How to Master Keyword Marketing for Better Results

Keyword research might seem overwhelming, but it is crucial to ensure your marketing strategy hits the mark. While it might be tempting to rely on instinct, the reality is that thorough keyword research gives you hard data on what people are actually searching for.

In this simple guide, we will explain how to find the right keywords for your business, covering:

Follow these tips to make sure you are visible exactly where your potential customers are searching!

1. What is Keyword Marketing?

Keyword marketing involves using search terms that are relevant to your business in ads and website content to enhance visibility. If done right, it can help you place your business in organic (meaning unpaid) search results—the standard blue links. And in paid ads (like Google Ads), it can help you appear in pay-per-click (PPC), reaching users interested in your services or products.

Both strategies are essential because they help you drive traffic from different types of users, whether they are researching, considering purchases, or ready to buy.

2. Why Are Keywords Important in Marketing?

Keywords play one of the biggest roles and here is why they are important in marketing:

Connect with Customers: Keywords link your business to people searching for related products or services.
Improve Search Visibility: Using the right keywords helps your website rank higher in search engine results.
Targeted Traffic: Keywords attract visitors who are specifically interested in what you offer.
Understand Customer Intent: Keywords reveal what your customers are searching for and their interests.
Boost Ad Effectiveness: In paid advertising, keywords ensure your ads reach the right audience.
Increase Conversion Chances: Relevant keywords attract potential customers who are more likely to buy from you.

3. Find and Use Keywords for Effective Advertising

If you are looking to boost conversions or raise brand awareness quickly, running ads can be very effective. However, keep in mind that once you stop your ads, the results may cease as well.

Here is a detailed process to get started:

Find Relevant PPC Keywords

To ensure your pay-per-click (PPC) keywords match your campaign goals, start with keyword research. For example, if you offer home cleaning services, brainstorm some general terms related to your services, such as:

You can use tools like Semrush Keyword Magic Tool, Google Keyword Planner, and Ahrefs. They can help you find popular and relevant keywords related to your business.

Enter one of your broad terms, like “house cleaning” and click “Search.” The tools will provide a list of related keywords. Review these suggestions to find ones that fit your campaign goals.

Consider search intent—what the user is hoping to find.

Additional factors to evaluate

Search Volume: How often is the keyword searched each month? Higher search volume can drive more traffic.
Cost Per Click (CPC): This is the typical cost that advertisers pay for each click on a PPC advertisement. Choosing keywords with a low cost per click can allow you to get more value out of your budget. But remember that a high cost per click (CPC) also indicates that the phrase is valuable and conversion-prone.

You can also analyze your competitors’ keywords using the research tools.

Enter a competitor’s website to see which keywords they are targeting and incorporate similar ones into your strategy by taking notes of those that fit your criteria and PPC campaign’s goals.

Organize Keywords into Groups

Grouping keywords helps structure your campaign and ensures your ads target the right audience. For a housing cleaning service, a keyword group might include:

To perform keyword grouping, it is essential to first analyze your keywords for common themes, products, audience types, use cases, or user intents. Ensure each group has similar ad copy and landing pages.

Then create initial groups based on these similarities, for this, you can use spreadsheet tools. Then aim for relatively small and focused groups with around 10-20 related keywords each and name them descriptively to align with your ad copy and landing pages.

Craft Effective Ads

Your ad copy should encourage users to click on your search ad. And to achieve that, you will need to write compelling copy that appropriately reflects your offer.

Essential elements include:

For instance:

Include relevant keywords in your ad copy and highlight your unique selling points (USPs), like “eco-friendly cleaning” or “same-day service.” Always incorporate calls to action (CTAs) such as “book now,” “get a quote,” or “schedule today.” Consider adding ad assets, like images or extra links, to make your ad more engaging and visible.

Launch and Monitor Your PPC Campaigns

Setting up your PPC campaigns involves defining your budget, organizing keyword groups, creating ad copy, setting location preferences, and publishing your ad. You may need to enter billing details if not already done. After launching, continuously monitor your campaigns to gauge effectiveness. Here are some of the important key factors:

These metrics are available in your Google Ads dashboard (remember that you need to set up conversion tracking to have access to related metrics):

Analyzing these metrics can help you make necessary adjustments. For example, a drop in conversion rate might indicate a mismatch between your ad and landing page, while an increase in CPC could signal rising competition.

4. How to Find and Use Keywords for SEO

If you are aiming to build a lasting organic presence in search results, SEO is a solid choice. Although it takes time to see results, the benefits can last for months or even years.

Let’s break down the process:

Recognize Relevant SEO Keywords

Finding the right SEO keywords helps attract qualified traffic to your site. Start by choosing a seed term, which is a broad topic related to your content. For example, if your blog focuses on house cleaning, seed keywords might be “cleaning company” or “eco-friendly products.”

After this search, you will find the keywords that are related to your seed term. Hence, you can select the keywords that closely align with your brand or topic.

You can also perform a keyword gap analysis using tools like Semrush’s Keyword Gap tool. Enter your domain and those of your competitors, then click “Compare” to find keywords your competitors rank for but you do not. Review and add these relevant keywords to your list.

Evaluate and Choose Keywords

Once you have a list, assess which keywords to target by using a Keyword Overview tool. Enter your keywords and domain to get a “Bulk Analysis” report, showing various metrics for each keyword.

And then on the “Bulk Analysis,” you can see the keywords along with various metrics. For instance:

You can consider these factors to decide which keyword should be of more help to you:

Relevant Intent: Choose keywords that match the type of content you want to create, whether it is informational or commercial.
Search Volume: Focus on keywords with a decent number of searches each month. A good benchmark is at least 100 searches.
Difficulty: Aim for keywords that your site can realistically rank for. Look for those with a low Personal Keyword Difficulty (PKD %) score.
Trends: Prefer keywords with stable or increasing search volumes.

Create Quality Content

High-quality content is essential for ranking well in search results. Ensure your content:

Add unique angles, original data, and useful examples to make your content stand out. Implement on-page SEO practices by including your target keyword in key areas such as the title tag, URL, and subheadings. Structure your page with heading tags, write a compelling title tag, add internal links, and use descriptive alt text for images.

Publish and Monitor Your Content

Publishing allows Google to crawl and index your content. Track how your content performs using metrics like:

It might take you several months to see significant results. However, you can use Google Analytics 4 to track organic sessions and conversions, and Semrush’s Position Tracking tool to monitor keyword rankings. Regularly review your keyword performance so that you can gradually increase your rankings.

By following these steps, you can effectively find and use keywords to boost your SEO and achieve better marketing results.

Keyword Marketing FAQs

1. What is keyword marketing?

Keyword marketing involves using relevant search terms in ads and content that can help in boosting visibility in search results. This helps you in attracting targeted traffic while driving conversions.

2. Can you buy keywords for paid advertising?

Yes, you can buy keywords through platforms like Google Ads for PPC campaigns. However, it is essential to choose the right keywords based on research for effective results.

3. How do you find competitor keywords?

You can use tools like Semrush or Ahrefs to analyze your competitors’ websites and identify the keywords they are targeting. This helps refine your own keyword strategy.

4. Can keyword research help with SEO?

Yes, keyword research is crucial for SEO. It helps you identify relevant search terms to target, improving your organic rankings and attracting qualified traffic over time.