As soon as I begin research into a topic to determine its potential for profit, I open up MS-Excel, my spreadsheet software.
I open a new file, give it a name like 'Wine_Research' and save it to the folder on my computer where I keep all my other research files.
I use the spreadsheet to make an extensive list of all, and I do mean ALL the keywords and phrases that I find that are related to my topic of interest. In another column I list the number of searches each keyword and phrase receives per month (Demand) as indicated by results I find while using Overture's keyword suggestion tool.
I also enter current bid prices for those keywords from various pay per click search engines, along with URL's from some of the competing sites. In addition, I make note of possible products and merchant partners with appropriate potential affiliate programs.
By the time my research is complete, my spreadsheet is a well-organized, comprehensive source of information that will tell me at a glance all I need to know about my topic and its market.
You can accomplish the same task by using tables in word-processing software, but the job will not be as easy as when you use a spreadsheet.