From Keywords To Dollars

In the online world, the value of selecting the correct keyword for your website should never be underestimated. Relevant keywords can generate qualified traffic to your website which translates to increased revenue, improved profit and thus, a greater return on investment. The nature of the search engines makes the selection of keywords and the content of your website the single most important factors in promoting your business online. After all, if your website can’t be accessed by web browsers, it’s just another domain in cyberspace.

Many people make the mistake of targeting the "high traffic" keywords. Don't make the mistake of concentrating on volume. A lot of clients come to Website Development Companies baffled by the fact that they're website pulls a large amount of visitors per day but their conversion rate is very low. In most cases it's because of the poor selection of keywords based on the traffic amount alone. Many people expect their website design company to assist in marketing and selecting keywords. The truth is, it's two totally different processes.

When people are searching for information on the Internet, they type into their browser a certain word or a series of words. In Internet lingo, these are called keywords or keyword phrases. The search engines use the keywords to retrieve pages from their index that are relevant to the keywords and then rank them in order of relevance. The technology the search engines use for ranking is called an algorithm. In essence, it is simply a mathematical formula.

Once upon a time, it was easy to achieve desirable search engine rankings in the "spider" search engines for certain keywords without any cost; however, as the online environment becomes more and more competitive and more websites are being developed every day, this is not as simple as it once was. Therefore, the need for pay-per-click search engine options has increased which in turn makes the selection of keywords even more important. Since you are actually paying for every click to your site, it is critical that your keyword selection attracts visitors that are truly interested in what you have to offer, so the use of generic keywords just isn’t a good strategy. Generic keywords may increase your traffic, but without qualified traffic your conversion rates will suffer and marketing dollars will be wasted.

Choosing keywords that are relevant, effective and valuable can be difficult. As the market changes, the value of the keywords also change, so it is necessary to evaluate and adapt on a continual basis. In the process of selecting keywords, there’s no solid way to know whether or not the use of a certain keyword or keyword phrase will provide value in terms of cost vs. hits. You can however determine whether or not a keyword or keyword phrase will create value through estimation. Estimate the number of searches per month for the keyword, multiply that by the average cost per click on Overture and then by the average click percentage you expect. This will give you your cost for one month based on the keywords you’ve selected. The cost per month can then be compared to your estimated sales resulting from converted clicks to determine whether or not the keyword is appropriate.

Relevancy is much more important than popularity in the keyword arena. Generic keywords that are selected for their popularity can certainly flood your website with traffic, but just like in a brick-and-mortar store, traffic that doesn’t convert to buyers is simply that, traffic. In a store the traffic may wear out your carpet, but on the Internet, if paying for clicks it will actually take a hit on your bottom line. To ensure that your keywords are valuable, take care to select keywords that will send quality buyers to your site.