We've been working hard to help ensure our customers do not suffer from rate-limiting.  I hope this information will give you some background into the causes and solutions so we can help you try to resolve this situation.

Google sometimes limits the amount of keyword research data that a user can retrieve.  When it denies a user access to its database for a certain period, usually a few hours, this is called rate limiting.

When you find yourself encountering this situation, the first thing to do is stop trying to gather data for at least 12 hours.  Every time you try again before the limit is lifted, it will take longer still before your access is restored.  Because Market Samurai greatly increases your capacity to gather this information, you run the risk of being rate-limited by Google depending on the volume of keyword data you request.

Equally important is the quality of your keyword list.  Google's Keyword Tool generates hundreds of semantically linked keywords.  This means they are related to one another topically or by meaning, in contrast to lists of keywords that are generated by some other methods.  

Lists generated without regard to relatedness can be flagged by Google's systems as inconsistent and can lead to more frequent limiting.  As such, we strongly recommend use of keyword lists generated by Google's Keyword Tool.  But that's not the only cause of this problem.

There are several possible causes and no official list of what will and will not lead to a rate limit.  Heavy use of keyword research tools in a short time period can lead to it, but many of our heaviest users have never encountered the problem!

Over time we have learned that some research topics can lead to repeated rate limiting.  Keyword lists involving online gambling, pharmaceuticals/supplements, tobacco products or substitutes, and even - for some reason - the keyword "web design", all seem to trigger the rate limits very quickly.  And this is by no means a comprehensive list of risky topics, just ones we've observed consistently to lead to rate limiting.

If you have been rate limited, we have some suggestions for you:
- Do not use Market Samurai for keyword research again for at least 12 hours
- Ensure you're using a keyword list generated with Market Samurai or using Google's Keyword Tool
- Try using Market Samurai from a different location or with a different Adwords account, if possible
- If the problem persists, contact Support@NobleSamurai.com