Keywords or key phrases are one of the most important tools in Internet marketing. Most people are not sure which keywords to target and may either choose an ineffective one or simply ignore this important tool altogether. Ignoring this vital aspect of Internet marketing can often result in low search engine rankings.

If you are going to optimize your site for search engines, you absolutely must figure out exactly what keywords or what key phrases you are going to target. Search engines can bring in an enormous amount of traffic but in order to get that traffic, you must do some extensive research. Look at what exactly it is you are selling or promoting. Make a long list of what you think people will type into a search query. Add in all relevant words or phrases.

Once you have made your list, it is time to use the services on an online service such as Wordtracker, Google AdWords, or Yahoo SM. There is a charge for Wordtracker but it will be well worth the money to find the right keywords. These tools will tell you how many times each word and each phrase was searched or how popular different keywords are. You will notice that some words you thought were great actually are not and some words you thought were bad are actually great.

Select keywords and key phrases that get searched, but that are not too competitive. This means eliminated any keywords that are too competitive, especially single word terms such as music, books, posters, etc… If there is too much competition for a certain word, then it will be virtually impossible to get a high ranking. It is better to go with the average search term than the really popular one. This is usually a two or three word term. Find words with variations to them, such as Britney Spears music, Stephen King books, celebrity movie posters, etc...

Once you have all your keywords, you can incorporate them into your optimization strategy and pay-per-click bidding. With either of these two methods, your site will be called up in search results.