Doing Keyword Research and Competitor Analysis for SEO
What is SEO keyword research? And how is keyword research related to competitor analysis? How does looking at other search engine results help you improve your own SEO? We’ll go over all of that together in this post.
One of the key components to building an SEO strategy is research. There are two main types of research to focus on: keyword research and competitor research. Both kinds of research will help you to figure out what kinds of people you want on your website and how they expect to find you. We’re going to provide an overview of what keyword research and competitor analysis are, why they’re important, and give you some tips on how to perform this research.
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What are SEO keywords?
The words, phrases, and questions that people use to find solutions to problems online are called “keywords.” Your keywords are your bait, and your target audience members are the fish you’re trying to catch. Choose the right words, and you’ll reel in the audience, clients, or customers you’re after. Use the wrong ones, and you might find yourself lost in a vast sea of irrelevant search results.
It’s not a good idea to just guess when it comes to building a full list of keywords to go after. But instead you should be as certain as possible about which words to incorporate into your website content. This is the process that we call “keyword research.” We can break this process down into several steps:
- First, define what your business does. What does your business sell, what solutions do you provide, and so on.
- Next, create a profile of your ideal customer. Who are they, what do they need, where are they, what kinds of problems do they have, etc.
- Once you have those two sets of information, you can actually do the specific keyword research to tie those two steps together.
The importance of conducting keyword research cannot be overstated. Without it, you risk targeting the wrong audience or using keywords that are too competitive or not relevant to your business which is a waste of your time and money.
How do you know which keywords to use?
You don’t need to over-complicate it. A lot of it is common sense and you’ll be surprised how much you already know about what keywords to use.
For example, say you run a local mechanics shop. “Mechanic” is a keyword people might use if their car needs repair. However, you know that your ideal customer lives in your town and drives sports cards. So more likely, they’ll search for something like “Car mechanic near me” or “sports car mechanic for transmission”.
You can use keywords like those to curate content that matches what potential customers need. Shorter, more general keywords tend to be very competitive. But specific ones can be easier to rank for and have a higher chance of conversion.
Think about it: if your cat is sick, would you search “sick cat” or would you type in every specific symptom to see what’s wrong with your pet? When our search results match our specific questions, we’re more likely to click. Starting with a base keyword – like mechanic – and branching out – into something like “sports car mechanic near me” – is a great way to find related search terms.
Use Google for Keyword Research
You can further your keyword research to find terms you may never have even considered. Use Google itself to type in words and phrases and see what popular combinations come up as suggestions. This is a great way to turn one keyword into a dozen other related phrases. You can also use tools like SEM rush to get detailed insights into what kinds of keywords people are searching for. When all is said and done, you can use Google Search Console to see what keywords are leading people to you. All this research can help you build a fantastic keyword strategy and optimize your content.Pick the strongest terms and start optimizing your existing content and creating new content, all using the words you picked.
Now that you have a solid idea of who your business is targeting, it’s time to determine who your actual competitors are and what they are up to online.
What is competitor analysis?
When working to increase your search rank position, it helps you to gain a deep understanding of your industry as well as the target audience. If you’re not already ranking number one for all your targeted keywords, that means there are existing positions you have to rise above.
Competitor analysis involves identifying the search results that come up ahead of you when searching for the keywords you’re targeting. This tells you not only who you are competing with, but their strengths and weaknesses, which can provide valuable insights into the market. And all that information can also identify gaps in the market that can turn into new opportunities to differentiate your brand.
Competitor analysis can also tell you where you have less competition. This low hanging fruit can be an opportunity to tackle keywords that may give you quicker results. For example, say your competitors are ranking for “mechanics near me” and you’re pretty low down on the search results page. But when people search “mechanics on the lower east side” not many of your competitors turn up. However, YOU are on the lower east side! This is a great opportunity to optimize your website content for the term “lower east side” so Google knows to send folks to you.
Competitor analysis may seem daunting at first but it can also be an enjoyable experience. Take the time to explore your competitors’ websites and online presence. Look at their search engine results, their web pages, and their social media profiles. All these things are helping them rank. You may discover new design ideas or SEO marketing strategies based on what they’re doing well.
Have more questions about keyword research and competitor analysis? The team at SEOProGeeks.io has your back.
