I guess you know by now what "long tail keywords" are. Phrases of three or more words are considered "long tail keywords." Here is a quick example so you immediately understand what it's all about.



Let's say you want to promote a product that has to do with sewing. If you check the keyword "sewing patterns" on Google, you'll get over 1,300,000 results! Obviously, you don't want to compete against these kinds of numbers. But if you Google the exact long tail phrase "sewing patterns online" you will discover that there are only 10,600 results. If you know what you're doing - that's an easy niche to dominate.

I have a tool that also tells me how many sites are actually optimized for this phrase. I can tell you right now that only 4 (that's a four!) out of these 10,600 are optimized for "sewing patterns online." True, the same wonderful tool tells me that "sewing patterns" is searched 176,000 times a month, while "sewing patterns online" is searched only 4,500 times a month.

But, and there is a but, 4,500 searches combined with another log tail keyword such as "sewing patterns costumes," that has over 2,000 monthly searches and zero optimized web sites, brings your total to almost 7,000 searches a month - a very nice search volume. And when you read my following articles, you will learn how to take advantage of these data and start using the search engines for your promotions.

Keywords research is the single most important step on your way to success. It is the spinal column of marketing on the Internet. You can find a lot of help online: various tools and other resources that will make your research much easier.

You should always begin with the broadest term: "gardening," "credit," "weight loss," "cars," and you go from there to the long tail keyword: "online gardening tools," "fast weight loss programs," etc. Keep checking your findings on all the search engines and watch the results, finally you will discover 3-4 phrases of 3-5 words which are the least competitive and still have some search volume.

Keyword research is the most important step on your way to a lucrative marketing business. Spend the time and the effort. If you find a very good tool at a reasonable price - invest in it. It will save you time and, eventually it will save you money.

See you in a couple of days in article #3, where I will discuss the ways to promote your products online.