Keyword Research Tools

Over the years the market has spread quite wide with numerous options to choose from. Most keyword analysis tools have become quite generous offering a number of free trial features which will give you plenty to experiment with before you make the purchase.

You may find that certain tools are superior in some aspects but lack in other areas. For this reason, it is not uncommon for Online Marketing Professionals to invest in more than one tool at a given time. This guide serves as a handy guide; a blueprint if you will, to look into when comparing and choosing the right tool. Here are some of the most important aspects to look into when buying a competition research tool.

Keyword Analysis and Research

In any online campaign, your choice of keywords and promotion of them should be of utmost importance. Even if you are looking to run an exclusive social media campaign, it pays to have a knowledge of winning, profitable keywords in your niche. Whether your target is SEO or PPC, be sure that your research tool provides extensive analytics and information regarding use of keywords.

SEO Keyword Research

SEO is something all online marketers should look at to gain a competitive advantage so even if your main focus is currently PPC, look for a tool that at least provides basic information in terms of SEO; of your competition as well as your industry. These tools usually offer detailed analytics of a domain including it's organic ranking, number of keywords for which a domain ranks, estimated organic traffic and estimated keyword searches.

PPC Keyword Research

As search engines tightens its grip over its SERPs and continuous updates that slam rankings; it can be difficult to exclusively focus on SEO. A PPC campaign can be a lot more predictable so ensure that your competition research tool gives you an extensive insight into what your competitors are bidding on in terms of keywords as well as how much they are spending. Even if you are looking at other organic options to boost traffic and sales, knowing how much your competition is spending and what keywords they are paying for can give you a distinctive advantage.

These PPC research tools offers number of keywords and estimated bids of those keywords. Apart from keyword data they may also offer ad copies, average position of ad, advertiser's history and much more.

Social Media Analytics & Research

With the amount of time consumers spend on social media and the importance social media provides in terms of connecting with your customers as well as other areas of online marketing such as SEO, acquiring details of what your competitors are up to on social media platforms can help you run your own campaigns as well. It is possible to quickly gauge which social media profiles are most active among your competitors and only focus on these websites.

Content Analysis

As search engines continues to update its algorithm, we find the one gaping factor of online credibility is consistent, top-notch content. While this means a more informative, usable internet, it can also be difficult to develop websites to meet these standards. Good competition research tools also give you an overview of content marketing efforts and how to optimize your content for maximum results. If you have already hired a competent content writer to do this for you, this feature may not be the most useful but you still could be leaving traffic on the table.

Backlink Analysis

Tools like SEMRush and Spyfu nowadays offers backlink research. They may not be data rich and accurate as much as standalone tools but they still can help user to get quick overview of backlink profile for competitors’ sites or own websites.

Backlink research tools usually offer quick overview of number of backlinks, number of unique domains, comparison with competitors and much more.

Reports

Whether you represent an online marketing company or carry out your own stints, proper reporting is essential to get an idea of the big picture. If you represent a company, aesthetic appeal and highly presentable data can be of more importance, but all tools should offer substantial data irrespective of how it looks so that it provides ample information at a glance on how things are faring with respect to your campaigns as well as your competition. If possible you may also want option to export whitelabel reports for your clients.

Affiliate Research

A good percentage of people seeking competition tools are affiliate marketers. While you may not need specific tools if you have the above in check, there are some competition research tools that are more “affiliate marketer friendly” offering reports and tools on various affiliate networks and super affiliates that can be very appropriate for you if you exclusively carry out campaigns to market other people’s products on popular affiliate networks.

Pricing

Competition research tools can be expensive. It is advisable to have one at your disposal at all times so when making that investment, find a tool that you can continually use without the product breaking your bank and proving to be more of an investment rather than a tool that boosts profits. There are several tiers and pricing models so choose something that is in line with your budget.

All of the aspects above may not apply to you specifically but you should be able to gain some perspective on what to look for when investing in a competition research tool.