choosing keywords: offers, search box, one phrase per page

web · 2026-10-13 · 5 min

keywords are the words customers type — your job is matching pages to them, not stuffing them. the beginner method in five steps, no tools required to start, one free tool to continue.

step 1: list offers + questions + places

write every service, every customer question, every area served. plumber: boiler repair, leak fix, bathroom refit × parma, fidenza, collecchio. this raw list is 80% of keyword research for local businesses — tools refine it, they don't replace it.

step 2: steal from the search box

type each into google, note autocompletes and people-also-ask. these are real searches in real words — free, current, local. then check the live results: what kind of page wins (service page? guide? list?) tells you the intent your page must match. a buying phrase won by guides wants a guide, not a thinner service page.

step 3: one phrase per page, naturally

assign each phrase to exactly one page (duplicates cannibalize). use it in the title, the main heading, the first paragraph — then write for humans and stop. google understands related language; repetition reads as spam and Keyword Planner volumes are ad estimates, not organic promises. find phrases you already near-win in console and aim pages at them: what is google search console.

FAQ

how many keywords per page?

one primary, its natural variants flowing in prose. counting beyond that is 2010.

short or long phrases?

both, matched to pages: head terms for service pages, long questions for answer-pages. long-tail converts better and competes thinner — beginners should live there.