The way keyword research tools work is that they get a small bit of information on internet searches and extrapolate that into total searches on the internet. I personally use Wordze and this it is the best tool out there (Sometimes they give away free 30-day trials so sign up for my RSS and keep an eye out… I’ll let you know). Another useful FREE tool is Wordtracker.

What I will generally do is start with a very general one or two word term in Wordze. I search for my term using “broad search” and have a look down the list. Generally I target keyword sets that are 3 words and have 6,000-10,000ish searches per month (200-300ish per day). If a set of keywords look too weird to be true they probably are (If “parrot umbrella Sunday” is being searched 10,000 times a month something is probably fucked up). Secondly (because keyword tools are quit inaccurate) I use Wordtracker to verify my search volume for the topic (Note Wordtracker uses daily searches so look for 200-300ish).

**REVISED Aug 13, 2008 – One of the most important developments for SEO site makers happened when google put actual search data into it’s keyword tool. Now there is no need for these paid tools when you can get better, more accurate information here.

Ok so now you’ve found a decent keyword the last step is to check the value of your keyword using Keyword Enchanter’s CPC Tool. Who cares if you find the world greatest keyword, but it doesn’t have any affiliates and pays $0.05 per click. Don’t panic if your EXACT keyword has a high CPC, if related keywords (Keyword Enchanter shows them automatically). AdSense is the standard measure of the “value” of a keyword.

Anyway I’m away for the weekend so subscribe to my RSS feed so you get notified when I post up Step #3.