keyword-research

What this skill does

# Keyword Research

This skill identifies high-value content opportunities by finding the intersection of audience interest, business value, and market opportunity - without requiring expensive SEO tools.

## Objective

Discover content topics that sit at the intersection of six critical factors: what you can credibly write about, what your audience wants, what drives business, what people search for, where competitors are weak, and what's feasible to create.

## The 6 Circles Method

Content gold exists where these six factors overlap:

```
        ┌─────────────────────────────────────────┐
        │           YOUR EXPERTISE                │
        │    (topics you have authority on)       │
        └─────────────────┬───────────────────────┘
                          │
    ┌─────────────────────┼─────────────────────┐
    │                     │                     │
    ▼                     ▼                     ▼
┌─────────────┐    ┌─────────────┐    ┌─────────────┐
│  AUDIENCE   │    │  BUSINESS   │    │   SEARCH    │
│  INTERESTS  │    │    GOALS    │    │   DEMAND    │
└──────┬──────┘    └──────┬──────┘    └──────┬──────┘
       │                  │                  │
       └────────────┬─────┴─────┬────────────┘
                    │           │
              ┌─────▼─────┐ ┌───▼───────┐
              │COMPETITION│ │ CONTENT   │
              │   GAPS    │ │FEASIBILITY│
              └───────────┘ └───────────┘
```

### Circle 1: Your Expertise
Topics where you (or your brand) have genuine authority, experience, or unique perspective.

**Questions to ask**:
- What have you done professionally for years?
- What do people ask you for advice on?
- What unique data, case studies, or experiences do you have?
- What contrarian views do you hold that you can defend?

### Circle 2: Audience Interests
Topics your target audience actively seeks out and engages with.

**Questions to ask**:
- What questions do they ask in forums, communities, support tickets?
- What content do they share and comment on?
- What problems keep them up at night?
- What aspirations are they working toward?

### Circle 3: Business Goals
Topics that align with revenue-generating activities.

**Questions to ask**:
- What topics lead to your product as a solution?
- What problems does your product solve?
- What content attracts buyers (not just browsers)?
- What topics position you for sales conversations?

### Circle 4: Search Demand
Topics people actually search for on Google.

**Questions to ask**:
- Are people typing this into Google?
- What search volume exists (use free tools below)?
- Is search intent clear?
- Are results improving or declining over time?

### Circle 5: Competition Gaps
Topics that are underserved by existing content.

**Questions to ask**:
- What's missing from top-ranking articles?
- Where is competitor content outdated or thin?
- What angles haven't been covered?
- What questions remain unanswered?

### Circle 6: Content Feasibility
Topics you can realistically create quality content for.

**Questions to ask**:
- Do you have the expertise or access to create this?
- What resources are required (time, interviews, data)?
- Can you make this better than what exists?
- Is this maintainable/updatable?

## Free Research Methods

### Google Autocomplete
1. Type your seed keyword into Google
2. Note all autocomplete suggestions
3. Add letters a-z after your keyword for more variations
4. Use underscore (_) to find words people use before your keyword

### People Also Ask
1. Search your topic on Google
2. Click on "People Also Ask" boxes
3. Each click reveals more questions
4. Map questions to content ideas

### Reddit/Quora Mining
1. Search "[topic] site:reddit.com" or "site:quora.com"
2. Look for frequently asked questions
3. Note the language people use (not industry jargon)
4. Find frustrated users = content opportunities

### Competitor Content Gaps
1. List top 5 competitor blogs
2. Scan their most popular posts
3. Identify topics they haven't covered
4. Find posts that are outdated or thin

### Google Search Console (if available)
1. Check "Search Results" report
2. Find queries you rank for positions 5-20
3. These are low-hanging optimization opportunities
4. Also reveals topics audience associates with you

### Answer The Public (free tier)
1. Enter seed keyword
2. Get organized questions (who, what, when, where, why, how)
3. Export and filter for relevance

## Prioritization Matrix

Score each topic idea (1-5) on:

| Factor | Weight | Score |
|--------|--------|-------|
| Expertise | 2x | __ |
| Audience Interest | 2x | __ |
| Business Alignment | 2x | __ |
| Search Demand | 1x | __ |
| Competition Gap | 1x | __ |
| Feasibility | 1x | __ |

**Total** = (Expertise × 2) + (Audience × 2) + (Business × 2) + Search + Competition + Feasibility

**Tier your topics**:
- **Tier 1** (40+): Prioritize immediately
- **Tier 2** (30-39): Strong candidates
- **Tier 3** (20-29): Worth considering
- **Below 20**: Deprioritize

## Content-to-Funnel Mapping

Map topics to the buyer journey:

| Funnel Stage | Content Purpose | Topic Types |
|--------------|-----------------|-------------|
| **Awareness** | Attract new audience | How-to, What is, Trends, Problems |
| **Consideration** | Educate on solutions | Comparisons, Best practices, Guides |
| **Decision** | Convert to customers | Case studies, Demos, vs. Competitors |
| **Retention** | Keep customers successful | Advanced tips, Updates, Community |

## Output Format

When completing keyword research, deliver:

1. **Research Summary**: Methods used, scope of analysis
2. **Topic Candidates**: 20-50 topic ideas with 6-circle scores
3. **Prioritized List**: Top 10-15 topics ranked by total score
4. **Funnel Distribution**: Topics mapped to buyer journey stages
5. **Content Calendar Recommendation**: Suggested topics for next quarter
6. **Quick Wins**: Topics that could be published within a week

## Cross-References

- Feed prioritized topics to `seo-content` for article creation
- Use audience language discoveries in `direct-response-copy`
- Inform `newsletter` topic planning with research insights
- Topic gaps may inspire `lead-magnet` ideas
- `content-atomizer` can repurpose pillar content identified here