What Constitutes a Good Keyword Phrase for Search Engine Optimization?

How many times has a friend or colleague told you their Website is ranked in the number one position on Google for a particular keyword phrase? Top ranking must mean they receive tons of visitor traffic to their Website, right?  Well, as Search Marketing Specialists we hear this all of the time, so what do we do?  The first step is to determine if people are in fact searching the keyword phrase.  99% of the time, we discover NO ONE is searching the keyword phrase, so even though their Website may be ranked in the number one position, no visits to their Website will occur.

The chart below lists 5 keyword phrases, 2 of which have no search activity whatsoever.  This means, companies with top ranking under those 2 phrases will not generate any visitor traffic.   Our goal as Search Engine marketing Specialists is to uncover highly searched, targeted keyword phrases that have a  low number of competing Websites vying for top ranking.  The more Websites vying for top ranking, the more difficult it is to achieve top ranking.

Keyword	# of Searches in 24Hrs	# of Competing Web Pages
metal distributor	2	263000
scrap metal buyers	8	975000
scrap metal pricing	18	2050000
surplus metals	0
selling surplus metals	0

When to Hire a Search Engine Marketing Firm

Before working for The InterCon Group, I worked for a small manufacturing company. Working in any small company, you switch from one responsibility to the next, wearing many different “hats”. Two of the assignments I was responsible for were online marketing and sales operations. Switching between the two duties it came apparent I needed assistance with the online marketing. However, where and how does one find a reputable  SEO (Search Engine Optimization) firm?  The article below provides useful information when searching for a SEM firm.

When to Hire a Search Engine Marketing Firm from Yahoo Business