Mastering Keyword Research: A Step-By-Step Guide

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HomeAudience DevelopmentSearch Engine OptimisationMastering Keyword Research: A Step-By-Step Guide

As a business owner, you know that ranking high in Google search results is essential to driving traffic (and customers!) to your website.

But what’s the best way to get there?

The answer is keyword research.

But what exactly is keyword research?

Keyword research is the process of finding and analysing the words and phrases that people are using to search for your products or services.

It’s a crucial step in any SEO (search engine optimisation) strategy, as it allows you to identify the keywords that you should be targeting to get the most return from your SEO efforts.

Why is keyword research so damn important?

There are two main reasons why keyword research is so important:

1. It allows you to understand what your customers are actually searching for

You might think you know what people are searching for, but you could be wrong.

By doing keyword research, you can get an insight into the language that your customers are using to find businesses like yours. This can help you to understand their needs and desires, and create content that resonates with them.

2. It allows you to identify the keywords that you can realistically rank for

It’s all well and good finding the perfect keywords to target, but if you’re not going to be able to rank for them then they’re not going to be of much use to you.

That’s why it’s important to find keywords that you can realistically rank for. There’s no point going after keywords that are too competitive, as you’ll never be able to achieve a high ranking for them.

How to do keyword research

There are a number of different ways that you can do keyword research, but the methods that we’ll be covering in this latest Knowledge Base post are:

  • Google AdWords Keyword Planner
  • Google Trends
  • Google Search Console
  • Google Suggest
  • Amazon AutoSuggest
  • UberSuggest
  • Answer the Public

Let’s take a look at each of these methods in more detail.

1. Google AdWords Keyword Planner

The Google AdWords Keyword Planner is a free tool that allows you to research keywords for your Google Ads campaigns.

However, it can also be used for general keyword research, even if you’re not planning on running a Google Ads campaign.

To use the Google AdWords Keyword Planner, simply head to the tool and enter a seed keyword that’s relevant to your business.

The Google AdWords Keyword Planner will then return a list of related keywords, as well as data on the average monthly searches for each keyword and the level of competition.

2. Google Trends

Google Trends is a free tool that allows you to see how popular a particular keyword is.

You can use Google Trends to see how interest in a keyword has changed over time, as well as to compare the popularity of different keywords.

To use Google Trends, simply head to the tool and enter the keyword that you want to research.

Google Trends will then show you how popular that keyword is, as well as how it’s trended over time.

3. Google Search Console

Google Search Console is a free tool that allows you to see the keywords that your website is currently ranking for.

To use Google Search Console, simply add your website to the tool and then head to the “Search Traffic” > “Search Analytics” section.

From here, you can see the keywords that your website is ranking for, as well as the average position that your website is appearing in.

4. GoogleSuggest

Google Suggest is a feature of Google Search that suggests related keywords as you type.

You can use Google Suggest to get ideas for new keywords to target, as well as to get an insight into the language that your customers are using to search for your products or services.

To use Google Suggest, simply head to Google Search and start typing in a seed keyword.

Google will then start suggesting related keywords, which you can use for your keyword research.

5. Amazon AutoSuggest

Amazon AutoSuggest is a feature of Amazon that suggests related keywords as you type.

You can use Amazon AutoSuggest to get ideas for new keywords to target, as well as to get an insight into the language that your customers are using to search for your products or services.

To use Amazon AutoSuggest, simply head to Amazon and start typing in a seed keyword.

Amazon will then start suggesting related keywords, which you can use for your keyword research.

6. UberSuggest

UberSuggest is a free keyword research tool that allows you to generate a list of related keywords.

To use UberSuggest, simply head to the tool and enter a seed keyword.

UberSuggest will then return a list of related keywords, as well as data on the average monthly searches for each keyword and the level of competition.

7. Answer the Public

Answer the Public is a free keyword research tool that allows you to generate a list of questions that people are asking about a particular topic.

To use Answer the Public, simply head to the tool and enter a seed keyword.

Answer the Public will then return a list of questions that people are asking about that keyword, which you can use for your keyword research.

How to choose the right keywords

Now that you know how to do keyword research, it’s time to start choosing the right keywords to target.

Here are a few things to keep in mind when choosing keywords:

Relevance: The first thing to consider is whether or not the keyword is relevant to your business. There’s no point targeting a keyword that’s not going to bring you any traffic, so make sure that the keywords you choose are relevant to your products or services.

Search volume: The next thing to consider is the search volume for the keyword. You want to choose keywords that have a high enough search volume to be worth your while, but not so high that the competition is too fierce.

Competition: The last thing to consider is the level of competition for the keyword. You want to choose keywords that you can realistically rank for, so make sure to check the level of competition before choosing your keywords.

How to use keywords in your content: Once you’ve chosen the right keywords to target, it’s time to start using them in your content. Below are a few tips for using keywords in your content:

  • Use keywords throughout your content: Make sure to use your keywords throughout your content, including in the title, in the body, and in the meta tags.
  • Use variations of your keywords: Don’t just use your main keyword, make sure to use variations of your keyword as well.
  • Use long-tail keywords: Long-tail keywords are keywords that are more specific and usually have a lower search volume. They’re often easier to rank for than more general keywords, so make sure to use them in your content.
  • Use LSI keywords: LSI (latent semantic indexing) keywords are words and phrases that are related to your main keyword. They’re often used by search engines to determine the topic of a piece of content, so make sure to use them in your content to help your content rank higher.
  • Use keyword-rich titles and descriptions: Make sure to use your keywords in your titles and descriptions, as this will help your content to rank higher in search results.

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