Open your mind and concentrate your mental focus for just a few minutes here, because my feeling is that even if you do read this page carefully, intently with the purpose of sponge-like info absorption, you will still have to reread it many times over. This section will not so much turn your concept of keyword selection on its head, as it will be the cause of much contemplation. My suggestion is that you may want to turn the visual below into a 3" x 5" note card for constant reference. Visually it speaks volumes about the important concept of capturing users towards the end of the sales funnel, as opposed to the beginning browsing phases of the buying cycle. The upper, wider, broad, more general opening that constitutes the initial stages of the sales life cycle is where the vast majority of searches seem to occur right now. I cautiously qualify that statement with "right now" simply because search is slowly evolving as searchers become more educated and familiar with the search process. Over time, active users are becoming more and more savvy in presenting more targeted keywords in their search.

PPC Keyword Selection

As search evolves even further, results will show that the broadest searches of today will whither away in decreasing numbers. For example, once upon a time larger geographical qualifiers used to be the main stream, and therefore exhibited higher search volumes with dense competition. Just 18 months ago there could have been more search attention surrounding the phrase "bay area" whereas today those inquiries have shifted into a split between "San Francisco" and "Oakland." Participants in search are getting smarter, realizes that more specific searches are the best starting points, because even they are perhaps overly general still. Search volume for "San Francisco" related terms are more now abundant than "bay area" might have ever been as a geo-qualifier by straight numbers, but by past percentages, "bay area" most likely has dominated by percentages. As higher daily search volumes have been ramping up dramatically for "San Francisco" term, "bay area" related searches have arguably gone flat, thus allowing the SF keywords have overtaken it's previous leader by large margins.

PPC Keyword List Creation

This principle also applies to non-geographical qualifiers, particularly products that can be sold nationally. Keywords revolving around the problem are no longer more advantageous to use than solutions. In days past it may have been acceptable to display ads for "my desk is too messy," as well as "desk organizer." In today's competitive landscape, Quality Score enforcement and more expensive pricing models, neither may be suitable for the less obvious reason that both are too broad. Instead capturing searches such as "unique desktop paper organizer" is far more appropriate as a starting point within the sales funnel.

Continue