Finding the Key: The Words They Search Say A Lot About Your Customers

The keywords we use to search the Web are quite revealing. As we translate our thought processes into search phrases, we provide clues to our ever changing needs as consumers.

We’re more dependent on search than ever before. In the U.S. alone, nearly seven billion Web searches were performed in January, according to comScore. Marketers are eager to make sense of all this data and new research tools are allowing them to do just that.

The following tactics outline how you can take advantage of keyword search intelligence to better understand consumer behavior and make well informed business decisions.

Speak A Common Language

Researching how your customers search the Web will help you speak a common language. This is key to their understanding of your value proposition. You’ve got limited time to capture their attention. If the subject line of an e-newsletter or the copy on a landing page doesn’t resonate with users, they’ll likely quickly abandon ship.

Take some time and look at the keywords driving the most qualified visitors to your site. Then, emphasize these words in headlines, messaging, navigation labels and buttons. And don’t stop there — some businesses are even taking keyword research into consideration when evaluating naming options for new product launches.

Google’s AdWords Keyword Tool (https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal) is free to use and a great place to start your research. Examine search volume and monthly trends for keywords that are relevant to your business as well as keyword variations that may be more relevant to your customers.

Optimize Your Campaign Calendar

Identifying the peak times of the year that people search for products related to your business will enable you to optimize your campaign calendar and plan media more effectively.

Look at keyword search volume and promote your offerings that are in high demand based on what you see. Schedule your e-mails and develop a content strategy reflecting anticipated demand. You may even discover new segmentation strategies. If nothing else, it’s great to validate what you already know.

Microsoft’s AdCenter Labs product (http://adlab.microsoft.com/default.aspx) will show you seasonal trends for what people are searching for. Other AdCenter features provide demographic age and gender distribution for keywords of interest.

Sell What’s In Demand

If you’re in a position to make merchandising decisions, you want to evaluate demand for products and services through keyword research. After all, customers are telling you what they want to buy — and you should be listening.

When analyzing customer search queries, look for ways to extend what you already sell. Try to identify gaps in the marketplace and opportunities for entirely new product categories.

Similar to Google AdWords, Trellian’s Keyword Discovery tool (http://www.keyworddiscovery.com/search.html) is a free service for conducting keyword research. Yahoo! also has a keyword research tool with similar features (http://inventory.overture.com/d/searchinventory/suggestion/).

Evaluate Your Competition

Don’t limit research to your own business. Check out how you stack up against your competition.

Compare market share for different keyword search phrases and get insights into geographical search patterns. Evaluate brand awareness for competing products. The data is yours for the taking.

Check out Google Trends (http://www.google.com/trends) and evaluate your competition through broad search patterns.

As Web search becomes increasingly intertwined into our daily lives, marketers will continue to find creative ways to derive value from the data while vendors continue to innovate search analysis tools. Experimenting with the options available now will prepare you to take advantage of the evolving keyword research channel.

Charles Wiedenhoft is director of user experience for Red Door Interactive.