Find Profitable Niches

When it comes to determining all relevant keywords, should we learn to do it ourselves or is it preferable to hire an experienced company or freelancers to perform this task?

The answer to this central question depends upon a number of related variables. Here are some of the most significant of those related variables:

1. The depth of your knowledge concerning directly and tangently related keywords

2. The various software tools that are available to your company

3. Familiarity with using those keyword research tools

4. Your interpretive abilities when it comes to the surprisingly complex task of keyword analysis

5. The overall amount of money that you have available for business development

As you can see, all of these come down to what you know and how much money you have to dedicate to this part of your Internet business plan. Let me address each of those in a bit more detail.

What You Need to Understand

Identifying relevant keywords and phrases is as important as any other part of your new business. In fact, it is more important than most of your planning. Your list will form the basis of all of your search engine optimization efforts, your advertising campaigns (PPC and others), your copywriting and your article marketing efforts (as well as your other content syndication). The entire future of you business is directly related to the quality of your keyword research.

Some available tools are free to use, such as Google’s keyword research tool. Others can be purchased as desktop software or as online membership applications. It is important to use multiple tools for your research, because results will different based upon the databases that the tools consult and the formulas with which they conduct their searches. You should gather information comparing keyword research tools.

While use of the tools is relatively simple, in most cases, interpreting the results can be very tricky if you do not yet have considerable experience or a significant knowledge base. Not all of the keywords that are uncovered are of equal value to a business, and the number of searches for any given keyword does not necessarily make that keyword of greater importance to you than another term or phrase for which there may be substantially fewer searches.

Budget

If the amount in your budget for early business development endeavors, this area merits the allocation of its share of those funds. The cost of a keyword research package is relatively small when it is compared to the potential benefit. It is especially useful if the professionals that you hire also provide a competition analysis and include advice regarding how to compete with the established businesses in your market.

Often keyword research is bundled into an overall search engine optimization (SEO) contract. Consequently, if you plan to invest in such a large scale purchase, there is usually no point in buying a keyword or niche research package as well. However, if you choose to go this route (contracting for an SEO package), make sure you understand exactly how thorough your SEO company will be.

Bottom line: You can do this task yourself if you already know a great deal about the process (or are willing to take the time to learn what you need to) and if you have the critical tools.