How To Effectively Conduct Keyword Research for Your SEO and PPC Strategies

Digital marketing is constantly changing as new tech arrives, AI continues to innovate, and the web changes. Yet few things remain as constant and important as keyword research. It’s the process of discovering the language your target audience speaks when searching for information, products, or services online. Understanding these search queries provides key insights into the minds of your potential customers, and also will help you connect with this audience.

We will explore why keyword research is absolutely essential for a thriving SEO or PPC strategy and provide you with a step-by-step guide to conducting it effectively. From deciphering user intent to staying ahead of the competition, we’ll walk through keyword research, helping you unlock the full potential of your online presence. 

Here are some steps you can take to get the most out of your keyword research:

Step 1:  Identify Your Niche and Goals 

Defining your niche and setting clear goals are the starting points of effective keyword research. This step involves:

• Understanding Your Niche: Determine the industry or topic you operate in. Knowing your niche is essential for targeting the right keywords and understanding your audience’s needs. If you’re helping out a client – take the time to talk and really get to understand their industry. What services or products do they offer? Why do customers seek them out? What influences their industry? Who do they consider to be the perfect customer?
• Setting Goals: Establish specific, measurable, and realistic goals for your strategy. These goals will give you a clear direction for your keyword research efforts. Goals could include increasing organic traffic, improving conversion rates, or achieving higher search engine rankings.

Step 2: Brainstorm Initial Ideas

Begin by brainstorming a list of potential keywords and phrases that are relevant to your niche. To generate these ideas, consider:

• Seed Keywords: Start with a few broad keywords that represent your niche or industry. For example, if you’re in the medical industry you can start with broad keywords such as “general hospital”, “medical facility”, “physician”. Start with big broad keywords that describe your business.
• Common Questions: Think about the questions your target audience might ask related to your products or services. 
• Synonyms and Variations: Explore synonyms, variations, and related terms that users might use in their searches.

Step 3: Use Keyword Research Tools

Keyword research tools are indispensable for finding relevant keywords and assessing their potential. Here’s how to use them effectively:

• Google Keyword Planner: This free tool provides search volume data and keyword ideas. It’s a great starting point. Even as an established digital marketing agency, we use this tool to help with keyword research for our client’s SEO and PPC strategies.
• Paid Tools: There are plenty of paid tools available like SEMrush, Ahrefs and Ubersuggest. These paid tools offer detailed keyword data, competition analysis, and many additional features. Consider using one or more of these tools to refine your keyword list and discover new opportunities.

Step 4: Analyze Keyword Metrics

When evaluating potential keywords, consider these key metrics:

• Relevance: Ensure that the keywords are directly relevant to your content and the needs of your audience. Irrelevant keywords can lead to a high bounce rate. Ask yourself “why would someone search this term?”. You want to choose keywords that you know individuals are searching to find your product or service.
• Search Volume: This metric indicates how often a keyword is searched for. Focus on keywords with a reasonable search volume, but don’t disregard long-tail keywords, which may have lower traffic but can be highly targeted to your audience.
• Competition/Keyword Difficulty: Assess the competition level or keyword difficulty for each keyword. Lower competition keywords are often easier to rank for, which can be beneficial if you have limited resources. Typically higher competition keywords are more difficult to rank in SERPs, but can lead to more traffic or better quality leads if the keyword is relevant to your business.

Step 5: Understand User Intent

As mentioned earlier, understanding user intent is crucial. Consider the following when determining user intent:

• Informational Intent: If the keyword implies that users seek information or answers to questions, focus on providing informative and valuable content.
• Navigational Intent: When users are trying to find a specific website or page, ensure that your content is easily navigable and helps users find what they’re looking for.
• Shopper Research Intent: If users are “shopping around” or in the research phase with the intent to buy in the near future, they are more likely to search for cost comparisons, reviews, and product feature guides.
• Buyer Intent: Consider whether the keyword suggests that the searcher is ready to make a purchase. Keywords with words like “buy,” or “for sale” often indicate this intent. For keywords indicating a readiness to make a purchase, create landing pages or product descriptions that facilitate the buying process.

Creating content that matches user intent is essential for providing value to your audience.

Step 6: Explore Long-Tail Keywords

In addition to targeting more competitive, short-tail keywords, it’s essential to explore long-tail keywords. These are longer and more specific phrases that can be easier to rank for, or those that will bring in more qualified leads. Long-tail keywords often have a higher conversion rate because they precisely match the user’s search intent. Incorporate a mix of short and long-tail keywords in your strategy to capture a diverse audience.

Step 7: Analyze Competitor Keywords

To gain a competitive edge, you should analyze your competitors’ keyword strategies. Here’s how to do it:

• Identify Competitors: First, identify your main competitors in the online space. These are the websites or businesses that compete with you for the same audience.
• Competitor Analysis Tools: Use tools like SEMrush, Ahrefs, or SpyFu to analyze the keywords that your competitors are targeting. These tools can provide valuable insights into their keyword rankings, organic traffic, and top-performing pages.
• Keyword Gap Analysis: Identify keywords that your competitors are ranking for but you are not. This can highlight keyword opportunities you can capitalize on.
• Differentiate Your Strategy: If you discover that your competitors are targeting the same keywords, consider how you can differentiate your content to stand out.

Step 8: Create an Organized Keyword List

Once you’ve conducted thorough keyword research, organize your selected keywords into categories or themes. This step involves:

• Keyword Mapping: Assign specific keywords to relevant pages on your website. This ensures that each page is optimized for a specific set of keywords.
• Prioritization: Prioritize keywords based on their relevance, search volume, and potential to drive traffic and conversions. Focus on the most important keywords for your goals.
• Create a Keyword Master List: Create a centralized document or spreadsheet to store your keyword data, including search volume, competition, and target landing pages.

Organizing your keywords helps you develop a structured and effective strategy, making it easier to create content and optimize your website.

Step 9: Monitor and Update

Keyword research is an ongoing process. Search trends and user behavior can change over time, so it’s essential to regularly monitor and update your keyword strategy. Here are some key aspects of monitoring and updating your keyword research:

• Performance Tracking: Use tools like Google Ads (for PPC), Google Search Console (for SEO), Google Analytics and other tracking software to monitor how your keywords are performing. Pay attention to changes in rankings, traffic, and conversion rates.
• Stay Informed: Keep up with industry trends and algorithm updates. These changes can impact which keywords are most relevant and competitive.
• Refinement: Periodically revisit and refine your keyword list based on new data and insights. Remove underperforming keywords and add relevant ones as your content and business evolve.
• Competitor Monitoring: Continue to monitor your competitors’ keyword strategies and adjust your approach accordingly.

Proper keyword research is the backbone of a successful SEO or PPC strategy. We have found that doing the hard work of keyword research is worth all the time. Spending the time to find the right keywords will make sure you have a stronger strategy that is bringing in the type of audience that is looking for your service or product. By following these steps and being specific in your approach, you can create a well-structured keyword strategy that enhances your website’s visibility, drives traffic, and leads to better user engagement and conversions. Remember that patience and persistence in your keyword research and optimization endeavors are key to achieving long-lasting success.