The success of your small business SEO depends on keyword research. It is an important part of small business SEO and helps in developing a better strategy. It also allows you to identify the most relevant and profitable search queries used by your potential customers on Google.
By having keyword data, you will have knowledge of the subjects, vocabulary, and expressions required to generate content that achieves a high position, connects with potential customers, and ultimately results in increased business.
What is keyword research
The process of keyword research includes identifying key questions on search engines related to your business or niche. By doing so, you can not only uncover keywords for your website but also explore fresh subjects to create content on.
Furthermore, you inquire?
To prioritize keywords during keyword research, you can sort them based on their difficulty, volume, and other metrics as well. Keywords that have low search volume might not be very useful for your brand.
What is the significance of keyword research?
The intent behind a specific search query can be understood by the use of keywords. Keywords are also beneficial for enhancing the search engine rankings of your digital marketing content.
By determining the purpose of each search query, you can determine the specific issues and inquiries that your content should tackle. These understandings can subsequently assist you in meeting the search intent and enhancing the user experience. Consequently, visitors will view your website as valuable and potentially spend more time on it. Ultimately, this can contribute to improved search engine optimization.
Now that you are aware of the significance of keywords, let us delve into the process of conducting keyword research specifically for a small business.
Small business keyword research tips
In 2023, these keyword research tips can help enhance your small business SEO endeavors.
1. Create a list of the primary keywords for your niche
To start off, it is advisable to generate a list of keywords that are pertinent to your business. This should encompass all the words and phrases that are relevant to your business, such as your products or services, instructional guides and recommendations, and possibly other information related to the industry.
It’s recommended to have a limited number of primary keywords and related topics to generate content. However, you can gradually expand your list over time.
2. Use keyword search tools to expand your list
To ensure that your keyword list is properly organized and contains terms that are popular and sought after, you may want to utilize keyword research tools. These tools provide valuable data such as the monthly search volume and the level of competition associated with each keyword, which can help in determining their ranking difficulty.
Paid keyword research tools such as Semrush, SE Ranking, or Ahrefs offer extensive databases of Google search term metrics that cannot be accessed with free tools. Additionally, these tools can assist in discovering related keywords by utilizing the initial search term you enter into the tool.
Here are a few SEO tools that are recommended for conducting keyword research:
- Semrush: Premium SEO software platform with keyword research features.
- SE Ranking: Inexpensive SEO platform with keyword research features.
- Ahrefs: Competitor analysis SEO platform with keyword research features.
- Mangools KWFinder: Beginner-friendly toolkit with a keyword research tool.
- Google Search Console: Free keyword research tool based on existing content.
- Google Keyword Planner: A free Google Ads tool for basic keyword research.
If you want the most up-to-date keyword data, the best choice is highly rated all-in-one SEO software such as Semrush, SE Ranking, or Ahrefs. Google Search Console is beneficial for optimizing or creating content using the keywords that Google identifies from your current site content.
Google Keyword Planner is beneficial in generating initial keyword ideas; however, it falls short in terms of accuracy compared to a paid tool with keyword research capabilities when determining search volume and competitor-related keyword metrics. If you are not running a Google Ads campaign, the provided keyword search volumes are only displayed within a range, for example, 100-1000.
3. Consider long-tail keywords
Now that you possess the necessary resources and tools for locating all the main keywords to incorporate in your content, you may wish to allot some time for examining long-tail keywords also. What sets these keywords apart is their increased specificity and relevance in search queries. Typically, these phrases consist of at least four words.
You can increase your chances of ranking at the top of the search engine results page and attracting more search traffic to your site by including long-tail keywords in your content.
4. Give pay-per-click ads a try
Pay-per-click ad campaigns, such as Google Ads (formerly known as Google Adwords), can prove highly efficient at generating targeted website traffic and gathering further keyword research and visitor data.
Depending on the competition and bids for your target keywords, this marketing strategy can become expensive. Google’s Keyword Planner can be used to research estimated costs-per-click for your target keywords in order to estimate the number of clicks you can afford on a daily, weekly, or monthly basis.
Even if you find that Google Ads does not give a satisfactory return on investment, it can still be valuable solely for the keyword research data it provides. After generating ad clicks, you can access a search terms report within the Google Ads interface, which displays the search queries that users used to find and click on your ad.
5. Get more specific with google suggestions
According to the latest reports from Statista, Google, with a market share of 92.47%, is the leading search engine with the highest dominance. This implies that out of every 100 potential customers searching within your niche, approximately 92 to 93 will originate from Google.
Google’s algorithm, known as Google Suggest, utilizes related suggestions based on a search term you input. This feature aids in conducting keyword research and generating topic ideas for writing. The algorithm aims to determine the most pertinent phrases that match the main seed keyword.
One major advantage of these recommendations is that they precisely meet the demands of most search engine users, according to their specific search queries. Furthermore, they are typically organized and presented based on the frequency of searches.
You can also utilize Google Trends, which is another free tool provided by Google, to gain insights into the popularity and interest of particular keywords searched in Google based on location. By doing so, you can acquire new ideas and perspectives to enhance the content on your website.
By utilizing keyword research software, you can effectively generate valuable content for your desired audience and potential customers. Consequently, this can lead to outranking your competitors in search engine results by covering a wider range of pertinent keywords related to your business.
6. Question boards and forums
When considering the process systematically, it is recommended that brands explore question boards and forums as excellent sources for keyword research. It is advisable to examine platforms like Quora and Reddit to identify inquiries that are pertinent to your business. Furthermore, it is suggested to seek out forums within your specific industry, as these are likely to host discussions where relevant questions may arise.
In order to identify relevant keywords for your brand or small business, it is important to consider questions that are related to your business. These questions are likely to be used by your audience when searching online. By analyzing these questions and recognizing the themes behind them, you can determine the keywords that are commonly searched for by your target audience. It is essential to pay attention to these themes as they can greatly assist you in finding suitable keywords for your brand or small business.
If you conduct a search using the keyword “keyword research,” you will receive multiple responses, which will help you identify related keywords such as “keyword research tools” or “what is keyword research.”
7. Google’s keyword planner
After making a list of primary keywords, you can go to the Google tool called Keyword Planner. This tool, provided by Google, assists in finding relevant keywords for your small business effortlessly. The advantage of this keyword tool is that it is completely free.
To perform keyword research for a small business using this tool, follow these steps: 1. Click on “Discover New Keywords” and enter your primary keywords. 2. Choose the desired location for finding relevant keywords. 3. Finally, click on “Get Results.”
When thinking step by step, rephrase the following text while keeping the same meaning. Do not include additional information and do not remove any information. You will be presented with a list of relevant keywords related to your main keyword. Additionally, you will have access to information such as the average number of searches per month, competition level, and the range of bids for advertisements.
8. Keep the “People Also Ask” section in mind
Additionally, you might consider utilizing the “People Also Ask” feature in the Google search engine results to generate more ideas regarding the kind of content and inquiries to include on your business website.
To be perceived as more helpful and potentially gain business opportunities, it is crucial to offer comprehensive content that addresses these questions, as compared to the content of other competing websites.
