How to find the words your customers type into Google

Write the site with the words customers use, not the words the business uses. You do not need paid tools to find them: start with what people already ask you, confirm it on Google itself and, once the site has visitors, read in Search Console the searches that brought them. The wording and the intent matter more than the volume.

Four free sources, from the most reliable to the least

1 The questions people ask you. Go back over messages, calls and what customers say at the counter. Collect the ten most repeated questions, in the exact words of whoever asked. It is the most reliable source because it comes from people who buy.
2 Google’s suggestions. Start typing the service into the search box and read the suggestions underneath. Add a letter and see what changes. Each suggestion is something many people type.
3 “People also ask” and related searches. They appear in the results and at the bottom of the page. They are real questions and variations, and each one gives you the subject of a page or an article.
4 Search Console. Under Performance, the list of queries shows what people typed before reaching the site. Pages that appear but are rarely clicked need a better title; unexpected queries suggest new pages. See getting your site into Search Console.

Choose the word by the intent behind it

What the person wants How they usually type it Which page answers it
To know “how”, “why”, “what is” An article or a help page
To compare “best”, “difference between”, “or” A buying guide, with criteria
To buy or hire the service + “price”, “quote”, “near me” The service page, with a visible contact request
To reach a place the name of the business or a brand The home page and the business profile

Someone who types “how to change a domain” wants an explanation, not a sales page. Putting a sales page in front of them is the most common reason a site shows up and does not earn.

Putting the words in the right place

Pick one main idea per page and use it in the title, the first paragraph, one subheading and the page address, naturally. Then write as if explaining to a customer: variations and synonyms turn up by themselves. For the title and description, see writing a page title and description.

Do not repeat the same word to “please Google”. Text with the phrase in every sentence reads badly, drives customers away and no longer works. Two pages fighting over the same word also get in each other’s way: give each its own subject. The hidden keywords field (meta keywords) is no longer used by Google to rank results.
The numbers in keyword tools are estimates. Use them to compare topics against each other, not to promise visits. A rarely searched but very specific query often brings more customers than a generic, crowded one.

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SEE ALSO

Writing a page title and description

A blog that brings visitors

Getting your site into Search Console

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