Are Keywords Important in Marketing?

Keywords are Important in Marketing

Before you begin an internet marketing campaign, it is crucial to have a specific set of keywords that you will be focusing on. If you don't have a list of keywords, your efforts are likely to be ad hoc and aimless, and your campaign could lose focus. It is far better to have good rankings on a select set of keywords than mediocre rankings on lots of keywords. Brainstorming is an easy way to come up with keywords.

This is an exercise many of you might remember from grade school, but it works, so give it a try. Write the name of your product in the middle of a sheet of paper. Around it, write down the first words and phrases that come to mind, connecting those words to the original with a short line. Then, for all of those words and phrases, write down what comes to mind when you think about them.

This is called a Cloud Diagram or a Cluster Diagram, and it will give you options you didn't know you had. For example, if you were selling web design software then you are already focusing on keywords like "web design" and "how to design a website." But you may have missed more focused keywords like "writing HTML" or "coding PHP." These are more specific, meaning a smaller audience, but that also means less competition.

If you are conducting a PPC (pay per click) or PPV (pay per view) campaign, using the right keywords and key phrases is imperative. Choosing the wrong ones can cost you dearly, but by being more focused, you can target your prospects (potential customers) with laser-like precision.

There are also some great tools available to help you select keywords, many are free, like the Google Keyword Tool, which, although designed for Google's Adwords, can be used by anyone. It is powerful as it shows searches so you know what ones are worth your time and what ones aren't. Rule of thumb, if it gets less then 1,000 searches a month, scrap it (Unless you are doing PPC and it is a very targeted term that will lead to high conversions.)

You can also use the Google Keyword Tool if you are doing SEO strategies to try and get to the first page of Google on those terms. If you find one with a decent amount of searches, search it in Google with "keyword" and see how many competing sites there are... of course, the less the better.

Researching and using the right keywords can make or break an internet marketing campaign, particular in the launch phase in affiliate marketing. So it makes sense to include keyword research in the early stages of your project planning.