Keyword research is the foundation of SEO. Target wrong keywords, waste months of effort. Here's how to find the right ones.
What Makes a Good Keyword?
Three Factors:
- Search volume - People actually search for it
- Relevance - Matches what you offer
- Achievability - You can realistically rank
Keyword Research Process
Step 1: Brainstorm Seed Keywords
Start with what you offer:
- Your services/products
- Problems you solve
- Questions customers ask
- Industry terminology
Step 2: Expand with Tools
Free Tools:
- Google Autocomplete
- Google "People Also Ask"
- Google "Related Searches"
- Answer The Public
- Google Keyword Planner
Paid Tools:
- Ahrefs
- SEMrush
- Moz
- Mangools
Step 3: Analyze Search Intent
Four Types of Intent:
| Intent | Signal | Example |
|--------|--------|---------|
| Informational | how, what, why | "how to fix leaky faucet" |
| Navigational | brand names | "home depot plumbing" |
| Commercial | best, review, compare | "best plumber Denver" |
| Transactional | buy, price, near me | "emergency plumber near me" |
Match content to intent. Don't write a blog post for a "near me" search.
Step 4: Assess Competition
Check SERPs for:
- Who ranks? (Big brands or smaller sites?)
- What content type? (Blog, product, service page?)
- Content quality? (Can you do better?)
- Domain authority? (Way higher than yours?)
Step 5: Prioritize Keywords
| Priority | Criteria |
|----------|----------|
| High | Volume + Relevance + Achievable |
| Medium | Good volume but competitive, or low volume but high intent |
| Low | High competition OR low relevance |
Keyword Types to Target
Head Terms
- High volume, high competition
- Example: "digital marketing"
- Good for: Authority building, long-term
Long-Tail Keywords
- Lower volume, lower competition
- Example: "digital marketing for restaurants Denver"
- Good for: Quick wins, high conversion
Local Keywords
- Location-specific searches
- Example: "plumber [city]"
- Good for: Local businesses
Question Keywords
- Start with how, what, why
- Good for: Blog content, featured snippets
Keyword Mapping
Assign keywords to pages:
| Page | Primary Keyword | Secondary Keywords |
|------|-----------------|-------------------|
| Homepage | digital marketing agency | marketing company, marketing services |
| SEO Service | SEO services | SEO company, SEO agency |
| Blog Post | how to improve SEO | SEO tips, SEO strategies |
One primary keyword per page. Avoid keyword cannibalization.
Competitive Gap Analysis
Find keywords competitors rank for that you don't:
- Enter competitors in Ahrefs/SEMrush
- Use "Content Gap" feature
- Filter by volume and difficulty
- Create content for gaps
Common Keyword Research Mistakes
- Chasing volume only - High volume often means high competition
- Ignoring intent - Wrong content for the keyword
- Too broad - "marketing" vs "restaurant marketing Denver"
- Not checking SERPs - Assuming you can rank without looking
- One and done - Keyword research is ongoing
See our SEO guide for implementation.
Get professional keyword research.
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Related: SEO Guide | Content Writing
