Keyword research is the process of identifying and analysing the keywords people use in search engines to find information, products or services related to your business. It's the foundation of any effective SEO strategy: choosing the right keywords means understanding what your potential customers are looking for, answering their questions better than your competitors and attracting traffic with high purchase intent. Choosing the wrong keywords means producing content nobody searches for, competing with huge sites for impossible keywords, or attracting users who have no intention of becoming customers. This guide teaches you the entire process, from free tools to the advanced techniques used by SEO professionals, with a practical method you can apply straight away.
Sources: BrightEdge (2019); Google (2022)
The concept of search intent: why it matters more than volume
Search intent is the underlying reason that drives a user to make a particular search. Understanding intent matters more than search volume, because a keyword with 10,000 monthly searches but the wrong intent for your business brings traffic that never converts, while a keyword with 200 monthly searches and perfectly aligned intent can generate qualified leads every day. Google has become extremely good at interpreting query intent and shows results that match what users really want — not necessarily what the words of the query literally say. If you write an informational article for a keyword with transactional intent, Google understands that your content doesn't match the intent and pushes it down the SERPs regardless of the quality of the text.
Intent falls into four main categories: informational (I want to understand something — e.g. "how SEO works"), navigational (I want to reach a specific site — e.g. "Google Analytics login"), commercial investigation (I want to compare options before deciding — e.g. "best e-commerce platform") and transactional (I want to buy or take a specific action — e.g. "buy WordPress hosting"). The most effective way to identify a keyword's intent is to analyse the SERP: the results Google shows on page one for that query reflect the intent Google has identified as dominant. If page one is full of guides and articles, the intent is informational. If it's full of product pages, it's transactional. If you see comparisons and reviews, it's commercial investigation. Your content needs to align with that pattern, otherwise you're rowing against Google.
How to structure keyword research in 5 steps
Start with 10–20 basic terms that describe your business, your products and the problems you solve. Think like your ideal customer: what would they type into Google if they were looking for what you offer? Include technical and colloquial terms, singular and plural, action phrases ("how to", "how much does it cost") and nouns. These seed keywords will be the starting point for expanding into hundreds of variations.
Enter your seed keywords into a keyword research tool (Semrush, Ahrefs, or even just the free Google Ads Keyword Planner) and collect the list of related keywords, variations and associated questions. For each keyword note: monthly search volume, keyword difficulty (KD), CPC if available (it indicates commercial value) and intent. Aim to gather at least 100–200 candidate keywords before you start filtering.
For each valid keyword, analyse the SERP to determine the intent and check whether it matches what your site can offer. Remove navigational keywords (they're for specific brands), keywords that are too generic with huge volume but impossible competition, and keywords where page one is dominated by Wikipedia, Reddit or sites with dozens of times your authority.
Group the remaining keywords into topic clusters: each cluster becomes one piece of content (article, service page, landing page). Keywords with similar intent and a similar topic belong in the same piece of content — don't create a separate page for every minor keyword. The keyword with the highest volume and clearest intent becomes the cluster's primary keyword, and the others become secondary keywords to include naturally in the text.
Prioritise clusters based on traffic potential, difficulty and alignment with your business goals. Start with clusters with low or medium keyword difficulty and decent volume — build topical authority before tackling the most competitive keywords. Assign each cluster a publication date and create a 3–6 month editorial plan.
Keyword research tools: free and paid
Essential free tools
The first tool to use is Google Search Console: if your site is already live and indexed, it shows the real queries you appear for in the results, with impressions, clicks and average position. This is pure gold — you're seeing the keywords Google already shows you for, and you can optimise those pages to improve rankings. Keywords in positions 4–15 are the most interesting: you're already appearing but not on page one, and a little optimisation can bring you significantly more traffic. The second free tool is Google's autocomplete: type your seed keyword and look at the suggestions. They're based on real user searches and show you the most-searched variations. The same logic applies to the "related searches" at the bottom of the SERP. Google Keyword Planner (free with a Google Ads account, even without active campaigns) shows search volumes grouped into ranges — they aren't exact values, but they're enough to tell whether a keyword has meaningful traffic or almost none.
Other useful free tools: Answer The Public (shows the questions users ask around your keyword, great for informational content), Google Trends (shows a keyword's trend over time — essential for spotting seasonal patterns or growing keywords) and Google's People Also Ask — the related questions Google includes in the results. Every PAA question is a potential long-tail keyword with clear informational intent.
Paid tools: when the investment is worth it
Semrush and Ahrefs are the two leading professional tools, both starting at around €100–130 a month. The difference from free tools isn't just the amount of data but its quality: keyword difficulty calculated on real backlink data (not estimates), search volume based on actual clickstream data, competitor analysis (you can see which keywords a specific site ranks for), gap analysis (keywords your competitors rank for and you don't) and automatic rank tracking over time. If you're developing a serious SEO strategy for a business, these tools pay for themselves quickly. If you're optimising a personal site or a blog, the free tools are more than enough to get started. A third option is Neil Patel's Ubersuggest: it costs less than Semrush and Ahrefs, has fewer features but is adequate for small and medium-sized businesses.
How to choose between high-volume and long-tail keywords
The distinction between head keywords (1–2 words, high volume, high competition) and long-tail keywords (3+ words, low volume, low competition) is fundamental to planning a realistic strategy. A keyword like "shoes" has millions of monthly searches but is impossible to rank for unless you're Amazon or Zalando. A keyword like "men's running shoes for mild pronation" might have 200 monthly searches, but the person searching for it knows exactly what they want, is much closer to buying and faces far less competition. The concept of keyword difficulty is central: most tools express it on a scale from 0 to 100. For new sites or sites with little authority, aim for keywords with KD below 30. For sites that have built some authority, up to 50. Only sites with a significant backlink history can compete on keywords with KD above 70. A common mistake is obsessing over absolute volume: a keyword with 5,000 searches and KD 25 can bring far more real traffic than one with 50,000 searches and KD 85 that you'll never manage to rank for.
- Low competition — easier to rank
- Clear intent — higher conversions
- Results visible in 3–6 months
- Ideal for new sites or sites with little authority
- Builds topical authority progressively
- Huge volume but extreme competition
- Mixed intent — many visitors don't convert
- Results visible in 12–24+ months
- Requires significant domain authority
- High risk of working for months with no results
Competitor analysis: find the keywords that already work
Competitor analysis is one of the most effective ways to find keyword opportunities. With Semrush or Ahrefs, you can enter a competitor's domain and see exactly which keywords it ranks for, with volume, position and estimated traffic. The goal isn't to copy competitors but to identify: (1) keywords they rank for with mediocre content that you can beat with something better, (2) keywords they rank for and you don't — the so-called keyword gap, (3) keywords that bring competitors a lot of traffic and that you could target with a different approach. Another technique is to analyse competitors' featured snippets: if a competitor holds position zero with a direct-answer paragraph, you can try to take it from them by writing a clearer, more concise and better-structured answer. Google tends to show in the featured snippet the best answer to that specific question, not necessarily the site with the most authority.
Mistakes that undermine keyword research
Keyword research for the Italian market: specifics to consider
The Italian market has some characteristics that make keyword research different from English-speaking markets. Search volumes are structurally lower than in English: an Italian keyword with 1,000 monthly searches is comparable in importance to an English one with 10,000–20,000. This means keywords with apparently low volumes (50–200 searches a month) can have significant SEO value if the intent is commercial and competition is low. Another specific feature is the mixed use of Italian and English terms: in sectors such as digital, marketing and technology, many users search directly in English ("keyword research", "content marketing", "A/B testing") even when the rest of their search is in Italian. Analyse both versions of the same keyword before deciding which one to target. Finally, always consider regional variation: some keywords have significantly different volumes in different Italian regions. For local or regional businesses, adding the city or region to the keyword can drastically reduce competition and increase relevance for the geographical target.
How to build a keyword map from cluster to page
Once the collection and clustering phase is complete, the next step is to build a keyword map — a document that assigns each cluster to a specific page on the site, with the primary and secondary keywords, the type of content to create (article, landing page, service page) and the priority. This document is the backbone of the editorial plan and keeps it clear which page answers which search need. The fundamental rule is one intent = one page: don't create separate content for keywords with the same intent and topic, because they cannibalise each other. Conversely, if two keywords have different intents — even if the topic is similar — they deserve separate pages. For example, "keyword research" (informational: what it is and how to do it) and "keyword research tools" (commercial investigation: which tools to use) have different intents and deserve two distinct pages. A good keyword map also includes supporting keywords: related terms that don't become pages of their own but are included organically in the main page's content to increase its topical relevance in Google's eyes.
An important concept is topical authority: Google rewards sites that cover a topic completely and in depth over sites that cover everything superficially. If you want to rank for competitive keywords in the SEO sector, one article on keyword research isn't enough — you need content on every related aspect: link building, technical optimisation, Core Web Vitals, content marketing, local SEO and so on. Systematic keyword research, cluster by cluster, is the way to build this complete topical coverage in an organised way. Every new article you publish on a sub-topic of your sector strengthens the whole domain's authority on that topic — which is why keyword research isn't just a tool for finding article titles but the strategic foundation of the site's entire organic positioning.
Keyword research for e-commerce: products, categories and navigational terms
For an e-commerce site, keyword research follows a different logic from a content site. Keywords are spread across three hierarchical levels: category keywords (e.g. "men's running shoes"), specific product keywords (e.g. "Nike Air Zoom Pegasus 41") and informational keywords (e.g. "how to choose running shoes"). Category keywords have navigational-transactional intent: the user wants to see the available range. Specific product keywords have purely transactional intent: the user already knows what they want and is looking for where to buy it. Informational keywords sit higher in the purchase funnel: the user is still gathering information before deciding. A complete e-commerce strategy covers all three levels. For specific product keywords, bear in mind that many users search for the exact product name together with modifiers such as "price", "review", "deal" or "best price". Optimising product pages for these combinations can bring traffic with very high purchase intent that competitors ignore.
Effective keyword research requires method, experience with the tools and knowledge of the specific market. If you'd like a strategy based on real data and aligned with your business goals, explore the SEO service or contact me to start with an analysis of the opportunities in your sector.
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