How to Do Keyword Research
Updated: Sep 22, 2022
When it comes to search engine optimization (SEO), keyword research is the foundation on which everything else is built. Without conducting thorough keyword research, your website will not be able to compete for relevant searches.
If you fail to conduct keyword research, your content won’t be discoverable by potential visitors who are looking for the sorts of things that you have written about but with slightly different keywords.
Even if your content has great information and is well-written, if no one can find it then it’s as useless as a deleted social media account. If you want to succeed with SEO, then keyword research is imperative.
What is keyword research?
Keyword research is the process of finding out which keywords your customers are searching for. It helps you to understand what people are looking for so that you can create better content.
Keyword research can be broken down into 2 main sections:
- Identify keywords: First, you’ll need to identify the keywords that your audience is searching for so that you can create content around them.
- Optimize your content: Then, once you know what your audience is searching for, you can optimize your content for those keywords. You can do this by putting your keyword inside your content.
You can also optimize your content by making sure it is easy to read and is written in a way that’s engaging.
Why is keyword research so important?
Keyword research is a crucial part of any SEO strategy, but it’s also a crucial part of any content marketing strategy, period.
If you are publishing a blog on your website, for example, readers who are interested in your topic/niche will likely search for it using a keyword.
The same goes for readers who visit your website via a direct link.
Without keyword research, you won’t know what your readers want, let alone what people who are not yet aware of your website are looking for. If you don’t know what people are looking for, you will have no idea what to write about. And if you don’t know what to write about you won’t have much of a blog post (or any other type of content).
How to do keyword research
Keyword research can be a tricky process, especially if you’re new to the concept. It’s easy to get overwhelmed, so here are a few tips to get you started:
- Define your goals: Before you do any keyword research, you must figure out what you’re trying to achieve. Why are you conducting keyword research in the first place? What are you hoping to accomplish? You must be able to define your goals before you can even begin keyword research.
- Identify your audience: You must also figure out who your audience is, what they’re interested in, and the problems they face. What are the topics and types of content that they like to read? What are the problems they need solutions for? By figuring out who your audience is, you can easily identify keywords that they will likely search for.
- Use Google’s Keyword Planner: This is the best place to begin your keyword research. Simply enter a few different topics/questions that your audience/readers might be interested in, and Google will provide you with a list of suggested keywords. From there, you can narrow down your list to the most relevant keywords and start creating content around them.
SEO tools for keyword research
Not only are keyword research tools a great way to identify the keywords that your audience is searching for, but they are also a valuable way to identify the keywords that your competition is targeting. There are a number of tools available for keyword research, such as SEMRush, Ahrefs, and Google’s Keyword Planner.
Keywords you should be researching
There are a few keywords that you should always be researching. These include:
- Your main/branded keywords: This is the keyword that you want to rank for, and it’s the most important. If you want to rank for something like “online marketing company,” then your main keyword is “online marketing company.”
- Short Tail keywords: These are keywords that are a few words long. For example, if your main keyword is “online marketing company,” then short tail keywords could be “online marketing,” “marketing company,” or “marketing strategies.”
- Long Tail keywords: These are keywords that are a few sentences long. For example, if your main keyword is “online marketing company,” then long tail keywords could be “best online marketing company,” or “online marketing company in Los Angeles.”
Keyword research is not an easy process, but it’s a necessary one if you want your content to be found by people. If you don’t do keyword research, then you will have no idea what topics to write about. There are several ways to conduct keyword research, including using Google’s Keyword Planner, and several tools to help you do so. You should always be researching the keywords that you want to rank for, and the ones that your competition is targeting. When all is said and done, keyword research is an essential part of any SEO campaign. If you want to rank high on Google and drive more traffic to your website, then you’ll need to conduct thorough keyword research.