Every online search starts with a keyword. A keyword can be one word or a bunch of words together. 3.5 billion Google searches are made daily as per Internet Live Stats. These statistics in themselves tell why you should do keyword research in Search Engine Optimization (SEO).
What is Keyword Research?
Keyword research is the process of finding the list of words or search terms for that you would like your website to rank. This includes an inventory of all the search terms, industry-specific or associated with your products, searched by the searchers on various search engines.
Types of Keywords
Keywords, also called search queries, can be broader or specific keywords. Here you’ll be able to see different types of keywords that are searched by searchers in search engines:
- Broad keywords: Keywords that are head terms to cover a wide range of possible keyword searches. It’s also called loose matching keywords and sometimes called short keywords. Some examples can be like ‘Watches’ or ‘Shoes’.
- Exact keywords: Keywords that are specific terms and cover only focused searches. It’s also called tight matching keywords. Some examples can be like ‘Smart Watch for Men’ or ‘Sports Shoes for Women’.
- Long-tail keywords: Any keyword which has three or more words can be a long-tail keyword.
- Query-based keywords: Some keywords include a question for which searchers look for the answer. Some examples can be ‘How to cook mushrooms?’ or ‘What is Covid-19?’.
- Informational keywords: The keywords which are searched for some research or learning with an intent to get more information about something. For example, if somebody is searching ‘India’ or ‘Australia’ or ‘United Kingdom’ then the user’s intent is likely to get more information about these countries.
- Commercial keywords: These are the keywords that seem searched by prospective customers with an intent to buy a product. For example, these types of keywords may include words like ‘buy’, ‘purchase’, ‘affordable’, or ‘cheap’.
Why Do Keyword Research?
You should know about some statistics about search engines which shows how important it is to rank well in search engines like Google.
- As per the eMarketer, 35% of product searches start on Google.
- As per StatCounter, over 92 percent of all search queries are conducted via Google as compared to all search engine providers.
So if you would like to rank your website in top search engine results then you should do keyword research. Doing proper keyword research can help you in many ways like:
- You can create and know about the list of main keywords for your website for which you want it to rank.
- Keyword research helps you to know which other websites and competitors are ranking on top for the keywords for which you also want to rank well in search engines.
- Based on your keyword research you can create content for the most relevant and related keywords as per your offerings.
- This way you can create search engines and user-friendly content that can help your website to rank well in search engines.
- Due to good rankings, your website can receive good and relevant traffic from search engines.
How to Do Keyword Research Using Google?
- Keyword research should start with identifying the basic terms for which you want your website to be known.
- Then make a list around those basic terms with the range of products your website will offer.
- Now search those identified basic terms in search engines like Google to see which websites or competitors are ranking for those terms.
- See the related and relevant keywords leveraged by top 5 ranking websites and add those keywords to your basic keywords list.
- Remember to note down the competitor’s information like URL from where you picked related and relevant keywords.
- Now as you have your basic keywords and the related keywords from top-performing and competitor websites. Just filter out the duplicate keywords.
- The next step should be to search all the unique keywords, which include your basic keywords, and competitor’s keywords, from your list in Google to see for which keywords PPC ads are coming in search results.
- Now, these are the keywords that you can prioritize for your website as if somebody is paying for these keywords then these are worth keywords that you should focus on to rank in organic search results.
- It’s good if the competition is lesser for those keywords as it makes your website rank a little easier because of fewer search results.
Leveraging keyword research tools is always good to make your keyword research more accurate and result-oriented. So in addition to the above-highlighted steps for your keyword research, you should also leverage the below-highlighted keyword research tools to gather more related and relevant keywords.
Keyword Research Tools
1. Keyword Planner
Google has an awesome keyword planner tool for keyword research. You can leverage this tool to discover new keywords related to your website. This tool gives keyword ideas with average monthly searches, competition, and bid-related information. You can download the list of keywords as well.
You need to signup with your Gmail account to use this tool. It’s a free to use tool from Google.
2. Answer The Public
Answer The Public is an easy-to-use tool. This tool provides plenty of useful phrases and questions that people are asking, in search engines like Google, around your searched keyword.
It’s free with few searches. But to do unlimited daily searches you can upgrade to the Pro plans of Answer the Public which starts from $99/month to $399/month.
3. SEMrush Keyword Magic
Keyword Magic Tool from SEMrush can provide all the keywords you need to build your most profitable SEO campaigns. This also provides keywords for PPC campaigns. This is a really magical tool with plenty of filters that make your keyword research fruitful. You can get an exact match keyword list, phrase match keywords, or related keyword lists by just filtering and much more.
You can take 7 day trial of this tool and choose from plans starting from approx. $119.95/month to $449.95/month.
4. Ahrefs Keyword Explorer
Ahrefs Keyword Explorer provides thousands of great keyword ideas based on data from 170+ countries. You can analyze keywords ranking difficulty and calculate their traffic potential via this tool. You can get keyword ideas from 10 different search engines. Ahrefs also has a Keyword Generator tool that can provide a list of 150 keywords for free.
You can choose 7 day trial of the Ahrefs tool for just $7. You can opt for plans range from $99/month to $999 to access this Ahrefs tool.
5. Moz Keyword Explorer
Moz Keyword Explorer helps you to identify keywords for which your site can rank and find high-impact suggestions. It shows keyword relevancy, monthly search volumes with top-ranking page information like Title and URL.
You need to register with Moz account to access this free keyword explorer tool.
6. Google Trends
Leverage Google Trends to explore search trends and know what the searchers are searching worldwide. You can see the latest stories and insights. You can compare up to 5 search terms or topics to see the trend of your search over a specific time. Google Trends also shows related topics and queries.
7. Google People Also Ask (PAA)
Google’s People also ask section is a good area to see the latest queries about the searched term. PAA box can provide lots of real estate within the search engine results. This section can help you to identify the most popular questions in your industry or product you deal in.
Further, you can add answers to relevant queries on your website which can also rank in the PAA box in the future if your answer is in-depth and correct.
Understanding search engine optimization (SEO) principles
For users seeking to understand SEO principles, we recommend exploring our comprehensive guide on keyword research. This resource will provide insights into how keywords impact search engine rankings and the importance of targeting the right keywords to attract relevant traffic to your website.
Improving website visibility and ranking on search engine results pages (SERPs)
To improve website visibility and ranking on SERPs, users can leverage keyword research to identify high-volume and relevant keywords related to their industry or niche. Implementing these keywords strategically throughout website content, meta tags, and headers can help improve search engine visibility and attract more organic traffic.
Identifying relevant keywords for content optimization
Identifying relevant keywords for content optimization involves conducting thorough keyword research to uncover terms and phrases that align with your target audience's search queries. By integrating these keywords naturally into your website content, you can enhance its relevance and visibility in search engine results, ultimately driving more qualified traffic to your site.
Tailoring content to match user search intent
To tailor content to match user search intent, users can utilize keyword research insights to identify the specific topics and queries their target audience is searching for. By creating content that directly addresses these search queries and provides valuable solutions or information, you can better meet user needs and improve your website's relevance and authority in search engine results.
Maximizing ROI on marketing efforts
Maximizing ROI on marketing efforts involves utilizing keyword research to identify high-converting keywords that align with your business goals. By targeting these keywords strategically in your SEO and marketing campaigns, you can attract more qualified leads and customers to your website, ultimately driving higher conversion rates and maximizing your return on investment.
Summary
Keyword research is the most important step in SEO. If you have done this step correctly then you will have the list of most relevant and related keywords for your website. This can help you to make all your further steps like content creation, meta tags implementations, and off-page promotions easier by leveraging correct keywords in your website.
So when are you going to do keyword research for your website? Which keyword research tools do you prefer to use?