Keyword research is still a major part of digital marketing but the research strategies have changed quite drastically over the years. Initially it was all about the head terms, then long-tail search phrases and finally (LDA) topic related phrases. Nowadays I like to target search phrases according to the users search intent and mapping them into the buyer personas conversion funnel. Adopting this process your marketing efforts are always aligned with business goals while assisting to user search intent.

1. Keyword
Research Process
& Strategies
with
&

2. SalesCycle:
Pieter Verasdonck
10+ years of experience in Digital Marketing
Industries: Gambling, Education, FMCG, Telco,
Travel & Tourism, Government, eCommerce &
Retail, Real Estate, Fashion, B2B and even Adult
Entertainment.
Featured in:
• Smart Startups Magazine, Backlinks.com.au &
Avanser’s Blog, SEMRush Webinar
• Spoke at: Numerous Meetups, SMX Sydney 2014 –
Bootcamp & Advanced Online Marketing
Conferences in Sydney
#SEMRushLive

3. Agenda
1) Foundation of Search
2) Keyword Research Process
3) Keyword Selection Process
4) Worst Keyword Research Mistakes
5) Change in Research Behaviour
#SEMRushLive

4. Foundation of Search

5. Searching & Looking = Action
• Random surfing, browsing and accidental
discoveries
• Craving entertainment, information, social
connection
• Looking to go somewhere…Brand / Topic
destinations
• Researching for a specific solution, reviews
or comparison
• Looking to execute a task or a transaction
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6. Psychology of Purchasing
http://buyer.sellerinsights.com/2013/05/14/understanding-buyer-psychology/
#SEMRushLive

7. Psychology of Decision Making
& Purchasing Behaviour
http://www.womma.org/posts/2013/01/how-marketers-can-neuro-map-consumer-
decision-making
#SEMRushLive

8. Psychology of Decision Making
& Purchasing Behaviour
Thinking Feeling
High
Involvement
Informative (thinker):
e-banking
Books
Financial services
Computer equipment
House
Automobiles
House Furnishings
Affective (feeler):
Jewellery
Cosmetics
Fashion Apparel
Luxury Watch
CDs
Low Involvement Habit formation (doer):
Food
Fast Food
Household Items
Shampoos
Self-satisfaction (reactor):
Flowers
The FCB Planning Model adapted from Belch & Belch. 2004. Advertising and
Promotion. An Integrated Marketing Communication Perspective. 6th Edition. Singapore
#SEMRushLive

9. Modern B2B Customers Buying
Journey
Indentify a Need
Purchase Criteria
Initial Research Commercial
Investigation
Comparison
Justification
Product
Selection
Trail/Purchase
Evaluation/
Evangelism
Sales Rep InvolvedCustomers Research
Awareness Stage Consideration Stage Decision Stage
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10. B2B Procurement Process
http://buyer.sellerinsights.com/files/2013/05/buying-process.png
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11. Matching Content With
Customers Buying Decision
Customer is
Asking
Customer
Wants
What to
Provide
What is my
problem?
How do I fix
my problem?
Are you the
right partner?
Education &
Benchmarks
Solution Options &
Product Suitability
Proof Points &
Decision Support
Awareness Stage Consideration Stage Decision Stage
• Trend Reports
• Benchmarks
• Analyst Reports
• 101 Education
• How to Guides
• How other people
are solving this
• What is the solution
& How it works
• Solution
Comparisons
• Pitfall Analysis
• Readiness &
Suitability
Assessment
• How to choose a
vendor
• Pricing
• Strength
Demonstration
• Case Studies
• ROI/TCO
• Partnering
Benefits
• How to Buy/Pay
#SEMRushLive

12. Keyword Research
Process =
The Backbone of SEO

13. Keyword Research Preparation
• Identify your Main Competitors
• Create a Buyer Personas & Audience
Segments
• Map out Users Search Objectives to the
Buying Journey
• Map out the Content to Users Buying
Journey & Business Objectives
#SEMRushLive

14. http://www.seobook.com/keyword-research-strategy-flowchart
#SEMRushLive

15. • Webmaster Tools
Keyword Research:
Relevant Keywords
BingGoogle
#SEMRushLive

16. • Webmaster Tools: Search Analytics (beta)
Keyword Research:
Relevant Keywords
#SEMRushLive

17. Keyword Research:
Customer Typed Keywords
• Internal Site Search:
http://blog.crazyegg.com/2013/01/17/set-up-internal-site-search-analytics/
1
2
#SEMRushLive

18. Keyword Research:
Best Keyword Information
• Adwords Campaigns - PPC Search Query
Reports
http://www.searchenginejournal.com/search-query-data-adwords-isnt-
dead-heres-actually-changed/100805/
#SEMRushLive

19. • Historic Keyword Data:
Keyword Research:
Old Keywords
#SEMRushLive

20. Keyword Research:
Deciphering (Not Provided):
http://searchengineland.com/replacing-googles-not-provided-seo-gold-
220045
#SEMRushLive

21. Keyword Research:
Unknown Keywords
Get the Right Intelligence Tools:
• SEMRush: Your Website
12
3
4
5
6
http://refugeeks.com/semrush/
#SEMRushLive

22. Keyword ideas
http://www.seobook.com/keyword-research-strategy-flowchart
#SEMRushLive

23. Keyword Research:
Smart Keywords
• Competitors Online Visibility: SEMRush
http://www.semrush.com/webinars/competitor-keyword-research-
for-seo/
12
3
6 4
5
#SEMRushLive

24. Keyword Research:
Smart Keywords
• Competitors Online Visibility: SEMRush
http://www.semrush.com/webinars/competitor-keyword-research-
for-seo/
12
3
7
4
5
6
#SEMRushLive

25. Keyword Research:
Money Keywords
• SEMRush: Adwords Keywords
12
3
4
5
#SEMRushLive

26. Keyword Research:
Topic Related Keywords
• Wikipedia & SEMRush:
http://www.searchenginejournal.com/use-wikipedia-keyword-
research/110071/
12
3
4
#SEMRushLive

27. Keyword Research:
Keyword Planner: URL
1
2
3
#SEMRushLive

28. Keyword Research:
Keyword Planner: Keywords
1
3
2
#SEMRushLive

29. Keyword Research:
Topic Related Keywords
1
2
#SEMRushLive

30. Keyword Research:
Long-Tail Keywords
• Related Searched & Google Suggest:
• Google Suggest Scraper Tools:
• Ubersuggest, keywordtool.io, Soovle, Scrapebox,
etc
http://ipullrank.com/how-to-uncover-100s-of-new-
longtail-keywords-in-minutes/
#SEMRushLive

31. Keyword Research:
Topic & LSI Keywords
• “Table of Contents” & Google Books
• Ask your Customers with Audience Surveys
http://www.iacquire.com/blog/the-persona-driven-keyword-research-process
#SEMRushLive

32. Keyword Research:
Seasonality Keywords
• Google Keyword Planner:
• Google Trends:
1
#SEMRushLive

33. Keyword Research:
Old School Keywords – SEO Quake
• HTML Code: <meta keywords>
• YouTube: Video Tags
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34. Keyword Research:
Old School Keywords
• Niche Topic Forums: Sub-Categorisation
Google Search:
• Your Keyword "visitors found this page by searching for“ -seo
• site:com.au “Your Keyword” forum -seo
• “Incoming search terms” “Your Keyword” -seo
#SEMRushLive

35. OK, I found 10,000
Keywords …Now What?
Selection Criteria
Cutting 10,000 Keywords to 1,000

36. Relevant Keywords
http://www.seobook.com/keyword-research-strategy-flowchart
#SEMRushLive

37. Keyword Selection:
PPC vs. SEO
#SEMRushLive

38. Keyword Mapping to Purchase
Funnel
Purchase
Funnel Stage
Type of
Search Type of Keyword
Search Volume
& SERP
Competition Example
A Awareness Informational Head Terms High mens suits
I Interest Navigational Keyword + Brand TBD hugo boss suits
D Desire Research
Body Terms
(Head + modifier)
Medium tailor made wedding suits
A Action Transactional
Long-Tail
(4-5+ words)
Low
tailor made wedding suits online
click & collect
S Satisfaction Expression Emotional Low
Positive: Glad, Great, :) , Fun,
Fabulous, Thanks, etc
Negative: S**t, F**k, WTF, :( , bloody,
crap, etc
#SEMRushLive

39. Keyword Selection:
Relevancy
• Niche Topic Silos:
https://www.keywordstudio.com/
#SEMRushLive

40. Keyword Selection:
Seasonality Trends
• Query Deserves Freshness:
Holidays, Seasonal Sales Dates, Special Events
#SEMRushLive

41. Keyword Selection:
Search Volume
• Effort vs. Reward: Larry (wordstream) Formula:
(Searches * CPC)/Difficulty score
(1000 * $3)
0.85
#SEMRushLive

42. Keyword Selection:
CPC Cost
Profitability & Money Words
#SEMRushLive

43. Keyword Selection:
Competitiveness
• Keyword Difficulty: SEMRush, Moz, etc
1
3
2
4 5
#SEMRushLive

44. Keyword Selection:
Competitiveness
• Keyword Difficulty: SEMRush, Moz, etc
http://backlinko.com/keyword-competition
#SEMRushLive

45. Keyword Selection:
Competitiveness
• SERP Difficulty: Market Samurai
http://backlinko.com/keyword-competition
#SEMRushLive

46. Keyword Selection:
Low Hanging Fruit
Questions: Quora, Yahoo Answers, etc
• Where, What, Why, How, etc
• Best, [Product A] vs [Product B], Reviews
#SEMRushLive

47. Keyword Usage in Purchase
Funnel Stages Example
#SEMRushLive

48. Keyword Research Process
Resources
• Moz: moz.com/beginners-guide-to-seo/keyword-
research
• SEMRush: semrush.com/webinars/competitor-
keyword-research-for-seo/
• Larry Kim and Will Critchlow:
wordstream.com/blog/ws/2014/08/06/keyword-
research-tips
• Backlinko: backlinko.com/keyword-research
• Nick Eubanks: seonick.net/master-keyword-research/
#SEMRushLive

49. OK, I got it down to 100
search phrases…What’s
Next?
Cutting 10,000 Keywords to 1,000

50. High Potential Keywords
http://www.seobook.com/keyword-research-strategy-flowchart
#SEMRushLive

51. Using Your Keywords:
A Great Topic for Another Webinar
• Important SEO Areas for Keywords:
• “Domain”, URL, <title>, Meta Data, Internal Links, <hx>,
Body Text, Digital Assets (Images, PDF. Video, Audio), etc
• Keyword Mapping IA & URLs
• Research Intent Phrases (2-4 words) for Category Pages
• Transactional Search Phrases (4+ words) for Product
Pages
• Creating Topic Silo’s & “Evergreen” Long form pages
• Assigning Longtail Keywords to Blog Topics, FAQ, Forum
Topics, etc
#SEMRushLive

52. What are the pitfalls &
should I watchout for?
most common keyword research
mistakes.

53. What not to do!
• Only going for head & single word terms: “Suits”
• Competitor Brand Terms: “Asos mens suits”
• Going for irrelevant Geographic terms: “Suits New York”
• Words that are way out of your league: Super High
Competition
• Phrases that are irrelevant to your business: “Sports
Cars”
• Failing to monitor search trends and adjust strategies
over time
http://www.searchenginejournal.com/7-lessons-keyword-stupidity-
mess-keyword-research/104127/
#SEMRushLive

54. SEMRush Webinar : Q & A
Pieter S Verasdonck
• Twitter: @psverasdonck
• SlideShare:
www.slideshare.net/psverasdonck
• eMail: psv@salescycle.agency
• Tel: 1300 88 54 28
#SEMRushLive