keywords:

Section Headings

From the example on the right, you could select

the following keywords from the section headings:

» Mass customization (feature)

» E-mail marketing (feature)

» E-mail automation (feature)


Diagram Descriptions

From the example on the right, you could select

the following keywords from the diagram descriptions:

» Server (feature)

» Routing software (feature)

» Dedicated routing appliance (feature)

» Custom OS (feature)

» Routing in hardware (feature)

» Software appliance (feature)

» Hardware appliance (feature)

» CIFS/NFS software (feature)

» Dedicated file server (feature)

» File system in hardware (feature)

Bulleted Lists/Numbered Lists

From the example on the right, you could select the

following keywords from the bulleted list:

» Branded domains (feature)

» Whitelist new domains (feature)

» Segmented mailings (feature)

» Monitor mailing performance (feature)

» Ongoing systematic deactivations to ensure long-term list health (feature)

1. Set up new branded domains

2. Worked with ISPs to whitelist new domains

3. Started with small segmented mailings to monitor mailing performance

4. Manually cleansed 10% of the list that was undeliverable

5. Employed ongoing systematic deactivations to ensure long-term list health


ARTICLES/PRESS RELEASES

In addition to white papers, look through the website to locate news pieces and articles. Additional news items are commonly

listed under tabs such as “News and Reviews,” “In the News, “News & Press,” and “News.”

Search through the news items, opening each link when available. Scan the titles of the press releases and articles for possible

keywords in the following categories:

» Company name







PRODUCTS/SOLUTIONS/TECHNOLOGIES

Lastly, always try to locate the section that describes the products or solutions that the company offers to its customers. In this

section, which has content similar to the About Us section, you can find key phrases related to the company, its products, and

technologies. Examine the following:

» Company name






» Technology/unique features — Any technology offered by the company and any technical-sounding phrases used (occasion-ally, there isn’t a section with the Products/Solutions/Technologies title, but there are different sections for different user group such as Home Users, Small Business/Enterprise, Corporate/Personal, or Free/Premium)


HOME PAGE TITLES AND KEYWORDS

1. Go to the home page of the website and click on

“View” in the Internet Explorer toolbar, located on

the upper left of the webpage. Select “Source”

and a new screen will appear.

2. The resulting screen will be a Notepad output

of HTML code, as shown in the example below.

Search for the term <Title>. Record all of the key-

words listed, stopping at the closed bracket (“>”).

3. Next, search for the term <meta name = “Description”. Record all of the keywords listed, stopping at the closed bracket.

4. Finally, search for the term <meta name = “Keywords”. Record all of the keywords listed, stopping at the closed bracket.


Sample Keyword Research Output Spreadsheet This template can be used to record detailed information about each keyword and its source(s).

Section 1. Keyword and Keyword Type CategorizationA B C D E F G H I

KEYWORD TYPE

KEYWORD Company Name

Product/ Service Names

Product/ Service Features

Problems Solved

Technical Terms

Business Benefits

Technology/Unique

Features

Emotional Reactions

Section 2. Keyword Source CategorizationA B C D E F G H I J

KEYWORD SOURCE

KEYWORD Interviews Google Suggestion Tool About Us Testimonials White

Papers

Articles/Press

Releases

Product/ Solution/Tech

Competitor/ Source

Competitor Product/Feature


Section 3. Keyword Prioritization Data and RankingA B C

PRIORITIZATION DATA

KEYWORD Approximate Average Search Volume Advertiser Competition Google Results Ranking


Additional Resources

Keyword ResearchKeyword Research Guide (Wordtracker)

Keyword Research for Web Writers and Content Producers (Copyblogger)

Navigating Keyword Strategy in B2B SEO (Galen De Young, Search Engine Land)

B2B Keyword Research When You’re in a Niche Market/Industry (Jody Minetz, Ask Enquiro)

Jumping Through Hoops: Enterprise Level SEO Tips (Merry Morud, AimClear Blog)

Prioritization SchemesKeyword Effectiveness Index (KEI) with Google Keyword Data (Vince Law, Maverick Web Creations)

Additional Prioritization Variables to Consider (Russ Altman, Team Altman.com)

How Do I Prioritize Keywords for My Search Campaign? (Jeff Shi, The clickTRUE Blog)

Determining Keyword Value: A Recipe for Prioritizing Page Optimizations (Nuno Andrade, SEOmoz)

http://www.wordtracker.com/academy/keyword-research-guide

http://www.copyblogger.com/keyword-research/

http://searchengineland.com/navigating-keyword-strategy-in-b2b-seo-11116

http://ask.enquiro.com/2009/b2b-keyword-research-when-youre-in-a-niche-marketindustry/

http://www.aimclearblog.com/2010/03/26/jumping-through-hoops-enterprise-level-seo-success-tips/

http://www.maverickwebcreations.com/2009/07/25/keyword-effectiveness-index-kei-google-keyword-data.html

http://www.maverickwebcreations.com/2009/07/25/keyword-effectiveness-index-kei-google-keyword-data.html

http://www.clicktrue.biz/blog/search-engine-marketing/how-do-i-prioritise-keywords-for-my-search-campaign/

http://www.seomoz.org/ugc/determining-keyword-value-a-recipe-for-prioritizing-page-optimizations

About this eBookThis eBook was created by OpenView Labs to help companies conduct their own keyword research projects and extend their reach to potential customers. It includes checklists, quickstart guides, and sample templates to help you get a keyword generation project up and running in a hurry.

About OpenView LabsOpenView Labs is the strategic and operational consulting arm of OpenView Venture Partners, a global Venture Capital fund that invests in expansion-stage technology companies.

More InformationVisit the OpenView Labs website for more ideas and inspiration for senior managers of technology companies.

To learn more about OpenView Labs or OpenView Venture Partners, contact us directly at (617) 478-7500 or [email protected].

You are welcome to republish excerpts from this eBook, as long as you link back to OpenView for attribution. Please also share this eBook in its entirety with anyone you think would be interested.

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/ or send a letter to Creative Commons, 171 Second Street, Suite 300, San Francisco, California, 94105, USA.

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