What methods do you use to research and identify the most relevant topics and keywords that work well with a target audience in a competitive niche?

There are several major angles to approach keyword harvesting from.

When we build professional content plans for our clients, we explore the following sources for keyword research:

1. Competition research

Use a keyword tool like Ahrefs.com to find the keywords that send the most traffic to your competitors.

The “top pages” report is extremely valuable here - load it and check the exact keywords that send organic traffic to the highest-traffic pages.

Please note, that not every business competitor is your SEO competitor, and vice versa, not every top result on Google is your direct competitor.

With this method, focus on the SEO competition, i.e. sites getting the most traffic in your niche, even if they are unrelated sites like educational portals or newspapers.

2. Keyword research

I’m talking about actual keyword research from the ground up - start with your main “seed” keywords and add all related phrases to your list.

3. Google Search Console data

If you have a relatively large body of content (200+ pages) that has been indexed for a while, chances are you have accumulated tons of valuable impressions data on Google Search Console.

An audit of this data will show you a lot of great search queries that your audience uses and your site gets impressions for. Once you examine them carefully you can find great ideas for new posts.

The beauty of this is you are using first-hand data that no third-party tools will ever give you, and it's a very cheap way to maximize the effectiveness of the content you already paid for and published.

We offer a unique GSC audit service designed specifically for larger and older sites (send me a message to see if you qualify!)

Most of our clients see a ±20% traffic increase in several months after implementing the audit suggestions.

4. Google Trends

This is a great way to find rising trends in your niche - just paste the main “seed” keyword and click around to build your list:

https://trends.google.com/trends/

5. "SEO-less" keywords

These are the keywords that may not have SEO value yet, but they matter to your target market and will help you produce the so-called thought leadership content.

Follow industry newsletters, reports, and news - and jump on

If you have about 15% of your content plan slots dedicated to these keywords - you will outperform your competition.

Naturally, you need to be audience- and market-centric with your content planning.

Once you get your main list of keywords, go through them manually and start with those that make the most sense in relation to your business goals.

If you need help building a content plan for your blog, reach out to us today!

The importance of keyword research is often overlooked. It's essential because every niche is competitive. If there was no competition you probably would not be in the space.

I like to place keyword research at the front of the content marketing. Today there are lots of tools but when you ask about methods, this is more strategic and I think the best way to proceed.

You have to "be the demographic." This means know everything about the target audience in this competitive niche. Use competitors to your advantage. See which keywords they are ranking for and where their backlinks are coming from. Make a list. Then create new content or improve your existing posts.
 

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What is your unique perspective on the subject? Can you provide better visuals? Add video or an infographic for visual learners. What are they missing in their content (read the comments and reviews) and then add more detail.  

Here is a method that works (but you need to test in your own environment): 

1. Start with the big dog. Utilize audience insights from Google Analytics 4 (GA4). Make sure the pixel is installed and working on your website. Add some social media listening tools to better understand the interests of the target audience. Hit up the online forums, social platforms, and hyper-niche audiences on Reddit and Quora. 

2. Focus on long-tail keywords. They typically have less competition and higher conversion rates. This means you can rank faster. Targeting specific queries can help establish you as an authority in your niche.

3. Utilize keyword research tools such as Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, SEMrush and Neil Patel's Ubersuggest. There are paid and free versions so budget accordingly. But I find these are all great tools to identify relevant keywords and phrases based on search volume, competition and trends.

Finally, stay current. We are in a fast-moving time. Data, topics and trends change by the hour. Use platforms like Google Trends, social media (the favorites of your target audience) and industry news updates. In a competitive niche you want to make sure your content stays fresh and relevant.

Good luck in the space, and if you have other questions be sure to reach out.