What is Keyword Research?
Finding the right keywords is not about chasing volume. It is about understanding exactly what your customers search for, where you can realistically compete, and which terms actually lead to business, not just traffic.
Keyword research identifies the exact words and phrases your target customers type into search engines, assesses the volume and competition for each, and maps them to the right pages on your site. The goal is not maximum traffic but maximum relevant traffic from people with intent to buy or enquire.
Types of Keywords and When to Target Each
| Keyword Type | Example | Volume | Competition | Conversion Rate | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short-tail (Head) | SEO services | Very High | Very High | Low | Brand awareness, established sites |
| Mid-tail | SEO services for small business | Medium | Medium | Medium | Growing sites with some authority |
| Long-tail | SEO services for small business London 2024 | Low | Low | High | New sites and early-stage campaigns |
| Local keywords | SEO consultant Manchester | Low-Medium | Low-Medium | Very High | Local service businesses |
| Informational | What is keyword research | Medium | Medium | Low-Medium | Content marketing, top-of-funnel |
| Transactional | Buy SEO audit report | Low | Low | Very High | Direct revenue pages |
The 4 Factors That Make a Keyword Worth Targeting
- Search volume: How many times per month is this searched? Volume under 50/month is often not worth a dedicated page unless competition is near zero.
- Keyword difficulty: How strong are the pages currently ranking? A difficulty score above 60 (on a 0-100 scale) requires significant authority to compete.
- Search intent: What does the person actually want? Informational, navigational, commercial or transactional intent determines what type of content to create.
- Business relevance: Could someone searching this term become a customer? Traffic from irrelevant keywords is noise, not signal.
A keyword like how to do SEO might get 10,000 searches a month, but most of those searchers want to do it themselves, not hire someone. A keyword like SEO consultant + city name might only get 200 searches per month, but every searcher is looking to hire. Targeting the second keyword is 50 times more commercially valuable. Matching content to intent is the difference between traffic and revenue.
How Keyword Research Fits Into an SEO Strategy
Targeting the wrong keywords wastes budget and time. Volt Audit builds keyword strategies around commercial intent and realistic competition, so every page you create has a genuine chance of ranking and converting.