Start with revenue, not search volume
Most founders start keyword research in the wrong place: a spreadsheet sorted by monthly searches. That creates traffic targets, not growth targets.
Your first filter should be revenue proximity. Ask: if this page ranked, would the right visitor be more likely to start a trial, book a demo, request a quote, or choose us over an alternative? If the answer is no, the keyword can wait.
Organic search is still worth taking seriously. Powered by Search cites research that 68% of website traffic starts from a search query, which makes search one of the largest demand capture channels for B2B companies Powered by Search. HubSpot also groups SEO among the core channels marketers use to increase website traffic and conversions, not just awareness HubSpot. But founders do not have the luxury of publishing for “brand presence.” Every topic needs a job.
Start by pulling language from places where buying intent already appears:
- Sales calls where prospects ask, “Do you integrate with HubSpot?” or “How are you different from Notion?”
- Support tickets that reveal painful use cases, like “I need to export reports for my client every Monday.”
- Competitor review pages where users complain about price, setup time, missing features, or poor reporting.
- Demo objections, especially questions about pricing, security, migration, implementation, and ROI.
Those phrases often turn into stronger keywords than broad category terms. “Project management software” may look attractive because it has volume. “Asana alternative for client reporting” is more specific, easier to match with a persuasive page, and closer to a buying decision.
For a founder without a marketing team, the goal is not to build the biggest keyword database. The goal is to identify the few search opportunities that connect your product to urgent demand. Attract is built around that operating model: find SEO opportunities, turn them into publishable content, and measure whether the blog contributes to traffic, signups, and sales instead of stopping at pageviews.
Build a founder-friendly keyword list in 45 minutes
You do not need a full SEO stack to get a useful keyword list. You need a focused sprint that turns customer knowledge into search demand.
- Write down 10 seed topics from your product and buyer pain.
Use plain customer language. A time tracking SaaS might start with “billable hours,” “consultant timesheets,” “client invoices,” “project profitability,” and “employee utilization.” These are not final keywords. They are starting points.
- Add phrases from real conversations.
Scan your last 10 sales notes, onboarding emails, support tickets, and churn reasons. Copy exact wording. If prospects say “prove marketing ROI to finance,” do not translate it into “marketing analytics platform” too early. The raw phrase reveals intent.
- Use Google to expand the list.
Type each seed topic into Google and capture autocomplete suggestions, People Also Ask questions, and related searches. This is fast, free, and based on real search behavior. Zapier’s review of free keyword research tools also points founders toward lightweight options that can help expand ideas without buying an enterprise platform Zapier.
- Check Google Search Console if you have any existing traffic.
Open the Performance report and sort queries by impressions. Look for terms where you already appear but do not yet have a strong page. These are often the fastest wins because Google has already connected your domain to the topic.
- Review competitor pages, not just competitor blogs.
Look at comparison pages, integration pages, pricing pages, feature pages, and help docs. A competitor’s “Slack integration” page might reveal a keyword pattern you can adapt for your own integrations.
- Open the search results before you commit.
Search the keyword and look at what ranks. If the top results are product pages, comparison pages, and review sites, the query has commercial intent. If the results are beginner guides and definitions, it is educational. Neither is bad, but they need different content.
- Group each keyword by intent.
Use four simple labels: buy, compare, solve, learn. “Best CRM for agencies” is compare. “How to track leads from blog posts” is solve. “What is CRM?” is learn. For a small team, this grouping matters more than perfect search volume estimates.
Stop after 45 minutes. You should have 30 to 60 usable keyword ideas. That is enough to prioritize. More research can feel productive, but it often delays the work that creates results: publishing the right pages and measuring what happens.
Prioritize keywords with a simple scoring system
A founder needs a decision system, not a 30-column SEO spreadsheet. Score each keyword from 1 to 5 across five factors, then start with the highest total.
A keyword does not need huge volume to be worth targeting. In SaaS especially, a term with 40 searches per month can beat a term with 4,000 searches if it attracts buyers who are already evaluating options. Grow and Convert’s bottom-of-funnel SEO framework argues for starting with category, comparison, and jobs-to-be-done terms because they map more directly to purchase intent Grow and Convert.
Here is the practical rule: prioritize keywords where you can make a useful, honest case for your product within the content. If you have to stretch to mention your product, the topic is probably too far from revenue.
For example, “how to write blog posts faster” may fit Attract, but “history of blogging” does not. The first query connects to a founder’s workflow problem and can lead naturally into automated SEO content production. The second might produce traffic, but it would not help a founder decide to buy.
After scoring, choose the top 10 keywords. Publish against those before reopening research. A smaller prioritized list beats a massive backlog that never turns into pages.
Look for bottom-of-funnel keywords competitors ignore
Bottom-of-funnel keywords are searches from people who already understand the problem and are closer to choosing a solution. They are often less glamorous than broad educational keywords, but they are usually more useful for a founder who needs pipeline.
Grow and Convert recommends brainstorming category, comparison, and jobs-to-be-done keywords when looking for bottom-of-funnel opportunities Grow and Convert. UserGrowth also connects jobs-to-be-done SEO with sources like Search Console, Reddit, Quora, and keyword tools, especially for “how-to,” comparison, troubleshooting, and “should I” questions UserGrowth.
Use this checklist to find terms your larger competitors may ignore:
- Category keywords: “AI blog writer for SaaS,” “client reporting software,” “subscription analytics tool.” These searchers know the type of product they want.
- Alternative keywords: “Buffer alternative for agencies,” “Intercom alternative for startups,” “Airtable alternative for operations teams.” These pages work when you can make a fair, specific comparison.
- Comparison keywords: “Ahrefs vs Semrush,” “Webflow vs WordPress for SaaS,” “Stripe Billing vs Chargebee.” Searchers are actively evaluating trade-offs.
- Integration keywords: “CRM with Slack integration,” “publish blog posts to Webflow,” “connect Google Analytics to revenue.” These show workflow fit.
- Pricing and cost keywords: “content marketing agency cost,” “SEO tool pricing,” “how much does blog automation cost.” These visitors are budget-aware, which is a buying signal.
- Problem keywords: “blog posts not driving signups,” “track SEO leads in CRM,” “reduce manual content publishing.” These are strong when your product solves the pain directly.
- Jobs-to-be-done keywords: “create SEO content without hiring writers,” “find keywords for a new SaaS,” “turn blog traffic into demos.” These describe the progress the buyer wants to make.
The best bottom-of-funnel article does more than target a keyword. It helps the buyer make a decision. That means clear criteria, trade-offs, screenshots when useful, and a direct explanation of when your product is and is not the right fit.
Do not avoid low-volume terms just because a tool underestimates them. Keyword tools can miss niche demand, especially in new categories and specialized B2B workflows. If the query sounds exactly like something a qualified prospect would say on a sales call, it deserves a serious look.
Turn keywords into a publishing plan you can actually maintain
Keyword research only creates growth when it becomes published content. For a founder, the publishing plan has to be small enough to survive a busy week.
- Create one money page for each core buying intent.
A money page targets a keyword that can directly influence a purchase, such as “SEO content automation software,” “best blog platform for SaaS SEO,” or “Attract alternative.” These pages should explain the problem, buying criteria, product fit, proof, and next step.
- Add supporting posts around each money page.
Supporting posts answer related questions and link back to the money page. If your money page targets “SEO content automation software,” supporting topics might include “how to automate blog publishing,” “how to choose SEO keywords for SaaS,” and “how to track blog signups.”
- Publish at a cadence you can keep.
One strong page per week beats five rushed posts followed by two silent months. If you are solo, start with two to four pieces per month. Consistency matters because SEO compounds through a growing set of indexed pages, internal links, and performance data.
- Use automation where manual work slows you down.
The expensive part of founder-led SEO is not only writing. It is moving from keyword to brief, draft, optimization, publishing, and measurement. Attract helps compress that workflow so you can find SEO opportunities, generate content, publish efficiently, and connect performance back to business outcomes.
- Review performance monthly, not daily.
Daily rank checks waste attention. Monthly reviews show whether the system is working. Track:
- Impressions: Are more qualified searches seeing your pages?
- Clicks: Are titles and topics earning visits?
- Rankings: Are pages moving toward page one for target terms?
- Signups or demo requests: Is traffic becoming pipeline?
- Assisted revenue: Did blog visitors later convert through another channel?
- Refresh before you expand too far.
If a page ranks on page two or gets impressions but few clicks, improve it before chasing another topic. Add clearer examples, stronger comparison criteria, missing sections from the search results, or a more specific call to action.
A practical founder SEO plan might be 10 prioritized keywords, 3 money pages, 7 supporting articles, and one monthly review. That is enough to create learning without turning SEO into a second full-time job.
Common keyword research mistakes founders should avoid
Keyword research goes wrong when it becomes detached from the business model. Avoid these mistakes early and your content backlog will be much easier to execute.
- Chasing only high-volume keywords.
Big numbers are tempting, but broad terms often attract students, researchers, and people with no buying intent. A smaller keyword that matches a painful use case can produce better revenue outcomes.
- Ignoring the search results page.
Search intent is not what you hope the keyword means. It is what Google is already rewarding. If every top result is a product category page, do not publish a beginner guide and expect it to rank.
- Publishing thought leadership before buyer pages.
Opinion pieces can be useful once you have momentum. Early on, prioritize pages that help prospects compare options, solve urgent problems, and understand why your product is worth evaluating.
- Treating all traffic as equal.
Blog traffic is only valuable if it moves the right audience closer to action. Track conversions by page, not just total sessions. If one post sends 20 visits and 2 demos, it is more valuable than a post that sends 2,000 unqualified visits.
- Skipping internal links.
Each supporting post should point readers toward the relevant product, comparison, or use-case page. Without internal links, you make visitors work too hard to find the next step.
- Letting research become procrastination.
A founder can lose weeks comparing keyword tools, difficulty scores, and volume estimates. Pick a scoring system, choose 10 topics, publish, then learn from real data.
The best keyword strategy is not the most complex one. It is the one you can execute consistently while staying close to revenue.
FAQ
How many keywords should a founder start with?
Start with 10 prioritized keywords. That is enough to build a focused first campaign without drowning in research. Pick 3 bottom-of-funnel keywords, 4 problem or use-case keywords, and 3 supporting educational keywords. Publish against those before expanding the list.
Do I need paid SEO tools?
No, not at the beginning. You can build a useful keyword list with customer calls, Google Search Console, Google autocomplete, People Also Ask, competitor pages, and a free keyword tool. Paid tools become more useful when you are comparing difficulty at scale, auditing many competitors, or managing a larger content operation.
Should I target low-volume keywords?
Yes, if the intent is strong. A low-volume keyword like “blog automation tool for Webflow” may attract fewer visitors than “blogging tips,” but the visitor is much closer to a product decision. For founder-led SEO, intent often matters more than volume.
How soon will keyword research produce results?
Keyword research itself does not produce results. Published, indexed, and improved pages do. New pages can start getting impressions within weeks, but meaningful rankings and conversions often take a few months, depending on domain authority, competition, content quality, and publishing consistency.
What is the simplest next step?
Choose one buying-intent keyword and publish one useful page for it. Include the problem, who it is for, buying criteria, examples, and a direct next step. Then track impressions, clicks, and conversions for 30 days. That single loop will teach you more than another week of keyword research.
