Hello all!
Although belated, I wanted to make it known that in early 2010 I became part of the search marketing team at Beacon Technologies. As part of my duties, I now write for their blog. This should explain my absences over the past couple months! I’m not gone, just writing in another venue.
But here’s the best part: if you like what you read here, take a skip over to Beacon’s search marketing blog to read more from yours truly.
Thanks and see you on the other side!
~Andrea
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The Search Query Report
What is the Search Query Report? In short, it’s a report that tells you the exact search terms that resulted in the click of your ad. Ever wonder what words you’re really paying for? The Search Query Report will tell you that.
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Now, I want to clarify a few points:
1. If you have a Google e-mail account, use it to sign in on the homepage at the top. Resume the tutorial at Step 2, “Name Your Blog.”
Where To Sign In on Blogger If You Already Have a Google Account.
2. If you do not have a Google account and are prompted to create one, use your preferred primary e-mail address (@Yahoo, @Hotmail, etc.). This will be your Username when you sign in to your blog.
1. Pick a name that is keyword rich, easy, and short! Do not use:
2. Choose a template that is simple and attractive. Dark colors with a light background are easiest to read and less stressful on the eye. Stay away from white letters and a black background.
3. Write a blog “tag line” that explains the purpose of your blog. Keep this to one sentence. Go to Settings–> Basic–> Description and enter your tag line in the Description box.
4. Turn comment moderation on. This will prevent spammers or ugly comments from posting to your blog without your prior approval or knowledge. Go to Setting–> Comments–> Comment Moderation, choose “Always” and enter an e-mail address where you want comment notifications sent. Also, choose “yes” to Word Verification.
5. Offer an RSS feed. “RSS” stands for “real simple syndication.” Basically it’s a way for your readers to subscribe to your blog and get a notice when you write a new post. It makes it much easier for your blog to generate a reader base and following. You can do this by going to Feedburner.com and following the directions. Enter the feed URL at Settings–> Site Feed–> Post Feed Redirect URL.
Now start blogging!
Not sure where to start? It’s ok. Try this article if you don’t know what to write about.
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To find local keywords, the best place to go is usually the query report from within Adwords. But what do you do if you either don’t have an Adwords account, don’t have enough data to pull from, or don’t have money to run an Adwords test? Keep reading to find out how to find local keywords for SEO without a PPC account.
The first thing I do when doing research for a local client with no PPC account is to try to find local, geo-modified keywords to work from. These become my jumping off point. For this research, I use two things: a reverse rank checker and a keyword density checker. I use both in the same way that I outlined in my previous post, but this time I look specifically for local terms. I then add found keywords to an Excel spreadsheet, my master list.
After using these tools, I will go to Google Trends and Google Insights to see if I can find geo trends for terms. There are a lot of filtering options so I tend to stick around and play for a while to see what I can find. Again, any findings go on the master list.
I then run my master list through the Google Keyword Suggestion Tool. Any words with volume are added, exported, copied and pasted back to the master. From here, the words go to Aaron Wall’s Keyword Tool. The same thing happens with volume words: export, copy, paste.
At this point if my results for geo-modified keywords are still thin, I simply start researching national, broad terms, following the same keyword research method as outlined before. Once I have my complete master list, I write down the counties, cities, states, and regions my client serves. I use a local keyword generator to help me decide on cities. What the local generator does is generate keywords based on the zip and radius you enter. Quite helpful.
With the highest volume keywords and my city list, I go to a keyword list generator tool to come up with keyword combos, placing the core terms in box 1 and geo modifiers in box 2. I then run these combos though the Google Keyword Suggestion, and any words with volume then go through Aaron Wall’s tool. Export. Copy. Paste.
By now your list should be shaping up. If the list is still thin, I’d go to Google’s Related Search or Wonder Wheel for ideas. Screen shots below. Click to enlarge.
How To Get To Google Related Search and Wonder Wheel
Google Related Search and Wonder Wheel Links
I don’t use Related Search and Wonder Wheel often, because many of these words have no volume to them. Still, if you’re dry on words, you must leave no stone unturned.
Once you’ve got your final list, choose your keywords by measuring their competitiveness. After that, you’re home free!!
P.S. Reading my previous post will make doing local research make more sense and much easier. Read it here.
What is your local keyword research method?
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