keyword research is a critical topic in SEO today. Most new blogs die in the same way. Someone writes ten articles about topics they care about, waits three months, gets 40 visitors total, and concludes that SEO doesn’t work. The real problem, almost every time, is keyword selection. They were writing for an audience that either doesn’t exist on Google or is already claimed by sites with ten years of authority and thousands of backlinks.
This guide won’t tell you to “find keywords with high volume and low competition.” That advice is everywhere and it’s useless without the mechanics behind it.
What I’ll show you instead is how to find keywords a new site can actually rank for in 2025 — when AI Overviews are eating into click-through rates, and Google understands topics rather than just phrases.
What you’ll walk away with: A repeatable process for finding keywords, assessing whether you can rank for them, and organizing them into a content plan that builds on itself.
What keyword research actually is (and what it isn’t)
Keyword research is the process of finding out what phrases people type into search engines — then deciding which of those phrases you have a realistic chance of ranking for. That second part is where most guides skip.
It’s not about finding the most popular keywords. It’s about finding the intersection of what people search for and what you can compete for given your current site authority. A brand-new blog has no business going after “keyword research” as a standalone two-word term. Ahrefs, Semrush, and HubSpot own that. But “keyword research for a new WordPress blog” or “how to find keywords without paid tools” — those are different conversations.
In 2025, there’s also a third filter: will Google’s AI Overview answer this query before anyone clicks? Informational questions with a clean factual answer (“what is keyword difficulty”) are increasingly answered in the SERP itself, with no click to your article. That changes which keywords are worth targeting.
The four metrics that actually matter
Every keyword research tool shows you more numbers than you need. Here are the four that drive decisions:
Search volume
How many times per month a phrase is searched. The number is always an estimate — Google doesn’t publish exact figures. For a new blog, anything between 100 and 2,000 monthly searches is a reasonable target. Below 100 and the traffic even from position 1 won’t move your numbers. Above 2,000 and you’re competing with established sites.
One thing most beginners don’t realize: Google groups similar searches together. If you rank for “keyword research for beginners,” you’ll also pick up traffic from “how to find keywords,” “beginner keyword research guide,” and a dozen other variants. The total opportunity is bigger than any single search volume number suggests.
Keyword difficulty (KD)
A score (usually 0–100) estimating how hard it is to rank on page one. The problem with KD scores from tools like Ahrefs or Semrush: they’re primarily based on the backlink profiles of current top-ranking pages. They don’t measure content quality gaps, and they don’t account for how well you can cover the topic.
A better approach for new sites: instead of looking at the KD number, look at the actual DR (Domain Rating) of pages ranking in positions 1–5. If you see a DR 15 or DR 22 site ranking in the top three for a keyword, that phrase is attackable — regardless of what the KD score says. Technical SEO factors and content depth often matter more than raw domain authority for specific long-tail terms.
Search intent
This is the most important metric and the one no tool can give you directly. Search intent is what the person actually wants when they type that query. Google classifies intent into four buckets:
- Informational — “how does keyword research work” — they want to learn something
- Navigational — “Ahrefs keyword tool” — they want to go somewhere specific
- Commercial — “best keyword research tools” — they’re comparing options before buying
- Transactional — “Semrush free trial” — they’re ready to act
Your content format needs to match the intent. Write a comparison article for a transactional keyword and Google won’t rank it. Write a tutorial for a commercial keyword and you’ll get traffic that converts to nothing. Before targeting any keyword, Google it yourself and look at what format the top three results use.
Click-through rate (CTR) potential
In 2025, not all ranked keywords deliver traffic. Queries that trigger AI Overviews see significantly lower click-through rates because the answer appears directly on the results page. Before committing to a keyword, search for it and count how many SERP features appear above the organic results. Queries with a clean organic list at position one are your best bets.
Step 1: Start with seed keywords
A seed keyword is a short, broad term that describes your topic. For an SEO blog, seeds might be: “keyword research,” “on-page SEO,” “backlinks,” “technical SEO.” You’re not going to rank for these directly — they’re starting points to find the long-tail keywords you will rank for. Write down 10–15 seeds that describe the topics your site covers.
Step 2: Expand with free tools
Google Search itself
Type your seed keyword into Google and stop before pressing Enter. The autocomplete suggestions are real searches people are making. Scroll to the bottom of the results page and look at “People also search for” and “Related searches” — these are Google telling you what topics it groups together. This takes five minutes and gives you 15–20 keyword ideas per seed.
Google Search Console
Once your site has some content and traffic, Search Console shows you the exact queries people used to find your site — including ones you weren’t targeting. Set it up before you publish your first article. It becomes your most valuable data source within a few months.
Ahrefs Free Keyword Generator
Ahrefs gives away a keyword generator at no cost. Enter a seed term and it returns up to 150 keyword ideas with search volume and difficulty scores. For building your initial keyword list, it’s genuinely useful without spending anything.
AnswerThePublic
Designed for question-based keywords. It visualizes the questions people ask around a topic. These map well to FAQ sections, which RankMath can turn into FAQ schema — giving you a better shot at appearing in People Also Ask boxes in Google.
Step 3: Find keywords low-authority sites are already ranking for
This is the step most beginners skip, and it changes everything. Instead of guessing which keywords you can rank for, you find proof that sites similar to yours already rank for them.
Find a competitor site that’s roughly your size — recently started, low DR, similar topic. Put their domain into Ahrefs Free Webmaster Tools or Semrush’s free tier. Look at their top-ranking pages. If a DR 12 site ranks on page one for a keyword, you can target it too.
The faster version: Google your target keyword. See any results that look like smaller blogs rather than enterprise publications? Click through and check their DR with the Ahrefs toolbar (free Chrome extension). If the page ranking #2 or #3 is a small site with a DR under 20, that keyword is on your list.
I ran this process on “RankMath settings for beginners” recently. The #3 result was a DR 9 blog from 2023 with no backlinks pointing to it. The post covered the basics but missed the schema setup entirely. That’s a keyword worth writing a better article about.
Step 4: Evaluate intent before you write anything
Before a keyword makes it onto your content calendar, run this check:
- Google the keyword and look at the top three results. What format are they using?
- Count SERP features. How many ads, AI Overviews, or featured snippets appear before organic results?
- Check page 1 for low-DR sites. Is there at least one result from a site with DR under 30?
- Can you write something more complete or more specific than what currently ranks?
If a keyword passes all four checks, it earns a place on your list. If AI Overviews dominate the SERP, consider whether a related question format might work better — those often avoid the AI Overview treatment.
Step 5: Organize into topic clusters
Don’t publish keywords as isolated articles. Group them by topic and build clusters: one long, comprehensive pillar article covering the broad topic, with several shorter articles covering specific subtopics — all linking back to the pillar.
For keyword research, a cluster might look like:
- Pillar: This keyword research guide
- Cluster posts: How to find long-tail keywords / Best free keyword research tools / How to do keyword research without Ahrefs / Search intent explained / How to use Google Search Console for keyword research
This structure signals to Google that your site covers a topic in depth — not just one article but the full landscape. It also gives readers a path through your content, which improves time on site.
What changed in 2025 that most guides don’t mention
AI Overviews changed which keywords are worth targeting
Basic definitional questions — “what is keyword density,” “what does DA mean” — are increasingly answered before users reach organic results. Queries that require depth, comparison, personal experience, or tool-specific walkthroughs still drive clicks. Check the SERP before committing to any informational keyword.
Volume is less reliable than it used to be
Google’s grouping of query variants means a keyword showing 300 searches/month might actually deliver traffic from 20–30 related queries. Ranking for a 300-volume keyword with a thorough article frequently outperforms targeting a 2,000-volume keyword where intent is murky and competition is high.
Google understands context, not just keywords
Write a thorough article on keyword research and naturally use related terms — search volume, keyword difficulty, search intent, long-tail keywords, SERP analysis — and Google will understand your topic without you repeating the primary phrase everywhere. Write for the person, include the right surrounding vocabulary, and the SEO follows.
Building your first keyword list
Use a simple spreadsheet with five columns: Keyword, Monthly Search Volume, Keyword Difficulty, Search Intent, Notes. Aim for 30–50 keywords before writing your first article. That gives you enough material for a 3-month content calendar.
Prioritize in this order: first, keywords where you spotted a low-DR competitor ranking. Second, long-tail informational queries with clear intent and no AI Overview in the results. Third, broader terms for pillar content as your domain authority grows.
Most blogs that fail at SEO fail at this stage. They pick keywords based on what they want to write, not what they can rank for. Build the list first, then write.
Frequently asked questions
How many keywords should a new blog target?
Start with 30–50 target keywords across your main topic areas. Each article should focus on one primary keyword supported by 3–5 related terms. Don’t target more keywords than you can publish articles for in the next 3 months.
Can you do keyword research for free?
Yes. Google autocomplete, “People also search for,” Ahrefs Free Keyword Generator, and Google Search Console cover the basics at no cost. Free tools lack exact volume data and full competitor analysis, but they’re enough to build your first content calendar.
What keyword difficulty score should a new site target?
Aim for keywords with KD under 30 in Ahrefs or under 40 in Semrush. But check the actual domain ratings of ranking pages rather than relying on the score — some KD 40 keywords have several low-DR sites on page one, making them more accessible than the number suggests.
Do keywords still matter in 2025 with AI search?
Yes. Google still uses keyword signals to match content with queries. The shift is that you need to match the topic rather than repeat the phrase. Targeting keywords is still how you find out what your audience is searching for — that hasn’t changed. What has changed is that single-answer queries are increasingly captured by AI features before reaching organic results.
The next step: once your keyword list is built, structure each article so it actually ranks. That’s what on-page SEO covers — turning a keyword into content that search engines understand and readers want to finish reading.
For more information, see Ahrefs free keyword generator tool.