Using their favorite keyword research tool, most Internet marketers spend countless hours conducting keyword research to find the phrases that they can successfully rank for in the search engines. Their goal is to find long tail keyword phrases with good traffic and low competition. For the most part, they usually have success ranking for these phrases. However, most are puzzled why they do not make any "serious" money. This is partly because many Internet marketers view success as finding "long tail keyword phrases" that contain three or more words, have some decent traffic and low competition. This sounds like a "catch-22," however they are missing the real definition of a "long tail" phrase and how to find them using their keyword research tool.

In reality, a long tail phrase is defined as one that not only has a decent amount of traffic and low competition, but also has been "tested" to "convert" to an action. This is usually either a visitor signing up for your list or making a purchase. It takes a significant amount of time and testing to locate the "gold" in the sea of available keyword phrases.

The following are some helpful tips that you can incorporate when using your favorite keyword research tool.

AdSense Sites
If you wish to build a series of high paying AdSense sites, then find the long tail keyword phrases that fit this profitable criteria:

* More than 300 searches per day
* Less than 50 thousand competing pages
* No exact match domains ranking in the top 10 of the Google results
* No Web 2.0 properties ranking in the top 10 of the Google SERPs
* An AdWords high bid (estimated) greater than $4.00

E-Commerce Sites
If you wish to build a physical goods e-commerce site, then locate the long tail keyword phrases that fit the following criteria:

* Monthly search volume is greater than 15,000
* Competing pages are less than 500,000
* In title competing pages are less than 50,000
* Physical goods ARE being sold for this keyword phrase

Pay-Per-Click Campaigns
If you want instant PPC traffic, then select the long tail keyword phrases that have:

* Monthly search volume greater than 150,000
* AdWords cost-per-clicks (CPC's) less than $0.20
* Physical goods BEING sold for this keyword

Conclusion
A good keyword research tool is only as good as the person using it. Always determine first how you wish to monetize your site and then the Internet Marketing approach that you want to implement. Do this prior to beginning your keyword research. Additionally, you need to understand the correct keyword phrase criteria that supports your decisions in order to be successful. Do this prior to using your keyword research tool and you stand a better chance of building a profitable online business.