There are dozens of keyword research tools out there that range from free to extremely pricey. Which is the best keyword research tool?
The short answer for me is to use that which is between your ears for keyword research more than any tool.
You will need the tools to conduct your research but I have yet to find a keyword research tool that doesn’t take some interpretation. You cannot blindly trust any of these tools. You will need to get some experience with them and find their weaknesses and strengths.
This is where your noggin comes in.
Keyword research tools are woefully imperfect, here are just a few of the errors that are found in keyword research tools:
- Overestimating/underestimating amount of traffic
- Overestimating/underestimating competition
- Inability to predict the seasonality of search volumes
- Inability to smooth out spikes in search volumes
- Inability to use geographic location as a parameter
Here are three questions you should ask yourself about the keyword research tool you are using:
- What is the sample size of the data that is used?
- What is the source of the data?
- What is the period of time from which the data is pulled?
Then — apply your brain to the data. Has there really been a bunch of searches for the phrase ‘lace length needed for size 15 mens athletic shoes’ or is it more likely that this is an anomaly in the data that should be ignored.
What about you? What keyword research tools do you use? How do you use your noggin to sort through the data?
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