Many in the SEO and SEM world know that typos and improperly spelled words (wrods) can be a great source of secondary traffic at a cheaper cost from the higher priced, properly spelled word. While one might think of spelling choices that come from a slip of a keyboard, there are actually a range of ways to think about how typos are generated and how to respond and capture this data.

So what sort of flavors do keyword typos come in?

1. Straight Sloppy Typing: These are the most common — the quick typing, skipped a key or hit the one next to it. Terribly common. Instead of Google we get Gogle. Quite a few people did that last month. Here are a few of the top examples:
• gogle,389468
  gogle image search,6961
  com gogle,6875
  gogle pl,5363
  buscador gogle,2677
  earth gogle,1778
  com gogle tr,1579
  com gogle,1464
2. Phonetic Typos: These are typos you may not find out of a tool but are still relevant to your brand. People hear things differently and after a few years making dance music, I certainly don’t always hear the word being said. Especially when a product is generating buzz offline the search online may not be correct. For example, my uncle was trying to tell me of this great new real estate site to look up home prices. What was it called I asked? Zoogle. Great name, but he actually meant Zillow. Which could be type zilo, zillo, zilla, sillow, siloh, or any of a number of fun ways depending on how you (mis)heard it.
3. Conceptual Typos: Not exactly a typo per se, but there are many cases where someone will be looking for your product but will talk about it in a way completely foreign to your understanding. A person might need insurance, be looking for insurance, but will never type the word insurance or any sort of variation of the word insurance. Maybe they would talk about payment for a burial, paying for a mortgage after death, or any of a number of ways to talk about what they are looking for, which is insurance. Most people aren’t search engine junkies and don’t always think of the “obvious” phrase to type in to get the product you are offering.