Now that you have your ideal client in mind and you have a keyword research tool, it’s time to make a list of keyword ideas! Right now, we’re just talking generally about how to do keyword research (as opposed to developing a content strategy and plan), so try and think about all the things they might search for.
We’ll just create a list, and then we’ll use our keyword tool to learn more about the keywords in the next step. I like to use a spreadsheet because then, when it’s time to analyze the keywords, I can easily populate my findings right into the sheet.
Use the steps below to generate ideas and drop them into the column labeled ‘Keyword / Keyphrase’ (fyi: don’t worry about the other columns in the worksheet right now)
The first step is to spend some time brainstorming ideas about what your ideal client might be searching for online. You know your people best, so I recommend starting with any initial thoughts you have.
Write down every keyword, keyphrase, and question you can think of in your spreadsheet. Just get all your ideas out onto a page. We’ll learn how to figure out whether or not they’re worth using later.
I’m sure you’ll have a lot of good ideas, but you’ll be amazed at what people search for, specifically how people phrase things, and there are great ways to uncover those keywords without too much work. Here are a few ideas to help you find more potential keywords.
Hop into your favorite chatbot and plug in some details about your business, services, and products you offer, and your ideal client, and tell it you’re looking for potential keywords for your blog.
Type your keyword/phrase into Google and see what other suggestions show up in the dropdown
Type a few of your keyword ideas into Google and scroll down to the “people also ask” section for inspiration.
"People Also Ask" example
If you know of any competitors, use your keyword research tool of choice to dig into the keywords they rank for. In Keysearch you can go to the competitor research tab, type in a competitor’s website to see more keyword ideas.
Competitor organic keyword list
