Seed Keywords: What Are They & 7 Actionable Ways to Find Them

Let’s just get this retired of the mode close now: Seed keywords are not a metallic slug for SEO success.

But they are the instauration of bully keyword research.

Spending a spot of clip to make a bully effect database often results successful amended outputs from keyword tools.

In this guide, you volition larn the following:

• What effect keywords are
• Why they are important 
• Seven actionable methods to find them
• How to make effect keyword list

Seed keywords are words oregon phrases that you tin usage arsenic the starting constituent successful a keyword research process to unlock much keywords. Think of them arsenic the gathering blocks of keyword research.

For example, if you merchantability java online, past you tin usage effect keywords similar coffee, espresso, cappuccino, French press, percolator, etc.

When you driblet these effect phrases into Ahrefs’ Keywords Explorer and navigate to a keyword ideas report, you’ll make millions of imaginable keywords:

After identifying a fewer applicable effect keywords for your website, you tin physique connected them with modifiers to make much keyword ideas.

But wherefore is it important to walk clip processing a bully seed list?

I’m gladsome you asked.

The agelong and abbreviated of it is this:

The output is often lone arsenic bully arsenic the input.

This is existent erstwhile gathering a keyword list. To get the astir from Ahrefs’ Keywords Explorer (and astir SEO tools, for that matter), you request to person the champion inputs.

Identifying effect keywords whitethorn besides assistance you physique retired your topic clusters by finding caller subtopics that you whitethorn not beryllium aware of.

Seed keyword examples

Here are the keywords generated if I driblet successful the effect keyword “mountain bike”:

In the illustration above, Ahrefs generated 264,608 keywords from my azygous effect keyword.

Pretty good. But with much effect keywords, could this beryllium better?

Let’s usage a somewhat much developed effect database this time:

• [mountain bike]
• [mountain biker]
• [mountain biking]
• [MTB]
• [mountain bicycle]
• [hardtail]

And past tally the aforesaid process again:

This time, Ahrefs generated 519,830 keywords.

That’s (let maine conscionable whip retired my abacus) an other 255,222 keywords, and I did truthful by conscionable inputting a fewer much effect keywords.

A batch of articles astir keyword research skip implicit effect keywords successful favour of the much amusive and absorbing parts of the process.

These articles whitethorn connection immoderate vague methods:

• Think about terms associated with your product/service
• Explore related presumption (like long-tail keywords)
• Look astatine your competitors’ keywords

There is thing incorrect with these methods. In fact, immoderate of these I americium going to screen successful this guide.

But I deliberation my constituent inactive stands: These are vague successful presumption of going from zero to a spreadsheet afloat of applicable keyword ideas.

So effort these (hopefully little vague) effect keyword probe methods instead:

1. Brainstorm variations of your people keyword

Sometimes, the champion instrumentality is your brain.

For uncovering effect keywords, commencement by creating a database of evident variations and synonyms of the word you are researching.

This is important due to the fact that of the mode astir keyword probe tools work.

Here’s an example: If you enactment “mountain bike” into Ahrefs’ Keywords Explorer, then you’re not going to spot keyword ideas for the plural “mountain bikes.”

You should besides look for different manufacture presumption during your hunt for effect keywords. While you are already successful Keywords Explorer, you should toggle the “Also speech about” tab (under Related terms report):

This tin beryllium rather utile for uncovering different manufacture terms. It shows keywords that the existent top-ranking pages mention.

One much elemental method for uncovering manufacture presumption is by going to the Wikipedia leafage that is astir intimately related to your topic.

Then simply driblet that URL into Ahrefs’ Site Explorer. Start reviewing the keywords the leafage ranks for and past look for imaginable seeds. I spell into much item astir this method successful my nonfiction connected topic clusters, truthful spell cheque that retired if you want.

Based connected these methods, if you merchantability upland bikes online, past you’ll apt brainstorm words and phrases such as:

• [mountain bike]
• [mountain biking]
• [MTB]
• [mountain bicycle]

These methods whitethorn beryllium a spot harder if you cognize thing astir the niche. In which case, you whitethorn privation to cheque retired competitors to get some ideas.

2. Reverse technologist competitors with Site Explorer

If you are little acquainted with the manufacture and request immoderate ideas, look astatine what keywords related sites are ranking for.

When utilizing Ahrefs’ Site Explorer for uncovering effect terms, I chiefly usage the Organic keywords report and the Top pages report.

Here’s why:

Looking done the Ahrefs integrated keyword information is 1 of the quickest ways to place imaginable effect keywords.

For example, let’s accidental I privation to probe the taxable “beards.”

So first, you privation to prime a tract related to that topic. For the intent of this example, we’ll spell with BeardBrand.

If I look up the integrated keywords it is ranking for, I spot “mutton chops,” which is simply a word that doesn’t instantly travel to caput erstwhile I deliberation of keywords associated with beards:

Had I conscionable utilized the effect “beards” successful Ahrefs’ Keywords Explorer, I would person perchance missed this related term.

Keeping connected the taxable of “beards” and staying wrong the Organic keywords report, I’ll besides adhd a filter to region immoderate keywords that incorporate the connection “beard”:

Why bash this? Because I privation to spot imaginable keywords I whitethorn miss, and this is simply a bully mode to velocity that up.

There are 2 large things astir utilizing this method:

1. Your competitors person done the probe for you, speeding up your work.
2. When you tally retired of ideas, you tin usage Ahrefs to find more competitors and go again.

3. Look astatine the SERPs (like PAA boxes and related searches)

If you are aiming to fertile connected Google—and let’s beryllium honest, you are—one of the champion places to get much accusation is connected the SERPs.

Simply hunt 1 of your effect keyword ideas and poke astir the pages for inspiration.

Here are immoderate things to look at:

People Also Ask

People Also Ask (PAA) boxes are a Google SERP feature. They straight reply questions related to a hunt query. Answers are pulled from webpages, with Google providing a clickable nexus to the source.

In presumption of uncovering seeds, you tin look done PAA boxes for recurring terms:

Related searches

At the bottommost of the SERPs, you’ll find Google’s “related searches,” showing different imaginable hunt presumption related to your archetypal keyword search:

For immoderate searches, you’ll adjacent get a database of related brands to perchance usage as seeds:

Page titles and meta descriptions

Every SEO knows (and should enactment into practice) to adhd the targeted keyword into a page title.

So it makes consciousness that rubric tags tin beryllium a large root of effect keywords:

Don’t neglect to look astatine meta descriptions too. These tin besides incorporate imaginable seeds:

Of course, if you privation to instrumentality it a measurement further, spell to those pages and reappraisal the subheadings for adjacent much imaginable seed terms:

4. Review communities and forums

One of the champion sources for uncovering effect keywords relates to your audience. Specifically, you should look astatine wherever they bent retired online.

Some places to look online:

• Blog comments – Read immoderate questions and comments near connected industry-relevant posts
• Social media – Read posts, comments, and polls successful niche societal media groups
• Niche forums – Read what radical are talking about/asking for successful forums
• Online communities – Read the questions and comments connected online communities, e.g., Quora, Reddit
• Help and enactment – Read done assistance requests and enactment tickets (if you person access) oregon adjacent documentation and different enactment documents

I similar to absorption connected Reddit and niche forums (related to the taxable I’m researching, obviously).

Below, I’ve elaborate much tips for utilizing these to make a seed list.

Reddit

Reddit tin beryllium a goldmine erstwhile doing keyword research. It has a monolithic (and diverse) assemblage you tin usage to find the colonisation of topics.

For example, hunt “bbq” successful Reddit, and you’ll get a clump of subreddits to explore:

Pick a subreddit and past driblet the URL into Ahrefs’ Site Explorer. Go to the Organic keywords reportto spot if determination are immoderate worthwhile seeds:

Forums

With the emergence of Facebook groups, Slack channels, and different online communities, niche forums aren’t utilized arsenic overmuch anymore. However, they tin inactive beryllium a bully root of keyword data.

Popular forums, adjacent if present outdated, volition person a clump of ranking pages that you tin look into.

To find niche-relevant forums, you tin usage these (very) elemental Google hunt operators: 

[intitle:forum keyword] or [inurl:forum keyword]

Using these, I recovered this hiking forum, which is different imaginable “seed keyword” source:

Take the URL and tally it done Site Explorer. Then caput implicit to the Organic keywords report:

5. List retired products/services/brands associated with your keywords

Listing products oregon services associated with your keyword tin beryllium a truly elemental mode to find seeds.

Example: For Apple, this tin beryllium “iphone,” “ipad,” “mac,” etc.

To find products and services associated with your keywords, conscionable commencement Googling and looking for niche-specific sites with related offerings.

However, this method tin beryllium casual oregon hard, depending connected however good you cognize the niche you are moving in.

But don’t worry. Here are immoderate elemental methods to stitchery products/services/brands:

• List posts – Google [seed keyword] + “brands” and marque a enactment of marque presumption successful listicles
• E‑commerce sites – Go to a tract similar Amazon (or a niche-relevant store) and look astatine the facets
• Affiliate posts – Google “best” [seed keyword] and spot what products affiliates are promoting

Let’s accidental my hunt word is [coffee “brands”]. Once I person immoderate brand terms, I tin transcript those, paste them into Ahrefs’ Keywords Explorer, and spell cheque retired the Matching terms report:

In all, 65,177 keywords are generated from 18 effect keywords. Not atrocious for an further 30 seconds of work.

6. Look astatine website navigation menus

Looking astatine navigation menus works good (especially for e‑commerce sites).

For example, let’s accidental you are doing keyword probe for an online bodybuilding store with a absorption connected whey protein.

If you cheque retired the menus of ample e‑commerce stores successful the space, you’ll find imaginable seeds:

Sometimes, “website navigation” menus whitethorn not beryllium adjuvant for uncovering effect terms. In these cases, it’s worthy checking retired top-level class pages.

These often database retired the droids seeds you are looking for.

For example, if I’m looking for upland biking seeds, this class leafage volition beryllium useful:

7. Review presumption successful Google Search Console

If you are trying to make a effect keyword database from a tract you person entree to (aka your tract oregon your clients’), you tin and should look astatine keywords successful Google Search Console (GSC).

Here’s how:

1. Open up GSC and spell to Performance
2. Select Queries
3. Review the presumption you are ranking for

You tin besides usage Ahrefs Webmaster Tools here. While GSC shows the apical 1,000 keywords your tract is ranking for, AWT shows all known keywords.

Whichever method you take to use, you should look for keywords you are ranking for but not actively targeting.

Then you tin origin these into your keyword probe program oregon spot if determination are opportunities to find much presumption (using them as seeds).

Think of the methods listed successful this nonfiction similar a buffet menu.

You don’t request to usage each these methods each clip you bash keyword research. You whitethorn get capable effect keywords by utilizing conscionable a fewer methods. Hence, conscionable prime the ones you similar and accommodate them to your workflow.

Once you’ve settled connected the methods you like, it’s clip to commencement pulling them unneurotic to make a list.

Putting unneurotic a effect keyword database and past utilizing it to bash keyword probe whitethorn look like this:

1. Find effect keywords utilizing the methods that enactment for you/your niche
2. Plug seeds into Ahrefs’ Keywords Explorer to make a database of ideas
3. Filter down your keyword opportunities into a usable list
4. Evaluate your choices (based connected relevance, intent, volume, difficulty, etc)

Final thoughts

Building a database of effect keywords gives you a coagulated instauration to physique connected arsenic you bash your keyword research.

Seed keywords aren’t a substitute for doing bully keyword research. But they bash summation the chances of you uncovering much usable terms.

Got a question connected processing a effect database oregon keyword probe successful general? Tweet me.