AdWords Keywords, SEO Keywords – Riches are in the Niches

Question. Jason thanks for all the free content. I run an insurance agency and I wanted to explore generating leads through the internet. It seems like using adwords for car insurance would be costly. I learned that insurance is the most sought after keyword on the internet. What other options do I have? SEO? Or should I give up?

Answer.

First of all, never give up, never surrender! These days, the Internet is almost always a primary – if not THE primary way – new customers will find you and your business.  That said, you have to focus on some important issues.

Discovery Paths. I highly recommend you sit down and brainstorm your “discovery paths” – the ways in which potential customers might find you.  Here are my conceptual paths –

• Search Path – they need something, and they search for it. The best way to reach them, therefore, is using either SEO or AdWords. They go to Google (or Bing), and you need to get to page #1, either via SEO or via AdWords. (Of course there is competition, but we’ll talk about that in a second).
• Share Path – they spontaneously share information, usually via email or social media. For example, they find a great new restaurant and they post to Facebook how awesome it is.
• Recommend Path – they rely on recommendations, often reviews on social media sites like Yelp or Google+ local, or recommendations from famous people (e.g., Dr. Oz). (In that case, the marketing goal is to manipulate reviews and recommendations to get your name out there, and look fabulous).
• Interrupt Path – this is what we are all familiar with on TV. You’re watching your favorite program, and there is an INTERRUPTION, namely a commercial. This happens on the Internet on YouTube and, believe it or not, email spam.

So first, I recommend you brainstorm possible ways that potential customers might find you, and prioritize which ones are the easiest.

SEO or The Search Path

Next, in terms of the “search” path or SEO, the most important idea is to drill down to your keywords.  Here, your keywords need to reflect your value proposition as tightly as possible. The saying “Riches are in the Niches” is very appropriate. Rather than trying to compete on the word “insurance,” for example, identify niche or long-tail searches like “Insurance Brokers Tulsa OK,” or “Insurance for high-risk drivers,” or “Health Insurance for Seniors.” Pay attention to the competitive level – and you are looking for tight, niche keywords where you can both win and the potential customer will have an AHA moment and realize you have EXACTLY what they are looking for.

Alternatively, sometimes AdWords can work on broad keywords (e.g., “Insurance”) for a very narrow geographic niche. You can advertise ONLY to people in Toledo, Kansas, for that word and capture the lead by really offering something unique – e.g., personal service.

Think about SEO / marketing as a competitive game.  You have to a) choose your sport, b) become an expert, and c) have an edge. There’s no way around that, but once you find your “edge,” your “riches in the niches” you can compete (and win).  Good luck!