A web analytics expert from Seattle, Dustin Woodard, conducted a study of the 10,000 most commonly used search terms recorded by Hitwise. The resulting graph turned out to be quite incomprehensible, with long stretches of information recorded almost invisibly across both the axes.

In order to get more comprehensible results, he further narrowed down his sample to include only the top 100 search terms, out of an estimated 14 million. The results received showed that these top 100 keywords accounted for only 5.7% of all search traffic. When the experiment was expanded to cover the top 500, 1,000, and 10,000 keywords respectively, it was found that only 8.9%, 10.65% and 18.5% of the total search traffic was covered.

Based on this, Woodard says, “This means if you had a monopoly over the top 1,000 search terms across all search engines, (which is impossible) you’d still be missing out on 89.4% of all search traffic.”

In other words, there is still lots and lots of room available for the search engines to expand their reach. Woodard further says, “If search were represented by a tiny lizard with a one-inch head, the tail of that lizard would stretch for 221 miles.”

Another reason for search engine optimisers to rejoice is that this experiment was conducted across a sample of only 10 million users based in the U.S., thus leaving out a much bigger field to be captured. Also, the search terms studied were selected with filters to screen out adult terms and the study was carried out considering the top 100 terms across 3 months that are known to be slow for business.

Among the most common search terms found were words like MySpace, Google, Bank of America, and Yahoo mail.

This bit of information should surely be heartening and reassuring to small businesses and SEO professionals among others, as they can be sure that there is till as lot of traffic for them to capture without having to spend absurd amounts of money on a few popular keywords.

The new feature provides two sets of data:

1. Approximate search volume for the previous month, which gives the number of times that keyword has been queried in the previous month
2. Average search volume, which gives the average number of times that keyword has been used, each month, over the last 12 months.

The search volume of any keyword will keep fluctuating from time to time, as net traffic is greatly affected by factors such as seasonality and current events. The volumes that are shown could also change depending on where the tool is accessed from:

• If the keyword tool is accessed from within an ad group, the statistics available will include details regarding the ad campaign in that particular country and language. If a specific region or city are targeted, then only that region’s statistics are reflected.
• If the external keywords tool or any third party application built using the Google adWords API is used, then the statistics will vary according to the country and language selected.
• The statistics provided will also vary depending on whether advertiser selects broad, phrase or exact match when using the tool.

Data about search volumes is especially useful to search advertisers who wish to create new ads around a particular keyword. Knowing the amount of traffic generated by a keyword will help advertisers plan budgets appropriately. It will also allow advertisers to select the most effective keywords, so that the ad can reach a wider audience.

Google’s External Keyword Tool

Google has traditionally been extremely tight-lipped about specific search volumes, click through rates and so on. The past few weeks, though, have seen them opening up and revealing more than they have ever done. first they launched Google Trends for Websites, then the Google Ad Planner and now the search volumes feature on their Keyword Tool. These steps have most likely been taken to help traditional media agencies perceive them as a regular advertising channel rather than a digital oddity.

1. Beginners usually get carried away by the rankings of their ads. While it is surely advantageous to be #1, rather thanat the bottom of the page or worse, on the second page, where most potential buyers might not even look, advertisers must realize that rankings bear no significance to customers.Consumers buy from websites that offer good services, good prices and reliable products. Few consumers even remember whether the site they had clicked on was number 1 or number 5 once they are on it.

   Moreover, as Mike correctly notes, nowadays search engines offer personalized results in the paid and organic listings, so that people with different requirements get different results even with the same keyword. This just further necessitates focus on other measures of marketing efficacy than mere ranking.

   The only time when traffic without sales can be justified by an advertiser is when they are using search to build their brand. Then too, one must be mindful of the user. Consistently showing irrelevant ads to a consumer can put them off the brand. Companies like eBay have negatively impacted their brand image in the past by advertising on irrelevant keywords such as “Golders Green College”, which then delivered meaningless ads saying “Buy Golders Green College on Ebay”!

2. The next parameter that lures novice search marketers is traffic. While traffic does matter, it is important to differentiate between the window-shoppers and real buyers. For paid search operations, especially, it is a very costly error to have a lot of searchers but only a few buyers.Advertisers pay for every click. The revenue generated from each click may be negligible or even nothing. Hence it is important to focus on overall conversion rates rather than just traffic volumes. For this it is important to use keywords and ad copy that encourage sales and don’t just drive traffic.
3. The final common error that should be avoided is delivering a relentless sales pitch. While it is important to highlight the salient features of a product, advertisers must also provide a proper background to customers. Few consumer like being sold to all the time. It is important for advertisers to address consumer problems rather than just rattle on about product features or advantages or “fantastic prices” and “super deals”!