Some marketers might argue that there are no shortcuts when it comes to keyword research.  I disagree.  You can only do so much given everything else on your plate.  Your search engine optimization or SEO campaign will never be perfect.  So cut yourself some slack.

Do the best you can with your time and your talent.  Unfortunately, there are some people who would expect to use all 50 keyword tools if they found an official list of 50 keyword tools and techniques.

You have to decide how much keyword research your website merits.  Do you really need to research all of the keywords at the beginning?  Or can you target a certain product are series of products or maybe a section of the website?

Keep in mind as you look at possible keyword phrases that different research resources will have considerable common ground.  In other words, you’re going to come across the same keyword  phrases no matter what tools you use or where you look.

Sometimes you need to get creative.  I was running out of ideas once, so I got a large book on a topic, skipped the Table of Contents and went right for the index that provided ample keyword ideas.  It never hurts to ask someone, particularly the customer, how he or she would look for your product or service.  Can you imagine a website owner targeting autos when his customers are searching for cars?  Or maybe the campaign needs to be robust and target both.

At the end of the day, you need to ask yourself whether you made the effort that you should have to help increase your search engine visibility.

Get rolling, measure what you’ve accomplished and adjust. Keyword search efforts should never end, but they don’t need to be excessive early on.