Archive for March 2010

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Using Google Wonder Wheel for Keyword Research

Using Google Wonder Wheel for Finding Niche Markets and Doing Keyword Research

Ever found yourself racking your brains on what your next post should be about? Or trying to find out which other niche can turn out profitable for you?

Well, in that case, Google has rolled out something just for you. With the release of this cool new gadget that hasn’t gained much limelight yet, Google Wonder Wheel is quite a versatile tool. You can say it’s all-in-one solution for conducting keyword research, finding niche markets and analyzing the latest trends.

And the most terrific thing about it is its ease of use. It’s not something only SEO Experts or Webmasters can understand. Google has aimed to keep it as simple as possible for any regular blogger or a beginner. Plus, you don’t have to type a different URL to access it. You can do it all while staying on the Google page. Easily found by clicking Show Options button in the Search Engine Result Page (SERP), it gives you a visual view of the keywords most relevant to your primary keyword – something that has been missing in majority of top-notch keyword research tools.

Let me give you an example so it becomes easy to understand. Suppose I enter my primary keyword ‘Social Media Marketing’ in my Google page. In return, Google gives me a list of links or web pages most relevant to my keyword (Quite familiar till here, I’m sure). On the top bar of this result page (SERP) where the number of webpages Google has indexed for this keyword are displayed, you’ll see the button ‘Show Option’ on the left corner. Clicking it will bring a side bar where you can see the Wonder Wheel under the Standard View category. So I click it and I see a visual diagram; i.e. the Google Wonder Wheel, of the most relevant keywords against my primary keyword.

As you can see, I get a range of keywords that I can use for optimizing my site or targeting for my blogposts/articles. When I click on any of these relevant keywords, such as Social Media Optimization, then this becomes my sub-primary keyword (I made this term up) and I get another wheel showing relevant keywords against it. In addition, the actual results i.e. links that Google has indexed for this keyword are displayed alongside.

You can also view related results in terms of videos, blogs, books, and many more in the side bar. So, if you want to use this keyword for your next blog, you can do a bit research and see what other blogs are saying about it and see how you can differ from them. This can also help you in creating backlinks. At the same time, if you plan to do a video, you can find out if this trend is popular or not. If not many people have done videos on your target keyword, this can be an advantage to you.

Moreover, it has some of the same features as Google Insight and tells you how many people have searched for a keyword during a specific time. You can also set your own date range if the ones specified don’t meet your criteria. Hence, you can also learn the direction of the trend arrow for a particular keyword and see whether it’s going up or down.

To sum up this article, here’s what we’ve learned about Google Wonder Wheel:

1. It’s highly user-friendly and easy to understand
2. It’s a multipurpose tool useful for:
Keyword research, finding niche markets, analyzing trends, competitor analysis, and creating backlinks

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Classification of Emotions | Part 2

In the previous article we discussed a simplified classification and different theories of emotion. Because all my readers are not medical professionals. The purpose of the articles is not teaching the biology or psychology of emotions. We would now discuss about how emotions affect our lives and how they can be used intelligently. As discussed in the explanation of different theories of emotions thinking, physical stimulus, and emotion all contribute to feeling. Events lead to emotions, feelings and thoughts. So emotions, feelings and thoughts all might have the same source, they are just expressed differently in the mind. Let's look at this figure below: Continued...

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Classification of Emotions | Part 1

Classification

1. 'Cognitive' versus 'non-cognitive' emotions
2. Instinctual emotions (from the amygdala), versus cognitive emotions (from the prefrontal cortex)
3. Basic versus complex
4. Categorization based on duration: Some emotions occur over a period of seconds (e.g. surprise), whereas others can last years (e.g. love)

Theories Of Emotion

The mainstream definition of emotion refers to a feeling state involving thoughts, physiological changes, and an outward expression or behavior. But what comes first? The thought? The physiological arousal? The behavior? Or does emotion exist in a vacuum, whether or not these other components are present? There are five theories which attempt to understand why we experience emotion.

1.     James-Lange Theory

The James-Lange theory of emotion argues that an event causes physiological arousal first and then we interpret this arousal. Only after our interpretation of the arousal can we experience emotion. If the arousal is not noticed or is not given any thought, then we will not experience any emotion based on this event. EXAMPLE: You are walking down a dark alley late at night. You hear footsteps behind you and you begin to tremble, your heart beats faster, and your breathing deepens. You notice these physiological changes and interpret them as your body's preparation for a fearful situation. You then experience fear.

2.     Cannon-Bard Theory

The Cannon-Bard theory argues that we experience physiological arousal and emotional at the same time, but gives no attention to the role of thoughts or outward behavior. EXAMPLE: You are walking down a dark alley late at night. You hear footsteps behind you and you begin to tremble, your heart beats faster, and your breathing deepens. At the same time as these physiological changes occur you also experience the emotion of fear.

3.     Schachter-Singer Theory

According to this theory, an event causes physiological arousal first. You must then identify a reason for this arousal and then you are able to experience and label the emotion. EXAMPLE: You are walking down a dark alley late at night. You hear footsteps behind you and you begin to tremble, your heart beats faster, and your breathing deepens. Upon noticing this arousal you realize that is comes from the fact that you are walking down a dark alley by yourself. This behavior is dangerous and therefore you feel the emotion of fear.

4.     Lazarus Theory

Lazarus Theory states that a thought must come before any emotion or physiological arousal. In other words, you must first think about your situation before you can experience an emotion. EXAMPLE: You are walking down a dark alley late at night. You hear footsteps behind you and you think it may be a mugger so you begin to tremble, your heart beats faster, and your breathing deepens and at the same time experience fear.

5.     Facial Feedback Theory

According to the facial feedback theory, emotion is the experience of changes in our facial muscles. In other words, when we smile, we then experience pleasure, or happiness. When we frown, we then experience sadness. it is the changes in our facial muscles that cue our brains and provide the basis of our emotions. Just as there are an unlimited number of muscle configurations in our face, so to are there a seemingly unlimited number of emotions. EXAMPLE: You are walking down a dark alley late at night. You hear footsteps behind you and your eyes widen, your teeth clench and your brain interprets these facial changes as the expression of fear. Therefore you experience the emotion of fear.

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Introduction to Human Emotions

This series named "Emotions" will look in to different theories that explain emotion, its physiology, affects and its association with other aspects of mind processes. I would make sure it is interesting to read from beginning till end. Any comments and suggestions are welcomed. So what are emotions? The dictionary defines emotion as:

A mental state, that arises spontaneously rather than through conscious effort and is often accompanied by physiological changes.

Classification Of Emotions:

1. 'Cognitive' versus 'non-cognitive' emotions
2. Instinctual emotions (from the amygdala), versus cognitive emotions (from the prefrontal cortex).
3. Basic versus complex
4. Categorization based on duration: Some emotions occur over a period of seconds (e.g. surprise), whereas others can last years (e.g. love)

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Solving A Case Study | Part II

Presenting a case to a teacher is same as presenting it in front of a jury. You need to have structured and solid arguments to convince the jury (teacher, in your case) and prove your point. If you are an excellent lawyer, you can even convince the jury that your defendant is not guilty even if he is (not ethical, of course). The bottom line is: you need to structure your case analysis. Although every case analysis more or less follows the same pattern; there is a slight variation depending on the nature of the case study. Basically there are two types of case studies: Open-ended and close-ended. Close-ended may have one or more questions at the end of the case for the reader to solve. Open-ended, on the contrast, may not contain any questions but require the reader to derive the problem statement and suggest a solution (thus, open). We will first look at the pattern for the Open-ended case type: Introduction / Overview. Although an optional part, it will give a professional look to your analysis. Overview would contain just 3-4 lines on what the case is about. Example: The case describes the situation of a sales manager Jim Howard whose company’s value statement claims to treat customers with dignity and respect; however, he finds that the exact opposite is being done. He wants to rectify the situation but is prevented by his boss. It basically illustrates how an employee is made helpless by his top management even when he has the power. Summary. Ideally, the summary should be 1/4th of the case. In general terms, it should be limited to one and a half page. The summary should contain very basic details of the case and shouldn’t include quotes and figures. Also, I’ve seen many students copying the exact same sentences from the case. Don’t do it. Trust me, it gives a very bad impression. Rephrase the sentences. SWOT Analysis. In case it’s a case about a company, list down the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of the company in bullet points. Write complete sentences and not fragment statements. Example: Strengths:

1. SDI produces superior products with a differentiated strategy.
2. SDI is the only company to introduce solar technology in bird feeder.

Problem Statement. Every case revolves around a particular problem that a company may be facing. Sometimes, the problem is very explicit but at other times, you need to locate the problem from several causes, symptoms and reasons. There may even be more than one problem; they may come under the Sub-Problems category. However, the main problem would only be one. Example: The biggest problem of ABC Airways is its lack of market research because of which ABC Airways remains aloof of customers’ changing demands; hence, leaving space for its competitors to fill in the gap. In some cases, there is not a problem statement but an Opportunity Statement. Example: ABC Airways needs to decide whether it has to continue its competitive strategy or change its course of action. At the same time, it has an opportunity of expansion into European market. Considering the pros and cons, should it enter this market? Alternatives. Alternatives are mainly the list of possible solutions. You need to suggest at least three alternatives and discuss pros and cons of each; the assessment of which would lead you to choose the best one. Best Alternative. As the name suggests, this would describe the best possible alternative. Here, you would support your solution by reasoning why you’ve chosen this alternative. You can go a step further by explaining how this particular company can achieve its goal or resolve its problem with the help of this alternative. Scared? Don’t be. You already go through all these steps while doing the analysis. The only difference is that we have broken them down into headings so that they look more organized and neat. Plus, this would not only help you organize the information but also give you further ideas that you might miss out if everything was mixed up. Now, we take a look at the format for Close-ended case studies. Don’t worry, this one doesn’t have all those steps. Introduction / Overview. Again optional. Summary: Same as above Questions and Answers. This is the most important step in close-ended case studies. Here is where you need to convince your audience that what you say is right (even if it’s not). Extract evidence for your answers from within the case. But don’t write long paragraphs and DON’T repeat the same thing over and over again. It gives an impression you’re just trying to fill up pages in hope that your teacher doesn’t read it all and assumes what you’ve written must be correct. Wrong! Believe me, they’re far smarter than you! Conclusion. Instead of best alternatives, in the close-type case studies, you need to write the conclusion. It is better to write just a few paragraphs (1-2) in which you can summarize your answer as a total, give your opinion and recommendations. Example: “The conclusion I have drawn from this case is that one becomes powerless when is under the influence of someone else and is forced to alter his own personal ethical values and beliefs according to the beliefs of the ones having power. Thus, ethics becomes secondary when one is under the power like the CPA in this case. However, there are some exceptions i.e. until and unless one is determined to stay firm on his ethical values, no one can force him to be his puppet. Hence, it depends on the willpower of one’s own self; how strongly he believes in his values and how earnest he is to stay put on them. He may face obstacles in the short-term; however, in long-term, he is bound to get the reward.”