I belong to a very active 'we'alth creation' Google group where people share learnings and knowledge on everything from investing to Internet marketing. Business blogging and blog marketing is a common topic and I like to offer my two penneth where I can. Today, someone was asking about blogging and keywords - how much research should she do and are 'wrong' ones a bad thing, as well as general advice on how to structure her blog or blogs in relation to her website. I ended up writing a far longer response than I intended, but I figured that it was worth sharing with you as it raises a few important points on the subject of keywords - particularly if you are blogging for business, so here's the section of my answer on that topic:
"As for keywords - of course they are very, very important and in the main, I agree with everything Jason is saying, but (and this may cause a few ripples) you can get really (and unnecessarily IMHO) hung up on them and they can, do and will change! The thing about blogging is that you can assign new keywords each time you post
an article. And those keywords will and should change with each post you write. And if some don't work well for one post - so what? Nothing bad is going to happen. You may come up with some real corkers unwittingly...
I've been working with a client recently who had a clearly defined niche, but it's a terribly crowded one. I suggested she did some ferreting around in Technorati with her 'perceived' keywords ie. those she came up with after using the tool Jason mentioned. Those searches in Technorati enabled her to see what other keywords people were using besides the ones they 'shared' and she came up some fab ones she'd never thought of. I'd say the most important thing is to make sure that whichever keywords you are targetting for a particular post, you ensure that its in the title, in the body of the post a few times and in the keywords box. And if a keyword is a really obscure one which doesnt appear to be that frequently search, but it yields more sign ups to your list or subscribers to your feed - then fantastic - that's ''the longtail' theory at work.
Another trick is what I call 'piggy backing'. This works on major news events and involves tying your topic in to that event. So people who are hungry for more info or a different 'take' on an event or subject who google it, will potentially be led to your site via your blog. They may not have been looking for what you offer, but who are we to say that people interested in the Madonna adoption story for example, aren't also into 80s fashion or plastic surgery or garden sheds for that matter! - and that leads me nicely on to my next point...
If you are using an external platform like Typepad you absolutely should not be relying on just a little text link back to your site. Get someone to create a graphical link for you - or better yet - a couple - to different areas and offerings of your website. Lead people in.
Sorry Francesca - I didn't intend to go on this long - but I hope it's been helpful...
In short - no, there is absolutely no disadvantage to adopting a 'trial and error' approach to your keywords. Blogging is not only about driving traffic. It's about building rapport and trust, creating a network or community, positioning yourself as an expert and more.
Please feel free to email me off group if I can help further.
Warmest
Claire x
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Claire Raikes - Business Blog Angel
Business Blogging Services
www.BusinessBlogAngel.com
www.BuzzMarketingWorkshop.com - 23/24th March 2007
How to Use Blogs and Podcasts to Turbo Charge Your Business"
So what do you make of this whole topic?
Am I right in saying that people can get too hung up about finding the 'right' keywords as far as business blogging or 'blog marketing' goes?
What keyword tips or tricks have you used to good effect? Please do share :o)
