Choosing keywords: how to find the words customers are really searching for

The most popular keyword is almost never the best keyword. Anyone searching for 'marketing' wants information. Anyone searching for 'seo agency amsterdam costs' wants to make a choice. That difference is called search intent, and it determines whether a page generates revenue.

The best keyword list doesn't start in a tool, but in your inbox and phone calls. The phrasing customers use is exactly what they type in. After that, I use search data to check whether there is genuine demand.

Informational ('what is'), comparative ('best', 'versus'), commercial ('costs', 'outsource') and branded (your own name). You need all four, but give commercial searches their own service page and informational questions a knowledge base article. Put them on the same page, and they'll compete with each other.

A keyword with 40 searches a month can be more valuable than one with 4,000, if those 40 people buy. Another important point: low volume doesn't automatically mean ranking is easy — that depends on who is ranking there right now.

Choose one primary keyword per page, plus the variants that mean the same thing. Two pages on the same topic weaken each other; we call this cannibalisation. When in doubt, merge rather than creating something new.

Because I've worked across many industries, I often know in advance which terms generate leads and which ones merely attract browsers. That saves research hours, and those hours are better spent on the copy and the technical side itself.

Start with your inbox and your phone calls: the words your clients use are the exact words they type into search engines. Write them down verbatim.

Next, check whether there is genuine demand for each term and examine the current search results: do you see informational guides or service providers? That tells you which type of page you need to build. Then assign each keyword to exactly one page and map this out, so you don't accidentally create a second page covering the exact same topic later on.

Targeting one short, expensive keyword when specific variations bring in clients faster. Combining comparative and commercial search queries on the same page. And adopting a list straight from a tool without checking the search results yourself.

Also common: using internal jargon that clients never type in.