Keyword research is more than critical. No matter how you optimize your content for SEO or how great the quality of your article is if you target the wrong keyword.

You see, doing keyword research is the first step to boosting the ranking of your website, driving targeted traffic, or improving your brand’s visibility. And during the keyword research process, you need to consider many factors.

In this guide, I will walk you through the process of keyword research for SEO, from identifying the best keywords for your niche to utilizing the right tools and techniques to ensure your content will reach the first page.

By the end of this article, I will give you a clear roadmap to find the relevant keywords, and you will boost your organic traffic through data-driven keyword research.

Let’s begin!

What is keyword research?

In short, keyword research means that you identify and analyze the words and phrases that people are searching for on search engines like Google. Essentially, people regularly have two attitudes when searching for something on Google. They want to buy something, or they want to find the information they are looking for.

As a business, you need to understand the intent behind people’s search. Let me give you a quick example here.

When someone searches for the term “the best free keyword research tools,” this is clearly a sign of purchase intent. The people who use these keywords are typically quite close to the bottom line of the sales funnel.

Nevertheless, if someone searches for the term “how to do keyword research,” they do not have the purchase intent, and they only want to get the information they are looking for. It does not mean that they can not be your customers, but you probably need to educate them more before converting them into customers, as they are close to the top of the sales funnel.

Once you understand the search intent, you can craft your content accordingly. Using the example above, if you want to target a keyword like “the best free keyword research tools,” you need to prepare a list of the best free keyword research tools, and you do not have to go into the details of how to conduct keyword research.

In contrast, if you effectively want to target the keyword “how to do keyword research,” you have to go into the details and explain why keyword research is important, what its elements are, etc. So, you have to do what I am doing in this article.

I hope you get the point of what I want to say to you. This practice is essential for SEO because it helps you target the right keywords to drive relevant traffic to your site, improve your search rankings, and meet your audience’s needs.

Why keyword research is necessary?

When identifying the relevant keywords for your business gives the foundation to effectively target them with the right type of content, so it ensures that your website appears in relevant search results, driving organic traffic to your site.

Moreover, keyword research helps you:

1. Target the right audience: By selecting keywords that match user intent, you can attract visitors who are more likely to engage with your content or convert into customers.
2. Improve search rankings: Optimizing your content around the most relevant and high-traffic keywords can increase your chances of ranking higher on search engine results pages (SERPs), making it easier for users to find you.
3. Understand search trends: Keyword research gives you valuable insights into trends, competitors, and industry changes. It can help you stay ahead of the curve and tailor your content strategy accordingly.
4. Maximize ROI: With the right keyword strategy, you can create content that not only ranks well but also brings in qualified traffic that is more likely to convert, ultimately providing a better return on investment for your business.

What type of keywords should you target?

You can categorize the keywords in many ways. Here, I will show you how I categorize them based on search intent.

Transactional keywords

I call keywords transactional when there is intent in the search term to take a specific action, such as making a purchase, signing up for a service, or downloading a resource. These keywords typically signal that the user is further along in the buyer’s journey and is ready to convert.

We can categorize them into two buckets.

Branded keywords

Branded keywords are search terms that include the name of a brand. For example, “Ahrefs vs. Moz” or “Afrefs alternatives“.

When people look for these keywords, they already have an understanding of these products but need more information to make a decision. What does it mean to you as a business?

This means that these people are the closest to making them into customers, as they already have knowledge about the products, and you do not need to educate them. This can also be true if your brand is not included in the search terms, as you can drive these people from your competitors with the right call to action.

Non-branded keywords

A non-branded keyword does not include a brand name. That said, if you search for the “best free keyword research tools,” it is a non-branded transactional keyword.

How-to keywords

“How-to” keywords are search terms used by people looking for instructions, guidance, or solutions to problems. These keywords typically begin with phrases like “how to,” “how can I,” or “ways to” and are used when someone is seeking step-by-step information on how to accomplish a specific task or learn something new. For example, terms like “how to bake a cake,” “how to improve SEO,” or “how to fix a leaking pipe” fall into this category.

Targeting “how-to” keywords is an effective way to attract users who are in the learning or problem-solving stage of their journey. If you create content that answers these specific questions, you can position your website as a valuable resource that helps build trust and convert them into customers.

Data-driven keywords

Data-driven keywords are terms that focus on providing factual, research-backed, or statistical information, often used when users are looking for data, reports, studies, or comparisons.

For example, keywords like “2025 marketing statistics” or “SEO statistics in 2025“. These types of keywords are excellent for acquiring backlinks to your website and building up your domain authority.

Elements of keyword research

Let’s discuss now what factors you should consider when doing keyword research.

Volume

In SEO keyword research, search volume refers to the number of times a specific keyword or phrase is searched for within a given time period, usually per month. It gives you an estimate of how popular or in-demand that keyword is among users.

For example, if a keyword has a high search volume, it means a lot of people are searching for that term, which might indicate high competition for ranking on search engines. In this scenario, you might need to reconsider your tactic and target long-tail keywords. But it’s not always the case if you know how to search for and find keywords for your business.

On the other hand, a low search volume could suggest fewer people are searching for that term, but it might also mean less competition, making it potentially easier to rank.

You can now ask the question: How do I know the search volume data for keywords?

Well, you need to use some keyword research tools to find and analyze keyword ideas. Another good and free way to check if there is actual interest in specific keywords is to start typing the keyword in Google search and see what Google suggests. It is like an indicator to see if there is an actual search volume for that specific keyword, and they are probably high-volume keywords.

However, if you do not see your keyword among what Google suggests, it shows that it probably has a low search volume.

When discussing the monthly search volume, you also need to understand that no matter which tool you use, they can only show you estimations and search volume ranges. The thing is, all the tools can show a completely different average monthly search volume of data. They use different methods to estimate the monthly search volume, so there might be significant differences between those.

Keyword difficulty

An additional factor you should keep in mind is keyword difficulty. There are two elements of keyword difficulty.

On-page SEO difficulty

On-page SEO difficulty refers to how challenging it is to optimize a particular webpage for a given keyword or topic in order to rank well in search engine results. It is based on how competitive it is to target a keyword on the page itself, considering various on-page factors like headings, keywords included, content structure, number of images, and other technical elements.

Off-page SEO difficulty

Off-page SEO difficulty refers to the level of challenge in improving a webpage’s rankings through factors outside the page itself, primarily focused on backlinks and external signals that contribute to a site’s authority and trustworthiness.

While on-page SEO deals with optimizing elements directly on the webpage (like content, structure, and technical factors), off-page SEO is about building external credibility and signals that search engines consider when ranking pages.

The truth is if you compete with websites that have higher domain ratings and, therefore, higher off-page SEO scores, the only way to compete is by beating them with excellent on-page SEO. While it sounds straightforward, it is not easy to implement it.

Therefore, if you want to compete for popular keywords in the long term, you also need to put effort into increasing your off-page score. The reason behind this is simple: you will meet with competitors that have a high off-page score, and they also have great on-page SEO. In such cases, it will be tough to target the keywords of these competitors.

Relevance

Relevance is absolutely crucial when doing keyword research because it ensures that the keywords you target actually match the content, goals, and audience of your website.

Focusing on relevant keywords helps establish your website as an authority in a specific niche. If you target keywords that closely align with your expertise, search engines, and users will start to recognize your site as an authoritative source on that topic.

This builds trust with both the search engine (Google, etc.) and your audience.

Best keyword research tools

Now, I will share with you some of the best keyword research tools to find the best keywords for your business!

Keywords Everywhere

Keywords Everywhere is a cheap and easy-to-use SEO tool that helps users with keyword research by providing valuable data about search terms, related keywords, keyword difficulty, keyword suggestions, and more.

Personally, I have used Keywords Everywhere for a while now. As it is an extension, you will basically see all the data you need for keyword research when searching for something in Google.

While I use its paid version, it is a free keyword tool that has many useful features that you can access without paying a cent.

SE Ranking

SE Ranking is an all-in-one SEO software suite that helps businesses and digital marketers improve their online visibility and rankings. It is a cloud-based platform that offers a wide range of SEO tools designed to help with keyword tracking, competitor analysis, backlink monitoring, website audits, and more.

It is used for both on-page and off-page SEO tasks and is particularly known for its user-friendly interface and robust reporting features.

Ahrefs

Ahrefs is one of the most popular and powerful SEO tools available today, used by digital marketers, SEO professionals, and website owners to improve their search engine optimization efforts. It offers a suite of features that can help you analyze backlinks, track keyword rankings, perform site audits, research competitors, and much more.

Ahrefs is widely known for its backlink analysis and comprehensive data on websites, which can help you improve your organic search performance.

Moz

Moz offers many tools and resources to help digital marketers, SEO professionals, and website owners improve their search engine optimization efforts. It is known for its focus on improving website rankings, tracking keyword performance, and providing insights to enhance SEO strategies.

Moz has been around since 2004 and has become one of the most trusted names in the SEO industry. Its tools are widely used for everything from site audits and link analysis to keyword research and ranking tracking.

SEMrush

SEMrush is a popular organic keyword research tool that improves online visibility and drives organic traffic. It offers numerous tools to support a wide range of SEO, content marketing, advertising, and competitive research activities. SEMrush is particularly known for its ability to track and analyze organic search performance, paid advertising strategies, backlink profiles, and competitor strategies.

Google Keyword Planner

Google Keyword Planner is a free tool offered by Google Ads that helps users discover keywords related to their business, product, or service. It is primarily used for planning and optimizing search engine marketing campaigns, but can also be helpful for content creators and SEO professionals.

Wrap-Up: Keyword research for SEO

Keyword research is not an easy task, as many people think, and I feel it is underrated most of the time. Targeting the right keywords is critical for SEO and content marketing.

It is not just about picking popular search queries; it is about understanding search intent and how you can effectively target those keywords. Often, people focus too much on high-traffic keywords without considering competition and relevance, which can easily lead to wasting time and money and, ultimately, non-efficient content marketing and SEO strategy.

How can we help you with keyword research at ElevatePoint?

At ElevatePoint, we understand that keyword research is more than just finding the most popular search terms—it is about preparing a strategy that drives results. Our team takes a holistic approach to ensure that the keywords we target are not only relevant but also align with your business goals and bring the most results.

Let us help you unlock the full potential of your SEO and content strategy with expert keyword research that drives real, measurable results.

Frequently asked questions

What is keyword research?

Keyword research means that you identify and analyze the words and phrases that people are searching for on search engines like Google.

Essentially, people regularly have two attitudes when searching for something on Google. They want to buy something, or they want to find the information they are looking for.

Can I do keyword research for free?

There are many keyword research tools available. Some of the above-mentioned tools have quite decent free versions, but you can also use Google Search Console and Google Analytics for free.

How to do keyword research as a beginner?

First, you need to understand your target audience and prepare a keyword list of the potential keywords you can target. After that, it makes sense to analyze the keywords’ search volume, SEO difficulty, and whether they are relevant to your website.

Lastly, you need to decide what type of content you should prepare to effectively target the chosen keywords. For this, it helps a lot if you check your competitors’ content and analyze what formula worked.