Let’s talk about SaaS keyword research.
If you want to do impactful keyword research for your SaaS businesses, you should learn about the different stages of the buyer’s journey.
And then shift your keyword strategy accordingly to target the customers searching for those keywords.
There are three stages to the buyer’s journey:
- Awareness stage: where potential customers identify a problem.
- Consideration stage: where prospects evaluate their options.
- Decision stage: where prospects are ready to choose a solution.
People search differently depending on where they are in the buyer’s journey.
I’ll explain with a scenario.
Picture this: you run a project management SaaS company specifically designed for remote teams.
Your product keeps collaboration, communication, and productivity running smoother than butter.
It has beautiful features like task management, video conferencing integration, time tracking, and file sharing.
You’re the Apple of remote project management.
But here’s the thing:
People who are in the Awareness stage don’t know that they need your software.
No, not yet.
These users have identified the challenges they’re facing with remote work management and are now snooping the Internet for solutions to their challenges.
At this stage, users are not aware of any specific solutions, so they are searching for general info and tips related to remote work.
Keywords like how to improve communication in remote teams or remote working productivity tips.
The folks who are in the Consideration stage know a little more about what they need.
So these Searchers are now comparing different software solutions and are digging into the features and benefits of each.
So, they’ll be typing keywords like best project management software for remote teams, alternatives to trello or top remote work collaboration tools.
You get the gist.
Finally, the people in the Decision stage know what they want.
Users are ready to make a purchase decision and are comparing specific products.
At this stage, users are poking around and evaluating specific products.
They’re looking for detailed info to finalise their decision.
Info like pricing, reviews, and direct comparisons with competitors.
And they are the three musketeers of the buyer’s journey: Awareness, Consideration and Decision.
So now let’s talk about the different types of keywords you can target for your SaaS company.
Types of SaaS keywords
1. Industry-specific keywords
- Example keywords: accounting software for real estate or construction project management software.
- Description: target industry-specific SaaS keywords when you want to increase your conversion rates by resonating with the demands of a particular industry.
This works like a charm when your product features are designed for the workflows, regulations, or challenges of a specific industry.
Ask most real estate brokers if they’d rather pick a normal accounting software or one designed for real estate professionals.
Most would choose the second option.
Why? Because it was engineered to meet the complex needs of their industry.
Your run-of-the-mill accounting software won’t provide features like tenants and lease tracking or property management integration.
Chances are, your customers are also looking for industry-specific solutions.
Hunt for those keywords.
2. Alternative keywords
- Description: These are the keywords people search when they want to see the alternative options to a software. Plain and simple.
- Example keywords: asana alternative, trello alternative¸ loom alternative.
When users search for alternatives, they’re typically exploring other options that might better meet their needs, offer different features, or be more cost-effective.
Alternative keywords indicate that the Searcher is upset with their current option and is browsing for a better solution.
For instance, if someone searches for trello alternative, they’re on the market for project management software that can meet their needs better than Trello.
They might be searching for a project management software that provides a better user interface or integration with third party tools.
Who knows? That’s for you to find out.
Investigate. Find the specific reasons why customers are leaving their previous SaaS product.
And then you pitch your product as the better solution, digging how your product can solve their pain points better.
Classic SaaS SEO.
So, in a nutshell, alternative keywords can help you:
- Capture traffic with high buying-intent: attract users who are actively looking for product alternatives, and that suggests a high intent to buy.
- Position against competitors: highlight how your product compares to popular SaaS products.
- Bump up your brand awareness using your competitor’s name: reach users who might not be familiar with your product but are exploring various options in the market.
3. Comparison keywords
- Example keywords: slack vs. microsoft team, asana vs. trello, zoom vs. google meet
- Description: Comparison keywords used by Searchers who want to evaluate two or more competing products or services.
The Searcher is in the decision-making stage and is looking for detailed comparisons to help them choose the best option for their needs.
They want to understand the differences between various products and are searching for insights that will guide their purchase decision.
And that’s where you slide into the scene with your product.
Comparison keywords allow you to position your SaaS product as a strong contender in head-to-head comparisons.
And, of course, you’d dig into the benefits, features and differentiators that make your product the winner.
So you talk about the two products the Searcher wanted to review and then your present as the third option.
The final course to those two starters.
Pitch your product well and you can present yourself as the preferable choice.
Works like a charm if you can back your words with a great product that gives the other two options a run for their money.
4. Job-to-Be-Done keywords
- Example keywords: how to organise emails or how to manage remote teams
- Description: Jobs-to-be-Done (JTBD) keywords focus on the problems users want to solve with your product.
JTBD keywords connect you to users who want to overcome challenges that you solve.
For example, if your SaaS product is a time-tracking app, users could find you by searching for monitor employee productivity or track work hours because those are the challenges they’re facing.
5. Template keywords
- Examples: event registration forms or employee feedback survey templates
- Description: Template keywords are search terms related to specific types of templates Searchers are looking to use or create.
People love freebies.
So when you create a beautiful, well-designed and customisable template that solves problems, and you put it out free, word gets out. You bet your bottom dollar word gets out.
And that’s why big brands like Zapier, Kapwing and Jotform hook SaaS customers with their free templates.
These template keywords target folks who want to use pre-designed templates to solve an obstacle or challenge they have.
Free templates are like teasers. They give the user a taste of what the SaaS product could offer them.
Just enough of a taste to impress the user but not enough to provide the complete experience.
No, the user will need to upgrade to a paid plan to get the full experience.
So in a nutshell, this is how it works:
First, you impress the user with the features provided in the free template.
And then you nudge them to sign up for a full subscription, so they can get access to more features.
You provide value upfront and then pitch your product down the line.
One of the oldest tactic in the SaaS SEO playbook.
- Capture specific intent: attract users who are looking for specific types of templates and are likely to be interested in tools that offer customisable solutions. So it’s fairly simple for you to pitch your product as that solution.
- Pitch your product upfront: Show off how your product can help users create, customise, and manage various types of templates, addressing their specific needs.
You sell yourself by pitching your product upfront, in a tangible way.
No flowery copy or 2-minute product demos – just real results.
The customer can put your product to the test there and then and sign up if they’re impressed.
If your SaaS product is a form builder, you might target template keywords like employee feedback survey templates or customer satisfaction survey form.
Create landing pages or blog content that provides examples of these specific templates, and explain how your form builder can help users easily create, customise, and deploy these forms.
6. Feature-specific keywords
- Example keywords: crm software with email integration or project management tool with gantt charts.
- Description: Feature-specific keywords attract users who are looking for software solutions with specific features that meet their unique needs or preferences.
7. Use case keywords
- Example keywords: software for managing remote teams or tools for tracking employee productivity.
- Description: Use case keywords focus on specific scenarios or applications where a SaaS product can be applied to solve particular problems or achieve certain goals.
Use case keywords allows you to address the specific contexts in which users are searching for solutions.
And this makes your product more relevant to their immediate needs.
For example, if your SaaS product is a collaboration tool, users could find you by searching software for remote teams when searching for tools that facilitate remote work and team management.
So you can create content that highlights how your product supports remote work scenarios, e.g. video conferencing, task management, and communication features.
- Identify use cases: What are the main scenarios or problems your SaaS product addresses?
- Develop targeted content: Create content such as case studies that focus on these use cases, illustrating how your product provides value in those contexts.
- Highlight benefits: Explore the features and benefits of your product that are most relevant to each use case, helping the Searcher see how it can meet their needs.
Focus on how your SaaS product can be applied in various contexts and show the value of your product in real-world applications.
8. Business size keywords
- Example keywords: enterprise hr software
- Description: Business-size keywords focus on the size of the company searching for the software. You’d be surprised at how common these keywords are
For example, if your SaaS product is an HR management tool, users might search for enterprise hr software if they need a robust solution suitable for large organisations.
So then you can create content that highlights how your product meets the needs of enterprise clients, e.g. advanced reporting or scalability.
And that’s all, folks.
Thanks for reading.
