Developing a Comprehensive Keyword Research Plan

A solid keyword research plan is the foundation of a successful online presence. It helps you understand your audience's search habits and tailor your content to meet their needs.

To start, identify your target audience and their pain points. This will help you determine the most relevant keywords to focus on. For example, if you're a fitness coach, your target audience might be people looking for workout routines for beginners.

Your keyword research plan should also include a thorough analysis of your competitors. Who are they targeting, and what keywords are they using? This will help you identify gaps in the market and opportunities to outrank them.

A keyword research plan is not a one-time task, but an ongoing process. Regularly review and update your plan to ensure it remains relevant and effective.

Before you can start researching keywords, you need to understand who your target audience is and what they're looking for. This involves asking questions like "What types of ice cream, desserts, snacks, etc. are people searching for?" and "Who is searching for these terms?" as mentioned in Example 3.

Understanding your goals is also crucial before diving into keyword research. What do you hope to achieve with your content marketing strategy? Do you want to increase brand awareness, generate leads, boost sales, or improve website traffic? This will guide your keyword selection and help you measure your success, as explained in Example 4.

A well-structured keyword plan ensures search engines understand your content and aligns it with your target audience's needs and interests. This plan also enhances your search engine optimization (SEO) efforts by boosting the visibility of your website in search engine results pages (SERPs), as stated in Example 2.

To plan your keyword research, you should define your goals and identify related keywords and popular keywords. You can use tools like WordStream to generate related keywords and surface keywords related to your starting keyword, as mentioned in Example 5.

Here's a list of questions to ask before starting your keyword research:

By asking these questions and understanding your goals, you'll be able to create a solid keyword research plan that helps you craft better content and achieve your desired outcomes.

Keyword research metrics have come a long way since the old days of SEO, when creators would cram high-volume keywords into content that didn't fit naturally. This Black Hat SEO tactic is now a thing of the past, and Google's algorithm has evolved to prioritize relevance and user intent.

Google RankBrain, a component of Google's algorithm based on artificial intelligence, uses machine learning to deliver the most relevant search results. This means you need to create content that not only ranks for realistic keywords but also has high search volume.

To find the right keywords, we look at two key metrics: the number of searches per month and the cost per click. These metrics represent quantity and quality, respectively, and are used to calculate opportunity.

By multiplying these two numbers together, we get the opportunity, which is the amount of money spent on a specific keyword in Google each month.

Keyword research metrics are essential to understanding how people search and what they're looking for online. The two key metrics we'll focus on are the number of searches per month and the cost per click.

The number of searches per month represents the quantity of searches for a particular keyword, which is crucial for your return on investment (ROI) calculation. On the other hand, the cost per click (CPC) represents the quality of the keyword, with higher CPCs indicating more valuable searchers.

To calculate opportunity, we multiply the number of searches per month by the cost per click: Number of Searches Per Month x Cost Per Click = Opportunity. This gives us an idea of how much money is spent on a specific keyword in Google monthly.

Here's a breakdown of these metrics:

By focusing on these two metrics, you can identify the sweet spot between quantity and quality, and find the keywords that are worth targeting.

Google RankBrain uses machine learning to understand the intent behind search queries, delivering more relevant search results. This means you need to create content that not only ranks for realistic keywords but also addresses the user's intent.

In the past, keyword research focused solely on high search volumes, leading to Black Hat SEO tactics that can now get your web page removed from SERPs. Today, understanding user intent is crucial to ranking well.

Analyzing the "why" behind a search is key to understanding user intent. Ask questions like "What problem are they trying to solve?" or "What information are they hoping to find?" to tailor your content accordingly.

To verify user intent, simply enter the keyword into a search engine and see what types of results come up. For example, searching for "how to start a blog" shows that most users are looking for info on starting a website with a blog, not an individual blog post.

Here are some key differences in user intent to consider:

Understanding user intent affects keyword research, making it essential to interpret keywords carefully and consider the searcher's intent. This will help you create content that addresses the user's problem or need, rather than just including the keyword.

WordStream's free keyword research tool is a great alternative to Google's Keyword Planner. It offers concrete search volumes, making it easier to identify the exact keyword searches that matter to you.

You can use WordStream's keyword search tool in conjunction with Google's Keyword Planner to get a more complete picture of your keyword research. This tool is a Google partner, which means it has direct access to Google's API, ensuring that the data you receive is verified and credible.

WordStream's keyword finder expands on Keyword Planner's offering by bringing data directly into the fold. This makes it a valuable tool for anyone looking to improve their keyword research.

Here are some key benefits of using WordStream's keyword search tool:

By using WordStream's keyword search tool, you can get a more accurate picture of your keyword research and make more informed decisions about your content strategy.

To establish a strong keyword strategy, start by making a list of important, relevant topics based on what you know about your business. These topic buckets can be as simple as generic terms like "SEO" or "email marketing".

For example, HubSpot's general topic buckets include "SEO" with 201K searches, "blogging" with 60.5K searches, and "social media marketing" with 405K searches. These numbers give you an idea of how important these topics are to your audience.

Think about the topics you want to rank for in terms of generic buckets. You'll come up with about five to 10 topic buckets you think are essential to your business.

These topic buckets can be used to help come up with specific keywords later in the process. For instance, if you have a topic bucket like "SEO", you can use keyword research tools to find related search terms like "SEO tips" or "SEO best practices".

The number of searches for each topic bucket can help you gauge how important these topics are to your audience. This data can also help you determine how many different sub-topics you need to create content on to be successful with that keyword.

To learn more about these sub-topics, you can use keyword research tools to your advantage.

To analyze competitors and SERP features, start by performing a Google search on your target topic and copying the URL of a high-ranking site into Ahrefs. This will allow you to see which keywords your competitor is ranking for.

You'll want to click on "Organic keywords" to view the list of keywords your competitor ranks for, and then narrow down the list to no more than 100 terms. This will give you a clear picture of their keyword strategy.

Understanding what keywords your competitors are trying to rank for is a great way to evaluate your own list of keywords and identify potential opportunities to own market share.

Competitor Analysis is a crucial step in understanding your online presence and identifying opportunities to improve. You can use Ahrefs to see which keywords your competitors are ranking for.

To do this, click on "Organic keywords" on the left-hand side of the Ahrefs page, and you'll be taken to a page showing which keywords each competitor ranks for. This will give you a list of keywords and how many each competitor ranks for.

You'll likely end up with a long list of keywords, so it's essential to narrow it down to the most relevant ones. A good rule of thumb is to focus on no more than 100 terms.

To prioritize your list, consider focusing on high-volume keywords that your competitors are not currently ranking for. This can be a great way to take advantage of their missed opportunities. Alternatively, you can prioritize keywords that your competitors are already ranking for, which can be an aggressive strategy to compete for those keywords.

Here are some common SERP features to look out for:

These features can help you understand what types of content are performing well for your competitors and identify opportunities to improve your own content. By analyzing your competitors' content and SERP features, you can gain a better understanding of your online presence and make informed decisions to improve your SEO strategy.

Location Based Data is a powerful tool for understanding your target audience and optimizing your online presence. You can filter keyword results and volume/performance data geographically, choosing from over 23 countries.

To give you a better idea, let's take a look at some specific countries you can target. You can filter by countries like Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, and many others.

If you're a United States-based advertiser, you can enter the name of your state to get keyword results specifically catered to your region. This can help you tailor your marketing efforts to local customers.

Here are some countries you can target with location-based data:

Keyword research can be a slog, but there are tools available to make it fast and easy.

Some of the most popular keyword research tools include Ahrefs Keywords Explorer, which offers comprehensive SEO reports and keyword research.

WordStream's Free Keyword Tool is another great option, revamped to include more features, data, and exclusive info to help manage and optimize search marketing campaigns.

Rank Tracker by SEO PowerSuite is a solid tool for monitoring SERP data and doing keyword research, allowing you to see all the phrases a particular domain ranks for, along with search volumes and keyword difficulty.

SEMrush Keyword Magic Tool is comprehensive and free to use, providing a list of similar keywords and the ability to sort based on how specific you need your results to be.

Ubersuggest is also a great option, offering up to three free searches a day and providing related keywords and reverse search functionality.

Using our keyword planning assistant is a breeze. Just enter an initial keyword, and our AI-powered tool will generate your Golden Keywords based on two key metrics: quantity and quality.

Quantity is the estimated number of searches per month. This helps you understand how often people are searching for that keyword.

We also consider the estimated Cost Per Click (CPC), or what Google advertisers are willing to pay per click, as a measure of quality. This gives you an idea of how competitive the keyword is.

To calculate the total dollar amount spent on a keyword each month, we multiply quality by quantity. This gives you a clear picture of the marketing money being spent on that keyword in Google.

You can try out our tool to see how it works. Just enter a keyword and see the Golden Keywords generated for you.

WordStream is a powerful tool for keyword research, offering a free keyword tool that provides hundreds of relevant keyword results, along with additional information like competition level and estimated CPC. You can use WordStream's free tool to get keyword ideas, including Google Ads keywords, keywords for websites, keyword phrases, long-tail keywords, and negative keywords.

The free keyword tool is fast, accurate, and easy to use, making it a great alternative to Google's Keyword Planner. You can use it to find high-volume, low-competition keywords for your Google ad campaigns, popular and niche keywords for your website, and long-tail keyword queries that are less costly to bid on and easier to rank for.

WordStream's free tool also allows you to track how search volumes and competition levels change over time for the keywords that matter to you. This can be especially useful for identifying seasonal trends or changes in buying activity related to your business or industry.

One of the best features of WordStream is its ability to help you identify keywords that your competitors are using, which can be a great way to gain some of their traffic. Simply type in your competitors' homepage URLs into the URL bar, and you'll be able to identify the keywords that they're using and potentially profit from.

WordStream is not a traditional keyword tracking tool, but it can be used to track how search volumes and competition levels change over time for the keywords that matter to you. This can help you stay on top of search volume changes that can make a real difference in your search marketing campaigns.

In addition to its free keyword tool, WordStream also offers a revamped version of its tool, which includes more features, more data, and exclusive information to help you manage, optimize, and expand your search marketing campaigns. This new and improved tool makes it even faster and easier to find the keywords your business needs to drive traffic through organic and paid search.

Building a keyword strategy is crucial to your content marketing efforts, helping boost your online visibility and attract a more targeted audience.

A well-structured keyword plan ensures search engines understand your content and aligns it with your target audience's needs and interests. This plan also enhances your search engine optimization (SEO) efforts by boosting the visibility of your website in search engine results pages (SERPs).

Conducting effective keyword research can provide insights into current marketing trends and help you center your content on relevant topics and keywords your audience is looking for.

To start, make a list of important, relevant topics based on what you know about your business. Then, fill in those topic buckets with keywords and understand how intent affects keyword research and analyze accordingly.

You can use keyword research tools to your advantage, such as the Free Keyword Tool from WordStream, which can be used for SEO keyword research as well. This tool provides accurate search volumes, which are pivotal to search marketing.

Here are some key topics and their corresponding search volumes, as an example from HubSpot:

The best keywords for your SEO strategy will account for relevance, authority, and volume, and you should aim to find highly searched keywords that you can reasonably compete for based on your competition and your ability to produce excellent content on those keywords.

Accurate keyword volume and cost per click data helps you find the right keywords to target and maximize your marketing budget.

To prioritize keywords, start by identifying low-hanging fruit, that is, keywords that you have a chance of ranking for based on your website’s authority.

Large companies typically go after high search volume keywords, but these keywords often have too much competition, making it harder to rank.

Keywords with little competition can be a safer bet, especially if there are no other articles battling for the highest rank.

Use Google Keyword Planner to cut down your keyword list and flag terms with too little or too much search volume.

Google Trends can help you determine which terms are trending upward and are worth more of your focus, so be sure to check their trend history and projections before making any decisions.

Prioritize keywords that have a healthy mix of search volume and traffic estimates, and don't be afraid to trim your list to the top 10 keywords that will give you the best possible results.

Your content "tentpoles" will include these top keywords, and all your content will be built around them, adding in others from the list as it makes sense.

An effective keyword plan is the core of any successful content marketing efforts. Keywords are the voice of your customers, and you should design them to respond to the exact customer queries and intentions.

The KISS principle is a good rule to follow: Keep It Simple, SEO. This means keeping your list of keywords simple along with your selection criteria.

To determine return on investment (ROI), break down your SEO into just a few key components.

To create a laser-targeted list of keywords, adopt the KISS principle: Keep It Simple, SEO. This means keeping your list of keywords simple along with your selection criteria.

An effective keyword plan is the core of any successful content marketing efforts, designed to respond to the exact customer queries and intentions.

The general rule is to keep your list of keywords simple, breaking it down into just a few key components. By doing so, it's possible to determine return on investment (ROI).

As online marketers, our job is to generate the most qualified sales leads.

Here are some practical tips to help you achieve that: download our Content Marketing Keyword Planning tool, the same template we use for clients, to get started.

Keyword research determines who your competitors are and which area of the search landscape you can rank for. This understanding gives you rankability.

Doing keyword research helps identify the queries that your target audience is actually searching on Google. This informs your content strategy as well as your larger marketing strategy.

Your content strategy should be based on what people want to discover, not just what you want to tell them. This means creating content around keywords that your audience is searching for.

Keyword research helps you find your SEO sweet spot – the overlap of keywords that aren’t too hard to rank for and keywords you can confidently produce excellent content on.

If nobody’s searching for a specific keyword, you won’t have much luck or traffic, even if you have the best content in the business.