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How can you come up with a month’s or maybe even six months’ worth of content based on keyword research and bring in hundreds of thousands of visitors?
You can do this on autopilot. Let me show you how.
In this blog post, I’m going to talk about keyword research tools — the secret to unlocking untapped gold mines of search terms and phrases that people use online.
And then I’ll guide you through my step-by-step process of turning these keywords into rank-ready blog posts — all in just a few clicks!
Let’s jump right in.
Table Of Contents:
- 6 Best Keyword Research Tools for Blog Posts
- 1. BrandWell: Find Topics and Keywords
- 2. BrandWell: Build Topic Clusters
- 3. ChatGPT: Brainstorm Ideas
- 4. Google Trends: Track What’s Popular Right Now
- 5. Google Search Console: Discover Keyword Opportunities
- 6. Google Keyword Planner: Pull Data Straight From The Source
- 7. AnswerThePublic: Address Burning Questions from Your Audience
- FAQs – What is the Best Keyword Tool
- Conclusion
6 Best Keyword Research Tools for Blog Posts
The first step for any good blog post is keyword research. There are plenty of tools out there — both free and paid — that are dedicated to keyword research.
I recommend avoiding free tools like the plague. They just don’t give you the accurate data that you need to target the right keywords.
Now paid tools are great, but they can be very expensive. Would you pay $130 to $500 a month just for keyword research?
I don’t know about you but I’m not a fan of cobbling a bajillion tools, creating a 17-page SOP, and hiring an army of writers just to get my blog posts out there.
What I want is an all-in-one tool that does everything, which is why I subscribed to BrandWell even before joining the company. It’s the single AI tool that saved me seven hours out of an eight-hour SEO blogging process.
You can do both keyword research AND blog generation without ever leaving the app.
BrandWell’s RankWell includes keyword research, AI content generation, topic clusters, topic reports, and optimization audits — essentially everything you need for as low as $250 a month.
Every step, from keyword research all the way to a complete blog post published on your website, is done for you by AI — saving you incredible amounts of time and cost.
This is why BrandWell is at the top of my list of the best keyword research tools.
Let’s jump into the process.
1. BrandWell: Find Topics and Keywords
BrandWell is primarily known for its industry-leading AI writer that can turn out long-form, humanlike content within minutes. By adding a robust keyword research tool to complement its amazing content producer suite, it has become a truly complete content marketing solution that’s purposely built for SEO.
Key Features:
- Ease of Use: The BrandWell keyword research tool stands out for its simplicity. Unlike many of the expensive paid platforms, BrandWell lets you dig deep into keyword data without getting lost in complexities.
- Accurate Data: BrandWell pulls data in real-time from Mangools, one of the most trusted SEO tools for marketers.
- Automatic Content Generation: Because this keyword generator is part of the RankWell content producer suite, you can create long-form content around each keyword in just one click.
- Topic Clustering: Group related keywords into clusters and build hub-and-spoke content structures. Topic clustering allows you to create pillar content along with individual blog posts on subtopics to boost your topical authority.
To begin your research, log in to BrandWell, click Start Writing, click Research, then choose Keyword Research.
Type in your seed keyword and click “Generate Keywords”.
The results page will display keyword suggestions, monthly search volume, keyword difficulty, cost per click, and trends. The best keywords to target are those with low competition (preferably under 40) and enough monthly searches.
When choosing a seed keyword, you want it to be very clear and consistent with what you actually do or sell because that builds topical authority.
If you veer into different topic areas, you will never build topical authority and you might even create a void and not get found in search.
For example, if I’m selling content marketing as a service, my seed keyword would literally be “content marketing”. I sell an AI blogging course so my topics are all around AI and blogging.
Now that you have your keywords, what do you do with all these terms?
These phrases will be the foundation of your blog posts. Traditionally, you’d hire a writer and get them to create content around your keywords and manually publish them on your WordPress blog or website.
Now we have all these AI writing tools to automate this task.
The best thing about the BrandWell keyword research tool is that it sits right beside the powerful RankWell AI SEO writer — you can write a complete blog post from each keyword in just one click!
Want to write 5, 10, or 50 blog posts in one go? Just tick the boxes on the left to select all the keywords you want to use and go to the Bulk Action dropdown to generate blog posts now or add them to your content planner.
This will save you hours, or even days, compared to the manual process of building your keyword list on a spreadsheet and uploading them one by one to an AI writing tool or sending them to your team of writers.
So how do you choose which keywords to use?
First, sort your keywords by ranking difficulty and look for relevant, low-competition terms. Anything under 40 is a win.
If I have a relevant keyword with very low ranking difficulty, I don’t care if it only gets 20 to 30 searches a month, those are my ideal traffic and potential buyers right there!
A keyword with 10,000 window shoppers will do you no good, but 10 ideal clients can absolutely lift your bottom line.
That should be your mindset when doing keyword research for blog posts.
2. BrandWell: Build Topic Clusters
One feature that perfectly complements BrandWell’s keyword research tool is topic clustering.
Topic clusters are a key strategy in building domain authority in your industry.
If you have a big keyword with a ton of search volume and a ton of topic opportunities that you can go after, that would be a good candidate for a topic cluster.
With keyword research and topic clustering built right into BrandWell, you can build an entire network of blog posts in just a few clicks!
To create a topic cluster, tick the box of your chosen keyword and click Create Topic Cluster on the action panel on the right.
Here’s what a topic cluster looks like:
You can also create a topic cluster from the main dashboard by choosing Clusters from the Keyword Research dropdown menu.
Topic clustering will help you generate lots of keywords even up to six months’ worth of content in no time.
For example, suppose your niche is content marketing and you’re offering services like consulting, coaching, SEO, content creation, web design, and more. In that case, you can create an entire cluster for each topic to solidify your authority in this subject field.
Once you have your clusters, you can add them to your content planner and generate blog posts close to the publishing date. The reason you want to create these posts on a staggered schedule is so that you’ll have content that’s always fresh and written in real time.
You can delegate this task to your VA or AI writer and have them generate blog posts from your content planner when they’re ready to go.
When you generate hundreds of blog posts for these keywords, you create topical authority. If you sell content marketing services, you want to be found for all search queries related to that topic.
Learn more about keyword clusters, topical maps, and content pillars here.
In the RankWell integrations settings, you can download the WordPress plugin and automate the entire process from keyword research to writing and publishing content. RankWell also has a built-in text editor, custom CTAs, a plagiarism scanner, an AI detector, and a full suite of SEO tools to get your post to score high in Yoast or RankMath.
All you need is a single tool — eliminating so many different tabs, tools, and processes. You only have to pay for one subscription and ditch the rest, saving you hundreds of dollars every month.
If you’re looking for a reliable keyword research tool that’s easy to use and allows you to ramp up your content production in no time, then BrandWell is perfect for you.
Beyond BrandWell, there are other keyword research tools that you can use to support your blog generation process.
3. ChatGPT: Brainstorm Ideas
Most people think they can actually get their keywords from ChatGPT. And while ChatGPT is getting better and better with the release of GPT-4o, it does not give you the keywords you want to dial into.
It will not give you specific data like search volume and ranking difficulty which you need to be able to pick the right keywords to build your content around.
What I would use ChatGPT for is finding seed keyword ideas like in the example below:
You can use some of these phrases as seed keywords and plug them into a keyword research tool like BrandWell.
4. Google Trends: Track What’s Popular Right Now
Google Trends is a free keyword tool that lets you discover trending topics across various regions worldwide. It shows you the most popular keywords people are searching for.
Key Features:
- Search Volume Trends: Tracks the popularity of search queries over time and displays data in real-time or for specified periods, helping identify trends and seasonality.
- Geographical Data: Shows where searches are most popular on a regional and city level and allows for comparison of search interest across different locations.
- Related Topics and Queries: Provides lists of related topics and queries that are also trending and indicates how these related searches are gaining popularity.
- Category Filtering: Filters search data by specific categories (e.g., health, sports, technology) to narrow down trends within particular sectors.
- Comparative Analysis: Allows comparison of up to five search terms simultaneously and displays comparative popularity and trends between different terms.
- Real-Time Data: Offers real-time trending search data to help you understand current events and immediate public interest.
- Historical Data: Provides access to historical search data going back to 2004 to help analyze long-term trends and patterns.
- Visualization Tools: Includes various visualization options like line graphs, bar charts, and maps, making it easy to interpret and present data visually.
- Top Charts and Year in Search: Offers annual summaries of the most popular searches and top charts for various categories, providing a retrospective view of the year’s major search trends.
- Rising and Top Search Queries: Identifies rising search queries that have seen significant growth and highlights top searches in a given category or location.
These features make Google Trends a valuable tool for marketers, researchers, journalists, and anyone interested in understanding search behavior and trends.
To use Google Trends:
- Go to Google Trends
- Choose your region
- Enter your keyword into the search bar
- Click “Explore”
The first thing you will see is a graph that shows if the interest in that keyword is increasing, decreasing, or staying consistent.
Scroll to the bottom and you’ll see popular queries and topics that are related to your seed keyword.
Google Trends also lets you compare multiple keywords to see which one is more popular. Here I used the comparison tool to view trends for “solar lights”, “solar panels’, and “solar energy”.
This gives you an idea of which keywords to target. If all of them are relevant and are trending upward, you can target them all.
5. Google Search Console: Discover Keyword Opportunities
Google Search Console is a vital tool for anyone aiming to improve their website’s performance in Google search results. This free keyword tool offered by Google helps you monitor, maintain, and troubleshoot your site’s presence in the search engine result pages (SERPs).
A key feature of GSC is its performance report, which provides valuable keyword data such as impressions, clicks, click-through rates (CTR), and average position for each keyword associated with your website.
You can use this information to identify high-performing keywords or discover potential opportunities with low competition but good impression counts. Knowing what terms people use when they find your content online gives you an advantage over competitors who may not be leveraging this crucial insight.
While Google Search Console may not be a traditional keyword tool, its ability to provide insights directly from Google’s search engine makes it an invaluable resource for any content marketer or SEO professional.
Key Features:
- Real-world search data: GSC provides data on the actual keywords that users are searching for to find your website. This data is directly from Google, making it a reliable source of information.
- Understanding user intent: GSC shows you the click-through rate (CTR) for each keyword, which helps you gauge how relevant those keywords are to your content. This can help you identify keywords that are driving traffic but may not be the best fit for your content.
- Identifying long-tail keywords: GSC can uncover long-tail keywords, which are more specific and less competitive than short-tail keywords. This can help target smaller, more niche audiences.
- Tracking ranking progress: GSC allows you to track your website’s ranking for specific keywords over time. This can help you assess the effectiveness of your SEO efforts.
Google Search Console is completely free, making it an accessible option for all website owners.
6. Google Keyword Planner: Pull Data Straight From The Source
When it comes to keyword research, Google’s own Keyword Planner is a formidable tool. As part of the Google Ads suite, this utility helps you uncover Google trends and relevant SEO keywords for your content.
The real strength of the Keyword Planner lies in its ability to provide data directly from Google’s vast search database. The Keyword Planner provides information straight from the source, giving you reliable keyword suggestions.
A standout feature of this search tool is its comprehensive metrics reporting. It gives valuable details like average monthly searches, competition level, and suggested bid estimates for AdWords users.
Beyond these figures, another plus point is its Google trends analysis capability. By displaying search volume trends over time for any given keyword or group of keywords, it lets marketers plan their strategies around seasonality or emerging patterns.
One potential drawback of this keyword generator is that if you don’t run active ad campaigns on Google Ads, the data presented may be in broad ranges rather than specific numbers which could limit precision in planning SEO efforts.
Also noteworthy: despite being a free keyword search tool, there might still be a learning curve involved, especially navigating through a somewhat complex interface built originally with advertisers (not SEO) in mind.
Key Features:
- Integration with Google Ads: If you’re running ad campaigns on Google, the integration with Google Ads is seamless. You can easily transfer your keyword research insights into your ad strategy.
- Keyword Suggestions: Google Keyword Planner provides a plethora of keyword suggestions based on your input.
- Search Volume and Competition Insights: You get a sneak peek into the search volume and competition level for each keyword.
7. AnswerThePublic: Address Burning Questions from Your Audience
If you’re looking for a free keyword tool that’s intuitive and insightful, AnswerThePublic should be on your radar. It presents search queries in an engaging visual format, making it easier to understand user intent.
The strength of this search tool lies in its ability to generate questions people are asking about your keywords. This helps content creators target topics that resonate with their audience.
You might find the data visualization feature particularly useful. It categorizes search terms into five Ws (who, what, when, where, and why), how-to’s, and comparisons – a great help for planning content strategies around long-tail keywords.
AnswerThePublic also offers Pro features that give more detailed insights such as trending searches or data comparison over time. Do note that there is a cost associated with these premium offerings.
To maximize the benefits of using AnswerThePublic, start by entering broad terms related to your industry or niche into the search bar. The results will give you numerous angles from which to approach these topics in future articles or blog posts.
An added advantage? You can set location-specific queries giving more targeted suggestions relevant to local SEO campaigns — another strong reason why this tool has won favor among digital marketers worldwide.
Key Features:
- Visual and Engaging: AnswerThePublic presents keyword data in a visually appealing and easily digestible format.
- Content Ideas Galore: AnswerThePublic generates content ideas based on the questions people are asking online. It’s like having a direct line to your audience’s thoughts.
- User-Friendly Interface: AnswerThePublic is user-friendly, making it accessible even for those new to keyword research.
- Free Version Available: Budget-conscious? The free version of AnswerThePublic provides a decent chunk of functionality.
Further Reading: What to Do After Keyword Research: 12 Steps to SEO Success
FAQs – What is the Best Keyword Tool
Which keyword tool is most accurate?
Google’s Keyword Planner has the most accurate keyword search volume because it pulls its data straight from the source — Google.
Which is the best tool for keyword research?
With Google’s AI overviews now factoring in relevancy more than ever, having a keyword research tool like BrandWell that recommends keywords based on NLP optimization gives you a better chance at winning the ranking game.
How do I find the best keywords to search?
- Identify the major concepts from your topic.
- Write a brief description (1 or 2 sentences) of your topic.
- Identify 2-4 of the most important terms in your topic sentences.
- For each key concept, make a list of other words with the same or related meanings.
Conclusion
Keyword tools are the backbone of successful SEO strategies, as they unlock search term gold mines. Whether it’s BrandWell or AnswerThePublic, each tool has unique features to help you drive organic traffic.
The question remains: what is the best keyword tool?
Ultimately, the best keyword research tool for you depends on your specific requirements and the depth of analysis you seek.
If you’re looking for an affordable, all-in-one tool that finds those golden keywords for you, builds topic clusters, creates content around those keywords, and publishes straight to your blog or website, then BrandWell is perfect for you.
Ready to create hundreds of blog posts around the right keywords? Try BrandWell today.
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