There are also many good websites online with further information on this subject. It is an important subject that should not be taken lightly if you wish to succeed online.

When i started online i overlooked the need for research, i was impatient and suffered from information overload. By avoiding the subject it was one thing i didn't have to worry about. After a while i realised none of my websites were getting much traffic. I finally realised how important it is and began a big learning curve to find out as much as i could about it.

At first it was confusing and i felt i was wasting my time doing this tedious job, but after preparing a few keyword to target, one of my sites started to get good traffic and i started to make some good sales too. From then on, i have never looked back.

Here are some of the basics

What is a keyword?

A keyword is a single word or phrase that a surfer uses when searching for something online. For example, when i type into google "Keyword" this is considered a keyword and when i type in "top keyword tools" it is considered a keyword phrase. For simplicity both single words and phrases are commonly just called keywords.

Why are keywords so important?

Because the surfer is typing into a search engine what they are looking for, you need to gather as many good keywords related to your market so you can add these to your website content and pick up free search engine traffic to your website. More targeted visitors means more profit

Why do keyword research?

You need to do keyword research to generate a massive keyword list of multiple word phrases that have low competition. Single words have high competition and it will be near to impossible to get any free traffic for these terms. 3-5 word phrases are more targeted and will be more profitable and you will have a better chance of ranking high in the search engines for these terms.

Who needs to do keyword research?

Anyone who owns a website and wants to get free visitors to it, Whether to buy your products or to help others with your information you need lots of free traffic. Effective research achieves this.

What types of keywords should i look for?

Your keywords should match the following criteria

Related to your website content

Not too much competition

A Good monthly search volume

A mixture of short phases and longer phases

What keyword tools should you use?

There are large numbers of keyword tools available online. Many have free trial so you can test them before handing over any money.

What exactly does the average tool do?

An average tool with give you a whole list of terms related to one term you type in, and alongside this list and number of how many times these terms have been searched for recently.

I hope this article has helped you gain more knowledge on keyword research.