Welcome to the Keyword Thesaurus.
We’re going back to basics with this one because this is is a post that lists the various keyword related definitions as well as some insight into how it applies, how you can apply it on your blog today, what Google is looking for, and some basic guidelines for you to follow, so long as they apply to my keyword thesaurus of course.
Why a Keyword Thesaurus?
OK first I have to ask: ‘What’s another word for Thesaurus?!’ 
A thesaurus ,according to the Oxford English Dictionary is a storehouse, repository, or treasury.
This is quite a fitting meaning considering that I intend to create exactly that for your future keyword research needs by listing all definitions, as well as what I have learnt along the way. Add to this the fact that ‘Keyword Thesaurus’ has 14,800 exact searches a month, versus 590 for ‘definition of keywords’ and you have a sure fire winner!
The inspiration behind the keyword thesaurus.
This post came about from a combination of Scott Barron on the comments thread, asking good questions like he usually does, the Affiliate Datafeed and a conversation with my Mum. Regular readers will know that my Mum is starting her own business and as such I was explaining the concept of keywords to her and she was completely and utterly baffled and astounded. Mum literally had no idea what I was talking about (and she’s an English Major!) and it made me realise that I was blogging about keywords with the assumption that everyone knew what I did. It’s funny how we often do that, I know if I’m in a taxi driving to my house I’ll just keep forgetting to direct the driver, constantly assuming that he ‘must know where I live, surely!?’
Anyway, where was I? (I do this a lot – see I’m even digressing within the original digression!)
A summary of keyword definitions, as well as a little insight or opinion from me, because I just have to throw in my 2 cents.
- Long Tail Vs. Short Tail refers to the number of words, 3 words or less are Short tail and anything over I actually refer to as Key Phrases. Makes more sense too since you end up with a phrase more than a word. The idea here is to drill down into the longer tail: For example, Digital Camera, Canon Digital Camera, Canon EOS d70 digital camera. (I made that up for those playing at home)
- High Fruit vs. Low fruit refers to the ease with which you could possibly obtain number 1 ranking for that phrase, based on search volume and competing pages.This expression comes from the real world where a trees low hanging fruit is easily gettable by anyone, albeit slightly more rare than the rest of the fruit higher up in the branches.
- Competition refers to the number of other pages that have that same exact phrase or word in their title and description, the assumption being that if they have it in the title, they are competing for it** To find the competition simply type the key phrase in the Google search bar surrounded byquotation marks (“your keyword phrase”) Again, the amount of competition you choose to go against depends on the level of marketing you are planning on doing, but as a general rule, stick to under 200,000.
** Note:- I’m sure you’ll agree that not ALL pages are actually competing for the key phrase in question. I for one have a lot of pages that aren’t ‘competing’ at all. Just note this when looking at those figures.
- Search Volume refers of course to the number of times that phrase is used as a search basis in Google each month. Now there are a couple of things to keep in mind with this. The first thing is the number. Now this is just what I use as a guide, and even then it is not set in stone, so obviously you can do what you like, but for me, the search volume has to be a minimum of 500 EXACT PHRASE MATCH searches Globally, a month.
- Exact Phrase Match vs. Broad phrase Match refers to the way the key phrase is matched and changes the results you get in the Keyword Tool dramatically. What I find strange is that so many keyword books (I have read a lot) talk about matching numbers to get your optimum keyword but they say to do it with broad matching! I think this is just stupid and let me tell you why. Using the example in this post as a reference, what Broad matching does basically is it matches your search term with anyone that has searched for Keyword as well as Thesaurus, as well as both together, in either order! Exact match on the other hand will only match up results for ‘keyword Thesaurus’ as a phrase. If you are trying to find out how many people searched for Keyword Thesaurus in order to ascertain whether it is worth ‘competing’ for, why on earth would you want to fudge those figures by adding those who searched for just keyword or just Thesaurus?! Exactly, you wouldn’t.
- Geographic location If you are using the free Keyword Tool from Google, the new version defaults to the geographic location that you reside in, so make sure you manually change this after you search or your results will only reflect your country! This might be OK for you Americans, but here in Australia, that changes those figures something chronic! (see screen capture below for where to make this change)
- Keyword Density refers to the percentage of keywords to content within the text of a page. As a general rule, stick to no more than 15% key phrases, including headings and subheadings.
Want an exact formula for Keyword Density?
Yeah so do I, but if you like you can see how I’ve done it by looking at the post you just read. See how often I have used the primary keyword and where it has been placed. The opening heading is tagged H2 and the rest are either H3 or just bolded. (this does nothing for SEO, 97% sure on that, which is why I do it still ) I have also tagged the two images with keyword thesaurus as well, but the image above is not because it is a how to image and might actually help someone so I alt tagged it appropriately.
The primary Keyword is ‘Keyword Thesaurus’ and as I mentioned in the opening paragraph, ‘keyword thesaurus’ has 14,800 exact searches a month versus 590 for ‘definitions of keywords’ which is what this post was originally going to be called. With this in mind I set to optimize the post for that search phrase. In this particular post I have the added advantage of talking about the optimization process which allows me to use the phrase more so than normal without it looking spammy. (I still will not add it here because the phrase is in this paragraph twice already and anymore would be well over my 15% density limit.
A plug-in for some extra link juice! (Anchor text)
I have a plug in called SEO Smart Links (available through your admin panel) which I highly suggest you install. What this does is automatically link keywords and tags in posts to other posts, as well as linking to the category and tag itself. This is why most instances of Keyword Thesaurus have been hyperlinked, which of course is EXCELLENT for SEO.
Want to Make Keyword Research as easy and painless as possible?
Download Market Samurai (below) and see what all the fuss is about!
For further reading on the importance of and the processes involved with Keyword Research and Optimization, please see the related posts below
Google+ it
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Pin it
Kube it
{ 42 comments… read them below or add one }
What a great post.
Alex, I really like your style of writing. It is so engaging.
Heck, You even made the boring topic of ‘keywords/keyword thesaurus’ interesting!
Regarding the last paragraph, of you submitting your article to ezine, I see many mis conceptions regarding this.
You can submit your content to ezine, even though it’s published elsewhere, as long as you are the original author, right?
And google will not penalize you for duplicate content, as they will be under different domains, and you stand a chance of being ranked under all these different domains, right?
Kindest,
Nabeel
Hey Nabeel.
Man you are a prolific blog commenter (and you do it really well) – when you gonna get yourself a blog my friend?
In regards to your last comments you are right, except it also does not matter if you are the original author. Obviously where ever the article is posted you are always credited as the author (one would hope) but this is irrelevant to google. The reason it gets indexed everywhere is a combination of what you correctly said about the domain name, but also combined with all the content on the site being different too.
Combine this with the fact that the same article can be indexed for a thousand different keyphrases.
Thanks for your comments and great questions Nabeel, always happy to help.
How’s CFM coming along?
Awesome resource Alex! I get tired of explaining this stuff one at a time to people who have these questions, so now I know where to refer them
I like how you found and targeted the keyword, ‘Keyword Thesaurus’ … very clever … I’m sure this post will end up helping a lot of people just starting out and are getting used to the multitude of confusing online business terms.
Keep up the great work Alex!
Hey Jon.
Wow, thanks for the referral kudos man. Yeah it was good to get back to the basics. All this and more is part of the eBook I am in the middle of writing and I figured since I was blogging about keywords, I should at least have the basics on my blog somewhere
Thanks again for stopping by and commenting Jon, don’t know how you found the time after writing that epic post of yours. (Now I know where to send people wanting an explanation of the whole enchilada)
See you soon mate.
Alex
Hey Alex,
Wow this is a really informative post. I am really lacking on my keyword knowledge so this is pretty helpful. It’s good seeing an example of how someone puts keywords in their writing. I almost didn’t catch it a few times (until you pointed it out). Thanks for posting such a useful post for us keyword newbies out there. And I agree, sometimes it is easy forget that other people don’t know what you know.
Peace,
Darren L Carter
Hey Darren how are ya mate?
)
Always good to see you pop in and glad you found the post helpful. I remember learning this when I first started getting into building niche sites but never thought to put it down on paper, so thanks for the awesome feedback.
For some reason everyone wants to keep the exact how to of most things to themselves. I don’t see the point?!
The Ebook is on it’s way I promise, had a few ‘personal matters’ to deal with in the last fortnight (2 weeks) so it got delayed… and delayed…and I digress (see I told you I do that a lot
Thanks for stopping by Darren.
Alex, I’m a diligent student of SEO, so I really appreciate this post and your other recent posts about the subject.
I know it takes quite a while to write a detailed post like this. Thanks so much for doing it.
Hey John, it is my pleasure man. I am just leaking bits and pieces of the upcoming ebook so technically it’s cheating but thanks for the support my friend.
Great post Alex! Looking forward to buying your first book
There is a wealth of information here!
Thanks Marc! Really appreciate the awesome comments and kudos. You will definitely love the eBook even more in a second, because it won’t cost you a cent.
Hi Alex,
Thanks for the updated information on keywords and another plug from your website!
I appreciate the ongoing quest to help me rank my name higher in Google. The #1 spot is still Wikipedia talking about the English professional footballer with my name.
Does keyword research really matter to a blog? I see how building a niche would benefit from using keywords because long tail and short tail results are “usually” organic searches. Like your highchairs – but I can’t imagine blogging about highchairs. At least not for very long.
Where I keep getting confused is that Google Webmaster Tools says my top 5 keywords are: “scott”, “barron”, “quote”, “blog” and “xxx”.
I’m stumped. (again)
Hahaha, stop talking about underwear and you’ll get rid of the ‘xxx’ … Maybe?yeah I forgot to mention that this is mainly focused on niche marketing but the same applies to blogging, just in this case don’t worry about the competition, just use the phrase with the highest search volume. My pleasure for the link, he he, you know we’ll get you ranked mate! Lol
Yes niche marketing would be the best place for this, and to niche blogs also. A lot of us will get top keywords on names at present with the oil rig hopping going on.
- Louis
I’m still worried about you wearing your wife’s underwear and putting them back in her drawer so she things she’s thin. Did you try that with her nursing bras also?
Hey Alex,
You have broken it down nicely and made good use of the keyword while explaining all of this. With the comment of content duplication above, it is true that there are no penalties by Google. However if you submit a similar content to article directories before it is indexed at your domain, the directory will get the top ranking ahead of you, if their authority is higher than yours.
I will look at the plugin that you talk about. I did not realise that you reside in Australia like me. I will try not to imitate your post with what I am covering on keyword research.
I’ve started a long discussion with Mirko on backlinking at his blog.
- Louis
Hey Louis, thanks for the comments and for explaining a few more details for the readers, that’s really awesome man.
You are spot on with the authority sites and found this out when I ranked first for an article I wrote on effective blog commenting, but after submitting it to ezine and BlogEngage, it was ranked 7th behind both the other sources. This also proved that duplicate content penalty is a load of hogwash.
Thanks again for stopping by and commenting Louis, COmment Luv tells me I need to come and see what you are up to.
Mirko has a great blog and is an awesome guy so that should be awesome, I might come join it if that’s OK
Thanks for this Alex as it definitely put understanding keywords easier for me. I will definitely utilize that plugin you recommended as well as BloggersBase which I never heard of before.
Also good to know the precise percentage of keyword density. I wanted to ask if it’s a keyword that you can’t help but use a lot in your post, should we find other words in place of them or would you recommend removing them altogether?
Thanks again for explaining this in an easy way because I am still all new to this.
Anna
Hi Anna,
Bloggersbase.com is a fantastic place to leverage your posts. I just copy and paste them exactly into the site and although the traffic is not as high as I would like, I am still getting my name and brand presence there.
I am now starting to utilize blogengage which has a much better pagerank and more authority but is more strict with guidelines. I only heard of it after Dev from technshare.com posted my article there on my behalf. Now THAT is a cool feature.
As for keyword density, I have always stuck with 15% and have never been penalised for it. if the keyword appears too often then Google simply ignores it, but remember key phrases are usually more than two words so there is ALWAYS alternate synonyms to use (on that note – yes you should definitely add synonyms, as I mentioned in a previous post, why not add them and get ranked there too) with single words, unless you write intangible sentences, for eg: I ride horseback with horseback clothes on horseback it is good fun to horseback with friends on horseback, you are not going to get penalised.
Thanks for answering my question Alex. Will have to put blogengage on my list too.
Anna
Hey Alex
I am glad you said my foot and not my a$$ lol.
Great post, keyword research is so very important and most people don’t seem to get it…NOT ANYMORE!
You just gave the best guide to keyword research any newbie could ask for.
I have never heard of that plugin, heading to bed now, but will revisit your blog tomorrow and make sure I add to my every growing list of plugins.
Love the new look of your blog, it’s feels very “warm” and “cosy” so if that was the effect you were going for, you nailed it.
Sally
Hee hee, yeah the latter was actually there for a second but was quickly changed because I hate unnecessary swearing (I don’t mind swearing in context – don;t get me wrong I’m no prude)
That’s the rockingest comment ever Sally! Brilliant.
Thanks so much for your words of support, especially the caps lock -hee hee, awesome.
Also it’s great to get that feedback about the new colour scheme so thank you so much for that Sally, yes it was exactly the look I was going for. Since I am starting to talk business a lot I wanted to make sure it looked far from it.
You’ve gotten a new look since I last stopped in. This color scheme really makes the content pop out more and has a comfy feel.
Thanks for more great information. One of these days I should actually start applying some of this good stuff . . .
Thanks Jean, really glad to get the feedback actually. Yeah I felt the last scheme was too generic and did not really reflect the message I wanted to give, so really glad it is coming through now. Warmth: check. Fuzziness: hmm, I suppose not all my posts are clear. Check. WOO HOO! Warm and fuzzy.
Alex: Another great post on blogging that I am by all means bookmarking:) Thank you so much for sharing and passing this information along. I definitely plan to integrate some of your tips into my post. Thanks agains.
Thanks Sibyl! That’s awesome of you to say and glad I could help you out. I love Keyword research because it is the biggest return on investment you will ever get (in my opinion)
Thanks for stopping by and commenting Sibyl
Hey Alex,
Wow. Super Kick-ass Post man. You’re really doing a great Job alex.
Btw. New look is really looking awesome.
Thanks for sharing this great Post.
~Dev
Awesome Dev! Love the energy man, and thanks for the feedback on the new look too, really glad I distracted myself from actually doing anything all those evenings ago.
Hey Alex,
I have just been commenting on Louis blog post on keywords, saw your latest blog post entry through this brilliant CommentLuv plugin and now I am glad I hopped over to your post also.
This is a very informative and well written post on one of the most important and regrettably often overlooked topic of keywords and keyword research. You have explained the way to work with your specific keywords in great detail and this will be an awesome help for people who haven´t spend their time on keyword research and keyword implementation yet.
I especially liked your writing on “Exact Phrase Match vs. Broad phrase Match” as this is something a lot of people have a misconception about – And how can they not, if so few ebooks talk about it in detail. Your explanation will cure that misconception for ever
Thanks also for sharing this great SEO Smart Link plugin. I had come accross it before but forgot to install it, so this is a good reminder to do it right now.
Keep up the fantastic work, Alex.
Mirko
Wow Mirko, thank you for that amazing feedback and comment, really appreciated. I love the blogosphere! Louis commented here so I went visiting there, saw your discussion, came over to yours and said Hi and now you’re here! AWESOME! Anyway, where was I? Glad someone agrees with me on the exact match. I have paid for a few courses that go through the competition and the numbers you should work with and they ALL say to use Broad match. It doesn’t make sense to me (or you) so thanks for the backing.
Hope to see you around my friend, thanks for commenting.
Alex:
I know I am a little late in getting to read this post but i want to say thanks for the information. Researching and focusing on some long tail keywords is something I really need to do for my blog.
Great job on the keyword research to find the term “keyword thesaurus” versus “definition of keywords”. “Definition of keywords” is the longer tail version but in this instance it is not the best keyword phrase to use. Nice Job!
I have already downloaded and activated the SEO Smart Links plugin.
- Rick
Hey Rick,
Thanks for your comments man, really glad you found the post useful and that you are implementing some of the tips already – awesome!
In regards to the keyword used, yeah it’s funny how a phrase like keyword thesaurus is THAT much better than any other. I bet if you asked 100 people, none of them would think to use that terminology!?
Thanks again for your comments and for stopping by Rick
Great stuff Alex,
It’s good to see a simple breakdown and definition of terms such as exact and broad phrase match. long and short tail etc.
Although it has complexities to it this stuff is ultimately fairly straight forward and broken down into simple terms like this can be grasped even by non tech-savvy beginners. It’s worth the effort of any blogger or online marketer to grasp at least the basics of keywords if they want the chance of being seen by the engines!
Thanks for a helpful and interesting post.
Jym
Well stated Jym!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts mate
Hey Alex,
Once again, thank you for sharing your knowledge through this post. We , as a marketer should know that the foundation of our business starts from “keyword research”. Now, I do have question for you regarding checking the competition fro the keywords we’re going after.
You said that, I quote here :
“To find the competition simply type the key phrase in the Google search bar surrounded byquotation marks (“your keyword phrase”) “. I agree this step if we want to make sure how many competition out there for specific keywords we are looking for, but don’t you think people usually will search without using quotation marks? I have just read Tyrone Shum blog about this, when he conducted his research for his niche duel challenge. What do you think?
Thanks,Stella
Stella!!
(sorry ‘street car named desire’ moment LOL)
I agree with what Tryone said, but my arguement is that only with quotations do you find competition, ie: those who have that keyphrase in the title, so therefore this is what we want to find out. Granted people search without them, but by the time you are done ranking and beating all that competition you will come up for the search regardless of hyphens
Good to see you hanging around girl!
Hey Alex,
Still scratch my head here, but I see what’s your point
Well Detailed Alex. Keyword research when conducted properly can add so much juice to the performance of our blogs. It’s important we focus on this techniques listed here if we desire success. Thanks a bunch!
I still do my keyword research using the Google Keyword Tool… still the same concepts but of course it takes me longer. When I get enough money, i will spend on these IM tools.
Great article Alex, but do you have an update to this article since all the changes to the algorithm that Google has been making. I would interested to see if you have changed any of your strategies.
Hi Alex,
It’s essential to know how to use keywords in a proper way. Thankyou for your guidance. I think if we follow your point then nobody could stop us from success.
When we start blogging then several questions arise to keyword thesaurus but by the time these questions become futile. I really liked the way you represent this topic and make it interesting and informative to read. Thanks!
Hi Alex, It’s Great article! you have an update to this article since all the changes to the algorithm that Google has been making these days. I would interested to see if you have changed any of your strategies and methods or even tips.
Thanks,
Amceo
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