Top Keywords for Search Engines: How to Conduct Keyword Research

What is keyword research and why does it matter?

Keyword research is the process of discovering the words and questions your target buyers type into search engines and AI assistants, then prioritizing them by intent and business value. Done well, it tells you exactly what content to create, in what order, to attract people who can actually buy — and it’s the foundation of every effective SEO program.

The common mistake is treating it as a hunt for big numbers. In B2B, the highest search volume usually belongs to broad, low-intent terms that attract students, competitors, and tire-kickers. The keywords that build pipeline are narrower, more specific, and often boring — and that’s exactly why they convert.

What are the top types of keywords to target?

Keywords cluster by the searcher’s intent. Understanding the four types is what turns a keyword list into a strategy:

Intent type	Example	What the searcher wants	Pipeline value
Informational	”what is generative engine optimization”	To learn	Low–medium (top of funnel)
Commercial	”best B2B SEO agency”	To compare options	High
Transactional	”HubSpot implementation partner”	To buy / hire now	Very high
Navigational	”Divitio pricing”	A specific brand/page	High (already interested)

For B2B, commercial and transactional keywords are the top priority — they capture buyers at the moment of decision. Informational keywords still matter for building topical authority and feeding the funnel, but they should support, not dominate, your list.

How do you conduct keyword research step by step?

A repeatable process beats guesswork every time:

1. Start with seed topics — the core problems your product solves, in your buyers’ language. If you sell CRM services, seeds include “CRM implementation,” “HubSpot migration,” “lead scoring.”
2. Expand with a tool — run seeds through Semrush, Ahrefs, or Keyword Planner to generate hundreds of related terms with volume and difficulty data.
3. Mine real questions — pull People Also Ask boxes, Reddit and community threads, sales-call transcripts, and support tickets. These reveal the exact phrasing buyers use.
4. Analyze the SERP — for each candidate, look at what already ranks. The results tell you the true intent (is it a listicle, a product page, a guide?) and whether you can realistically compete.
5. Cluster by topic — group related keywords into themes so one strong page can target a cluster, building topical authority instead of thin, single-keyword pages.
6. Score and prioritize — rank each cluster by intent, relevance to your ICP, difficulty, and business value.

How should you prioritize keywords for pipeline?

Volume is the trap; a simple priority formula keeps you honest. Weigh each cluster on:

• Intent — will these searchers ever buy? Transactional and commercial score highest.
• Relevance to ICP — does this match the buyer you actually want?
• Difficulty — can you realistically rank given your site’s authority?
• Business value — how close is this to revenue?

A practical rule: chase the “high-intent, winnable” quadrant first — keywords with clear buying intent and moderate competition. A page ranking for “b2b saas seo agency” will out-earn one ranking for “what is marketing,” even at a fraction of the volume. This is why we map every keyword cluster to a specific funnel stage and page before writing a word.

How does AI search change keyword research?

Search no longer means only Google’s blue links. Buyers now ask ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews full questions and receive synthesized answers that cite only a few sources. That changes research in two ways:

• New targets — the conversational, long-tail questions people ask assistants (“which CRM is best for a fintech scaleup?”) become keywords in their own right.
• New optimization goal — being cited in the answer, not just ranked below it. This is generative engine optimization (GEO): structuring content as clear, extractable definitions, lists, and comparisons so engines quote you.

Modern keyword research therefore produces two lists — one for traditional rankings and one for AI citations — often overlapping, but each demanding content built to be found.

Turn research into pipeline

Keyword research is only valuable when it drives the right content in the right order. Prioritize high-intent, winnable clusters, map each to a funnel stage, and structure content to win both Google rankings and AI citations. Then connect the resulting traffic to your CRM so you can see which keywords produce actual leads.

Want to know which keywords are within reach for your site right now? A free SEO audit will surface the high-intent terms you can realistically win and the pages already close to ranking.