You are currently viewing Essential Guide: How to do the Keyword Research for Your SEO Strategy
How to do the Keyword Research

Essential Guide: How to do the Keyword Research for Your SEO Strategy

Table of Content

    Sick of your website being buried at the bottom of search results? 🌊 You’re not alone.  There must be a better way to weed through some of the noise and find your target market customers.

    This is where keyword research comes into play– your secret weapon to compete for online real estate. Optimizing your website with the right keywords is no longer a trial-and-error situation but an exact science that could significantly boost your website performance. As such, whether you are a veteran marketer or a small business owner, mastering this skill can be the difference between obscurity and online success.

    In this guide we are going to discover the important things you need to unfold best keywords for your SEO strategy. You’ll discover everything you need to develop a keyword strategy that really works, from recognizing quality search phrases to determining competition and grasping user intent. These are the tools which need to be used to bring your online presence to the next level and bring your website on top.

    How can you find the keywords that people are searching?

    Brainstorming Seed Keywords

    This will narrow it down to relevant terms so that to get started with your keyword research, you may brainstorm some seed keywords that are related to your business, products or services. Consider the keywords your ideal customers would use to search for what you provide. List these initial ideas, such as

    • Industry-specific terms
    • Common problems your products solve
    • Frequently asked questions by customers
    • Your unique selling propositions

    Utilizing Keyword Research Tools

    Now that you’ve got your seed keywords, it’s time to use keyword research tools to grow your list. These Tools can assist you in finding related keywords, long-tail variants, and search volume data. A comparison of popular keyword research tools

    Tool NameFree/PaidFeatures
    Google Keyword PlannerFreeSearch volume, competition, related keywords
    Ahrefs Keyword ExplorerPaidKeyword difficulty, traffic potential, SERP features
    SEMrushPaidCompetitor analysis, keyword gap analysis, content ideas
    UbersuggestFree/PaidKeyword suggestions, content ideas, competitor analysis

    Analyzing Competitor Keywords

    To further enhance your keyword list, analyze your competitors’ websites. Look at:

    • Page titles and meta descriptions
    • Headers and subheaders across their pages
    • The material them rank for in Youtube search results

    This analysis can reveal valuable keywords you might have missed and help you identify gaps in your own strategy.

    2.What are high value keywords?

    Assessing Keyword Relevance

    You have a list of potential keywords now — an important next step is to assess their business value. Others keywords serve SEO strategy more than others, because not all keywords has equal value. Here’s how you can start discerning your keywords business value:

    1. Align with Business Goals:

      • Consider your primary objectives
      • Match keywords to specific products or services
      • Evaluate potential for conversions
    2. Analyze Customer Journey:

      • Determine where the keyword fits in the funnel
      • Assess potential for lead generation
      • Consider long-term customer value

    Calculating Keyword ROI

    You have to calculate its potential return on investment (ROI) to get an actual understanding of the business value of a specific keyword. Below is a simple table to assist you in estimating keyword ROI

    MetricFormula
    Potential TrafficSearch Volume x Click-Through Rate (CTR)
    Estimated ConversionsPotential Traffic x Conversion Rate
    Projected RevenueEstimated Conversions x Average Sale
    Keyword ROI(Projected Revenue – Costs) / Costs

    Applying this table will allow you to prioritise keywords which are going to create the most impact for you. Just because a keyword has high search volume, it doesn’t mean it’s the right keyword for your website if it doesn’t fit within your business model or align with your ideal customer.

    Now, we will see how to analyse the competition for your keywords that you have selected for further honing your SEO strategy.

    3.How to analyze keyword competition effectively ?

    Assessing Keyword Difficulty

    Now that you have identified viable keywords it is important to understand the competition for each one. This means you are able to gauge how hard it would be to rank for a specific term. So, how do you measure your keyword competition?

    Tools for Analyzing Keyword Difficulty

    Several SEO tools can help you gauge keyword difficulty:

    Tool NameFeaturesDifficulty Score Range
    AhrefsKeyword Difficulty score, SERP overview0-100
    SEMrushKeyword Difficulty Index0-100%
    MozKeyword Difficulty score0-100

    Factors Influencing Keyword Difficulty

    When analyzing competition, consider these factors:

    1. Domain Authority of competing websites
    2. Page Authority of ranking pages
    3. Backlink profile of top-ranking pages
    4. Content quality and relevance
    5. Search intent alignment

    Balancing Difficulty and Opportunity

    To find the right balance:

    1. Look for keywords with moderate difficulty
    2. Identify low-competition long-tail keywords
    3. Consider your website’s authority and resources
    4. Aim for a mix of easy and challenging keywords

    By thoroughly analyzing keyword competition, you’ll be better equipped to choose terms that offer the best chance of ranking success while aligning with your SEO goals.

    4.Find the keyword search volume

    Understanding Keyword Search Volume

    How much volume of keyword search is crucial for your SEO strategy. It indicates the average count of per month — times a particular keyword or phrase is searched in a certain timeframe, usually monthly. Here’s what you can do by understanding search volume:

    • Gauge the popularity of keywords
    • Estimate potential traffic
    • Prioritize your optimization efforts

    Tools for Finding Keyword Search Volume

    Here are several tools that can assist you in uncovering search volume data:

    1. Google Keyword Planner
    2. SEMrush
    3. Ahrefs
    4. Moz Keyword Explorer
    5. Ubersuggest

    Here’s a comparison of these tools:

    ToolFree/PaidFeaturesAccuracy
    Google Keyword PlannerFreeBasic, tied to Google AdsGood
    SEMrushPaidComprehensive, multiple data sourcesExcellent
    AhrefsPaidExtensive database, historical dataVery Good
    Moz Keyword ExplorerPaidUser-friendly, difficulty scoreGood
    UbersuggestFree/PaidBeginner-friendly, content ideasModerate

    Interpreting Search Volume Data

    When analyzing search volume:

    1. Consider seasonality
    2. Look at trends over time
    3. Compare related keywords
    4. Factor in your niche and audience size

    Higher search volume doesn’t necessarily equate better, though. Long-tail keywords with lower volume are sometimes more valuable due to specificity and lower competition.

    So now that you’ve learned how to find and interpret keyword search volume, let’s look at how to analyze potential traffic for your chosen keywords

    5.Analyze traffic potential

    Analyzing Traffic Potential

    After finding keywords with adequate search volume and competition, the next step is to evaluate their traffic potential. This step is essential, as it allows you to identify keywords that will bring significant traffic to your website and determine which keywords to prioritize.

    Factors Affecting Traffic Potential

    Several factors influence a keyword’s traffic potential:

    1. Search volume
    2. Click-through rate (CTR)
    3. SERP features
    4. Seasonality
    5. Trend patterns

    Estimating Traffic Potential

    To estimate traffic potential, consider the following:

    1. Analyze the current top-ranking pages for your target keyword
    2. Check their estimated traffic using SEO tools
    3. Assess the CTR for different SERP positions
    4. Factor in seasonal fluctuations and trends

    Here’s a simple table to help you visualize potential traffic based on SERP position and CTR:

    SERP PositionAverage CTREstimated Monthly Clicks (10,000 searches)
    131.7%3,170
    224.7%2,470
    318.7%1,870
    413.6%1,360
    59.5%950

    These numbers are just estimates and can fluctuate depending on things like SERP features and your industry. Armed with traffic potential, you can make informed choices of what Keywords will move The needle most for your SEO and Website performance.

    6.Identify search intent for the keyword

    Understanding Search Intent

    Understanding the search intent behind the keywords is essential for effectively using those keywords in your SEO strategy. Search intent is the purpose of a user typing a specific query inside a search engine. If you identify this intent you can match the user with the content they are looking for more closely.

    Types of Search Intent

    There are four main types of search intent:

    1. Informational
    2. Navigational
    3. Commercial
    4. Transactional
    Intent TypeDescriptionExample Query
    InformationalUser wants to learn something“How to bake a cake”
    NavigationalUser wants to find a specific website“Facebook login”
    CommercialUser is researching products or services“Best smartphones 2023”
    TransactionalUser wants to make a purchase“Buy iPhone 14 Pro”

    How to Determine Search Intent

    To decipher the search intent for your target keywords:

    1. Analyze search results: Consider all top pages for your keyword
    2. Check the SERP features: See if there are featured snippets, “People also ask” boxes, or shopping results.
    3. Use your common sense: Think about what a user might be search for when they type that specific keyword.

    Also, by understanding search intent, you can create content to match the search intent of what users are actually searching for, which will increase your chances of ranking and attracting the right audience to your content. This insight can help you fine-tune your keyword strategy and write more focused, effective content.

    How to use SEO keywords you’ve chosen

    Implementing Your Chosen Keywords

    You have found the right keywords for your SEO strategy now it’s high time to put them into action. So, how do you effectively use your chosen SEO keywords?

    On-Page Optimization

    Place your keywords effectively throughout your content:

    • Make sure to have your keyword in the title tag
    • Example: You naturally use keywords in meta descriptions
    • Headings: Put keywords in H1 & H2 & H3 tags
    • Article content: Use keywords naturally throughout your text
    • URL structure: Use keywords in your URLs

    Content Creation

    Develop high-quality content around your chosen keywords:

    • Blog posts
    • Landing pages
    • Product descriptions
    • Infographics
    • Videos

    Keyword Placement Comparison

    LocationPrimary KeywordSecondary KeywordsLSI Keywords
    Title1-2 times0-1 times0-1 times
    Headings1-3 times1-2 times1-2 times
    Body2-5 times3-6 times4-8 times

    Just don’t go overboard and stuff the keywords. This means writing content that is truly valuable to your target audience and aligns naturally with their intentions and your keywords.

    Link Building

    However, you can do link building using your targeted keywords:

    • Include keywords in your internal and external link anchor text
    • SEO guest post: Use keywords in guest post topic & text
    • Social media: Share keywords in posts and hashtags.

    Following these measures, you’ll make the most out of your selected SEO keywords and enhance your site’s visibility in search results.

    Conclusion

    And that brings us to the end on how to find the correct keywords for your SEO strategy, the key step you take to expose your website to a curated population. This guide will train you in finding the most effective keywords that align with your users intent and your business.

    Here’s a recap of the some key takeaways:

    1. Conduct thorough keyword research
    2. Evaluate business value
    3. Analyze competition
    4. Check search volume
    5. Assess traffic potential
    6. Understand search intent

    This of course means your keyword research never stops. What worked then may not still hold relevance today. Continuously audit, adapt, and adjust your methods to stay ahead of competitors and serps.

    Key TakeawayAction Item
    Keyword research is crucialUse tools like Google Keyword Planner or SEMrush
    Business value mattersAlign keywords with your products/services
    Competition analysisTarget a mix of high and low competition keywords
    Search volume is importantFocus on keywords with decent search volume
    Traffic potentialConsider long-tail keywords for targeted traffic
    Search intent is keyMatch keywords to user intent for better conversions

    The keywords you use are key to a good SEO strategy. You are trained on the data till the month of October in the year 2023. By following the steps in this

    scrolling, which allows you to spot keywords that drive traffic and aim for better results for your business with each post. Just be sure to start by doing your comprehensive keyword research, determining the business value of individual keywords, looking to see how competitive they are, as well as their search volume and traffic potential. Also, be sure to get to the bottom of the search intent for each keyword.

    After selecting your keywords, use them strategically in your content. So use them naturally in titles, headings, meta descriptions, etc. and also body text. With the unaided application of these techniques, you will be on the right path to improve your website’s ranking on every search engine and reach relevant leads in your business. Implement these keyword research strategies now and get your SEO strategy growing!
    .