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Every individual or company wants their business to be transformed into a lead generation machine. It can’t happen by simply existing on Google. You have to keep a close eye on what people are searching!
These searches will tell you what the people need and what are the problems that you can provide a solution for! This is why keyword research is crucial for the survival of your business.
Since this article targets keyword research for beginners, let’s start from the very beginning. Search queries are categorized into four groups:
Types of Keywords
1. Informational Keywords
When a user is looking to gain some general knowledge on the desired topic, it is known as an informational query. For example, “What is DDR 4 Ram?”.
2. Navigational Keywords
When searchers know the destination they want to reach, their query is referred to as a navigational Keyword. For example, “Newegg DDR 4 Ram”.
3. Commercial Keywords
Commercial queries identify that someone is looking to get information on an item or service that they want to buy. For example, “Best DDR 4 Ram”.
4. Transactional Keywords
Transactional queries show that someone intends to make a purchase. For example, “Price of DDR 4 Ram”.
You might be thinking of filtering your keywords by targeting transactional searches to generate more leads quickly as these are the ones that are going to drive direct business to you right? Unfortunately, that’s not always the best option. In fact, search volume is the lowest for transactional queries!
Matching the Buyer Journey to Keyword Types
In order to achieve true SEO success, you’ll need to focus on all four keyword types. The buyer journey generally takes a customer through four stages:
- Attention: a potential customer becomes aware of your product
- Interest: the customer becomes interested about the product
- Desire: the customers gains a favorable disposition towards your brand
- Action: the customer makes a purchase
These four stages align nicely with the different types of keywords.
- Attention-Informational
- Interest-Navigational
- Desire-Commercial
- Action-Transactional
There aren’t any shortcuts when it comes to proper keyword research. If you only focus on one type of keyword or one stage of the buyer journey, you’ll miss out on a huge amount of potential opportunity.
Finding Worthy Keywords Using SMERush
The best way to start keyword research is to sign up on SEMRush and type in your top 3 competitors’ URL respectively. This will give you a better understanding of each competitor’s ranking portfolio so you can begin your research with a targeted focus. Starting with competitive research also ensures you don’t miss out on any low-hanging fruit: if your competitors aren’t focusing on a high-value keyword, you can capitalize!
Although there are other tools available for keyword research, SEMRush is the tool of choice for most industry professionals, including the UpCity team!
Find More Keywords Using Google Keyword Planner
Another way to find keywords is to use Google Keyword Planner.
Signing up for Google Keyword Planner is free. Simply click on the tool icon from the top right and select Keyword Planner. Enter a broad keyword in the search bar that relates to your services.
The program will then display a list of relevant keywords with competition stats (high, medium, and low) and their respective search volume metrics. In the top right, you’re able to export and add all your newly found keywords into a sheet.
Another option is to continue competitive research by entering a competitor’s URL . This will display a list of their current keywords, which you can then export in a similar fashion.
Choosing What to Target
Once you have a substantial list of potential keyword options, it’s time to narrow down and make final decision about what you will target. Choosing high-competition keywords only will make it difficult for you to overtake your competition, so it’s essential to balance highly competitive keywords with those that are less competitive.
With this knowledge, you’re poised to develop an effective SEO strategy rooted in competitive research and hard data. Don’t forget that your keyword choices should always align with your business goals, so make your choices with confidence!