Brainstorming for keywords is the process of gathering candidates for keywords and keyword phrases. One place to find such keywords is off the top of your head. There are other places you can look for keyword phrases too. Here are a few.
Where to look
- Off the top of your head
- Your website
- Websites of competitors
- Amazon reviews of books related to your content
- Correspondence written to you from readers and/or customers.
- Suggestions from friends
Off the top of your head
This will be one of your easiest and most fruitful places to find keywords — assuming of course that you are creating a website with content related to something you are familiar with. If you are creating a website on a topic about which you know nothing then skip this section and jump down to “websites of competitors.” Otherwise, spend a little quality time with yourself jotting down all the keywords that relate to your websites topic and/or topics.
Your website
If you have an existing website, then definitely mine it for keywords. Read through your pages jotting down words that jump at you. If you want to get more detailed use a word frequency counter. The writewords.org website is designed for writers. I would guess to make um, sure that um, they are um not using um certain um words to um much in their writings. Is a nice tool. You can copy the content from your page and just paste it into the appropriate box. Who knows you might even want to learn a thing or two about writing in general while you are there — but later. Just bookmark it for now. Keep in mind you are on a keyword hunt.
Websites of competitors
Might as well use this valuable resource to help you locate keywords that you may otherwise not think of. If you don’t know who your competitors are, then do a quick google search and go visit them — it’s about time.
Amazon reviews of books/products related to your content
If you know of books and/or products related to your website topic(s), then look on Amazon
Correspondence written to you from readers and/or customers.
If you have correspondence from existing readers and/or customers you are in luck. Look to see what they say. “Hey Joe, do you have a blank blank in stock.” This tells the keywords that at least one person uses to reference your products. So mine these correspondences.
Suggestions from friends, family, coworkers
Too many people ignore this useful resource. Whether from embarrassment or not wanting to impose, get over it and get on with it. Let these good people help you with your project. Later you are going to ask them to review your website in detail. So there is no time like the present to get them involved — not just through emotional support, but as part of the team.
How to look
Choose your keywords carefully. Turn up your attention. Bring yourself into present time. And, focus.
Be specific, be direct, be honest. Tricking potential readers to your website is not the way to start a fruitful relationship with someone.
Remember, keywords can be a single word or short phrases. A two or three word combination can be very
effective — actually essential.
Keep a look out for colloquial terms — characteristic of or appropriate to ordinary or familiar conversation rather than formal speech or writing; informal. Ordinary and familiar sounds like pretty good idea when hunting up terms that normal folks will use in looking for your content.
Write down every relevant keyword and keyword phrase you find. You will trim the list later. So don’t hesitate to include a work or phrase. This is brainstorming — so don’t be too restrictive. You can always delete insignificant keywords later.
Think like a customer or website visitor. Listen like a webmaster, but think like a customer or visitor.
Next to come is Organizing Your Keywords and Expanding Your Keywords.