Keyword research is the foundation of SEO. Get it right, and you'll attract visitors who are actively searching for what you offer. Get it wrong, and you'll either target keywords too competitive to rank for or terms that nobody searches. This guide starts from zero.

What Is Keyword Research?

Keyword research is the process of finding the words and phrases people type into search engines when looking for information, products, or services related to your business. The goal is to identify terms with enough search volume to be worth targeting, but low enough competition that you can realistically rank on page one.

Understanding Search Intent

Before targeting any keyword, understand why someone is searching for it. Search intent falls into four categories:

  • Informational: The searcher wants to learn something. ("how to prune tomatoes")
  • Navigational: The searcher is looking for a specific site. ("WordPress login")
  • Commercial: The searcher is researching before a purchase. ("best ai writing tools")
  • Transactional: The searcher is ready to buy. ("wordpress ai plugin pricing")

Match your content to the intent. An informational keyword needs an educational article. A transactional keyword needs a pricing page or product page.

Finding Keyword Ideas

Start with seed keywords. List 5-10 terms related to your business. If you run a gardening blog: "gardening tips", "growing vegetables", "garden design", etc.

Expand with tools. Use a keyword research tool (our built-in one uses DataForSEO) to expand each seed keyword into hundreds of related terms with search volume data.

Check competitor rankings. Enter a competitor's domain to see every keyword they rank for. This is the fastest way to find proven keywords in your niche.

Use Google's own suggestions. Type your seed keyword into Google and look at the autocomplete suggestions and "People also ask" questions. These are real queries from real searchers.

Evaluating Keywords

For each keyword, check three things:

  1. Search volume: How many people search for this monthly? Under 100 might be too low to bother with; over 10,000 might be too competitive for a new site.
  2. Keyword difficulty: How strong is the existing competition? Look at the domain authority of sites currently ranking on page one. If they're all major brands, a small site will struggle.
  3. Business relevance: Does this keyword relate to what you sell or do? High traffic on an irrelevant keyword won't help your business.

Building a Keyword Strategy

Organise your keywords into three tiers:

  • Quick wins: Low difficulty, moderate volume. Target these first for early results.
  • Growth keywords: Medium difficulty, good volume. Build towards these as your site gains authority.
  • Strategic keywords: High difficulty, high volume. Long-term targets that require sustained content and link building.

Create a content calendar that targets 2-4 keywords per month, starting with quick wins. As each article ranks, your site's authority grows, making it easier to rank for more competitive terms.