How to do Keyword Research for SEO and PPC Campaigns

Keyword research for PPC is an essential aspect of every PPC campaign. Our blog will show you how to find the relevant keywords in the most efficient manner possible.

Keyword research for PPC is an essential aspect of every PPC campaign. An experienced staff has developed a failsafe keyword research method that you can implement right away.

It’s critical to have an action plan and know how to get there with anything you do in the company. Pay-per-click (PPC) advertising can assist you in achieving those objectives, but you must first determine which keywords to target in your adverts. Everything in PPC is built around keywords. However, your campaigns may be made on sand rather than solid rock without thorough and practical research.

What are Pay-Per-Click (PPC) keywords?

Keywords are terms or phrases that people type into search engines such as Google or Bing. When developing sponsored ads, you want to target keywords so that your ads show up at the top of the page when people search for them. There are various types of keywords that you can choose, and each one can impact the effectiveness of your PPC campaign.

There are various keyword types, such as:

• Keywords with company names in them that are branded
• Keywords that are generic and cover unclear terms
• Transactional keywords, which encompass both solid and weak purchase intent
• Locational keywords that cover a specific location are ideal for businesses headquartered there.
• Keywords that are useful for folks who are merely seeking information
• You also have keywords specific to a service or product and keywords with a high intent (related to discounts or special days). It’s crucial to think about these keyword types and how you want to group them when constructing ad groups (which we’ll go over later).
   

What is the significance of keyword research?

Keywords are the foundation of your online presence and the growth of your business. Businesses that can’t be located on the internet will fail! On the other hand, Google processes approximately 5.5 billion search inquiries per day. That’s a lot of search terms! However, you can’t just go for any keyword. To identify the most fruitful ones for your business, you’ll need to perform some research.

It’s virtually pointless if your content doesn’t target the terms and topics your audience is interested in. However, it is both an art and a science.

Leads won’t find your advertising or organic listings, visit your website, and convert into paying customers if your keyword search volume is too low. However, if the keywords you’re trying to rank for or bid on are too competitive, you may not appear on the SERP at all, or you may end up spending too much for your ad clicks.

Your paid and organic search marketing initiatives will be entirely misled if you don’t have the correct combination of excellent keywords.
 

When is keyword research required?

These are the three areas where keyword research is most important for digital marketers:

Search Engine Optimisation

The most obvious motivation for keyword research is to improve organic search results. Search engine optimisation (SEO) assists Google bots in crawling and indexing our websites, allowing them to rank organically in search engine results pages (SERPs). Crawling for keywords that demonstrate relevance between the user’s search query and the material on your website is one of the fundamental ways search engines decide what to rank. While Google’s algorithms constantly change, keywords will almost certainly never lose their value.

Content strategy

We all know that SEO and content are inextricably linked. Strong SEO will not follow if your website lacks content. The first step in creating an effective content strategy is to conduct keyword research. Keyword research in the modern era can reveal a lot about what people want and need.

Whether it’s a 300-word blog post or a 5,000-word guide, every piece of content on your site should be produced with SEO in mind. That is, you should focus on a term that has a good mix of high search volume and low competition.

Paid campaigns

When it comes to keyword research, marketers frequently think of SEO and content, but all of your sponsored initiatives should be keyword-focused as well. All of your keyword-focused efforts, including paid search ads, display ads, remarketing, and social media campaigns, must be keyword-focused.

For example, with paid search, you’re essentially bidding on particular keywords. Your ad groups, which make up your campaigns, are composed of keywords. Your advertising will have little or no traction if these keywords have minimal search volume. Furthermore, if your keywords do not relate to your target demographic, you will have the wrong people clicking on your advertising, wasting your hard-earned money. In the end, keyword research is critical in any search marketing initiative!
 

Using your keyword research tools to their full potential

So, how can you come up with terms that will get people to click and, more importantly, buy something?

Most of the time, keyword research gathers your search phrases, analyses the most successful based on search volume and competition, and then tries them on for size.

Recognise your objectives

Firstly, what do you want your ad clickers to do when they see your ad? Is it a product purchase? Are you interested in receiving your newsletter? Alternatively, how about visiting your store or downloading your software?

You’ll need to keep an eye out for search terms focused on these aims using your seed keywords. It’s also important to remember that buyers at different phases of the buying process will respond to adverts differently.

Keywords for various buyer awareness stages

You’ve probably heard of ToFu, MoFu, and BoFu.

• Top of the Funnel – The stage of awareness and information. The buyer finds a solution to their difficulty.

• Middle of the funnel- The customer is looking for the best option. From a state of awareness to a state of desire. They may be ready to buy at this point, but they may still be considering their alternatives.

• Bottom of the Funnel – The bottom of the funnel decision stage. They’re ready to purchase and want to get the highest potential return on their investment. You’ll most likely want to make lists based on these steps while researching keywords. Effective PPC ads require designing specialised campaigns that target buyers at different points of their buyer journey.

Create a keyword list

Collect all of the information you’ll need for a killer keyword list in an Excel or Google Docs spreadsheet. Here are a few pointers to help you create an effective sponsored search campaign, no matter where you are in the process.

• Recognise the subtle distinctions in buyer intent. Consider the terms ‘best shoes’ and ‘purchase shoes.’
• Less is more – especially if you’re a tiny firm, you’ll want to make your keyword list as brief as possible. Avoid targeting more than 20 keywords in each ad campaign, as it becomes difficult to track what is and isn’t working after that.
• Instead of using broad search terms like ‘best shoes,’ try narrowing it down to ‘best wedding shoes’ or ‘best all-weather shoes.’ Those general search keywords attract many users but rarely result in a large number of clicks or conversions.
• Be on the lookout for any wrong keywords. These are keywords for which you do not want your ad to appear, and they are just as significant as keywords. If you’re targeting premium buyers, you might not want your ad to appear for ‘cheap shoes’ or ‘discount shoes.’

A/B Testing 

A/B testing, often known as split testing, is a standard marketing technique that you’ve probably heard of. It works like this: you create two separate campaigns in Google Ads (or whichever PPC ad network you’re using). After that, you experiment with a different language, keyword targeting, and audience/demographic targeting to see what performs best.

You might try running identical advertisements but targeting different keywords based on your keyword research. Keep track of what works and doesn’t, change things daily, and ensure your KPIs are checked and recorded.

Examine your rivals

One of the best features of the digital marketing tools we mentioned before is monitoring what keywords your competitors are using. You may also look into the effectiveness of their paid keywords using tools.

You could assume you know what keywords they’re aiming for now. However, you might be astonished if you use a keyword research tool. Once you have this information, you can begin looking for innovative advertising that uses your competitors’ keywords.
 

Examine your niche’s social media and press

The internet is a valuable resource, especially for businesses. Examining social media feeds and news stories is one technique to identify keywords and learn about your prospective customer’s behaviour.

Users’ attitudes and behaviour, as well as the language they use, can be gleaned from social media in particular. Look for hashtags that are related to your sector, and look at your competitors’ accounts to see if they’ve been tagged in any @ mentions.

News in your sector can also show trends, the terminology you would not have considered utilising, and specialised customers you might be able to appeal to. Make a spreadsheet with all of the fantastic new keywords you’ve discovered.

Speak with your clients

There is no better method to learn about your customers than to speak with them. And, once again, the internet has made this process much more manageable.

If you have a physical location with clients, you may undoubtedly strike up a conversation with them and inquire about how they found you and what they’re searching for.

Clients of B2B services are frequently contacted to discuss their needs and how they’re finding the service. You may also ask them a few questions about how they found your organisation and solved business difficulties at this stage.

You may also make questionnaires and feedback forms with appealing incentives for folks who fill them out. Inquire about what individuals are looking for, why they are looking for you, and the channels they utilise to find you.

Conclusion

Keyword research may appear to be challenging work, but it is crucial, and with a well-organised strategy and the correct tools, you’ll be able to locate the perfect keywords in no time!
 

Team EMB

Our team of expert writers is committed to bringing insights on topics ranging in the fields of technology, marketing, and business. With a wide-reaching range of services on our platform, we help businesses achieve digital transformation end-to-end.