In this post I’m going to talk about why I don’t use the very popular Google keyword research tool even though its probably one of the most widely used tools online which is free!
I’m going to try and explain things in a simple way to help you understand things more easily. There are also number of other tools available to online users for free, which I find a lot easier to understand and use in my keyword research.
What the heck is SEO???? And what has this got to do with Keyword research
SEO stands for (Search Engine Optimization). I didn’t think much of it for a while, partly because I didn’t understand it. But think of it as Optimizing your website for relevant search engine results by use of relevant content and ‘keywords’
Keywords – what are they
Keywords are words, search terms or phrases that users input into various search engines such as Google, Bing and Yahoo to enable them to find relevant information or content about a specific topic they are looking for. These keywords are usually placed on websites within posts or articles which enables the site to be found online when these relevant keywords are searched for within the search engines.
Are keywords important to your sites success
The success of any website can sometimes depend on how well its keywords are placed within a website. Keyword research is therefore essential to enable websites to have a good chance at page ranking within the search engines results. Keywords are also relevant depending on the number of competing websites for example a local business with the low competition from other businesses Will have a better chance of ranking for certain keywords within the search engines.
The main aim is to use the keywords to help drive traffic to your website. Traffic is sometimes known as views or clicks on your website, the More traffic you have the more potential sales you can generate. A traditional business sometimes refers to customers as for traffic such as how many people have visited their shop or business. Websites sometimes refer to traffic as eyeballs on your page the more eyeballs or customers you can get looking at your website the more interesting it generates the more clicks on your website means you can get more sales.
Why I don’t use Google’s online tool
Google free online keyword research tool is known as the keyword planner it’s unable you to search for various keywords and see how they may perform. The tool shows you all kinds of things such as the other average monthly search results for various keywords this is often known as search volume.
The keyword planner also provides statistics, forecasts, like predicted clicks and conversions. However, I find the tool very complicated and confusing when trying to find relevant keywords for websites, articles or posts. I tried to use this tool on a number of occasions but I always found it really confusing which is the reason why don’t use it!
However, all is not lost with Google tools, there are two main tools you should always use, again taking the time to understand them even in their basic form is a must. These are Google Search Console and Analytics
What other online tools can you use for free
There are a variety of tools that you can use online for free to do some fantastic keyword research. There are also a lot of paid tools, but you can certainly do basic effective research for free.
Some of these tools simplify the process of keyword research which can often seem a little overwhelming for people just starting online for the first time. One of the main tools I use is Jaaxy!
Jaaxy is a free tool with also a paid option that gives you more advanced features which analyses keywords and search terms. It shows you in a very easy to understand way, monthly average search volumes, potential traffic to your website and QSR, short for Quoted Search Results, which in essence is the number of competing websites for certain keywords or search terms. This is a very useful in working out how successful you might be in ranking for certain keywords in the main search engines, like Google, Bing and Yahoo.
The Alphabet soup technique
This simple technique which Involves using the Google search engine By simply using search terms with the letter A then B and so on. It’s great technique getting ideas on search queries within Google itself. The search bar displays relevant terms starting with the various letters. The picture below shows an example of this
The reason why you should learn keyword research
The main reason why you should learn keyword research is so you can improve the overall ranking of your website by increasing the traffic to your website and in turn potential customers buying your products or services.
It also enables you to produce velevance for your audience. Velevant content or products helps convert potential visitors to your site in to customers and eventually buyers.
My top research tools I can’t live without
All is not lost with Google as one of the most important research tools is ‘Google Search Console’. It provides a huge amount of information about your websites preformance. It enables you to look at search traffic data from your site. Specific page information including index coverage and mobile usability. It also shows the performance of your site, such as clicks and impressions, it can tell you where most of your traffic is coming from and which pages are getting the most visits. It can seem a little confusing at first, so take your time to look through it but there are plenty of helpful guidelines associated with it.
Jaaxy is my go to Keyword Research tool
This is a fantastic tool that can be used for free. Its a fantastic user freindly tool and comes part of my No 1 Recommendation for free, what a bonus! It allows me to create keyword lists showing me the average number of searches a keyword receives globally on a monthly basis. It also shows me the potential number of visits a website would recieve if you managed to rank for a particular keyword as well as the number of competing websites for that particular keyword. Its really easy to use and very quick! This is only a few features I’ve shared, there is much more you can do with this tool, so I highly recommend checking it out. You can setup a free account and check it out here https://grahamsfreetips.com/jaaxy
Keyword Everywhere
A free Keyword Research plugin that can be used with the Chrome Browser as a Plugin or as a Firefox Browser Addon. Its a great tool to analyse keyword search volumes and competition. It even tells you what the CPC (Cost per Click) might be should you wish to run a google ads campaign. Its a great free tool to use so check it out at www.keywordseverywhere.com
SEO Minion
This is another free plugin that can again be used with the Chrome Browser as a Plugin or as a Firefox Browser Addon. This is another great little tool that can analyse the SEO html of a particular page you are veiwing, this shows you useful information to enable you to optimise your sites SEO. Its also a way of checking out your competitions SEO, so you can improve your own. Result! Another useful feature is that it can check to see if you have any broken links on your web page, so you can fix it.
Again, I’ve put a link to the site so you can check it out www.seominion.com