How to do Keyword Research | 5 simple steps
Why keyword research? Keyword research in search marketing is the process of identifying and analyzing the specific terms and phrases your target audience uses when searching online, so you can create content or ads that match what they’re looking for. We do it because it shows: What your audience wants (their problems, questions, buying signals) How competitive each topic is (Keyword Difficulty) Estimated search volume and revenue opportunities lie In short, keyword research ensures you’re building content for demand that already exists instead of guessing. How to do keyword research (step by step) Step 1: Set Objective(s) Start by setting clear objectives: decide whether you’re after traffic, leads, sales, or thought leadership — then define your target region, language, audience’s pain points, marketing channels, desired outcomes, and any practical limits, such as content types you can produce. Step 2: Brainstorm topics and seeding keywords What is seed keyword? A seed keyword is a broad, core term that defines your main topic, industry, or niche, serving as the starting point for generating more specific and targeted keyword variations. For instance, “dog food” is a seed keyword that can be used to generate more specific ideas later. At this step, you can think about 5–10 main categories relevant to your business or website. For example, a dog food retailer might list topics like “puppy care,” “pet food,” and “dog health”. Step 3: Expand your seed keyword lists with keyword research tools Once you have your seed keywords, use research tools to find related keywords, including long-tail phrases. As usual, I’ll list an arsenal of keyword research tools (both subscription-based and free) later in my article. What’s a long-tail keyword A long-tail keyword is a more specific, usually longer search phrase that targets a narrower audience but often has lower competition and higher conversion potential. Long-tail keywords are usually three words or more, though the real indicator is specificity, not just word count. Example short keyword (broad): “crypto card”. It’s typically used as your seed keyword. Example long-tail keyword (specific): “white label crypto card solution pricing” Step 4: Analyze keywords based on keyword research metrics In step 4, you may need to understand the following terms: Search Volume: Estimated times a keyword is searched per month. High volume means more potential traffic but also more competition. Keyword Difficulty (or SEO Difficulty in Ubersuggest): An estimate of how hard it will be to rank for a given keyword, based on competitor authority and backlinks. Search Intent: the purpose behind a search query. 4 main types of search intent: Most major SEO tools (like Semrush, Ahrefs, and Ubersuggest) categorize keywords into these four search intents Informational The user wants to learn something or gain general knowledge on a topic. e.g., “What is a stablecoin?”/ “What is web3?” Page titles for this intent often include words like ‘how,’ ‘what,’ ‘who,’ ‘where,’ ‘why,’ ‘guide,’ ‘tutorial,’ ‘resource,’ ‘help,’ ‘ideas,’ ‘tips,’ ‘learn,’ ‘examples,’ and ‘understanding’. Navigational The user is looking for some specific websites or has an end destination in mind e.g., “circle.com login”/ “circle.com’s USDC”. This usually includes brand names, a product’s name, or the name of the service. Commercial The user is researching before buying or searching for information on a future purchase e.g., “USDT vs USDC”/ “best stablecoins in crypto market 2025”. Page titles for this intent often include words like ‘Best’, ‘Top 5’, ‘pricing’, ‘Review’, ‘Attribute of a product’, and ‘Comparison’. Transactional The user is ready to buy or is showing purchase intention e.g., “buy stablecoins/ buy USDT”. Search queries like ‘buy,’ ‘coupon,’ ‘order,’ ‘pet-friendly cafe in Mount Austin,’ ‘purchase,’ ‘cheap,’ and ‘pricing’ usually signal buying intent. Pro: Search Intent Matching Align your content closely with user intent for each query. AI-driven search results prioritize the best answers, not just the highest-ranking pages. Research shows that only about 52% of sources cited in Google’s AI Overviews come from the top 10 results, nearly half are from beyond page one. This means that if your content provides a clear, intent-focused answer or unique insight, it can still be cited by AI even without a top organic ranking. Step 5: Start your content writing This final step organizes your research into an actionable content plan. First, group related keywords into clusters to guide your topics. For example, a cluster for “organic dog food” might include “best organic dog food,” “what is organic dog food,” and “benefits of organic food for dogs”. Next, assign each cluster to a specific page or article. Lastly, schedule content creation in a calendar; you may start with low-difficulty, high-value keywords for optimal results. SEO actionable tips: Use your competitor’s keyword Benchmark a few top players in your industry or niche, and start keyword research based on their website. Most top SEO tools include a Keyword Gap or Content Gap feature that shows which keywords your competitors rank for — and you don’t. Filter out branded terms to avoid irrelevant results, then export the remaining keywords into a spreadsheet. Benchmark their content quality and coverage, and apply the skyscraper technique: create a resource that’s deeper, fresher, and more valuable than theirs to capture that search traffic. Keyword modifiers A keyword modifier is a word or phrase you add to a seed keyword to make it more specific, such as adding “near me,” “Location or Region,” “best,” or “2025” to refine the search intent. Most keywords can be transformed into local search queries by using keyword modifiers. For example: ‘French restaurant near me’ or ‘dental clinic in Orchard Road. You can also add the ‘5W1H’ to turn the seed keyword into a question-based query. Example of keyword modifiers Informational keyword modifiers: how, what, why, who, where, guide, tutorial, resource, ideas, tips, learn, examples Transactional keyword modifiers: buy coupon, order, purchase, cheap, affordable, price, pricing Commercial keyword modifiers: top, best, vs, comparison, review, popular Location keyword modifiers: near me, near Johor Bahru, at Petaling Jaya, in Bangkok Now let’s move on to keyword research tools, both paid and free. Keyword Research Tools (Paid) 1. Semrush
SEO Encyclopedia: Must-Know Terms & Concepts Explained
SEO “SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is the process of improving a website’s visibility on search engines like Google. It helps your site rank higher in search results to attract more organic (non-paid) traffic.” My Explanation While the above is an academic or scholarly kind of definition, in my own words (with at least 4 years of experience in SEO and digital marketing), I would explain it as: How easy is it for your business, website, or social profile to be found by your online audience. It’s not just about search engines — it applies to social media platforms too. In this article, I’ll walk you through all the SEO terms, concepts, and strategies I’ve learned throughout my career. The practical, function-based category 1. On Page SEO On-page SEO is the practice of optimizing individual web pages to improve their rankings and attract relevant traffic from search engines. It includes optimizing content, meta tags, internal linking, and proper keyword placement. SEO personnel must master on-page SEO and have a basic understanding of HTML structure, especially how to craft SEO-friendly web pages, blog posts, and articles. Other skills involve keyword and topic research, and content structuring. Essential tools: Google Analytics (GA), Google Search Console (GSC), Google Trends, and Keyword Planner. Popular paid tools: Semrush, Ahrefs, Ubersuggest, Similarweb, Sitechecker, Moz, or Backlinko. If your website is built with WordPress, SEO personnel should also know how to use SEO plugins such as Rank Math, Yoast SEO, or AIOSEO. These tools typically provide an SEO score based on your target keywords for each page. 2. Off Page SEO Off-page SEO refers to all SEO efforts done outside of your website to improve its search rankings and authority. This includes link building, digital press releases, guest blogging, content collaborations, and promoting your pages through social media or email. In simple terms, it’s everything you do beyond your website to boost its credibility. (How to make search engines trust you’re the expert in your niche) Key skills: identifying relevant websites with good domain authority and executing effective email outreach. Suggest reading: How to get backlinks & Link Building Strategy 3. Technical SEO Technical SEO is the process of optimizing a website’s infrastructure to help search engines crawl, index, and render it more efficiently. It typically involves tasks like monitoring Core Web Vitals, improving site speed, setting up 301 redirects, fixing broken links, and conducting full site audits to identify technical issues. In layman’s terms, technical SEO works like a website doctor — it diagnoses what’s wrong with a site and helps fix those issues to keep it healthy and running smoothly. Since many SEO professionals come from marketing backgrounds, they often need to collaborate closely with developers or the dev team to implement these technical changes. Site Audit tools: Screaming Frog, Google Search Console, Semrush, Ahrefs, Ubersuggest, or other SEO platforms with their site crawlers. Site speed monitoring tools: Google PageSpeed Insights, GTmetrix, Pingdom Website Speed Test, and more. 4. Local SEO Local SEO is the process of optimizing your business to appear in local search results, especially for location-based queries like “French restaurant near me” or “dentist in Bangsar South.” It’s essential for brick-and-mortar businesses or any company with a physical location. By optimizing your Google Business Profile (GBP), you can appear on Google Maps, Waze, and even in the Google Knowledge Panel. Bonus tip: Get listed on local citation sites like Yelp, Yellow Pages, or local directories to boost visibility. Tools: Google Business Profile (GBP), local directories/ citation sites Further Reading: Local SEO Guide for brick-and-mortar businesses 5. Image SEO Image SEO is the practice of optimizing images to load faster, increase searchability, and enhance overall page performance and visibility on Google Image Search. A SEO-friendly image should be under 200KB, compressed, and converted from traditional formats like JPEG or PNG to modern types like WebP or AVIF. Always rename the file and add descriptive, diverse alt text before uploading — this helps with search visibility and future library management while avoiding keyword stuffing. In short, Image Search Engine Optimization (Image SEO) is primarily concerned with image file size, file type, and image alt text. Tools: image compressors and file type converters 6. International SEO International SEO is the process of optimizing your website to rank in different countries and languages. It involves correctly implementing hreflang tags using standardized country and language codes (e.g., /en-us for U.S. visitors, /en-gb for U.K. visitors, /jp for Japanese users) to ensure the right content reaches the right audience. Sometimes, it may also include optimizing for country-specific search engines like Baidu or Sogou (China), Yandex (Russia), and Naver (Korea). Know-how: hreflang implementation. Further Reading: Baidu SEO Tips How to hire a decent seo specialist: tips for hiring manager When hiring an SEO specialist, on-page SEO is a must. A skilled SEO professional should have at least 3 out of the 6 practical SEO skills mentioned above. The theoretical, factions, concept-based category 7. White Hat SEO White Hat SEO refers to ethical, search-engine-approved practices that focus on long-term results and user experience. It follows official guidelines from sources like Google Webmaster Guidelines, Bing Webmaster Guidelines, and is advocated by top industry names such as SEMrush, Ahrefs, Neil Patel, Matt Diggity, Search Engine Journal, Rank Math, Yoast, and so on. If you’re applying the six core SEO skills mentioned earlier, you’re already practicing White Hat SEO. 8. Black Hat SEO Black Hat SEO refers to unethical or manipulative tactics used to trick search engines for quick rankings, often violating official guidelines. Common practices include keyword stuffing, cloaking, and tactics like hiding keywords by matching font color to the background—an old-school trick used in the early 2000s to fool crawlers while staying invisible to human visitors. Common Black Hat tactics: Keyword Stuffing Cloaking Hidden Text or Links Doorway Pages Private blog networks (PBNs) Duplicate Content Comment Spam Clickbait Meta Tags Overloading a page with target keywords unnaturally to manipulate rankings. Showing one version of a webpage to search engines and a different one
How to get Backlinks | Link Building & Off-Page SEO Strategy
What are Backlinks? Backlinks are like votes of trust from one website to another. When a site links to your content, it’s telling search engines like Google, Bing, or Baidu, “Hey, this page is valuable.” The more quality backlinks you earn, the more credible and popular your site appears in the eyes of search engines—just like winning a trust-based popularity contest. Note that “not all backlinks are made equal.“ High-authority and relevant links carry more weight. For example, a backlink from a site with Domain Authority (DA) 50 is more valuable than one from a site with DA 5. What Makes a Good Backlink? How to Evaluate Link Quality: High-quality backlinks have the following criteria: 1. Relevance A high-quality backlink should be relevant in multiple ways: Industry relevance – The referring website is in the same or a related niche. Local relevance – The website targets the same country, region, or market. Topical/keyword relevance – The linking page covers a topic closely related to your content. (Tip: Check which keywords the referring domain ranks for.) 2. Organic Traffic Trend Review the referring domain’s organic traffic trend over time. Avoid websites that have experienced a sharp drop to near-zero traffic, as they may have been penalized by Google or deindexed. Backlinks from a noindexed URL are useless. 3. Content Quality Choose websites that maintain high editorial standards and consistently publish valuable, original content (like the articles on my website 😁). High-quality content increases the trustworthiness and value of your backlink. 4. Link Placement Where your backlink appears matters. Contextual links placed naturally within the main content are generally far more valuable than links in the footer, sidebar, author bio, or pop-ups. 5. Link Attribute A dofollow backlink generally passes link equity, while nofollow, UGC, and sponsored links typically pass little or no ranking signals. 6. Authority Look for websites with decent domain authority (e.g., DA, DR, or Authority Score) and pages with good page-level authority, as they are more likely to pass valuable link equity. 7. Anchor Text Keep your anchor text natural and relevant. Avoid over-optimizing with exact-match keywords. The key is to maintain a diverse and natural anchor text profile. Further Reading: How to Determine if a Link is Good or Bad 8 Types of Bad Links to Avoid Is your SEO agency helping? 4 types of Links attribute There are 4 main types of link attributes defined by the rel value in HTML. These help search engines understand the purpose of a link: 1. Follow – Passes SEO value (link equity) to the linked page. By default, if no rel attribute is set. Example: <a href=”https://example.com”>Visit</a> 2. NoFollow – Tells search engines not to pass link equity. Still good to have for traffic and brand exposure. Example: <a href=”https://example.com” rel=”nofollow”>Visit</a> 3. UGC (User Generated Content) – Used for links in user-generated content like blog comments or forum posts. Example: <a href=”https://example.com” rel=”ugc”>Visit</a> 4. Sponsored – Used for paid or affiliate links to indicate the link was part of an advertisement or sponsorship. Example: <a href=”https://example.com” rel=”sponsored”>Visit</a> While nofollow links pass less SEO value, they still contribute to a natural and diverse backlink profile. What is Off-Page SEO? Off-page SEO refers to all the actions taken outside your own website to improve its rankings on search engines. This includes building backlinks, increasing brand mentions, social media signals, and improving your site’s overall authority and trustworthiness in the eyes of search engines. In short, it’s about boosting your site’s reputation beyond just what’s on the page. On-Page SEO vs. Off-Page SEO On-Page SEO focuses on optimizing elements within your website, such as content, title tags, meta descriptions, headings, images, internal links, and page speed. Off-Page SEO focuses on improving your website’s authority and reputation through activities outside your website, such as earning backlinks, digital PR, brand mentions, and social signals. The Four Pillars of SEO Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is generally built on three core pillars: On-Page SEO, Off-Page SEO, and Technical SEO. For businesses targeting a specific geographic area, Local SEO is often considered the fourth pillar. Technical SEO – Optimizing your website’s technical foundation so search engines can efficiently crawl, index, and render your pages. This includes site speed, mobile-friendliness, XML sitemaps, structured data, Core Web Vitals, and more. Local SEO (for local businesses) – Optimizing your online presence to improve visibility in local search results and Google Maps. This includes your Google Business Profile, local citations, reviews, and location-specific content. Further reading: SEO Encyclopedia What is Link Building Link building is the process of acquiring backlinks from other websites to your own. In practice, it often involves building relationships with relevant website owners, publishers, journalists, or businesses who are willing to link to your content because it provides value to their audience. Explore 25 link-building strategies and see how I rank each of them in my personal S-to-F tier list. How To How to get backlinks? 4 common methods There are generally 4 methods of getting links to your site: Create, Earn, Buy, and Ask. 1. Create (Directly adding links) You can create backlinks by placing them on directories, social media profiles and posts, forums, or in email marketing campaigns. While this method is easy to execute and offers lower SEO value compared to earned backlinks, it’s still a must-do as part of your overall branding strategy. 2. Earn (Highest SEO value) Earned backlinks come naturally when you create high-quality, useful content that others want to reference. This includes content that demonstrates E-E-A-T (Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness), supported by infographics, original data, or valuable insights. These links are the most valuable and relevant, as they’re based on merit and content value. Tips: Create linkable content that people naturally want to reference and share. Examples include how-to articles, in-depth guides, helpful resources, unique or weird insights, profound thoughts, and content backed by data or research. 3. Ask (Email Outreach) Usually, this is done by emailing other website owners or editors and asking them to link to your content (also known as editorial