It was truly heartbreaking. I watched this man’s utter glee crash into a thousand little pieces on the virtual floor of a forum I visit from time to time. He was more than overjoyed. He was fully convinced he’d found a once-in-a-lifetime keyphrase with the ultimate combination of enormously high search count and ultra-low competition.
All the stars had aligned and he was about to become rich! At least, that’s what he thought.
You Have to Understand the Data
This poor fellow believed he’d found a keyphrase with a million+ searches a month. He was so ecstatic he went and bought a keyword domain to go with his new discovery. Plans of creating a website around the keyword filled his posts as he kept saying how lucky he was.
In actuality, he wasn’t lucky… he was uneducated. And then it happened. Somebody stepped in and told the man the truth. Then the walls came tumbling down.
Several people began to unfold what this guy didn’t understand about keyword research and all their enlightenment revolved around the data. (And his lack of understanding about it.) And yes, I chimed in too.
Here’s what we knew that he didn’t know.
- All keyword research tools are not created equal.
- The data comes from different places depending on which tool you use.
- Google’s data is enormously overblown because it isn’t “clean”. (They include automated searches in with human searches.)
- Keyword tools give you representative samples of the data, not actual search counts.
- You have to adjust the default settings in order to get realistic totals.
- All results are not presented in the same way. Google gives monthly search counts. Wordtracker and Keyword Discovery give ANNUAL (no, not daily… annual).
And a lack of this knowledge is what caused the forum guy to be led astray.
What Most People Won’t Tell You
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Understanding where the data comes from and how it is presented are huge factors. For instance, Google only includes searches from their engine. Wordtracker gathers info from several sources for a more complete picture.
The default settings of any keyword tool are always on the broadest settings. That means it includes the keyphrase you’re searching for and every other phrase (in any word order) that could possibly be imagined. And most people don’t know to change the default settings or what the settings mean.
That bit of misinformation alone is enough to completely skew your keyword research results. Can you imagine what a jumbled mess you’d have if you thought the numbers represented one specific phrase when they really included a whole bunch of variations? But that’s what most people do.
Before you take on another keyword research project, you need to learn how to do it right and what the common pitfalls are. Otherwise, you might as well just be guessing.
Baffled by keyword research? Been doing it for years but still have questions? Check out Keyword Research 2.0 from my OnlineCopywriting101.com website. Clear the fog, make more confident choices, get more traffic.
(c) Karon Thackston, All Rights Reserved
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Karon this article is very timely. I am a newbie and find that wordtacker and keword discovery is not in my budget. I was just introduced to noble samurai. What is your position on this tool? From my research there is no monthly cost to use it unlike the two you endorse. Thanks in advance.
Karen,
You are right, I did notice from one of the vidoes that I would have to connect to Google’s free search tool, which made me a little concered. Why pay for a tool, when I could just use the free one. I know how important keyword research is and will try Wordtracker’s free trial. Thanks.
BTW: I didn’t notice an option to get replies to comments on your site. Did I over look it? I just happened to check back and saw that you had responded to my question.
Oh… duh! I’ll get a plugin for that, Janet. Can’t believe I never thought to add that.
Karon,
This provides a much better understanding than I had previously. So, the question becomes what service/site do you recommend for doing keyword research?
John
Without a doubt, Wordtracker. I’ve gotten an inside look (so-to-speak) because I’ve written 2 ebooks for the Wordtracker Masterclass series. From dealing closely with the company, I can tell you these folks know what they are doing and constantly strive for improvement. I do sometimes use Google in addition to WT (for comparison, etc.), but rarely, if ever, use Google’s tool alone. It’s just too over-inflated.
Thanks for this revealing assessment of keyword research using different tools. This is valuable information for anyone involved in internet marketing.
Hi Karon, I want to get the tool, but keep putting it off because of the cost involved. Someday…and when I do – I’ll do it through your site. You work so hard at teaching us how to follow the right techniques and avoid the pitfalls.
Thank you.
Thanks Debra. If it helps, the annual subscription is almost 60% cheaper than 12 one-month subscriptions of $69 each. You pay $379 for the annual. You’d pay over $800 if you did it month-by-month. I’ll ask and see if they have any coupons available, too.
Janet… it you’re still following this thread, you’ll notice I now have a “Notify me of followup comments” feature. Sorry it took so long!