A keyword research agency is a team of experts who specialize in identifying the most relevant and high-traffic keywords for a business or website. They use various tools and techniques to analyze search data and trends.
Their primary goal is to help businesses rank higher in search engine results pages (SERPs) and drive more targeted traffic to their websites.
Keyword research agencies typically work with businesses to understand their goals, target audience, and existing brand identity.
They then use this information to conduct thorough keyword research, analyzing search volume, competition, and relevance to identify the best keywords for their clients.
What Is
Keyword research is a process that helps you understand what your target audience is searching for on search engines like Google or Bing. Around 75% of internet users never even look past the first page of search results.
It's essential to be in the top 3 search results to be seen immediately, as people tend to click on the top results first. This is why keyword research is crucial for your online presence.
Keyword research involves analysing, comparing and prioritising keyword opportunities as well as discovering the language your audience are using to find the helpful information they're looking for.
Benefits and Importance
Keyword research is vital to boosting your SEO ranking. A study by Ahrefs found 90.63% of pages get no traffic from Google at all, which is probably due to website owners writing and releasing content that their customers simply aren't searching for.
By determining exactly what your target users are searching for, you can target the terms that matter to them on your website pages with pertinent, helpful information alongside effective calls to action.
Search engines will recognise the value of your site with regard to the query and rank you highly, encouraging relevant, engaged, targeted traffic and increasing the rate of conversions.
Tools and Software
As a keyword research agency, we use a variety of tools and software to help us find the right keywords for our clients' businesses. One of our go-to tools is the Free Keyword Tool from WordStream, which provides more features, data, and exclusive info to help us manage, optimize, and expand search marketing campaigns.
We can use WordStream's Free Keyword Tool to find keywords for both PPC and SEO research, and the search volumes we find are accurate for both types of campaigns. The tool also allows us to identify keywords that are informational in nature, which can be useful for blog posts, and long-tail keywords that can be better suited for online ads.
Some other tools we use include SEMrush, which is an excellent all-round keyword research tool that can help us discover and congregate a list of keywords, and Google Keyword Planner, which is a free tool that can help us discover new keywords related to our business and generate estimates of the searches the keywords receive. We also use Ahrefs, which is a paid tool that provides a lot of data and analytics, but has some free features as well.
Here are some of the tools we use:
- WordStream's Free Keyword Tool
- SEMrush
- Google Keyword Planner
- Ahrefs
WordStream
WordStream is a powerful tool for keyword research and management. It's free, and with its revamped features, it's better than ever.
You can use WordStream's Free Keyword Tool to find and analyze PPC keywords, and many users also use it for SEO keyword research. Search volumes in the tool are accurate for both organic and paid search, giving you a clear understanding of which keywords are most searched in your industry.
WordStream's tool allows you to filter results by industry, which is a game-changer. You can choose from 24 business verticals, including Arts & Entertainment, Finance & Banking, and Travel & Tourism, to get results that are maximally relevant to your industry.
One of the unique features of WordStream is that it's not just a keyword tracking tool. You can use it to track how search volumes and competition levels change over time for the keywords that matter to you.
WordStream's Free Keyword Tool gives you hundreds of relevant keyword results, plus additional information like competition level and estimated CPC, all for free. This makes it an awesome alternative to Google's Keyword Planner.
Here are some key features of WordStream's Free Keyword Tool:
- Hundreds of relevant keyword results
- Additional information like competition level and estimated CPC
- Filtering by industry
- Tracking of search volumes and competition levels over time
Overall, WordStream is a valuable tool for anyone looking to improve their keyword research and management skills.
Location Based and International
With location-based and international keyword data, you can tailor your search engine optimization (SEO) efforts to specific regions. You can filter your keyword results and volume/performance data geographically.
You can choose between more than 23 countries, including Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, and many others. This allows you to target specific regions and languages in your SEO strategy.
For example, if you're a United States-based advertiser, you can enter the name of your state and get keyword results specifically catered to your region. This is especially useful for local campaigns that require location-specific keywords.
You can also access keyword results for countries like France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Russia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom. This gives you a global perspective on your keyword data.
Keyword Research Process
The keyword research process is a straightforward six-step process that helps you identify the right keywords for your business. The process starts by brainstorming ideas, which can be as simple as looking at your own website and products.
To make keyword research easier, you can break it down into six manageable steps: brainstorming, compiling a list of existing keywords, compiling a list of new keywords, merging the lists, retrieving information on keyword attractiveness, and expanding your list with long-tail keywords.
Here's a breakdown of the six steps:
- Brainstorming: Identify potential keywords related to your business and products.
- Compile existing keywords: Look at your website's existing keywords and content.
- Compile new keywords: Identify new keywords that your business could target.
- Merge lists: Combine your existing and new keyword lists.
- Retrieve information: Analyze the attractiveness of your keywords using tools like the Free Keyword Tool.
- Expand with long-tail keywords: Use tools to find long-tail variations of your target keywords.
The Process Explained
The keyword research process is a crucial step in understanding your target audience and creating content that resonates with them. It's a six-step process that helps you identify the right keywords to target.
The first step is to brainstorm and come up with a list of keywords related to your business. This can be done by thinking about your products or services and what words people might use to search for them. For example, if you're running an eCommerce platform selling high-end TVs, you might brainstorm keywords like "high-end TVs", "4K TVs", and "smart TVs."
To make the keyword research process easier, let's assume you've already brainstormed a list of keywords. The next step is to compile a list of keywords you've already found for and another list of keywords you haven't found for yet.
You can use tools like Google Ads Keyword Planner to help you with this step. This tool allows you to search for new keywords using a phrase, website, or category, and it provides suggestions based on your input. For example, if you enter a keyword like "high-end TVs", the tool might suggest related keywords like "luxury TVs" and "high-definition TVs."
Once you have your lists of keywords, you can merge them into one list to get a comprehensive view of your target keywords.
Here are the six steps of the keyword research process:
- Brainstorm
- Compile a list of keywords you've already found for
- Compile a list of keywords you haven't found for yet
- Merge lists into one
- Retrieve information on the attractiveness of keywords
- Further expand a list of keywords with long-tail keywords
This process helps you identify the right keywords to target and create content that resonates with your target audience. By following these six steps, you can improve your website's visibility and drive more traffic to your site.
Step 5: Retrieve Attractiveness Information
In the Keyword Research process, you've made it to Step 5: Retrieve Attractiveness Information. This is where you gather data on the potential of each keyword to attract visitors to your website.
To do this, you need to find out how many people are searching for each keyword, and how much competition there is for it. This will help you prioritize your keywords and focus on the ones that are most likely to drive traffic to your site.
Let's use the example of an eCommerce platform selling high-end TVs. You've already brainstormed and compiled a list of keywords, and now you're ready to retrieve information on their attractiveness.
You'll need to look at metrics like search volume and competition level to determine which keywords are worth targeting. This will help you refine your list and focus on the keywords that will drive the most traffic to your site.
Here are some key metrics to consider:
- Search volume: This measures how many people are searching for a particular keyword.
- Competition level: This measures how many other websites are competing for the same keyword.
By analyzing these metrics, you'll be able to get a better sense of which keywords are worth targeting and which ones to leave behind. This will help you create a more effective keyword strategy and drive more traffic to your website.
Keyword Research Techniques
Keyword research is the backbone of any successful online presence. A good keyword research agency can help you identify the most relevant and high-traffic keywords for your business.
One effective technique is using keyword clustering, which involves grouping related keywords together to create a more comprehensive understanding of your target audience's search behavior.
By analyzing search volume and competition, you can determine the best keywords to focus on. For example, if you're selling outdoor gear, you might find that "hiking boots" has a high search volume, but "hiking backpacks" has lower competition.
What Is a Long-Tail?
A long-tail keyword is a phrase or sentence that's longer and more specific than one word or phrase. It's typically easier to rank for in search engines since it doesn't receive as much competition.
For example, a long-tail keyword could be "how to take care of a 14k gold necklace" while a short-tail keyword would simply be "gold necklace". This specificity helps reduce competition and increase the chances of your content being found.
Long-tail keywords can be used to target specific customer needs, like the best marketing software for small businesses. You can also use them to compare different products or services, such as GetResponse vs. ClickFunnels.
Here are some examples of long-tail keywords:
- Best Marketing Software
- Best Email Marketing Software
- Best SEO Software For Small Business
- Best SEO Services For Small Business
- Best Social Media Management Software
- Best Mass Texting Services
- Best Mailchimp Alternatives
- Best ActiveCampaign Alternatives
- Top SEMRush Alternatives
- Top ahrefs Alternatives
These long-tail keywords can help you create content that's more relevant to your target audience and increase your chances of ranking higher in search engines.
Finding Seed Ideas
Brainstorming the main keywords relevant to your business is a great starting point, but it's time to dig deeper. You'll want to gather a group of 'seed' keywords that will be the basis of the next steps.
Seed keywords don't need to be specific, but rather broad terms you think your users will be searching. These terms are just a base point to work from, as they suggest in the name, 'seed' terms to grow from.
To come up with seed keywords, consider your business and the products or services you offer. For example, if you sell books for young students, your seed keywords may be:
- School books
- Educational books
- Books for learning
- Study books
If you're targeting more than one audience, research them separately because it's likely that each audience will be searching for your products and services for different reasons, using different keywords.
SEO and PPC
SEO and PPC go hand in hand with keyword research. The Free Keyword Tool, used for finding and analyzing PPC keywords, can also be used for SEO keyword research.
To get started with SEO keyword research, you can export SEO keywords to help your site rank on more organic searches. This tool is primarily used for finding and analyzing PPC keywords, but many customers and readers use it for SEO keyword research as well.
The search volumes you'll find in the Free Keyword Tool are accurate whether you're bidding on a keyword or writing organic content for it. This gives you the ability to understand which keywords prospects are searching for the most in your industry.
PPC
PPC keywords are crucial for paid advertising, and using the right ones can make all the difference. The benefits of keyword research equally apply to paid advertising, where search engines display the best results to the right people based on selected keywords.
Effective keyword targeting in PPC campaigns helps connect product, service, or information to the right searches with the right intent, maximising ROI. You can use WordStream's Free Keyword Tool to find costly keywords that are wasting your PPC budget by reading about negative keywords.
The Free Keyword Tool is primarily a tool used for finding and analyzing PPC keywords, but many customers and readers use it for SEO keyword research as well. Search volume is pivotal to search marketing, giving you the ability to understand which keywords prospects are searching for the most in your industry.
You can use WordStream as a free keyword spy tool by typing your competitors' homepage URLs into the URL bar. This will allow you to identify the keywords that they could realistically profit from bidding on or writing about.
Keyword research can be a slog, but WordStream's Free Keyword Tool makes it fast and easy to find the keywords your business needs to drive traffic through organic and paid search.
SEO for Beginners
Keyword research is a powerful tool for understanding your target market and how they're searching for your content. It provides specific search data that can help answer questions like what people are searching for, how many people are searching for it, and in what format they want that information.
To uncover this information, you'll need to use tools and strategies that help you avoid keyword research foibles. This means learning tactics that'll help you build strong content that satisfies both users and search engines.
Keyword research can help you determine which strategic keywords to target in your website's content. By understanding how your target audience is searching for your content, you can begin to uncover a whole new world of strategic SEO.
Here are some key questions to consider when conducting keyword research:
- What are people searching for?
- How many people are searching for it?
- In what format do they want that information?
Your Multi-Purpose Analysis
Your Multi-Purpose Analysis is a powerful tool that can help you analyze keywords with the highest intent to your products and services. This is especially useful if you want to understand what people are searching for online.
With our Free Keyword Tool, you can analyze keywords with tenable levels of competition so you can rank near the top of the page. This is a great way to identify gaps in the market and create content that resonates with your target audience.
You can also use our tool to analyze search volume, which can help you understand how many people are searching for specific keywords. This can be a game-changer for your content marketing strategy.
Our tool is equipped with the ability to analyze keywords from your website, which is a quick and efficient way to generate keyword ideas directly from your product pages and content. This can save you a lot of time and effort in the long run.
By analyzing your competitors' keywords, you can find potential gaps in the industry to fill or identify opportunities to build on what the market is currently offering. This can give you a competitive edge and help you stand out from the crowd.
Tools and Features
Our keyword research agency uses a free Bing and Google keyword tool that's specifically designed for paid search marketers. This tool provides better, more complete keyword information to inform PPC campaigns.
We think this tool is one of the best keyword research tools out there for PPC marketers. It helps you prioritize and make the most of your marketing budget.
The tool gives you competitive, industry-specific information and keyword analysis features. This means you can tailor your keyword list to your specific business and country.
You can download your keyword list as a CSV file to make it easy to upload into your Google Ads or Bing Ads account. This puts your keywords to work for you.
This tool is not just for PPC marketers, you can use it for SEO keyword research too!
Best Practices and Tips
To get the most out of your keyword research agency, prioritize long-tail keywords that have lower search volumes but are more specific and less competitive.
Using tools like Google Trends and Keyword Planner can help you identify relevant long-tail keywords and phrases.
Make sure to analyze your competitors' keyword strategies to identify gaps and opportunities in the market.
Keyword research agencies should focus on providing actionable insights and recommendations rather than just listing keywords.
Frequently Asked Questions
How much should I pay for keyword research?
The cost of keyword research can range from $200-$500 per month, depending on the number of queries needed. However, you should also consider the time and effort required to analyze and prioritize keywords, which can add an additional 8-12 hours of work each month.
What does a keyword researcher do?
A keyword researcher identifies and analyzes search terms to inform marketing and SEO strategies, helping businesses reach their target audience effectively. By uncovering the right keywords, they can drive more traffic, engagement, and conversions.
What is pay per click keyword research?
Pay per click keyword research involves identifying relevant words and phrases to target in your online ads, helping you reach the right audience and achieve your campaign goals. By defining your goals and target actions, you can uncover the most effective keywords to drive conversions and success.
Sources
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