Think your startup is ready for the online world?
If you’re eyeing online marketing as your next avenue for growth, you’ll need some reliable keyword research tools first.
After all, the keywords you will opt to target can spell the difference between the success (or failure) of your marketing campaigns — inbound or outbound, paid or organic.
Got your attention?
If you answered with a “yes,” then let’s check out the top 5 keyword research tools in the market that can help you find the best keywords for your startup.
Contents
1. Ubersuggest
Ubersuggest used to be an independent service before it was acquired by Neil Patel — one of the most trusted names in the digital marketing landscape. It’s a keyword research tool that can provide you with hundreds of profitable keyword ideas literally in mere seconds.
How does it work, you might ask?
First, you need to add a “seed keyword” along with your target search platform and language.
The tool will then generate hundreds of keyword suggestions that are relevant to your entries.
Not only that, but it will also present valuable metrics to help you determine which ones are profitable:
Ubersuggest also comes with a handful of keyword filters to refine your search.
For example, if you want to weed out results with the term “AdWords,” simply type this under the “Negative Keywords” field and click the “Save” button.
On the other hand, if you want to pick out keywords that include a specific term, just enter it in the “Filter Results” field.
All in all, Ubersuggest is a great tool if you need a fine-tuned keyword research project within minutes.
You can also export your keywords into a CSV file or copy them straight to your browser’s clipboard if you need to utilize them in an external platform.
It’s also worth mentioning that Ubersuggest is free and it doesn’t require you to sign up or even go through any kind of registration process.
You have only to go to the site, and the online tool is all yours.
2. AdWords Keyword Planner
Google’s own keyword research tool, called the AdWords Keyword Planner, is one of the favorites in the online marketing community.
For you to use the Keyword Planner, you’d need to have a valid Google account.
The Keyword Planner also has a straightforward keyword research process. Upon launching the tool, you need to kick things off with a “seed keyword.”
Once the results are in, the first thing you’ll notice is that Keyword Planner focuses on suggestions for PPC use. This means there won’t be a lot of long-tail keyword variations that are more viable for smaller brands for SEO.
On the flip side, you can still use filters to prioritize keyword suggestions according to the monthly search volume, competitiveness, page bid, and so on.
For competitive research purposes, you can also type in the URL of a relevant competitor. This will prompt the Keyword Planner to identify the keywords that they are currently using.
By understanding the keyword strategy of an established competitor, you are essentially reaping the benefits of the research they did. Just be realistic and pick a competitor you can outrank if you plan to use the keyword ideas for SEO.
3. KeywordTool.io
Next in this list is KeywordTool.io — a keyword research tool with a unique approach to finding profitable search terms.
KeywordTool.io is worth mentioning because it leverages Google Autocomplete, which is a feature that shows related searches whenever you type something in search engines.
For example, if you type in “WordPress” as your seed keyword, you can head over to the “Questions” tab to see what users are asking.
Pulling in Google Autocomplete suggestions may not give you a game-changing advantage when it comes to SEO. However, this is incredibly useful if you want to generate rank-worthy ideas for your content.
Of course, you can fall back to the standard keyword research results by selecting the “Keyword Suggestions” tab. But since KeywordTool.io doesn’t provide metrics to free users, there’s no reason to choose it over similar tools like Ubersuggest, except if you need it specifically for content topic generation.
4. Moz Keyword Explorer
So far, we’ve covered keyword research tools that can give you profitable keyword suggestions in a flash. If you’re up for some number crunching, however, you can go for Moz Keyword Explorer.
After entering your seed keyword, Moz Keyword Explorer immediately takes you to an overview page that divulges crucial bits of information, such as the keyword’s difficulty, monthly search volume, and organic click-through rate.
What’s really interesting about the Moz Keyword Explorer is that it also creates a list of the top three pages that rank for that specific keyword. This will enable you to have a quick glance at how tough the competition will be.
You can also find a number of keyword suggestions by navigating to the “Keyword Suggestions” tab.
Unfortunately, the keyword suggestions feature isn’t particularly special — considering the fact that it lacks valuable metrics that can be used for PPC advertising.
The good news is, Moz Keyword Explorer has a well-defined set of filters that can help you find exactly what you need.
5. Long Tail Pro
Finally, not all marketers who need a keyword research tool are well-funded. But if you do have a budget for a premium platform, then you might want to consider Long Tail Pro.
As the name suggests, Long Tail Pro focuses on long-tail keyword suggestions that smaller brands have a fighting chance with. It also has advanced filters that can help you comb through hundreds of results to find keyword suggestions that suit your needs.
The main drawback is that it costs a cool $37 per month subscription fee. That’s why it’s only recommended if you can take advantage of Long Tail Pro’s other features, such as the rankings tracker and competitive analysis.
Verdict
The tools we covered have what it takes to help you find the best keywords to target. However, the question still remains: Which one is the best for startups?
While there’s no one-size-fits-all solution when it comes to marketing tools, remember that keyword research shouldn’t be an overly complicated ordeal — what’s important is your keyword tool needs to have the capacity to help you find the winning keywords to target.
From there, the simpler it is to use, the better. There’s just no point making the keyword tool overly complicated.
With that being said, I’d choose Ubersuggest as the clear winner.
What makes the platform awesome is the fact that it lets you jump straight into the action without even asking you to create an account. More importantly, it has all the features you’ll need to secure lucrative keyword opportunities — not to mention that it’s fast and easy to use.
If you’re looking for a platform that’s reliable, easy to use, free, and one that can help you find lucrative keywords that you can base your marketing campaigns upon, then your hands down need to check out Ubersuggest.
