If you want to optimize your website for specific keywords then you might want to use keyword research tools to check for competitions. Keyword research tools basically gives you an estimated searches globally or locally on leading search engines. These data can be used to optimize your website accordingly.
Keyword tools are especially important for those website that sell products online like computers and other electronics. Leading brands like Dell, etc uses keyword tools religiously to estimate a budget to spend on keywords for traffic from search engines. This can also be done simultaneously with statistics and analytic suite to track incoming traffic for paid keywords and non paid keywords.
The primary usage of keyword tool is to manage PPC campaigns for advertisers and better optimize their websites.
Best practice to follow would be to use keyword research report along with the website analytical data to better optimize and spend wisely on keywords. Most of the website owners and bloggers that are not looking to spend a fortune on keywords through adwords or other such service will need to find other ways for keyword optimization like backlinks, etc.
Some of the free keyword tools available are :
Google Adwords :
This tool is important for Adword users, to find the competition on the keyword they are paying for. It gives users an estimate cost per click that advertiser will have to spend to get visitors from a keyword. It also displays an estimated traffic for a keyword that an advertiser can expect.
Yahoo Keyword Research Tool :
This free keyword suggestion tool grabs the Overture search counts for different geographic markets. Overture keyword suggestion tool estimate Google, MSN and AOL traffic based on Yahoo’s number. This tool uses recent Search Share Rankings report by Nielson/NetRatings.
Wordstream :
WordStream is another free keyword research tool for google and yahoo search engines important for managing PPC and search engine optimization. WordStream is a google adwords certified partner so it might be possible their engine revolves around google search engine results. If you want to use their service beyond limits then their basic package for SEO starts from $49 per month and for PPC it starts with $499 per month.
Keyword Discovery :
Keyword discover tool has already launched a free version of their service. Keyword Discovery collects data from a number of search engines to give a far more accurate searches performed world wide.
