How do I find the best keywords to improve SEO for my small business?

Source: PEOCompare Blog

In my last blog entry, in which I tried to stress how important SEO is for a small business, I brought up the example of PEOcompare.com focusing on the keyword “PEO companies” rather than “PEO comparison” due to the fact that the former is searched with greater frequency than the latter.  How can I be certain of this?  Google AdWords.  There are several different keyword selector tools available (Search Engine Optimization for Dummies suggests the one provided by Yahoo! Search Marketing Resource Center) but I prefer Google AdWords. 

Google’s Keyword Tool is free to use.  In fact, you can search keywords related to your business to not only find out how frequently the terms are searched, but also to find out similar words and their search frequency.  By first brainstorming ideas for keywords related to your small business’s product or service and then using a keyword tool like the one Google AdWords offers, you can begin to choose the best keywords to attract customers.  Although many, if not most, searches conducted by visitors to your site will be organic (meaning they are completely unique) they may contain some of your targeted keywords; by considering the perspective of the consumer instead of just looking for keywords through the lens of the small business owner, you will be more successful in obtaining traffic.  Tying this back in to the two truths mentioned in the first blog on SEO, using keyword selector tools is both cost-efficient and aids in targeting the right customers.  For example, while PEOcompare.com could target people searching for “PEO firms” by including this keyword in content we create, it proves more valuable to hone in on “PEOs” because the term is more frequently searched.  Consider also the competition for each keyword when creating a list of best keywords.  Another advantage to focusing on “PEOs” instead of “PEO firms” is that the former has low competition whereas the latter has high competition according to Google Adwords.  Words that are less frequently searched could still be worth targeting if they still produce a fair amount of traffic and have low competition.

There are other ways to find the best keywords.  For example, many small businesses will use Wordtracker, which provides search frequencies based off of metacrawlers (systems that search several search engines, thus, combining more results).  Wordtracker can be useful to find terms with little competition as well as synonymous keywords. 

How have you managed to create a list of the best keywords for SEO for your small business?  Leave a comment below!