Keyword Research

Automatically discover high-traffic, low-competition keywords — give this skill a topic and it returns a prioritized list with search volume, difficulty scores, intent classification, and ready-to-use topic clusters. Stop guessing what to write; start ranking for terms your audience actually searches.

Quick example:

Research keywords for "project management software for nonprofits"

→ get 30+ opportunities scored by ROI, grouped into pillar + cluster content, with GEO keywords that trigger AI answers.

System role: Research layer skill. It turns market signals into reusable strategic inputs for the rest of the library.

Part of the SEO & GEO Skills Library · 20 skills · ClawHub · skills.sh

When This Must Trigger

Use this when the conversation involves any of these situations — even if the user does not use SEO terminology:

Use this whenever the task needs reusable market intelligence that should influence strategy, not just an ad hoc answer.

• Starting a new content strategy or campaign
• Expanding into new topics or markets
• Finding keywords for a specific product or service
• Identifying long-tail keyword opportunities
• Understanding search intent for your industry
• Planning content calendars
• Researching keywords for GEO optimization

What This Skill Does

1. Keyword Discovery: Generates comprehensive keyword lists from seed terms
2. Intent Classification: Categorizes keywords by user intent (informational, navigational, commercial, transactional)
3. Difficulty Assessment: Evaluates competition level and ranking difficulty
4. Opportunity Scoring: Prioritizes keywords by potential ROI
5. Clustering: Groups related keywords into topic clusters
6. GEO Relevance: Identifies keywords likely to trigger AI responses

Quick Start

Start with one of these prompts. Finish with a short handoff summary using the repository format in Skill Contract.

Basic Keyword Research

Research keywords for [topic/product/service]

Find keyword opportunities for a [industry] business targeting [audience]

With Specific Goals

Find low-competition keywords for [topic] with commercial intent

Identify question-based keywords for [topic] that AI systems might answer

Competitive Research

What keywords is [competitor URL] ranking for that I should target?

Skill Contract

Expected output: a prioritized research brief, evidence-backed findings, and a short handoff summary ready for

memory/research/

.

• Reads: user goals, target market inputs, available tool data, and prior strategy from CLAUDE.md and the shared State Model when available.
• Writes: a user-facing research deliverable plus a reusable summary that can be stored under

  memory/research/

  .
• Promotes: durable keyword priorities, competitor facts, entity candidates, and strategic decisions to

  CLAUDE.md

  ,

  memory/decisions.md

  , and

  memory/research/

  ; hand canonical entity work to

  entity-optimizer

  .
• Next handoff: use the

  Next Best Skill

  below when the findings are ready to drive action.

Data Sources

Note: All integrations are optional. This skill works without any API keys — users provide data manually when no tools are connected.

See CONNECTORS.md for tool category placeholders.

With ~~SEO tool + ~~search console connected: Automatically pull historical search volume data, keyword difficulty scores, SERP analysis, current rankings from ~~search console, and competitor keyword overlap. The skill will fetch seed keyword metrics, related keyword suggestions, and search trend data.

With manual data only: Ask the user to provide:

1. Seed keywords or topic description
2. Target audience and geographic location
3. Business goals (traffic, leads, sales)
4. Current domain authority (if known) or site age
5. Any known keyword performance data or search volume estimates

Proceed with the full analysis using provided data. Note in the output which metrics are from automated collection vs. user-provided data.

Instructions

When a user requests keyword research:

At the start of each phase, announce: [Phase X/8: Name] so the user can track progress.

Phase 1/8: Scope

Ask clarifying questions if not provided:

• What is your product/service/topic?
• Who is your target audience?
• What is your business goal? (traffic, leads, sales)
• What is your current domain authority? (new site, established, etc.)
• Any specific geographic targeting?
• Preferred language?

Phase 2/8: Discover

Start with:

• Core product/service terms
• Problem-focused keywords (what issues do you solve?)
• Solution-focused keywords (how do you help?)
• Audience-specific terms
• Industry terminology

Phase 3/8: Variations

For each seed keyword, generate variations:

## Keyword Expansion Patterns

### Modifiers
- Best [keyword]
- Top [keyword]
- [keyword] for [audience]
- [keyword] near me
- [keyword] [year]
- How to [keyword]
- What is [keyword]
- [keyword] vs [alternative]
- [keyword] examples
- [keyword] tools

### Long-tail Variations
- [keyword] for beginners
- [keyword] for small business
- Free [keyword]
- [keyword] software/tool/service
- [keyword] template
- [keyword] checklist
- [keyword] guide

Phase 4/8: Classify

Categorize each keyword:

Intent	Signals	Example	Content Type
Informational	what, how, why, guide, learn	"what is SEO"	Blog posts, guides
Navigational	brand names, specific sites	"google analytics login"	Homepage, product pages
Commercial	best, review, vs, compare	"best SEO tools [current year]"	Comparison posts, reviews
Transactional	buy, price, discount, order	"buy SEO software"	Product pages, pricing

Phase 5/8: Score

Score each keyword (1-100 scale):

### Difficulty Factors

**High Difficulty (70-100)**
- Major brands ranking
- High domain authority competitors
- Established content (1000+ backlinks)
- Paid ads dominating SERP

**Medium Difficulty (40-69)**
- Mix of authority and niche sites
- Some opportunities for quality content
- Moderate backlink requirements

**Low Difficulty (1-39)**
- Few authoritative competitors
- Thin or outdated content ranking
- Long-tail variations
- New or emerging topics

Opportunity Score

Formula:

Opportunity = (Volume × Intent Value) / Difficulty

Intent Value assigns a numeric weight by search intent:

• Informational = 1
• Navigational = 1
• Commercial = 2
• Transactional = 3

### Opportunity Matrix

| Scenario | Volume | Difficulty | Intent | Priority |
|----------|--------|------------|--------|----------|
| Quick Win | Low-Med | Low | High | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Growth | High | Medium | High | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Long-term | High | High | High | ⭐⭐⭐ |
| Research | Low | Low | Low | ⭐⭐ |

Phase 6/8: GEO-Check — AI Answer Overlap

Keywords likely to trigger AI responses:

### GEO-Relevant Keywords

**High GEO Potential**
- Question formats: "What is...", "How does...", "Why is..."
- Definition queries: "[term] meaning", "[term] definition"
- Comparison queries: "[A] vs [B]", "difference between..."
- List queries: "best [category]", "top [number] [items]"
- How-to queries: "how to [action]", "steps to [goal]"

**AI Answer Indicators**
- Query is factual/definitional
- Answer can be summarized concisely
- Topic is well-documented online
- Low commercial intent

Phase 7/8: Cluster

Group keywords into content clusters:

## Topic Cluster: [Main Topic]

**Pillar Content**: [Primary keyword]
- Search volume: [X]
- Difficulty: [X]
- Content type: Comprehensive guide

**Cluster Content**:

### Sub-topic 1: [Secondary keyword]
- Volume: [X]
- Difficulty: [X]
- Links to: Pillar
- Content type: [Blog post/Tutorial/etc.]

### Sub-topic 2: [Secondary keyword]
- Volume: [X]
- Difficulty: [X]
- Links to: Pillar + Sub-topic 1
- Content type: [Blog post/Tutorial/etc.]

[Continue for all cluster keywords...]

Phase 8/8: Deliver

Produce a report containing: Executive Summary, Top Keyword Opportunities (Quick Wins, Growth, GEO), Topic Clusters, Content Calendar, and Next Steps.

Quality bar — every recommendation must include at least one specific number. If it reads like the left column, rewrite it before including.

❌ Generic (rewrite before including)	✅ Actionable
"Target long-tail keywords for better results"	"Target 'project management for nonprofits' (vol: 320, KD: 22) — no DR>40 sites in top 10"
"This keyword has good potential"	"Opportunity 8.4: vol 4,800, KD 28, transactional intent — gap analysis shows no content updated since 2023 in top 5"
"Consider creating content around this topic"	"Write '[Tool A] vs [Tool B] for small teams' — 1,200/mo searches, current #1 is a 2022 article with 12 backlinks"
"Optimize your page for this keyword"	"Add primary keyword to H1 (currently missing), write a 40-word direct answer in paragraph 1, add 3 internal links from your /blog/ cluster"

Reference: See references/example-report.md for the full report template and example.

Validation Checkpoints

Input Validation

• Seed keywords or topic description clearly provided
• Target audience and business goals specified
• Geographic and language targeting confirmed
• Domain authority or site maturity level established

Output Validation

• Every recommendation cites specific data points (not generic advice)
• Search volume and difficulty scores included for each keyword
• Keywords grouped by intent and mapped to content types
• Topic clusters show clear pillar-to-cluster relationships
• Source of each data point clearly stated (~~SEO tool data, user-provided, or estimated)

Example

Reference: See references/example-report.md for a complete example report for "project management software for small businesses".

Advanced Usage

• Intent Mapping:

  Map all keywords for [topic] by search intent and funnel stage

• Seasonal Analysis:

  Identify seasonal keyword trends for [industry]

• Competitor Gap:

  What keywords do [competitor 1], [competitor 2] rank for that I'm missing?

• Local Keywords:

  Research local keywords for [business type] in [city/region]

Tips for Success

1. Start with seed keywords that describe your core offering
2. Don't ignore long-tail - they often have highest conversion rates
3. Match content to intent - informational queries need guides, not sales pages
4. Group into clusters for topical authority
5. Prioritize quick wins to build momentum and credibility
6. Include GEO keywords in your strategy for AI visibility
7. Review quarterly - keyword dynamics change over time

Save Results

After delivering findings to the user, ask:

"Save these results for future sessions?"

If yes, write a dated summary to

memory/research/keyword-research/YYYY-MM-DD-<topic>.md

containing:

• One-line headline finding
• Top 3-5 actionable items
• Open loops or blockers
• Source data references

If any findings should influence ongoing strategy, recommend promoting key conclusions to

memory/hot-cache.md

.

Reference Materials

• Keyword Intent Taxonomy — Complete intent classification with signal words and content strategies
• Topic Cluster Templates — Hub-and-spoke architecture templates for pillar and cluster content
• Keyword Prioritization Framework — Priority scoring matrix, categories, and seasonal keyword patterns
• Example Report — Complete example keyword research report for project management software

Next Best Skill

• Primary: competitor-analysis — turn keyword opportunities into a competitive benchmark.

Related Skills in This Suite

Phase	Skills
Research	keyword-research, competitor-analysis, serp-analysis, content-gap-analysis
Build	seo-content-writer, geo-content-optimizer, meta-tags-optimizer, schema-markup-generator
Optimize	on-page-seo-auditor, technical-seo-checker, internal-linking-optimizer, content-refresher
Monitor	rank-tracker, backlink-analyzer, performance-reporter, alert-manager
Cross-cutting	content-quality-auditor, domain-authority-auditor, entity-optimizer, memory-management

Install the full suite: See README for one-command install of all 20 skills.