In my previous article, I raised the issue that proper keyword research must take into account countries. The reason for that was that the demand for keywords can vary between countries. I gave examples of that fact using the Overture keyword tool.
To support my argument (that we need to be aware of countries when doing keyword research), I gave 2 reasons:
1. it will help us determine which countr(y/ies) to target, and
2. it will help us know what countr(y/ies) our visitors are most likely to come from.
I would like, in this article, to expand on these 2 reasons. I would also like to add further reasons why any keyword research must be country based.
1. When doing keyword research, we need to understand the limitations of our research. This is necessary in order to remove any assumptions we make about our findings. For example, if you find that the demand for a keyword is very high in the US, you cannot assume that the demand for that same keyword will also be vey high in other countries. You will only know for sure how much demand there is worldwide by doing country specific keyword research. Such research can be done using a tool such as the Overture keyword tool,
2. It will tell you where your visitors are most likely to come from. This in turn will tell you what features you need to add to your web site. For example, if you are targeting a keyword that is in demand in the US only, then obviously most of your visitors will come from the US. This then means that you need to design your web site primarily for US visitors. You will hence need to:
- use US spelling such as "color" and not "colour",
- if you sell products, then list your prices in US$,
- if you live in the US, then add a fax number so your visitors can place orders by fax,
- if you live in the US, you could organise a US free call number for your visitors to ring you should they need to,
- if you live in the US and you ship your orders, then you could include shipping costs. You could also include how long it will take for them to receive their order,
- if you don't live in the US, then you will need to make it possible for your visitors to pay you in US$,
- if you don't live in the US and you ship your orders, then you could include shipping costs. And you could include how long it will take for them to receive their order,
- and so on . . .
If on the other hand, you are wanting to target several non-English speaking countries, then:
- you may need to add a translation service to your site so that your visitors can read your site in their language,
- you may need to add a currency exchange service so that your visitors can convert your prices into their currency,
- you may need to make it possible for your visitors to pay you in their own currency,
- you may need to add other ways for your visitors to pay you apart from credit cards. You could offer international cheques/checks, money orders, direct bank transfers, . . . I once had a customer who wanted to pay me in Euros from Italy and needed my address to do so. The easier you make it for people to place an order, the greater the chances someone will place an order!
- if you ship your orders, then you could add the shipping costs to each of the countries you are targeting. And include how long it will take for them to receive their order,
- and so on . . . May be you can think of other things you will need to add to your site to accommodate your international visitors.
3. It will help you target the right keywords for the country you want to target. For example, if you want to target Canada, then you will need to use keywords that are in high demand in Canada only. There is absolutely no point doing keyword research in the UK if you are wanting to target Canada as the keyword demand between the 2 countries may vary greatly.
4. It will help you develop a keyword strategy so that you can target several countries at the same time. This can be achieved in several ways depending on the keywords' demand and supply.
- you could use keywords that are in common demand in the several countries. For example, if you sell "widgets" with your site and you find that there is a healthy demand for "black widgets" in the US, the UK, Canada and Australia. Then you could target that keyword with your site as that keyword will help you target 4 countries in one go,
- you could use keywords in demand in each country, as long as they complement each other and are highly relevant for your site. For example, using the widget idea, if you found that "colored widgets" are in demand in the US, "white widgets" are in demand in the UK, "black widgets" in Canada, and "coloured widgets" in Australia. Then, you would just target all these keywords with your site which would not be hard to do as all these keywords can easily be targeted together.
Given the right circumstances, you could even use both strategies at the same time.
As I mentioned in my first article, the Overture keyword tool enables you to research the demand for keywords in some 19 countries around the world. To see the countries that Overture supports, go to www.overture.com and have a look at the top right corner of the page. By clicking on any one of the countries listed, you will have access to the Overture keyword tool for the country you selected, and this will enable you to research the keyword demand in that country.
As you may know, keyword demand is only one half of the equation. Keyword demand needs to be looked at together with its supply numbers. One of the ways of determining keyword supply is to use Google. This means that to you need to know how to use Google to research the supply of keywords in your country of interest. This is a bit harder to explain and beyond the scope of this article.
I hope that this second article has convinced you about the need to be country aware when doing your keyword research. The success of your web site may depend on it.
Serge M Botans
Serge M Botans is the CEO of Meta Keywords Advice, a web site that provides advice on keywords. Free evaluation available. He is also the inventor of CID, which is an altenative to KEI.
![]() |
|
![]() |
|
![]() |
|
![]() |
With 40 million websites in existence, and more than 3... Read More
Why get into Search engines and directories?Increase backlinks of your... Read More
In Google's recent battle towards becoming an international news center,... Read More
The first step to developing any search engine optimization effort... Read More
There are those that get on the computer one night... Read More
This is the first of a series of articles about... Read More
The Cold Hard Facts?..One of the most important factors in... Read More
If you're a non-American business with a .com web address,... Read More
Attaining a top ranking in Goggle or any other major... Read More
Search engines will be a way for you to generate... Read More
In my last newsletter I wrote about how your websites... Read More
Visit Google, Yahoo, MSN or one of the lesser search... Read More
Achieving a top ranking position in Google is every webmasters... Read More
Anchor Text (also called phrase linking) can significantly improve your... Read More
Definition:Google banning occurs when Google removes your site from its... Read More
For those who haven't heard: article marketing is the new... Read More
The Budget Webmaster's 6 Step Guide to Improving Existing Rankings... Read More
If you're looking for an SEO firm, we recommend that... Read More
The sun seems to be setting on the world of... Read More
No doubt, having a high search engine ranking is very... Read More
The major search engines are always on the lookout to... Read More
"HLE" is a bit of a joke term, (or possible... Read More
In the age of fair competition you may find it... Read More
You must have heard the stories how people became rich... Read More
You've got a cool new website with all the works:... Read More
You have put lot of sweat in making your site.... Read More
What's more important to your business success - the question... Read More
So you built a website, you have a product, but... Read More
We know that each and every website page is assigned... Read More
If you want to develop a successful search engine optimization... Read More
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is a very complex process. It... Read More
Web users turn to search engines for answers to their... Read More
The popularity of weblogs or blogs has gotten a lot... Read More
Everyone is looking for "secrets" about how to get more... Read More
For anyone looking to enhance their Google Page Rank (PR)... Read More
If your site isn't found in the search engines, it... Read More
Your Website visitor reports are a goldmine of information. If... Read More
6: The hidden benefits to having the right links. Every... Read More
Search engine optimization is one of most popular online marketing... Read More
Here are some observations that I have made recently:1. On... Read More
My inbox this week provided glaring examples of three all... Read More
The sun seems to be setting on the world of... Read More
For the first few months after Yahoo decided to go... Read More
Search engine optimization this and search engine optimization that. You... Read More
To arrive at the set of keywords that:Describe business correctly... Read More
Most webmasters have no idea on how to make a... Read More
Contrary to what most people think, it is not necessary... Read More
The META tags are used to provide extra information about... Read More
A while back, I read an article that explained how... Read More
Good keywords are frequently searched for (high demand) but not... Read More
How can you be found on the web?The web is... Read More
Today's article is about the wonders of SEO. SEO is... Read More
Top 10 search engine rankings. Everybody wants it but a... Read More
Welcome to part four in this search engine positioning series.... Read More
Web users turn to search engines for answers to their... Read More
Search engine optimization experts are having fun with Google. Experts,... Read More
Designing a Better System for Search Engines and Information Distribution,... Read More
The first step in a search engine optimization campaign is... Read More
Last Week I did a Search engine Experiment. I wanted... Read More
Search engines are constantly tweaking their ranking algorithms and when... Read More
First, here's the rundown of some of the terminology I'm... Read More
Google has many ways to help you find want you... Read More
In parts 1 - 5 you learnt how to develop... Read More
The biggest problem that most are running into seems to... Read More
There are four basic types of Search Engines: Free Search... Read More
Search Engine traffic has always been and continues to be... Read More
Search Engine Optimization (SEO) |