Keyword research is the step most business owners skip when writing their own website copy. Most people sit down and ask “what do I want to say about my business?” The better question is “what is my client actually typing into Google before they find me?” Those two things overlap less than you’d think, and the gap is usually where copy underperforms.
Hiring a professional copywriter is usually the better move, and it’s a service we provide. But if you’re set on writing your own copy, or not ready to bring someone in yet, this guide walks you through how to do it properly: how to find the right keywords and how to build them into writing that still sounds like a person wrote it.
Start with your client’s language, not your own
Every business has internal language. You call it a “consultation.” Your client might search for “how much does a divorce cost in Greece.” You call it “bespoke design.” They search for “custom website for my law firm.” Internal language feels precise to you and means nothing to search engines or to a stranger scrolling results.
Before you write a single line, list out the actual questions and phrases your clients use when they describe their problem, not your service. Client emails, sales calls, and reviews are the best source for this. If someone wrote “I didn’t know where to start” in a testimonial, that phrase belongs somewhere in your copy.
Do basic keyword research before you write anything
You don’t need an expensive tool to start. Google’s autocomplete and the “People also ask” box on a search results page will show you real phrases people search for around your topic. Type the beginning of a question a client might ask and see what Google suggests to finish it.
Tools like Google Keyword Planner and Google Trends go a step further. They show you roughly how many people search for a term each month, and whether that interest is rising or falling over time. Look for terms that a reasonable number of people actually search for, and that genuinely match what you offer. A term that gets a lot of searches but doesn’t match your service will bring visitors who aren’t looking for what you do.
Group the terms you find into clusters around a single topic or page. A cluster is a set of related phrases someone might use to search for the same underlying need. Each cluster should map to one page, not be split thinly across several or crammed onto one page that tries to cover everything.
Match one page to one search intent
Search intent is the reason behind the search. Someone searching “what is GDPR” wants an explanation. Someone searching “GDPR compliant website design” wants a service. Writing one page that tries to answer both dilutes it for search engines and for the reader.
Once you’ve grouped your keywords into clusters, check what intent each cluster represents: informational, where someone wants to learn something, or transactional, where someone wants to buy or book. A blog post is usually the right format for informational intent. A service page is the right format for transactional intent. Mixing the two on one page is one of the most common reasons a page ranks for neither.
Write for the reader first, then check the structure for search
Keyword research tells you what to write about. It doesn’t tell you how to write. Once you know your target keywords for a page, write it the way you’d explain it to a client sitting across from you. Answer the question they actually have, in plain language, without padding.
Keep it in your voice, not just on target
Hitting your keywords matters, but not at the cost of sounding like every other business targeting the same terms. If you already have a brand voice defined, whether that’s warm and conversational or precise and formal, keep it consistent across every page you write, keyword research included. A page can be fully optimized and still sound like you.
If two phrasings would work equally well for search, pick the one that sounds more like your business. Search engines don’t reward stiff, generic phrasing over natural writing, so there’s rarely a real trade-off here. The version that sounds like you is usually also the version a person will actually finish reading.
A quick note on headings, since the terms come up constantly in SEO advice. The H1 is your page’s main heading, the big title at the top, used once per page. H2s are the subheadings that break the page into sections. H3s are smaller subheadings used within an H2 section, if you need to break a section down further. Search engines use this structure to understand what your page is about, and readers use it to scan and find what they need.
After the first draft, go back and check the structure:
- Does your main keyword or a close variant appear in the H1 and the first paragraph? It should, naturally, not forced.
- Do your H2s and H3s reflect the subtopics and questions a reader would expect, using language they’d search for?
- Does every paragraph earn its place, or is it there to hit a word count?
- Is there one clear next step at the end (a form, a call, an email), not three competing options?
Do not forget the meta title and meta description
These are two short pieces of text that do not appear on the page itself. The meta title is the blue, clickable headline in Google’s search results. The meta description is the short summary underneath it. Together they’re often the first thing a potential client sees about your business, before they’ve even clicked through.
Write a meta title under 60 characters that includes your main keyword and sounds like something a person would want to click. Write a meta description under 160 characters that expands on it and gives a real reason to visit. Every page needs its own, written for that page specifically, not copied from another one.
Common mistakes to avoid
Repeating the exact same keyword phrase throughout a page reads as unnatural to a visitor and doesn’t help your ranking the way it might have a decade ago. Use natural variations instead: “web design,” “website design,” “building a website” can all appear across a page without repeating one exact phrase five times.
Writing copy before doing any keyword research is another common one. It’s tempting to write what feels natural and add keywords afterward, but that usually means the structure and headings don’t match how people actually search, and the page underperforms no matter how well written it is.
Finally, don’t let the SEO checklist take over. Copy that reads like it was written to satisfy a checklist, rather than to help a person, loses trust fast. Search engines are increasingly good at telling the difference too.
When it’s worth bringing in help
Keyword research and structure are learnable. What’s harder to DIY is knowing how your specific pages should work together, which keywords are worth targeting given your competition, and how to keep a consistent voice across a full site. If you get partway through this process and find yourself stuck, that’s usually the sign a copywriting or SEO conversation is worth having.
