As an SEO & SEM consultant, I’m constantly looking for ways to improve my productivity and effectiveness. In this quick post, I’d thought I’d share 5 tools that are making my life a heck of a lot easier.

1. SEO Digger: My top fav right now, this innovative tool allows you to see which search queries you are ranking in the top 20 Google results for. According to the SEO Digger site, here’s how it works: “Seodigger works by building a reverse index. The first 20 SERP results are saved from 60 million search requests. Then, a “backward index” of the search engine is built, linking sites with keywords these sites can be found by.” For me, the tool is useful because it shows me keyword phrases that I haven’t intentionally optimized for, but present a great opportunity for capturing good traffic with a little work.
2. Google AdPreview: A godsend for PPC marketers, this tool allows you to see ads as they appear to the normal Google visitor performing a search. (typically your Adwords ads don’t appear for your own searches when you are logged in). You can also change your geographic location in order to preview local ads as someone would in other part of the world. Thanks to Jeff Novak from 10 Golden Rules for alerting me to this one.
3. SEO Book’s Firefox Plugin: This is the one Firefox plugin I can’t live without. The plugin shows 22 SEO metrics directly on the Google SERP, including incoming links, PageRank, Technorati Rank, Domain age, and more. You can also right click on any webpage and look at these same metrics at a glance.
4. Google Sets: This Google labs tool is a great way of generating related keyword ideas. Basically, you enter a few keywords, and Google generates a list of related search terms. While the regular Google Keyword tool also generates keyword suggestions, Google Sets takes into account more than just one keyword phrase at a time.
5. AdCenter Keyword Mutation Tool: Microsoft AdCenter’s keyword mutation tool is great for finding misspellings. Thanks to Linda Bustos for pointing out this tool as a great way to optimize internal site search.

Have you found any other SEO or SEM tools that are making your job easier? Please drop a comment.

If left to itself, pay per click ROI tends to go down the drain. Why? Competition thickens, bid prices skyrocket, and click fraud runs rampant. So what can you do to stop the bleeding? Below are some advanced Pay per clicks tips to give your campaign a much needed boost.

1. Include Keywords in the Display URL: For example, if you were targeting the keywords “seo tips”, create a display url of www.yoursite.com/SEO-Tips. Google, Yahoo, and Live search all allow you to create a display url that differs from the destination one. By using the exact keywords the user types in, you’ll embolden the keyword in the ad, thereby creating an enticing eye magnet.
2. Separate Out Your Keywords: Don’t group dissimiliar keywords together under one ad group. When you do this, it makes it harder to tell which keywords are performing best. Separte them out as much as feasibly possible, then adjust your bids accordingly.
3. Watch Your Positions: If you rank in the top 3 organic positions for a keyword, you’re probably better off bidding for the 4 or 5 spot with PPC. This is much easier with Adwords then it is with Yahoo or Live search because Google allows you to bid for a certain position. It’s not always perfectly accurate, but it’s better than nothing.
4. Test different Ad Styles: You’ll never know which writing style will trigure the most clicks unless you test them. Pit an informative style versus intriguing ad copy, or soft sell versus a hard sell. Give them some time, then analyze the results. Don’t simply look at which one received the most clicks. Most likely, you’re better off basing your decision on which converted the best.
5. Follow through with your Landing Pages: Always display the same keyword on the landing page that the user typed in. Think about it. Why did the user click on your ad? Because it contained their keywords! Ensure that they stay on your site by following through with a consistent message.

Nearly every SEM professional has a different opinion on PPC versus organic search. Personally, I believe natural search will bring you the best ROI long term. However, paid search has its advantages too. Below I’ll opine with my thoughts on each:

 Natural (organic) search advantages:

1. It’s free (duh!)
2. Natural search results are trusted more
3. Natural search results are clicked on more

Natural (organic) search disadvantages:

1. It takes time to get results
2. SEO hourly rates can be pricey
3. You can’t possibly rank for every search variation (long tails)

Pay Per Click (PPC) advantages:

1. Instant ranking
2. Ability to rank for any search term (long tails)
3. Ability to test best converting keywords for natural search
4. Ability to send visitors to more targeted landing page

Pay Per Click (PPC) disadvantages:

1. It’s very expensive. In some industries, you can pay several dollars per click
2. Click fraud is prevalent

While each method has it’s pros and cons, I strongly believe that together SEO and PPC have a synergistic effect. For example, appearing in both natural and paid sections increases your visibility. Possibly, and visitor will click on both results and one will resonate more than the other. In addition, I’ve found PPC is a great testing ground for which keywords to optimize naturally for.