The second area you will need to be apprised and certainly an important one is conducting keyword research.

You begin this process after you have decided on the structure for your site and have assured everything is working correctly (as far as your code).

Begin by thinking about your site’s content. The best way to illustrate how you perform keyword research is by way of example; however, I’m not going to hold your hand too much. I would however like you to follow the instructions shown herein:

In example, we are going to presume you have a travel site and you would like to write an article on vacation planning.

You begin this process by:

1. Typing the topic of your article “vacation planning” into the search engine;

2. After you have done so, notice the titles that are shown as a result of this action. List the terms that seem most common within the titles that are shown correspondent to this search. You may list these terms in 1, 2, 3, order; however, list about six or seven terms.

3. Next, you will want to make use of Google’s Keyword generator, a free on-line tool in conducting your keyword research. You may also look up keywords using Overture’s Keyword selector. Perform the exact same search previously performed within the search engines using the words “vacation planning.” After doing so, list your top ten results.

4. After Step Three assess the results of your keyword research. You should be able to recognize a trend emerging from such findings.

In example, after typing in the keywords: vacation planning within the keyword generators let us suppose you noticed several major cities associated with your search. This should give you a clue that people are looking up vacation planning relative to destinations. I’m not inferring this will be the case as I am not as I’ve alluded to previously trying to hold your hand because developing your skill in assessing keywords will become important for you as an SEO activity–I am just suggesting that by evaluating this research you will clearly be able to recognize a pattern.

In addition to the trend I have mentioned, you may be able to recognize an additional trend associated with both areas of your on-line research. Such a trend might come in the form of individuals seeking guides as a resource and relative to (the act) of vacation planning in general.

In summary, if you were to list these trends you would have one trend shown as:

• Vacation planning relative to a particular destination;

And, a second trend stated as:

• Vacation Planning guides.

It certainly is good to know how to research this information and come up with what is believed to be the primary way users are searching the topic of vacation planning; however, now the questions arises: What do we do with the results of our research?

This naturally is a very good question as this “new information” does not do us a whole lot of good if we are not using it in some manner associated with SEO practice and procedure.

The next thing you will need to do is incorporate what you have learned within your code. I will show you how to do so within the following content. (We will assume the name of your site is Vacation Planning.com.)

Here is an example of how your code may appear using the preceding information:

A Beginning Guide: Vacation Planning
Content=”vacation planning, beginning vacation planning,
Vacation planning guide”/>
Content=”A beginner’s vacation guide loaded with tips as to vacation planning
to a variety of destinations.”/>

By now what should be abundantly clear to you is that the process itself is not difficult—it is just that you need to be very careful and diligent in its implementation.

If you “rush” through this activity particularly if you are a beginner you will not be successful.

Therefore, the elements of successful keyword research are as follows:

1. Conduct a search as to the topic of your article by way of the major search engines.

2. List the terms associated with the titles you find within the top search listings. List at least six or seven of these significant terms.

3. Next, go to an on-line keyword generator and type in the same topic you used as search criteria within the search engines.

4. List the top ten results shown;

5. Assess the results, and using your best reasoning capability list at least two trends you see emerging from this second search. Use your first set of search criteria as a backup as to information supplied in the second search.

6. Incorporate keywords accordant to trends within the basic structure of your code. Within this basic structure you will find your Meta tags including title, and all significant locations where you will wish to place your keywords.

Chapter Two – Conducting Keyword Research

From: Search Engine Optimization for Internet Beginners By Mike Crooks