{"id":27655,"date":"2023-01-04T18:45:04","date_gmt":"2023-01-04T18:45:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2023\/01\/04\/driving-inbound-revenue-with-keyword-selection\/"},"modified":"2023-01-04T18:45:04","modified_gmt":"2023-01-04T18:45:04","slug":"driving-inbound-revenue-with-keyword-selection","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mailinvest.blog\/index.php\/2023\/01\/04\/driving-inbound-revenue-with-keyword-selection\/","title":{"rendered":"Driving Inbound Revenue With Keyword Selection"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The way that people make buying decisions for SaaS follows a relatively predictable pattern. One person builds out a new function. They use free tools (Google Drive usually) in the early days.\u00a0<\/p>\n

They hire more people to own the function, start experiencing workflow or process issues, and eventually, someone is tasked with finding a SaaS solution to alleviate the pains everyone\u2019s experiencing. The first step that person takes is to \u201ccollect basic information.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

According to Gartner<\/a>, \u201cThe buyer uses Google to reach third-party vendor sites to collect basic information and understand market landscape.\u201d<\/p>\n

For those without a large, well-known, brand presence, if you\u2019re not discovered when the buyer or researcher is seeking to collect basic information to solve their problems, you\u2019re not likely to come up later in the journey.\u00a0<\/p>\n

There are many ways to conduct keyword research that will result in a nice list of terms with data points like average search volume. If done well, this keyword research exercise should result in a large list of queries across the entire spectrum of relevance to your industry.\u00a0<\/p>\n

These queries may include product\/service categories, individual features, how to questions, and pain expressions like streamline, automate, improve, increase, what is, best, cost-effective, top, templates, examples, data, analysis, experts, services, and more.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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Source<\/a><\/p>\n

But this list alone doesn\u2019t necessarily mean you\u2019ve done keyword research \u201cwell,\u201d let alone in a way that will drive growth for your business. So, how do we go about identifying the types of search queries being used that would signal to us as marketers that:<\/p>\n

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  1. The prospect is currently in the research phase of the buying process.<\/li>\n
  2. The prospect is in my target market and is a fit.<\/li>\n
  3. The prospect is expressing an issue that my product can solve.\u00a0<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Most SaaS companies live in a core category. A CRM, an LMS, an ERP, Marketing Automation<\/a>, etc. It\u2019s easy to start and stop there, saying \u201cwell if someone is looking for my category, they are looking to buy, so that is what we should focus on.\u201d\u00a0 But don\u2019t assume those searchers are your only buyers just because they happen to know that category name.\u00a0<\/p>\n

    Even well-established categories are often misunderstood or misaligned with what the prospect may actually need. Someone may initially search for a \u201cmarketing automation platform\u201d when all they are actually trying to achieve is sending out a monthly newsletter automatically.\u00a0<\/p>\n

    To use a B2C example from a past life of mine, just because you call them \u201cwomen\u2019s athleisure leggings\u201d internally, doesn\u2019t mean you shouldn\u2019t also call them \u201cyoga pants\u201d externally. For these reasons, it\u2019s necessary to expand your list of keyword targets instead of just trying to improve rankings for 1 or 2 main categories.\u00a0<\/p>\n

    Understanding Searcher Intent<\/h2>\n

    I\u2019ve poured over many keywords for SaaS companies in my day and in doing so, have recognized a few common elements to search terms. Here are some of the key things to look for when trying to target keywords that could have more buying intent behind them:<\/p>\n