Key Highlights
- Keyword research is the process of finding out exactly what your customers are typing into Google, so you can build content around real searches instead of guesses.
- Start with seed keywords, simple, obvious terms related to what you sell, then expand them using Google's own suggestions, competitor websites, and AI tools like ChatGPT or Claude.
- You can do proper keyword research for free using Google Keyword Planner and Google Search Console; no paid tools required to get started.
- Every keyword search has an intent behind it: informational, commercial, or ready to buy, and Google's own search results already show you which one applies.
- Group similar keywords onto a single page instead of creating one thin page per keyword; this avoids pages competing against each other for the same searches.
- A simple spreadsheet with keyword, volume, difficulty, intent, and page type is enough to turn your research into an actual content plan.
One of the first steps of any SEO strategy is to find keywords. At first, it might seem a little overwhelming because of all the tools and data involved.
But with a good plan, you can start and finish your keyword research pretty easily, and you can do it yourself without hiring anyone. This guide will walk you through 4 simple steps to get started.
1. How to Start With Keyword Research
Starting with keyword research can feel overwhelming. You sit down, start listing out ideas, and within minutes you've got a hundred keywords and no idea what to do with them.
The good news is you don't need to figure all that out on day one. You start with something called seed keywords. This is just a term SEO people use for the simple, obvious words related to what you sell.
For example, if you run a coworking space, your seed keyword might just be "coworking space." Simple as that.
You don't need a huge list to begin. 3 to 5 seed keywords is plenty to start with. A coworking space might start with something like:
- Shared office space
- Hot desk
- Private office
Once you've got those, the next step is turning each one into a bigger list of related keywords. Here are three easy ways to build your seed keyword list.
Think like your customer
Put yourself in your ideal customer's shoes. What would they type into Google to find a business like yours? What problems or preferences are they searching for on Google or even on social forums like Reddit and Facebook groups?
If you're running a coworking space, your ideal customer might be searching for things like:
- coworking space in Melbourne
- quiet places to work
- affordable coworking spaces
- coworking spaces with free wifi
Notice these aren't just "coworking space" repeated — they include the specific things your customer cares about. Write down as many of these as you can think of.
Check what your competitors are ranking for
Another easy way to find keywords is to look at what's already working for your competitors.
Make a list of 3-5 competitor websites, businesses similar to yours that show up when you search your seed keywords. Then take those competitor website addresses and plug them into a keyword tool (the same ones we'll cover in the next section). The tool will show you every keyword that website is already ranking for, along with which of their pages is ranking for it.
This does two things for you. It gives you keyword ideas you might not have thought of, and it gives you a head start on figuring out which keywords are worth targeting for your own site, since you're not guessing.
Ask Google
Type your seed keyword into Google and look at two places: the autocomplete suggestions that show up as you type, and the "People also ask" and "Related searches" sections on the results page. These are based on what real people are actually searching for, so they're an easy way to find ideas you wouldn't have come up with on your own.
Ask AI for seed keywords
If you're using ChatGPT or Claude, you can put together a solid seed keyword list in seconds, but only if you give it a good prompt.
Try one of these prompts:
"I run a coworking space in Melbourne. My seed keywords are 'coworking space' and 'shared office space'. Give me 20 keyword variations people might search for, including location-based and feature-based ones (like quiet, affordable, or amenities)."
Or, if you want it to think more broadly about your customer's problems:
"I run a coworking space in Melbourne targeting freelancers and small business owners. What questions, problems, or search terms would this audience have when looking for a place to work? Give me 15."
All of this- your own ideas, Google's suggestions, and what AI gives you- goes into one list. Don't worry about sorting or organising it yet. Right now you're just collecting.
Once you've got your list, the next question is: which of these keywords are actually worth going after? For that, you'll need a few tools and some basic numbers to look at.
2. SEO Tools for Keyword Research
By now you've got a decent list of keywords. But here's the thing: you can't (and shouldn't) create content for every single one. Trying to write for all of them is just a waste of time and money.
So before you write anything, you need a bit of data to help you decide which keywords are actually worth the effort. This is where tools come in.
These tools will mainly give you three pieces of data for each keyword:
- Search volume tells you how many people search that exact phrase each month. More searches means more potential visitors, but usually more competition too.
- Keyword difficulty tells you how hard it'll be to rank on page one, based on how strong the sites already ranking are. A high score just means you'll need better content and more patience.
- CPC (cost-per-click) shows what businesses pay per click on Google Ads for that keyword. A higher CPC usually means the searcher is closer to buying, not just browsing.
We've put together a full list of the best SEO tools if you want to compare more options later, but here's where to start.
Free tools for keyword research
- Google Keyword Planner: a free tool from Google, built for running ads, but you can use it without spending a cent. Plug in your seed keywords, and it'll give you volume and a list of related terms.
- Google Search Console: This is your website's own data, straight from Google. If you have a website, you should be using this. It shows you the actual keywords already bringing people to your site. If you're building a new website, add it here too so you can start tracking this from day one.
- Chrome extensions: these are free add-ons you install in your browser. Once installed, you'll see the search numbers show up right on the Google results page itself whenever you search something. We've rounded up the best Chrome extensions for SEO if you want the full list, but two worth starting with are:
- Keyword Everywhere
- Ubersuggest
Paid tools
If you want more accuracy and detail, Semrush and Ahrefs are the two most commonly used. Either one works fine — you type in a keyword and get the same kind of data as the free tools, just deeper, with better difficulty scoring.
Both offer free trials, so you can test them out before deciding if they're worth paying for.
What to actually do with this data
Having access to a tool doesn't help much if you don't have a system for using it. Here's the simple version:
- Take your seed keywords from earlier and drop them into whichever tool you're using.
- It'll spit out a bigger list of related keywords, each with volume and difficulty next to it.
- Some tools let you export this straight to a spreadsheet. If yours doesn't, just build one yourself.
At minimum, your spreadsheet should have these columns:
"Page type" is just a note on what kind of page this keyword should live on, like a blog post, a service page, a location page, and so on. You'll fill that in properly once we get to search intent, but it's worth having the column ready now.
Once this sheet is filled in, you'll have a clear, prioritised list. That list is what feeds directly into the next step: grouping these keywords into topic clusters.
3. Content Based on Search Intent
Having a keyword with good data is only one part of the puzzle. Now you need to understand what those keywords actually mean, what your customer is trying to say through them. That's called search intent.
Here's a simple way to think about it.
- Someone searching "coworking space" might just be curious what coworking even is.
- Someone searching "coworking space Melbourne" is probably looking to visit one. And
- Someone searching "coworking space Melbourne price" is close to booking.
Same topic, three very different intents, and each one needs a different kind of page.
How to find the intent behind a keyword
You don't have to guess. Google has already done the hard part for you; you just need to look at what it's showing.
Check the search results themselves
Type the keyword into Google and look at what's already ranking. If you mostly see blogs, that keyword is more informational, and you can write a guide to match it. If you mostly see product or service pages, people are closer to deciding or buying, so a landing page will work better than a blog post.
Look at Reddit and forums
Search your keyword along with "reddit" or check niche forums and Facebook groups related to your industry. This is worth taking seriously: Google increasingly shows Reddit and forum threads directly in search results, which means these conversations are already shaping what shows up on page one. Reading through them tells you not just what people want, but how they talk about it, which is useful when you're writing the content itself.
Once you know the intent behind a keyword, you'll know what kind of page to build for it, whether that's a blog post, a service page, or something else. That's what feeds directly into the next step: putting all of this together into an actual content plan.
4. Content Plan
By now you've got a list of keywords, real data next to each one, and a sense of what kind of page each one needs. The last step is turning all of that into an actual plan you can work from, instead of a scattered list.
Group similar keywords together first
Before you start assigning pages, check your list for keywords that are really just different ways of asking the same thing. "Coworking space Melbourne" and "shared office space Melbourne" might both belong on the same page, since someone searching either one wants the same result.
If you create a separate page for every single keyword, you end up with several thin pages competing with each other instead of one strong page. Grouping them properly also sets you up well for internal linking later, since related pages built around grouped keywords are much easier to connect to each other than scattered, overlapping ones. So group them first, then treat each group as one page, not one keyword as one page.
Build your plan in a spreadsheet
You can use a spreadsheet; there are free templates online too. At minimum, add these columns:
You can also add a column for competitor pages you found earlier that are already ranking for that group. Keep these next to your plan so you know what you're up against, and what you need to match or do better.
Plan a few weeks at a time
You don't need to plan a whole year of content upfront. Pick your top 5-10 keyword groups based on what's easiest to rank for and closest to bringing in customers, and plan those out for the next month or two.
This is also a good point to check you're setting the right SEO goals for what you're trying to achieve, so you're tracking progress against something real, not just publishing for the sake of it. Once those are live, come back to this list and repeat.
What's Next?
That's the whole process. Seed keywords to start, tools and data to narrow them down, search intent to know what to actually write, and a plan to keep it all organised. None of it needs a big budget or an agency to get moving, just a bit of time and a spreadsheet.
But keyword research is only the starting point. To turn it into a proper SEO strategy, you also need a solid content plan, technical fixes on your website, and tracking the right KPIs to know what's actually working. That's where we can help.
If you'd rather have that side handled for you, get in touch and we'll put together an SEO strategy built around your business.
