Keyword Research - Step-by-Step Lesson

This is a lesson in understanding how to come up with the "keywords" for your particular niche. Keywords and Keyword phrases are important because the Search Engines, like Google, Yahoo, MSN, etc. compile their search results from the keywords (or search terms) that people use when looking for products or information.

If you'd like, open up some browser tabs (or windows) so you can follow along with this lesson. In one tab, open up:

Google Keyword Tool

In another tab open up the Google Search Engine.

The following information is taken from what I wrote to an artist friend of mine who was wanting to sell his paintings online:

If you have a particular area that you have an interest in, start with

Google Keyword Tool

Just enter a "keyword," an area that may be of interest to you. There are other tools like "Wordtracker, Nichebot, etc. You can try those out too.

Type in the keyword "paintings" using the keyword tool and see what you get for that search term (and related terms). Around 143,000 searches done a month for just that term. Doesn't tell you much though. Now, look at all the other searches done relating to the term "paintings." Gives you a better idea of exactly what people are searching for. If you click on those terms it will take you even further into a niche (which then gives you a "long-tail keyword" that can be used for affiliate marketing.

The secret of getting high placement on the search engines like Google, Yahoo, MSN, etc. is to understand the use of targeted "keywords" in the content of your website or blog. I don't know how much you may already know about doing targeted keyword research so I'll explain the fundamentals here. I'll use an example.

Go to the Google search engine and type in a search for "painting". The search results come up with 21,400,000 web pages (the "results" can be seen at the top of the page). Way too much competition for that search term.

Now type in "ship paintings". Be sure to include quotation marks. The results now are 8,610 web pages. Much more easy to compete with that keyword term. But let's see if we can dig further into a niche that may be even more targeted.

Type in "sailing ship paintings" (be sure to once again include quotation marks). 432 results!! Very easy to compete with. Do you understand the idea? Now the keyword tool shows that there were about 100+ searches a month for that term. A very small niche and not enough searches for my taste, but it takes a little more research to find out what kind of sailing ship paintings are popular. I usually look for 500+ searches a month with less than 5,000 search results (using the keyword phrase in quotations in a google search).

The reason to use quotation marks with the keywords is that it will give you that exact phrase that people use. Otherwise, without quotation marks you will get in the search results terms like "painting ships" or just "ships" which you do not need in your results.

For "sailing ship paintings" 432 results means that there is low competition for this phrase, meaning that if you were to advertise your "sailing ship painting" through articles you can easily get high placement on the search engines for free.

Also, take note of all of the paid advertisements on the right side of the google results. Those advertisers are paying out money every single time someone clicks on their ad. It's called pay per click advertising. It also shows that there is significant market for this type of painting.

What I'm talking about with article writing is getting free advertisements through the "organic search results" that you see on the regular listings. The idea is to get on the first page.

For articles, use the keyword phrase in the title and a few times in the body of the text. Google is very smart so you do not want to just stuff the article with keywords. Content and good info is super important. The ad can be anywhere from 200-400 words. I also use Craigslist. Craigslist is great because not only does it show on the site itself but the ads will show up on Google searches. The only thing is that you cannot use affiliate links. The way around it is to link to your own site page and then link to the affiliate site. With Craigslist, you can keep the ad fairly short and simple. Just remember to use the keywords in the title and also a few times in the content of the ad.

I also use Squidoo. Here's a sample of my squidoo site:
http://www.squidoo.com/easywebsitebuilderreview/

I have a blog called "Accessing Your Higher Self". (http://accessingyourhigherself.wordpress.com) Do a google search for that term. No need to even use quotation marks because I optimized the site for that keyword phrase. My site is on the first page. It's a wordpress blog. As of today it is in position #2 out of 6,000,000 search results without the quotation marks. It is a super targeted keyword that I use and gets about 6-20 visits to my site every day. May not be much but I just started the blog in July.

The resource that has been most helpful to me has been "Wealthy Affiliate."

The above link is my affiliate link to their site. I promote it because they have been extremely helpful. The owners, Kyle and Carson respond to questions that I might have. They also have a forum that is quite active (and friendly). They have modules that step you through the process. Most of what I learned about affiliate marketing was from Wealthy Affiliate. I have been a member since earlier this year and continue to learn from them. The subscription is $39.95/month. For that price you also get 3 hosting accounts, a website builder (Site Rubix, which requires no HTML skills) and all the lessons module you'll need for affiliate marketing and more. Sorry if I'm sounding like a salesman, that's not my intention :-) For me it's a pretty good deal. They also have keyword search tools and… really the whole package. Check it out for yourself and see. The members are very helpful, and most of my questions are answered through the forum. Whatever is not answered, I go straight to Kyle or Carson.

Anyway, would love to hear how you've been doing. Let's meet for a cup of coffee sometime if you're up for it.

I know this is a lot of info but it's something that's been fun, and the sales are starting to come in. Not enough to live on but I see how the mechanism works. I think if you have any networking skills and marketing sense, you'll do quite well with it. It's not complicated once you get in to it.

Here is a sample of some of my sites:

http://manakastudios.com
http://accessingyourhigherself.wordpress.com
http://yourhappybirthdaywish.com/

I also write articles (which is important to generate traffic to your sites). Here's an example from Ezinearticles.com.

Anyway, hope this helps. Let me know if you want to meet sometime!

Reasons for Having a Website – Aside From the Obvious

What are some of the reasons for having a website aside from the obvious business and economic advantages? Are there advantages we don't normally consider? For me, one of the most compelling reasons for maintaining a website is that it helps me to focus attention and energy on what I love doing most, creating art and developing its corollary--the art of healing.

When sitting down to work on a website, the very act of planning puts attention on creative directions I want to go with my art, along with questions of what steps are needed to promote and deepen my understanding of my business. This is a good thing because as I plan and act on my website, other facets that may have been previously hidden from me are revealed along with the opportunities that might be involved. In other words, having a website helps to generate momentum for creative thinking.

Working on a personal or business website helps to congeal in the mind the intentions and goals that you may want to achieve. It can be a dynamic reflection of your business plan. It can also reflect back to you aspects that may not be so flattering. A busy, unbalanced and visually unappealing website can reflect your attitude towards your business. If you do not bother to repair broken links, typographical errors and such, this may very well be a reflection of how you run your business (and perhaps your personal life). Ouch!

Another reason for having a website is that it encourages thinking outside of what we might be familiar and/or comfortable with. The very act of writing articles, headlines, sig lines, etc. requires a creative bent that ramps up our brain cells and creative juices. How do I attract visitors? What can I do to keep them interested? The answers to these questions require a constant looking at different viewpoints and the willingness to consider approaches totally different from the way we normally see things.

What reasons aside from the obvious can you see?….

Most Recommended Website Builder - Site Rubix

When it comes to website creation tools, my most recommended website builder is Site Rubix, offered through Wealthy Affiliate. Website creation has now entered the realm of super-simple! No need to know any programming code (html, etc.). The playing field for building websites has finally been leveled! Creating a professional website is now accessible to everyone! And it's not expensive.

This is perfect for the student, the stay-at-home husband or wife, the business owner, as well as the seasoned professional website builder and affiliate marketer who wants to create multiple streams of income through easy-to-create websites!

At last, a website builder tool has been developed to create and publish professional websites in under 5 minutes without having to look at or know a single piece of HTML code!

Site Rubix is a website builder tool designed to put together a professional website that converts traffic into sales. Beginning internet marketers no longer need to feel stuck in their efforts to create landing pages and full scale websites. Internet marketing pros can now create websites in a fraction of the time that it would normally take.

• Build your professional looking website in less than 5 minutes
• No HTML skills needed!
• Drag & Drop your site to make it look the way you want it to
• Crank out massive campaigns in a fraction of the time it would have taken through conventional website builders
• Send your website files quickly to your web host right within Site Rubix. This means you can instantly make your websites “Go Live” without having to download FTP programs or other software.
• Enables you to focus your attention on marketing and building your business rather than slogging through the process of learning HTML code
• Build professional looking websites for other people and get paid
• Duplicate existing pages and full sites with a click of the button
• Add video, images, instant screenshots, or content in seconds
• Customize your site in terms of banners and images and let the system worry about resizing, rendering, and making things look great!
• Upload your own images and banners so that you can reuse them on many different sites. Site Rubix allows you to view, organize and manage your “media” in a very well laid out interface.. and it looks great too!
• Goodbye Photoshop, Snagit, and other screenshot programs. Site Rubix allows you to instantly grab a screenshot of any website with the click of a button in less than a second, add it to your media page, and use the screenshot over and over again!
• and much much more!
• ..and at a price that we guarantee you will be able to afford!

This is website creation that has entered the 21st Century, the way building websites should be.

Site Rubix is going to change the way Internet marketers and website developers work. Creating a website has never been easier and producing huge campaigns with 100’s of pages will be simple with Site Rubix!

Most Recommended Website Builder
Site Rubix

Affiliate Marketing - Finding What's Hot

Ok, still feeling overwhelmed by the volume of internet marketing resources that are available? Pretty much how I felt about a year ago when I was going through the plethora of websites on the subject. It is still so easy to get sidetracked and caught up for hours in the newest money-making scheme that is offered.

In my research I found certain concepts and subjects kept coming up again and again. I came to understand that it is so important to do research on the various niche markets that you might be interested in. Find out what your target audience wants and what keywords they are using when searching on Google, Yahoo, etc. Once you narrow down the niche, then you want to decide how to fulfill the need that is there.

It comes down to this: find a hungry crowd, feed them, get paid. This might sound simplistic, and in fact it is important to keep it simple. People have infinite number of desires and as internet marketers, our job is to find out what they want and how to fulfill the need. Simple. One way to fulfill the need is through affiliate marketing. This comes down to writing ads as an affiliate for merchants who can do the order fulfillment. It all takes place on the internet through a "linking" process. As an affiliate (which is usually free to subscribe), you receive a unique ID that attaches to any link that you place in your ad or website. When a customer reads your ad and clicks on the link, he/she is taken to the merchant site. If a sale is made, you receive commission. The sale doesn't even have to take place that first visit, as most people do not buy right off hand. They may come back a few days or even weeks later. If they buy then, you still get the commission. This is made possible by the "cookies" that are enabled on the customers' computer which remembers the links that were used.

It doesn't take long to learn the process of affiliate marketing. You can actually have live ads up as an affiliate within hours. The difficulty usually lies in not starting with a game plan. Sort of like shooting from the hips. If we do not do the research on niche markets, we may either be competing in markets way too saturated with competitors, or we may get into niches that are too small.

Look at 10 magazines at random. Take note of the ads that are placed on the cover and within the pages. What are the hot new items? What are the things people are passionate about? What kinds of questions does the market ask? How do they ask? Do they use a certain type of lingo unique to the market? These are all important points to consider when researching the various markets.

Most Recommended Internet Marketing Resource

Hi, and welcome to my "Most Recommended Internet Marketing Resource" blog. Here you will find commentaries and stories of my journey in learning how to market myself and my products on the internet. I am an artist/graphic designer with a deep interest in the healing arts, and this blog may be of special interest to all of you creatives and healers who wish to learn how to monetize their websites and to also get high placement on the search engines.

You will also find here my most recommended internet marketing resources, the ones that have been of most value to me as an internet marketer. What might be of great interest to you all is that much of what I do to get high placement in the search engines does not cost a dime. I will share with you a list of free sites that you can advertise on.

Please stay tuned. Internet marketing is not complicated and it is a skill that can open up a whole world of possibilities for you.

Most important, it is fun! And its vital to keep it fun. Once you make your initial first page ranking on the Google or Yahoo search engines, or when you make your first dollar as an affiliate marketer, that is when you catch the internet marketing fever!