Hey all. It’s taken me a little while to return to this series. What can I say? Life got busy! I’ve been deep down the SEO Neo rabbit hole and had some stuff going on IRL (as my darling daughter would say!)
Anyway … let’s talk SEO 
In the last post we talked about intent. But how do we identify intent?
The Bit Everyone Overcomplicates
Keyword research has this weird reputation.
You open one tutorial and suddenly it’s spreadsheets, filters, difficulty scores, someone talking about “low KD clusters” while flicking between tools like they’re trading crypto.
It feels like you’ve missed a step.
At the beginner level, keyword research is much simpler than it’s made out to be. You’re not trying to outsmart Google. You’re trying to understand people.
What are they actually typing when they’ve got a problem? That’s the whole game.
Not what sounds clever. Not what looks good in a tool. Not what some dashboard says has “high opportunity.”
Real searches, real wording and real intent.
Get that right and everything else becomes easier.
What a Keyword Really Represents
A keyword is just the phrase someone types into Google.
Simple.
But it’s also a small snapshot of a situation.
“best email marketing software for beginners”
“how to fix shin splints from running”
“cheap vegan protein powder UK”
Each one tells you something about where that person is.
Are they learning?
Comparing?
Ready to buy?
That’s why keyword research and search intent are basically tied together. You’re not collecting phrases for the sake of it. You’re trying to understand what’s going on in the searcher’s head.
Once you start looking at it like that, it stops feeling mechanical. It’s just observation.
… and guess what? Your AI of choice is very good at making those observations!
Where Most Beginners Go Wrong
The mistake isn’t finding keywords. That part is easy. The mistake is chasing the wrong ones.
Usually it starts with something broad. “Fitness.” “SEO.” “Marketing.” Big numbers. Big promise and you excitedly hit publish on that article you slaved over.
Then… nothing happens. Maybe a couple of impressions if you’re lucky. You refresh Search Console like it owes you a pay cheque.
It’s because broad keywords don’t give you much to work with. They’re vague, competitive, and all over the place in terms of intent.
If someone searches “fitness,” what do they actually want?
Lose weight? Build muscle? Home workouts? Supplements?
Google has to hedge its bets, so the results are mixed. And that makes it harder for you to fit in.
Starting with Specific Searches
This is where things begin to click.
More specific searches give you context. You can picture the person typing them. You can understand the problem they’re trying to solve.
Take something like:
“best running shoes for flat feet beginners UK”
That’s not abstract. That’s someone dealing with discomfort, trying to make a good decision, probably not wanting to waste money.
Compare that with just “running shoes.”
One gives you direction. The other doesn’t.
That’s why more specific keywords are such a strong starting point. They’re easier to match with the right type of content, and they tend to be less competitive.
But there’s a subtle shift happening here.
You’re not just targeting that one phrase. You’re stepping into a topic.
From Keywords to Topics
This is where SEO has changed a bit.
Google isn’t just matching exact phrases anymore. It’s getting much better at understanding meaning.
So if you write a solid page around that topic, you won’t just show up for that exact keyword.
You might also appear for:
-
“running shoes for flat feet beginners”
-
“best trainers for flat feet UK”
-
“do flat feet need special running shoes”
Different wording. Same underlying intent. So instead of thinking:
“I need to rank for this keyword”
A better way to think is:
“I need to cover this topic properly for someone with this problem”
That’s a much stronger position. The keyword gets you started. The topic is what actually carries the page.
Exact match still has it’s place in a very specific use case but that’s not for this post
Letting Google Show You the Angles
You don’t need expensive tools to build this out. Google will show you how people think about a topic if you know where to look.
… so we go to the horse’s mouth. Start typing into the Google search bar and look at the suggestions.
Scroll down and check:
People also ask
Related searches
Click around a bit. At first it just looks like variations. But if you slow down, you’ll notice something else.
Patterns.
Different ways of asking the same thing. Slightly different concerns highlighting small shifts in intent.
You might see:
“running shoes for flat feet beginners”
“best trainers for flat feet UK”
“are flat feet bad for running”
That’s not three separate ideas. That’s one topic, seen from different angles. This is where keyword research becomes more useful.
You’re not building a list. You’re building a rough map.
And once you have that, writing becomes much easier. You already know what needs to be covered.
A Quick Word on Tools (and AI)
At some point, you will use tools. That’s fine. I use Keywords Everywhere all the time.
They can speed things up, surface ideas, and help you see patterns faster. AI tools in particular are good at generating variations and related questions around a topic.
But they’re not the source of truth.
Google is.
Use tools to expand your thinking. Then sense-check everything against what you actually see in the search results.
If the tool says something is important but it never shows up in real searches, you can probably ignore it. Keep it grounded.
A Simple Way to Start
If you’re new to this, don’t overbuild it. Pick one area in your niche and search it.
Follow the suggestions. Click into related questions. Let the topic branch out a bit.
Then choose one clear angle within that topic and write a piece that actually answers it properly. Use AI to outline the article so that the overall intent is covered.
Don’t rush it and avoid padding out with fluff. Just keep it useful.
That’s enough.
You don’t need 50 keywords or a massive 25 page PDF plan. You need one well-matched piece of content.
Then you repeat.
What Comes Next
Now that you understand how to find keywords and see them as part of a wider topic, the next step is choosing where to focus.
Because not every topic is worth your time early on.
In the next post, we’ll look at how to spot realistic opportunities. How to avoid going after terms you’ve got no chance of ranking for yet, and how to build early momentum without spreading yourself too thin.
This is where things start to feel less reactive and more strategic. It’s time to pick your battles.
And that’s where SEO starts to click properly.
Onwards. 
Thanks for reading!
- Rohan