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Module 2: Keyword Research by Hand

Keywords are simply the words your customers type into Google. You don't need an expensive tool to find them — your customers' own language, Google's autocomplete, the "People Also Ask" box, and your Search Console data will hand you a better list than most paid reports. This module shows you the manual process, then how to pick the keywords you can actually win.

10–20

seed keywords to start with

free research tools (autocomplete, PAA, Search Console)

100–1k

monthly searches — the small-site sweet spot

Brainstorming seed keywords from your customers' language

Start with a blank page and your memory of real customers — not marketing jargon. Write down the exact words people use when they describe their problem to you. A plumber's customers don't say "residential water conveyance solutions"; they say "my water heater is leaking from the bottom." Those exact phrases are your seed keywords: the 20–30 starting phrases you'll expand in the next lesson. Aim for four buckets: the services you sell ("emergency plumber"), the problems you solve ("water heater leaking from bottom"), your locations ("plumber in Maplewood"), and comparisons people make ("tank vs tankless water heater").

Tip

Three places to mine for phrasing if your memory runs dry. First, your inbox and contact forms — copy the subject lines and questions verbatim; customers literally tell you their search terms when they email you. Second, the questions people ask on the phone before booking — keep a running note for two weeks and you'll have a dozen phrases. Third, reviews of your business and competitors: reviewers describe what they needed in plain words ("needed someone to fix a burst pipe on a Sunday"). Write everything down without filtering — "too obvious" phrases like "plumber near me" are exactly what real people type, and obvious is good. You'll end this lesson with a messy list of 20–30 phrases in a simple document or spreadsheet. Messy is fine; the next lesson turns it into a researched list.

Steal this template

Keyword worksheet — copy and fill in:

Seed keyword: ___
What customers actually ask: "___"
Longer version (3+ words): ___
Local version (+ city): ___
Monthly searches (rough): ___
Can I win this? ☐ Yes ☐ Someday ☐ Never

Repeat for 10–20 seeds. "Yes" pile = your content plan.

Your path

Services you sell
"emergency plumber"
Problems you solve
"water heater leaking from bottom"
Your locations
"plumber in Maplewood"
Comparisons people make
"tank vs tankless water heater"

Build brief

Write down the exact words your customers use to describe their problem — not your industry jargon, their words. Aim for ten phrases.

Free tools — autocomplete, People Also Ask, Search Console queries

Take each seed keyword and run it through three free sources. 1. Google autocomplete: type your seed into Google without pressing Enter and note every suggestion. Then try the seed followed by each letter a–z ("emergency plumber a", "emergency plumber b") — each one surfaces a new batch of real searches. The underscore trick works too: "best _ plumber" reveals what people put in the blank. Write down everything relevant; each suggestion is a phrase real people typed often enough for Google to suggest it. 2. People Also Ask: search your seed and open the "People Also Ask" box. Click a question and two or three more appear beneath it — keep clicking for five minutes and you'll collect 15–20 genuine questions your content can answer. 3. Related searches: scroll to the bottom of the results page for eight more phrases you hadn't thought of.

If your site already gets any traffic, the fourth source is the best one: Search Console's queries report. Open Search Console → Performance, and look at the actual search terms bringing impressions. Sort by impressions, then filter to queries where your average position is between 8 and 30 — these are phrases where Google already considers you relevant and a better page could push you onto page one. Note each promising phrase next to the page that's currently ranking for it. Between autocomplete, People Also Ask, related searches, and your own query data, a diligent afternoon produces 100–200 candidate keywords. That's more than enough to plan six months of content.

Build brief

Which of your services or products makes you the most money — and what would someone search to find exactly that offering?

Picking keywords you can actually win

Common mistake

Targeting "best plumber" (impossible for a new site) instead of "emergency plumber marlowe" (winnable this quarter). New sites win by stacking small, specific keywords — not by charging the biggest hill on day one.

Build brief

Look at your keyword list: which three could you realistically win in the next six months, and what makes those three winnable for you?

In the next 24 hours

Brainstorm 20 seed keywords from real customer questions — what they ask on the phone, in emails, in reviews. Write them down before opening any tool.

You run a brand-new local bakery website with no backlinks yet. Which keyword should you target first?

Your turn: List ten phrases your customers would type into Google — in their words, not yours.