How to do keyword research 

Keyword research is the process of searching for valuable keywords to target on your website or blog using data from search engines like Google

The simple guide to keyword research

A keyword is the search term that is entered into Google when someone is performing an internet search. This can be one word, a set of words or a complete sentence. 

To determine the keywords you should target, begin by thinking what a member of your target audience would type into Google if they are looking for your service?

Start broad and narrow down your keywords.

Example virtual assistant keywords:

Virtual assistant 

Or whatever name you prefer to identify your virtual assistant service. 

Online assistant / Online PA / Online VA / Virtual PA etc. 

You could then narrow it down further by specifying the location 

Virtual assistant UK

You can narrow down your keywords to include the service you provide 

Writing virtual assistant UK 

Include these keywords in your site title, description, images, and content. 

The same process is used for keyword research if you write a blog post or create a web page for information. Narrow the keyword to be specific to the question/ answer/ information you are providing. 

Example:

What does a virtual assistant do –

(If you have written a blog post/ article about virtual assistant services)

The purpose of keyword research is to determine the best keywords to target that will get the customers who require your services to your website. Your keywords and other SEO factors will determine where you are positioned when a potential customer searches on Google. 

You want to make sure your content is relevant to the keywords you are targeting, as the more relevant it is, the more people will visit and stay on your website, which will improve your ranking in search results. 

If your content or website is not relevant to the keywords searched, then Google’s algorithm will detect this, as people will not visit your website when shown in the search results. Or they will click off your website quickly, causing Google to rank you lower for the keyword. 

This is why it is so important to do keyword research.   

How to do Keyword research

Make a list of keyword ideas.

Go to https://ads.google.com/intl/en_ca/home/tools/keyword-planner/

Click on the box that says discover new keywords

Type in your keywords. You can search up to 10 different keywords at once, then click on get results, and you can add your URL to use as a filter for suggestions. 

You will then be shown the results for your search as well as suggestions for other keywords ideas.  

The table results show you the average amount of monthly searches for each keyword, the level of competition for each keyword, and the bidding price range, including low to high for Google Adsense.  

Use this information to pick the right keywords to target. 

When beginning your SEO strategy for your virtual assistant business, you want to stay away from low search volume keywords with high competition, as this will take longer for you to rank at the top. 

You are better off positioning yourself to target keywords with low competition and high search volume; this way, you will see results quicker. 

Targeting a keyword with a high search volume and low competition does not necessarily mean you have stumbled upon something your competitors have missed. There may be a reason why it has low competition, perhaps because this keyword doesn’t convert to buyers or subscribers or another similar reason.

However, it could be that your competition is not aware of the keywords, and there is not a lot of competition, so you can work your way to rank at the top. You will need to determine if it is worth targeting. 

Remember, it is not set in stone. You can change your keywords to ensure you are targeting keywords that get you the results you want. 

There is no set rule of the number of keywords you should target per page. Targeting on average three keywords per page as well as including related keywords into your content is enough.  

Targeting a specific set of keywords will tell Google where to place your results within the search engine. You can improve your ranking for these results by working on your overall SEO, eventually positioning yourself at the top. 

Keyword research is the foundation of your SEO. Taking time to research and optimise your web pages properly as you create them will save you time in the long run.