When someone types in a keyword or keyword phrase in a search query they’re asking a question – and unless you can figure out what the REAL question is your keyword list will miss the mark and won’t be a source of viable leads. Since dialing 1-900-PSYCHIC isn’t a realistic option (for most of us anyway ) figuring out what question is being asked and, perhaps more importantly, which question(s) are being asked by people looking for what you’re selling requires some thought and analysis.

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What’s the Real Question Your Keyword Is Asking?

Start with a keyword or keyword phrase that’s relevant to the category you’re investigating. We’re in the throes of the play-offs as I write this, so let’s look at the keyword “baseball.”

Using your web browser (Firefox and Chrome work well for this) start typing in a search for “baseball.” The browser will throw up a list of suggestions before you type in the entire word. Let’s take a look at that list:

Think about the mindset of the person typing in each of these baseball-related terms. Someone typing in “baseball” is fishing; they don’t really know what question to ask so they’re looking for ideas. On the other hand, someone investigating “baseball card values” is probably looking to buy or sell a card – or maybe they’re thinking about starting a collection and want to know if it’s something they can afford or if it would be a profitable endeavor.

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Using Negative Keywords

Even within a long-tail keyword like “baseball card values” there are a variety of questions that are important to understand, particularly if you buy or sell sports memorabilia. Is this person looking to buy or sell a card or are they simply researching in order to write a school paper about the declining value of baseball cards? If I sell baseball cards for a living I’m probably NOT looking to attract the person writing a research paper, right?

This is where negative keywords can play a valuable role. Let’s search again for “baseball card values:”

If I don’t buy or sell “Topps” brand baseball cards, I should probably include “topps” as a negative keyword. “Database” seems a bit too research oriented, so I’d probably include it on my negative list as well.

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It’s All About Effective Keyword Strategy

Think strategically and understand these three things to begin building an effective keyword strategy:

• - Know what questions are being asked.
• - Decide which questions are relevant to your business.
• - Decide which questions are irrelevant to your business.

Include keywords or negative keywords based on these results and you’re well on your way to creating a profitable keyword list.

Bye for now!

~ Deborah