How to Find Keywords For a Website

If you’ve been in the digital marketing or SEO space for any amount of time, you will know how critical it is to find the right keywords for a website. Keywords are directly related to what the user is searching for, therefore, it is important to utilize them to your advantage. 

You might be wondering how to find keywords for a website and how to make the right decision which ones to choose. There are a few tried and tested ways that have shown us results time and time again.

So, let’s start with an in-depth look at what exactly goes into a keyword, and how it helps you rank your site in search results..

This is How to Find Keywords for a Website

There are a few different ways to find keywords for a website, and it’s ideal to leverage each one to your advantage. If you are a novice to search marketing, finding the right keywords to target might very well be a difficult task, and it’s quite common to make a few mistakes that could cost you that coveted search ranking:

• Targeting the wrong keywords, or keywords that are more difficult to rank for.
• Not taking into account the number and size of competitors in the geographical area

It is also important to take into account the volume, difficulty, and the competitors related to the targeted area. For example, a marketing agency has many competitors, so it is important to choose them very carefully, and put together a local SEO strategy. 

The number one mistake many novice marketers make is attempting to rank for high volume, short-tail keywords. This is especially true if you have a small website with a lower domain authority. 

The correct way to approach this is to try to rank for low volume, long tail keywords instead. These are often less competitive to rank for, and help get your website recognized by search engines.

Diversification is also a critical element of your keyword strategy, as the current Google algorithms are more adept than ever before at finding a site that goes the extra mile. Therefore, it’s important to use a few different keyword research tools and techniques to truly stand out from the crowd. 

Ask yourself, which keywords can I target to really stand out from the competitor? Finding this low hanging fruit is critical to any keyword research strategy, no matter the type of website, or industry you’re in. 

Find Out What Your Website Currently Ranks For

So, you already have a website, and want to find out what it currently ranks for on search engines. This is actually quite easy, as Google even provides a tool for this purpose. This tool, called Google Search Console, is one of the many programs that marketers use on a daily basis to find what websites are ranking for overall. 

Let’s take a look at how to find the keywords you’re already ranking for using Google Search Console.

It’s really quite simple and straightforward to do, just login to your Search Console and navigate to the “search results” page. There, you will see a how many clicks and impressions your site receives from each keyword or query someone types into the search bar. 

There are also a few third-party tools that marketers keep in their arsenal, such as Ahrefs. Ahrefs is a handy tool that allows you to see exactly what a website is ranking for. All you have to do is enter the website into the tool, and you’ll receive a plethora of information in just seconds. 

To find out what a keyword is ranking for in Ahrefs, navigate to the “organic keywords” section of the site. There you will find a list of keywords that your site is currently ranking for in search. 

Find Out What Your Competitors Rank For

Finding out what your competitors are ranking for is a crucial aspect of keyword research, and provides you with the opportunity to pick some low hanging fruit. There are a few different ways to determine which keywords your competition ranks for, which are using Ahrefs Site Explorer or SEMRush. So, how do you use these tools? Let’s talk more in depth about these helpful applications below.

Ahrefs

Ahrefs is one of the most popular SEO tools in the industry, and is used for almost anything from keyword research and ranking, to backlink analysis. Tools like Ahrefs provide valuable insights into what your competitors are ranking for in search results. Using Ahrefs is quite simple and straightforward. Let’s check it out in more detail.

First, just login to Ahrefs and head towards the “Site Explorer” Tool, and paste the URL you would like to evaluate into the search bar. This will provide you with copious amounts of information, such as the domain rank, backlink profile, and the organic keywords the site is ranking for. Once the organic keywords are displayed, you’ll receive information about the volume of each keyword, and which keywords various pages throughout the site rank for. 

By using Ahrefs, you now have the tools necessary to get ahead of the competition, and tweak your strategy accordingly.

SEMRush

SEMRush is another popular tool in the world of digital marketing, and includes similar features to Ahrefs. Just simply login and enter the URL of a website you want to evaluate. Now that you’ve entered your URL, you should be able to see a section labeled “Top Organic Keywords”. This section will provide you with information about the highest ranking keywords, such as search volume and how difficult it is to rank for each. 

Similar to Ahrefs, you can view all your organic keywords on SEMRush. Leverage this information to your advantage, and tweak your keyword research strategy accordingly. 

Other Ways to Find Keywords for a Website

Now that you know more about Ahrefs and SEMRush, you might be asking yourself, “is there any other way I can find keywords for a website? Yes! You can also use a few tools provided by Google itself, such as Google Keyword Planner, Google Trends, and even Google autocomplete in search. Sound interesting? Let’s learn more!

Google Keyword Planner

Google Keyword Planner is a fantastic tool to find out how to find keywords for a website. Getting started is simple, just sign up for a Google Adwords account, which provides you with tools like Keyword Planner, and an entire suit of useful programs. 

Now that you have created your account, and you’re all signed in, navigate to https://adwords.google.com/ and head over to the “Search for new keyword and ad group ideas” section. 

There are a few different ways to use this tool, either by entering in a word or phrase, or by entering a URL, which will show you what it’s ranking for. This will give you the opportunity to see exactly which keywords your competitors are ranking for, and how they are developing a keyword plan.

Google Trends

Google Trends is another handy tool to find keywords for a website, just type in a keyword or phrase into the search bar, and you will be provided with a variety of different information, such as interest over time, interest by subregion, and even related topics. 

Google Autocomplete

Perhaps the most overlooked strategy of them all is Google autocomplete. Just type in a keyword or phrase in the Google search bar, and you’ll see a variety of search queries appear underneath. These are real searches, entered into the search bar by real users interested in your product or niche. 

How To Get Started

Finding the right keywords for a website is paramount when curating a proficient SEO strategy. Which keywords to target ultimately depends on how much authority your website holds with search engines and the level of competition in your niche. 

Now that you know how to find keywords for a website, check out some other helpful resources to help you develop an effective SEO strategy:

•  The Ultimate Guide to Keyword Research for SEO
• Why Keyword Research is Important
• The Anatomy of an Optimized Blog Post

Too busy to develop an SEO strategy on your own? We can help! Get in touch with our team today!