How to find the best SEO keywords

Keywords are an important part of any search engine optimization (SEO) strategy. While they’re not as important as they used to be (don’t stuff your content!), they’re still crucial to the success of your digital marketing campaigns.

However, SEO success doesn’t depend on simply using keywords; you have to use the right keywords. According to Ahrefs, 92.42% of all keywords rank for ten searches or fewer. If you want to rank for more searches, you have to know how to find the best SEO keywords

What makes a good keyword?

Not all keywords are created equal. There are three main elements that make a strong keyword:

→ Relevance

How closely your keyword or phrase matches the search query and your content. For example, if the query you want to rank for is “SEO keywords,” the key phrase “how to find the best SEO keywords” will work better than “how to perform keyword research,” even though they’re essentially the same topic.

→ Search Volume

How many people search for the keyword or phrase? The heavier the search volume, the more competition you’ll have. The lighter the search volume, the easier it is to rank, but also the fewer people who will see your content.

→ Authority

Search engines put more weight behind authoritative sources. If you want to rank for keywords used by authoritative websites like Forbes or Microsoft, you’re going to have trouble ranking regardless of relevance or how good your content is.

Keep these three elements in mind as you go through the rest of the keyword research process.

Think about what you would search for

The first method to determine which keywords to use is to simply think about what you would search for if you wanted to find your website.

For example, imagine you managed a roofing company.
What do you think potential customers would type into Google when looking for your services?
Likely queries similar to these:

With these queries in mind, it’d be a good idea to rank for keywords and phrases like “best roofing company” or “roof replacement.” The closer your keyword (and content) matches the search query, the better!

Think about what your ideal website visitors would type into search engines and create a list of relevant keywords that would match the queries. This will give you a good (and inexpensive) starting point for your keyword research.

While you’re welcome to use long-tail keywords that consist of a several words or even an entire phrase, 70.87% of keywords with more than 10,000 monthly searches consist of only one or two words.

Take a peek at your competitors

Just like with anything in the business world, it’s always a good idea to keep an eye on your competitors — and it’s a great way to help with keyword research.

Take a look at your closest competitors’ websites and read through some of the content. Make note of the words and phrases that pop up time and time again.

If you’re not sure who your competitors are, take some of the keywords and phrases you came up with in the previous step and type them into Google yourself. The websites that appear at the top of the search engine results page (SERP) are your main online competitors. Read through their websites and take notes of the content they create along with some of the primary keywords used.

Use a keyword research tool

While thinking about keywords yourself and reading through competitors’ websites are great starts to keyword research, the most effective way to find SEO keywords is to use a tool.

There are plenty of SEO tools available to help with everything from tracking analytics and backlinks to competitor research and, yes, identifying effective keywords.

These are some of my favorite SEO tools to help you find keywords:

Armed with the right tools for the job, you’ll be able to rank higher on SERPs and get your business in front of more potential customers.

Get more website visitors with the right SEO keywords

An effective digital marketing campaign starts with the right keywords, but that’s not the end of the journey. If you want to make the most of your SEO campaigns, work with a digital marketing professional with over a decade of experience.

When you’re ready to start on your next digital marketing campaign, contact us to get off on the right foot. With year of experience helping clients boost their online rankings, I’ll help design a customized strategy to work for your unique business and help you climb the search engines results page.