How to Choose Keywords for SEO: A Customer-First Approach

Conducting thorough SEO keyword research is a crucial first step in any strong strategy. But there’s more to quality research than simply identifying keywords; the best strategies take things a step further and consider customers above all else.

Focusing solely on the keywords you think are relevant without considering your customers’ preferences can set your SEO strategy up for failure.

But how can you learn what your customers’ preferences are, and more importantly, how do you take steps to meet their needs?

Fortunately, learning how to choose keywords for SEO can be made much easier with the right knowledge under your belt. Let’s begin by establishing a strong foundation to build upon.

Understand Your Customers

Before selecting the right SEO keywords, you need to know who your target customers are and what they are looking for.

Developing buyer profiles or customer avatars can help you gain insights into your ideal customers and their characteristics, especially if you’re targeting more than one group.

You can begin to get to know your target customers by asking questions like:

• Am I targeting a specific gender(s)?
• How old is my ideal customer? Is there an age range?
• Where do my customers live? Does this affect how they use my product or service?
• Where do my customers work? What is the nature of their employment (full-time, experience, etc.)?
• What are their hobbies and interests?
• Which language(s) does my customer speak?
• How educated are my ideal customers?
• What motivates my customers to buy my product or services?
• How do my customers like to spend time online?

Details like these help paint a clear picture of who you should target, where, and why. This information will serve as a skeleton for the rest of your SEO approach.

Get to Know Different Types of Search Intent

Search intent, also known as searcher intent or user intent, is crucial to consider when conducting SEO keyword research. It reveals what a user is hoping to find when searching.

The benefit of understanding the intent behind a user’s search query is discovering the best ways to tailor your content and messaging to achieve your goals.

Three main types of search intent cover most search queries: transactional, navigational, and informational. Let’s take a closer look.

1. Transactional Intent

Transactional intent describes situations where a user is actively looking to make a purchase or engage in a specific action on a website.

A user may, for instance, search “where to buy red shoes” to find a seller or list of recommended stores.

To effectively target transactional keywords, businesses can utilize paid advertising, such as pay-per-click (PPC) campaigns, to ensure their ads are prominently displayed when users search for these keywords.

However, because transactional keywords can directly lead to sales, they’re often very competitive. Using a keyword or targeting it with advertisements isn’t a guarantee; users may still read reviews or gather more information before making a final decision.

Therefore, providing valuable and relevant content that meets the user’s needs and addresses their concerns is crucial.

2. Navigational Intent

Navigational keywords include those a user searches for a specific website, resource, or page.

To stand out here, businesses need a strong authority and consistent monitoring of page metrics and content.

3. Informational Intent

Informational keywords are usually searched when a user wants to learn more about a particular topic or find answers to their questions.

These keywords offer an opportunity to help users fulfill their curiosity and make informed decisions.

The Bottom Line

At Firestarter, we always take a customer-first approach when creating an SEO keyword strategy for our clients.

Many professionals get lost in the process and fail to keep the most important rule in mind: the customer always comes first.

That’s why we use research criteria based on your niche, target market, competition, and keyword search volume to compile a comprehensive list of SEO keywords.

You can count on our experience and expertise to guide your SEO keyword search in the right direction. Firestarter SEO has over a decade of experience helping businesses develop customer-focused, results-driven SEO strategies.

To learn more about how Firestarter can help you navigate SEO keywords, reach out today.