Keyword selection process and tools - #seopodcast 121

The hosts recommend a base list of 10 to 15 phrases. Three or four should be highly competitive head terms, and the remaining ones should be long-tail phrases that convert well. You then expand from that base using tools like the Google Keyword Tool and Google Instant.

The episode recommends the Google Keyword Selector Tool, which is accessible without an AdWords account but limits results to 50 and omits CPC data. Logging into AdWords gives full results and estimated cost per click. Google Instant and Yahoo Search Assistant also surface popular real-world search phrases.

Map keywords to specific pages using your sitemap. Target two or three phrases per page, placing the primary phrase in an H1 tag and secondary phrases in H2 tags. If no relevant page exists, create a new integrated page with internal links from the rest of the site rather than an isolated landing page.

Google assigns a quality score to pages. An isolated landing page with no internal links from the rest of the site is seen as less relevant to users, which lowers quality score and raises the cost per click. A page fully integrated into the site with internal in-text links scores higher relevancy from Google.