40+ FREE methods to find the best keyword ideas for keyword research

A list of free methods to find keyword ideas
You can use these methods when you are:

• building niche sites
• building authority sites
• have a website and want to expand on new grounds
• or any other type of online activity.

I hope it helps you with your business.

1. Google Keyword Tool
The best solution for this would be to have a Google account with Google Adwords activated. This way you will get more information and you wouldn't have to put CAPTCHA words all the time

• Always choose [EXACT] match type.
• Select your targeted country and language.
• If you are looking for keywords for an AdSense site, sort results not only by search volume, but also by advertiser competition (the higher, the better).

2. Google Contextual Targeting Tool
A Google AdWords account is required.
You will get information on what types of keywords are related to your topic in Google Display Network, which is basically Google AdSense program, DoubleClick, and other networks

3. Amazon Books
Go for non-fiction books, books that solve real problems. (Don't waste your time looking for keywords in sections with Harry Potter or vampire stuff.)

• Go to bestseller lists in a specific category.
• Take a look at tables of contents.
• Read reviews. Sometimes there can be found very nice keywords that are not mentioned in tables of contents but are closely related.
• Type a main keyword in the search box and look at the number of results. If there are only a few, there is a good chance that there is low demand for that kind of information. Move on.

You can do the same by going to other big retailers like Barnes & Noble. It might be even better because everyone is using only Amazon, but no one is mentioning other sites for finding keyword ideas.

4. Amazon Magazines - link
If there is a magazine for it, there must be demand for it.
Take closer look at bestseller lists and find magazines that solve some kind of problem or are talking about expensive hobbies.
You can also do the same thing in other places that offer magazines or any other form.


5. Clickbank products
When searching Clickbank marketplace, you can use two strategies:

• Look for most popular products to specify your main topic or niche, and then use that information when looking for long-tail keywords within that niche. The good thing about this approach is that you will find markets with high demand (people are already spending money), but also there is bad news. There is a lot of competition. You need to use it only as a start point to find some sub-niche that has low competition in SERPs. (When you find a sub-niche, you can also become an affiliate for this product and sell it on your site.)
• Search for products that have low popularity on Clickbank. It doesn't mean these products are bad, or there is no market for that specific niche, but this way you can find ideas for new opportunities.
• Remember this is just a first step in finding a profitable niche for your site. It does not mean that you have to sell those products on your site; it's just a way of finding things that are already working and transferring them to your needs.
• When searching Clickbank Marketplace, use "Grav:" metric which is short for "Gravity". It takes into account the number of different affiliates who earned a commission by promoting this product over the past 12 weeks. Basically it shows you what is popular among buyers, and which products create sales.

6. Other affiliates
Use the same technique when dealing with other affiliate networks.
Here is a list of the most popular:
ShareASale
CJ - Your Performance Marketing Partner
paydotcom.com/marketplace.php
home.plimus.com/ecommerce/affiliates/affiliate-product-catalog
Health and Beauty Affiliate Programs by MarketHealth.com
Affiliate Network - Lead Generation - Unique Leads -
Epic Direct - A Division of Epic Media Group
Affiliate Programs - LinkShare
affiliate.com
ASSEENONPC.COM
Neverblue | Welcome

7. Google Suggest
When you are using Google search and typing your query, Google tries to show you the best suggestions. You can use it also when hunting for new keyword ideas. Just start typing a few general terms like "how to", "solve", "get rid of", and Google will show you the most common queries. It might be "how to tie a tie", but when you use it correctly you can find some really precious keywords. The best thing with this tool is that Google is suggesting keywords that are already popular on the Internet and someone really is using it when searching.


8. Everyday Shopping
Every time you go shopping, you are surrounded by keyword ideas. I have a very creepy habit of looking at bar codes and manufacturer information, especially for products that I didn't notice before. Then I go on the Internet and see what else is produced by this manufacturer. This way I can research new opportunities for product-based keywords and be ahead of everybody else.

9. Keyword information from SEO Book - link
It's using data from Google Suggest Tool, but it adds a few more bits of information.
(You must have a free account to use this tool.)

10. SEO Book Keyword Suggestion Tool - link


11. Wordtracker - link
In the free version, you will see a list of keywords and estimated daily searches.


12. KeywordSpy
Although KeywordSpy is a paid tool, it can still offer you help with keyword suggestions. It requires you to sign up for a free account, and it offers only limited results. This tool allows you to spy on PPC campaigns. The good thing is that someone has paid for those keywords to use them in their campaigns. It means that those keywords in most cases convert very well into sales.

Two main tactics for using this tool:
1. Go to the research section
Find a list of keywords and domains organized into topics. Those lists are sorted by popularity or by money spent. If you click on a domain (for example: Target.com) you see a summary page for this domain containing information about their PPC efforts. What is in our interest is the "PPC Overview" list where you find 10 results from their campaign. Also you can use the "Organic keywords" tab to access a list of 20 keywords that this page has ranked in Google. Use both of these lists to gather your keyword ideas.

2. Use the main search box to do your own search.
You can also use the search box to do a search on your own. Create a query for a domain of your choice or specific keyword.


13. WordStream
It is also a paid service, but it allows you to try and test few of its tools for free.
We will start with "Keyword Suggestion Tool " which works similar to Google Keyword Tool but offers more multi-word keywords. Here is how it works:

• Put your main keywords into the search box.
• It shows you a list of suggested keywords.
• Below the list of suggested keywords, you have the option to see the best tips for multi-word keywords. Use it. You can check up to 10 word phrases.

You can also try other free tools from WordStream:

• Keyword Niche Finder - Enter a general term into a search box and this tool will suggest niche ideas sorted by relevancy. When you click on a niche suggestion in the left panel, you will see relevant keywords.
• Keyword Grouper - This is not a real keyword suggestion tool, but it helps to sort a long list of different keywords. If you are using a spreadsheet to gather different ideas for keywords, you can just paste your list directly into this tool and it will sort it based on the WordStream huge database. The best this is that you can import up to 1000 keywords, and when the work is done, you can enter your email and a sorted list will be sent to your mailbox in CSV format.

There is another downside to the free version: You have only 10 searches available.


14. SpyFu - link
Yes, it is also paid service, and yes, you can also get some information for free. This service is monitoring PPC advertisers. You can enter either a keyword or a domain. When you enter a keyword, the most interesting thing is the "Competitors also bought" section where you can find similar keywords that different companies have paid for. The good thing is, you know what advertisers are paying for and since you will have AdSense on your site, this information is beneficial.

15. Microsoft Advertising Intelligence - link
This is a free tool from Microsoft. (You don't hear that a lot.) It was built to optimize ad campaigns on Microsoft networks, but it has some great features that can help you with finding the best keywords for your website. To make a use of it, you must install it on your computer. Requirements: You must have Microsoft Excel 2007 or 2010.
Here is how it works:

1. When you open Excel, you will find a new tab called "Ad Intelligence". Click on it.
2. Enter or paste a keyword or list of keywords, then you must highlight all your keywords.
3. Click on the "Keyword Suggestion" icon and from the drop-down menu choose "Queries that contain your keyword" or "Related search".

I encourage you to do a little experiment with keywords and different features of this tool. It can bring you some really good results, and since keywords come from different sources than Google, you find keywords that most other people don't know.


16. The thesaurus - link
Helps you find synonyms and related keywords.

17. Google Insights for search - link
Not only do you get keyword suggestions but also historical and geographical data too.


18. Searching Google
Yes. Simple searching on Google can also be a very good method to find keyword ideas.
Type words like "problem", "solve", "how to". Go deeper and check sites that are ranking for these broad keywords.

19. Searching forums - Big-boards.com
This is a database of known and popular forums on the Internet. Narrow your search by category and additional filters. Try to find forums with the highest posts number. Go to those forums and start searching using terms like "problem", "how to", or others. Or search for product reviews, or what is most talked about.

20. Searching forums using Google
Type your main keyword or topic idea and then put this:
"powered by vBulletin" (in brackets) because vBulletin is the most popular forum software.
You can also use other kinds of software references to find some more ideas:
"powered by BlogEngine"
"powered by yabb"
"powered By MyBB"
"powered by ip.board"
"powered by phpbb"
"powered by phpbb3"


21. Blogs
The same idea as with forums search. Use terms related to your general topic. Use it with the term:
"powered by Wordpress" to sort out other sites.

You can also use:
"powered by joomla"
"powered by drupal"
"powered by modx"
"powered by typo3"
"powered by eZ Publish"
"powered by mambo"

22. Blog Trends - link
This site concentrates around gathering information on what is hot in the blogosphere. You can use it two ways. Explore the "Featured trends" section where you have blog posts sorted by topic, or you can enter your keyword into search field and receive relevant information.



23. Keyword Discovery - link
This service is gathering information about keywords from dozens of different search engines, not only big ones like Google, Yahoo, and Bing. Since it has such a vast database, its premium access costs money, but with a free search you can still get 100 top keyword suggestions. Just put your keyword into search form. (Do not pay any attention to numbers displayed in the "Total" column. You will need to check search volume in the Google Keyword Tool.)


24. Authority sites
Find big authority sites and check what kind of posts and articles are getting the most attention measured by number of comments and social sharing (Tweets, Facebook shares).
When reading comments, take a closer look at what people are writing:
- Are those comments about people's problems?
- Are they involved and sharing their experiences?

25. Misspelled keywords
Nobody is perfect. Some people can't spell correctly; others make occasional mistakes. Don't judge them; try to help them. Competition for misspelled keywords is really low because no one is optimizing pages for those kind of things. I wouldn't be building a whole site based on misspelled keywords, but you can use it for additional articles or posts to bring some more free traffic.
TIP: I know what some of you are thinking right now. NO, you may NOT use misspelled brand names or any product name as a main topic for your website or your content.

Services to find misspelled versions of words
Misspelled.com Dictionary Definition, spelling of the following words:
Dumbtionary.com a dictionary of misspelled words
oxforddictionaries.com/words/common-misspellings

26. Localize your keywords
If you have a general term that you think might have something to do with local business, try to localize it by adding names of states and cities to it.
You can use a service like: www.local.com


27. Apple App Store
People are using cell phones a little bit differently than PC. Did you know that on iPhone, people are using apps for searching information more frequently than standard Google search?
You can use this information as an advantage: Go to App Store and look for the most popular apps. Filter out games, and concentrate on applications that might be solving problems.


28. Social Bookmarks
Go to Digg.com or any other bookmarking sites (like Stumble Upon) and do a search. Then sort results by "Most Dugg". Find most shared pages for a particular topic. You can do three things to find keyword inspiration:

• Use titles and gather good keywords.
• Go to articles and make use of keywords mentioned there.
• Read comments looking for problems that people might have.

29. eBay
Even if you are not selling or buying on eBay, you should try finding niche ideas there.
The simplest methods to search eBay:
1. Categories - Use them to get an idea of how many listings there are in any category.
Do the same for other eBay sites: eBay.co.uk categories and eBay.de categories )
2. Completed listings

• Go to advanced search (by clicking on "Advanced" link next to the blue search button on the main eBay site).
• Enter your keyword and check "completed listings".
• You will receive a list with listings that have ended either with sales or not, but every listing with sales is marked by a green "sold" label. You should pay closer attention to these listings.
• Try using other parameters like price range. It is a good strategy to search for products with substantial value because then you can become an Amazon affiliate and promote these products.

3. Matching eBay stores - On every search results page, eBay is giving you a list of related stores. Check those out to find out what they are selling and find related products.
4. Sorting search results - only for eBay.DE
When you search for something on eBay, your results are sorted by "Best match". This is basically an algorithm that is sorting listings based on performance metrics assigned to the listing and to the seller. This is very confusing when you are trying to find what is selling the most. In Germany you can choose from a drop-down menu "Gebotsanzahl: meiste zuerst" which sorts the results by number of sold items, and the listings with the highest number are at the top.
This function is working only on the German eBay site unfortunately.


30. eBay Pulse - link
Popular searches and current trends.


31. eBay - Advanced methods
If you are so into product niches, you can make very good use of these advanced tools:
1. Listing Title Estimator
Enter a keyword phrase up to 80 characters and it shows you how popular those words are, and also it will suggest related results.
2. eBaySaurus - Semantic Query Network
Enter your keyword and see connected and related keywords in graph form. You can click on results to uncover additional levels . It works similar to the old Google Wonder Wheel.
3. eBay Most Popular Tool from Goofbay
Enter your keyword and you will get a list of the most popular listings for that keyword sorted by Watch Count. P.S. Goofbay also has other tools that you can use to analyze the eBay market.
4. Watchcount.com
Thanks to this service you can find the most watched listings and those with the most bids.


32. Bonanza
This is an eBay alternative.
Go to www.bonanza.com/booths/browse_categories


33. Other online marketplaces - B2B and B2C
You can also search for other big online marketplaces of all kinds.
Do a search for your keyword or topic and add to it "b2b marketplace" for finding business-oriented places, and "b2c marketplace" to find eBay alternatives.


34. New business ideas
If there is a problem to solve, probably someone created a business around it. You can watch new business ideas and use this information to your advantage. Here is a list of websites concentrated on new business ideas:
Springwise | New business ideas, trends and innovation
trendwatching.com/
TREND HUNTER - #1 in Trends - Fashion Trends, Tech, Style, Design, Pop Culture and Marketing
springspotters.com/springspotters/
Genius Crowds - Community Developed Products
CoolBusinessIdeas.com | All Ideas
PSFK - the go-to source for new ideas and inspiration


35. Twitter advanced search - link
To post a tweet you don't have to have a website; you just type what you think. This is why it's even better than standard searching on Google. When something happens to people (good or bad) they are writing about it instantly on Twitter. We can use this to find those things that bother them and use it as a keyword for our niche.

Or you can go to tweettabs.com and do multiple searches at a time to see live feed.


36. YouTube search
YouTube is the second biggest search engine in the world. Use it the same way you would use Google search. Search for ideas that might solve people's problems.

37. Lynda.com
Good starting point.
This is the site that is producing online courses, and if they have invested money and time into creating a course, you can be sure that people are willing to pay for it.

38. Keywords for Dummies
www.dummies.com
Same as Lynda. If they have a book about some topic, you can be sure that they do not invest in markets without money.

39. Yahoo Answers
Classical method: Go to answers.yahoo.com and do a search.
Google method: Go to Google search and create this kind of search:
site:answers.yahoo.com "your keyword"


40. Web analytics software
If you already have a website, I bet that you have some kind of web analytics software installed, like Google Analytics, GetClicky or Piwik.org. Every one of these analytics software collects keywords that visitors of your websites are typing in Google just before they land on your webpage. You can easily get the idea of long-tail keywords that you didn't even optimized your content for.

41. Government stats
The most boring method to find keywords and niches.
The idea here is to find a study done by some government or educational agency and search ideas there.
Use this search query in Google:

site:.gov filetype:pdf "your keyword"

you can also use
site:.edu
filetype:xls
filetype:doc





Kris