Lecture Notes: Conducting Keyword Research with SEMrush

Introduction

• Objective: Assess potential new markets using SEMrush tools for keyword research.
• Focus: Identify new topics and assess potential search traffic in new markets.

Importance of Keyword Research

• Helps in identifying potential new topics.
• Assesses potential search traffic if ranking well.
• Assesses market-specific search volume and interest.
• Identifies competitors in new markets.

Key SEMrush Features for Keyword Research

1. Organic Research Report

• Purpose: Evaluate current performance and potential in new markets.
• Steps:
  • Enter your domain to see current rankings.
  • Check performance in target markets (e.g., UK) even without localized content.
  • Identify existing value and base for new markets.
  • Discover new variations, subtopics, and patterns.
  • Note competitors ranking for same queries.

2. Keyword Gap Report

• Purpose: Compare your site with competitors in target markets.
• Steps:
  • Add competitors who are traffic leaders in the market.
  • Identify popular queries and additional variations.
  • Obtain search volumes for queries.
  • Assess competitor optimization, popularity, and authority.
• Goal: Ensure you are competitive enough to rank in the mid to long term.

3. Keyword Magic Tool

• Purpose: Analyze keyword difficulty and performance.
• Steps:
  • Input main topic and domain for target market.
  • Use personalized keyword difficulty metrics.
  • Find terms with potential for ranking improvement.
  • Identify relevant subtopics and navigation sections.

Key Strategies

• Leverage SEMrush features to identify topics, keywords, queries, and opportunities.
• Assess the total addressable market in terms of search volume.
• Analyze competitive landscape and benchmark against competitors.

Language Considerations

• Importance of native language support for non-native markets.
• Automated tools may be insufficient.
• Native speakers with industry knowledge can ensure accurate keyword translation.

Conclusion

• Use SEMrush effectively to explore and assess new market opportunities.
• Monitor competitors and identify gaps to close in your own strategy.
• Consider linguistic and cultural nuances when expanding to new markets.