There’s a part of learning how to execute on search engine optimization that becomes far too wrapped up in choosing this SEO tool or that SEO tool. The reality is that you don’t NEED a tool for keyword research. They are meant to simplify, collate and gather data but if you’re learning SEO, have no budget or need to prove a concept to a CEO before they will allocate a minimal budget for helpful keyword research tools, you CAN do the job without a single paid tool or SEO SAAS.

Speak with your salespeople, read support emails, tickets, and chat logs, speak with product managers and start-ups, and speak with your founder and CEO.

Wondering what to ask?

Consider recording conversations and taking notes, if possible. Identify distinct words or phrases that stand out to better understand the needs, preferences, and best-in-class product/service choices of your clients.

  • Introduce those queries and keyphrases to Google.
  • If anything interesting appears in the Suggest form, copy and paste it, along with what appears in the People Also Ask section.
  • Include in a Google Sheet.
  • Organize your keywords and queries into groups.
  • Make headlines, then assign them to writers.

That’s it for this #Seobits, I hope you learned something new. Please share your thoughts in the comments section.

Categories: SEO

Jeremy Rivera

Jeremy Rivera started in SEO in 2007, working at Advanced Access a hosting company for Realtors. He came up from the support department, where people kept asking "How do I rank in Google" and found in the process of answering that question an entire career. He became SEO product manager of Homes.com, went "in-house" at Raven Tools in Nashville in 2013. He then worked at several agencies like Caddis, 2 The Top Design as an SEO manager and then launched a 5 year freelance SEO career. During that time he consulted for large enterprise sites like Smile Direct Club, Dr. Axe, HCA, Logan's Roadhouse and Captain D's while also helping literally hundreds of small business owners get found in search results. He has authored blog posts at Authority Labs, Raven Tools, Wix, Search Engine Land. He has been a speaker at many SEO conferences like Craft Content and been interviewed in numerous SEO focused podcasts.