We all know blogs can make money.
We all know the first step is getting traffic.
We all know search engines are a great way to get traffic.
What many beginning bloggers don’t know is that, by choosing smarter keywords, you can attract people from search engines who are more likely to buy what you’re selling, which can help you make more money.
For example, consider the keyword “how to lose weight.”
It gets an estimated 91,000 searches per month in the U.S. alone, which is huge. For a blogger selling a weight loss product or weight loss affiliate offer (let’s say frozen meals for designed for weight loss), ranking for “how to lose weight” might look like a home run, but there are two big problems.
First, people approach weight loss in a number of ways — through exercise, surgery, pills and supplements, portion control, and adhering to dozens of different diets. Only a fraction of the people Googling “how to lose weight” would be interested in frozen meals for weight loss. Others might be more interested in an educational resource — like learning how to cook better in Gordon Ramsay’s MasterClass.
And here’s another big problem: Most of the people Googling a basic question like “how to lose weight” probably aren’t very close to making a purchase. They’re just beginning the process of gathering information.
None of that is to say that ranking #1 for “how to lose weight” would be a bad idea. Of course it’s a win. But this is a very competitive term, and the time and effort spent trying to rank for this search could be better invested going after more targeted keywords.
In this article, we’ll look at three types of keywords that attract people who are primed for purchase — and can be targeted in virtually any niche.
(If you’re looking for high-commission affiliate opportunities to share with your readers, be sure to read to the bottom of this article where we’ll tell you more about the Ultimate Bundles affiliate program!)
1. “Best” Articles
Unlike the person Googling “how to lose weight,” the person Googling something like “best meal delivery services for weight loss” is probably much closer to making a purchase. Through their search, they’ve indicated that they want to lose weight, how they want to lose weight, and that they’re looking for a paid solution. As a blogger, you just need to get your solution in front of them.
In college, where I studied entrepreneurship, I learned that products can differentiate themselves from their competition through one of two means: low cost or premium features.
“Best” articles are a great place to focus on features. By writing a “best” post, you can talk about several different options and include your own product or affiliate offers in the lists. Then it’s all about pointing out the features that make your offer a great choice.
For example, when a person Googles “best frozen meals for weight loss,” they might want to know which have the most protein, the lowest calories, or the highest quality ingredients. Food-allergy information could be another major factor, and pointing out meals that don’t contain common allergens could help readers make a purchase decision.
Nonprofit Full Plate Living has an article about the best weight loss-friendly frozen meals where they do exactly that. It’s a great reference if you want to write a “best” post.
2. “Cheapest” Articles
“Cheapest” articles are another way to attract buyers who are closer to making a purchase. When someone Googles “cheapest meal delivery service for weight loss,” you know they’re thinking about buying.
Earlier I mentioned that all products compete on price or features. Articles focused on keywords that include “cheapest” target price-conscious buyers.
These articles can still talk about features, but they will be more effective when focusing on lower cost offerings. If you have low cost affiliate offers or an affordable product or service of your own, writing a “cheapest” article comparing several relevant options (including yours) can be a smart way to attract targeted traffic that is close to making a purchase.
FoodDeliveryGuru.com has a great example of this. Their review about the “cheapest meal delivery services” shows the prices for several meal kits all in one place, which is informative and timesaving for the reader. You’ll also notice that while the article does discuss features, it doesn’t go very in depth since the main focus is cost.
3. “Versus” Articles and Individual Product Reviews
“Versus” articles and individual product reviews attract some of the most targeted traffic out there.
A person Googling “meal delivery services” is probably still considering the idea of trying a meal kit subscription. On the other hand, a person Googling “Green Chef vs Sun Basket” has narrowed their decision down to two options, and now they’re trying to decide which to buy.
For this reason, versus articles and individual reviews can be very effective for affiliate marketers because they attract readers who are even further along in their buying process and much more likely to actually make a purchase.
If you’re trying to sell a product of your own, but there aren’t many people Googling your product’s name, not to worry. You can still use this strategy by writing reviews and comparisons about similar products that are more well searched — and showing those readers in the article why your offering is better.
This Sun Basket vs Hello Fresh comparison article is a good example to look at for how to write a “versus” post. Notice the table comparing key features in a quick, convenient way.
And for an individual review, check out our very own Jamie Balmet’s review of the Ultimate Homemaking Bundle — which currently ranks #1 in Google for the keyword “Ultimate Homemaking Bundle review”!
The Big Picture
The best keywords for conversions aren’t just topically relevant. They target readers who are close to making a purchase. When you do your keyword research, look for “best,” “cheapest,” and “versus” options. These will help you attract buyers who are more ready to buy, which can lead to more money for you!
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Our mission is to help the bloggers and authors in our affiliate network expand their reach and make significant money doing it, while offering our customers knockout value.
So far in 2019, we’ve paid out over $330,000 in commissions to our Top 10 affiliates in each bundle — that’s an average of $6,762.92 per affiliate and earnings per click of $2.19. And since launching as a company roughly 8 years ago, we’ve paid over $4 million in affiliate commissions and sold over 300,000 bundles to happy customers.
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