Doing SEO effectively takes both knowledge and practice. Fortunately, practice is just a matter of putting in the time and devotion to perfect the art. And for the student of SEO, knowledge can come from many difference sources — speaking of which, here are a few practical & effective SEO tools you should take a look at:
Keyword & Topic Research Tools
The foundation of every successful SEO campaign is building around optimal keywords and keyword phrases. The following keyword tools help to identify opportunity and narrow down the focus when it comes to keywords.
- SEO Book Keyword Tool (http://tools.seobook.com/keyword-tools/seobook/) – Free with registration to the site, this keyword tool presents a variety of relevant information from different sources, mash-up style.
- Google AdWords Keyword Tool (https://adwords.google.com/select/KeywordToolExternal) – Get keyword details straight from the "horse’s mouth." A great feature here is being able to enter any site’s URL and data-mining a list of similar keywords to what that particular site is using.
- Wordtracker (http://freekeywords.wordtracker.com/) – There’s both a basic free version and a premium paid version of this popular keyword tool.
- Google Trends (http://www.google.com/trends) – Great for coming up with new site ideas or following up-and-coming niches.
Competitive Research & Information Tools
A good part of SEO knowledge is understanding the background of what other successful websites are doing when it comes to optimizing for search engines. Oftentimes, studying what your leading competitor is doing can lead you to developing an incredibly successful SEO strategy of your own.
- SearchStatus for Firefox (https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/321) – In addition to conveniently displaying both PageRank and Alexa ranking for the current site you’re visiting in Firefox, this plug-in gives one-click access to a host of information including Meta-tags, Whois info, keyword density, backward links, and much more.
- SEO for Firefox (http://tools.seobook.com/firefox/seo-for-firefox.html) – Free with registration, this Firefox plug-in presents its users with a wealth of competitive research information.
Tracking & Testing
Tracking, measuring, and testing are vital to any SEO campaign. The following tools can help immensely in this process.
- Google Analytics (http://www.google.com/analytics/) – This free tool from Google is pretty much the authority when it comes to tracking and measuring your website’s traffic details and visitor metrics. It’s free, but does require installation on your website. Also, there’s a bit of a learning curve — but the door opened by the information Analytics provides you with is invaluable.
- Google Website Optimizer (www.google.com/websiteoptimizer) – Another free tool from Google, the Website Optimizer enables you to do A/B testing of two different versions of your site or landing page side-by-side. A great way to improve conversion rate.
- CleverStat Free Monitor for Google (http://www.cleverstat.com/en/google-monitor-query.htm) – This free downloadable tool measures and charts out a website’s Google rank within the SERPs.
In Conclusion…
It’s a good idea to remember that while they can be helpful, none of these tools is perfect; nor can they guarantee success. SEO success begins with good knowledge and good research; but ultimately, practice and experience have a lot to do with it t
Until Next Time.
George Chaney
President/CEO
SEO King, Inc.
