Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 4-1.
Google Keyword Search for “writing contest” and “writing help”
One should remember that Keyword Search is designed to be usedbyadvertisers,
so a bit of deciphering the unfriendly mangled mess of language that is "Marketing
SEO Speak" is important. First, I know that “writing contest” has about 2.5 times
more traffic (in terms of monthly searches on Google) than “writing help.” This is
useful information in that it suggests that there are more people looking for
contests and recognition versus constructive comments on their writing. If my web
site or app is going to have both of these elements, it seems the contest angle
might be better used. If, however, I'm not completely sure what my app or web site
will be, I might find the Keyword Ideas list (Figure 4-2) to be particularly helpful:
Figure 4-2.
Partial Keyword Ideas list for the search terms above
Here the “competition” column might be useful in telling me where to go. You see
“competition” according to Google Adwords is how many other advertisers out there are
trying to get their ads to appear when people search for the keyword listed. I'd have stiff
competition for “contest writing” (or another item farther down the list, “free help writing
a business plan”), but very little competition for “essay writing contest” (or another item
not shown: “persuasive writing contest”).
Using the External Keywords tool in Adwords, I can get an idea of not only for what
people are searching, but also for what other companies are advertising. This can help
you better understand if an audience exists for your product (by using keywords you
suspect they'd use in Google) and if there are already a lot of alternatives you'd be up
against. While word
-
of-mouth advertising can work well for some products, you
shouldn't underestimate the power of search traffic!
Who Is My User?
Provided that you know an audience exists for your product, you now must figure
out who your user is. Recently, in attending a course filled with bright, young future
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