How to Do Keyword Research for Your Ecommerce Store

You've built your store, listed your products, and written descriptions you're proud of — but search traffic is barely trickling in. You check Google Analytics and see single-digit visits from organic search. Meanwhile, a competitor selling nearly identical products seems to show up everywhere.

The gap between you and that competitor almost certainly starts with keyword research. They know exactly what their customers type into Google before buying, and they've built every product page, collection page, and blog post around those search terms. You can close that gap, and you don't need an SEO degree or expensive tools to do it.

This guide covers keyword research from scratch — no jargon left unexplained, no steps skipped. By the end, you'll have a working keyword list you can start applying to your store today. The process works on any platform — Shopify, WooCommerce, Squarespace, or anything else. The tools and principles are the same.

What Keyword Research Actually Means (and Why It Matters for Product Sales)

Keyword research is the process of finding the specific words and phrases real people type into search engines when they're looking for products like yours. Instead of guessing what to write on your pages, you base every decision on actual search data.

This matters for ecommerce because people searching for products are often ready to buy. Someone typing "buy organic cotton baby blanket" isn't browsing casually — they have their wallet out. If your product page targets that exact phrase, you're meeting a buyer at the moment of highest intent.

Without keyword research, you might label that product "soft snuggle blanket" on your site. It's a lovely name, but if nobody searches for it, Google has no reason to send you traffic.

The Real Cost of Skipping This Step

Consider two hypothetical store owners selling handmade soy candles:

• ●Store A names their collection page "Our Candles" and writes product titles like "Serenity" and "Midnight Bloom."
• ●Store B names their collection page "Hand-Poured Soy Candles" and writes product titles like "Lavender Soy Candle – Hand-Poured, 8oz."

Store B will almost always outperform Store A in search because those titles match the phrases people actually search. That's keyword research in action — it tells Store B exactly which words to use and where.

Step 1: Build Your Seed List From What You Already Know

A "seed list" is your starting point — a simple brainstorm of broad terms related to your products. You don't need any tools yet. Open a spreadsheet or even a notepad and start listing:

1. ●Your product categories. What do you sell at the broadest level? (e.g., "running shoes," "organic skincare," "dog collars")
2. ●Specific product types. Get more detailed. (e.g., "trail running shoes for women," "vitamin C serum," "personalised leather dog collar")
3. ●Problems your products solve. Think about why someone needs what you sell. (e.g., "best shoes for knee pain," "how to clear acne naturally," "dog collar that won't fade")
4. ●Words your customers actually use. Check your customer emails, reviews, social media comments, and support tickets. The language your buyers use is gold — it's often different from the industry terms you use internally.
5. ●Competitor product names and categories. Visit three to five competing stores and note how they label their navigation menus, collection pages, and product titles.

Aim for 20–40 seed terms. Don't filter yourself — you'll refine the list in the next step. The goal is to capture every angle a potential buyer might approach from.

Step 2: Expand and Validate With Free Keyword Tools

Your seed list is a starting point, not a strategy. Now you need real data: how many people search for each term, and how hard it would be to rank for it. Here are the best free and low-cost ways to get that data.

Google's Own Tools (Free)

• ●Google Search autocomplete. Type each seed term into Google and note the suggestions that appear in the dropdown. These are real, popular searches. For example, typing "soy candle" might reveal "soy candle gift set," "soy candle for anxiety," and "soy candle vs beeswax." Add every relevant suggestion to your spreadsheet.
• ●"People also ask" box. Scroll down the search results page and look for the expandable questions Google shows. These reveal the exact questions buyers have, which are perfect for blog content and FAQ sections.
• ●Google Keyword Planner. This is free inside a Google Ads account (you don't need to run ads). Enter your seed terms and it returns search volume ranges, related keywords, and competition levels.

Other Free and Affordable Options

• ●Ubersuggest offers a limited number of free searches per day and shows search volume, difficulty scores, and related keywords.
• ●AnswerThePublic visualises questions people ask around your seed terms — extremely useful for planning blog posts that drive traffic to your product pages.
• ●Google Trends won't give you exact search volumes, but it shows whether a term is growing or declining in popularity, and lets you compare two terms side by side (handy when you're deciding between "soy candle" and "soy wax candle").

What to Record in Your Spreadsheet

For each keyword, track these four columns:

The "Intent" column is one you'll fill in yourself, and it's arguably the most important. That's the next step.

Step 3: Understand Search Intent — The Filter That Changes Everything

Search intent is the reason behind a search. Google cares deeply about this, and so should you, because matching the wrong intent means your page won't rank no matter how well it's optimised.

There are four types of intent that matter for ecommerce:

1. ●Transactional (Buy). The searcher wants to purchase. Keywords include "buy," "order," "price," "discount," specific product names, or very specific descriptions like "blue merino wool scarf." Map these to product and collection pages.
2. ●Commercial investigation (Compare). The searcher is researching before buying. Keywords include "best," "vs," "review," "top 10." Map these to blog posts, buying guides, or comparison pages that link to your products.
3. ●Informational (Learn). The searcher wants knowledge, not a product — yet. Keywords start with "how to," "what is," "why does." Map these to blog posts that build trust and capture email subscribers.
4. ●Navigational (Find). The searcher is looking for a specific brand or website. Unless they're searching for your brand, these aren't useful to target.

A Practical Example

Say you sell specialty coffee beans. Search intent changes your strategy:

• ●"buy Ethiopian coffee beans online" → Product page for your Ethiopian single-origin beans
• ●"best coffee beans for pour over" → Blog post comparing different beans, linking to your recommended products
• ●"how to store coffee beans" → Helpful blog post with an email signup or gentle product mention
• ●"Blue Bottle Coffee" → A competitor's brand — not worth targeting

Go through your spreadsheet and tag every keyword with its intent. Then ruthlessly deprioritise any keyword that doesn't eventually lead to a sale. Informational keywords are worth targeting, but only when you have a clear path from the blog post to a product page.

Step 4: Find the Sweet Spot — Low Competition, High Buying Intent

Most store owners go wrong here: they chase the biggest search volume numbers. A keyword like "running shoes" gets hundreds of thousands of searches per month, but you'll never outrank Nike, Adidas, and Amazon for it.

Focus on long-tail keywords instead — longer, more specific phrases that get less traffic individually but are far easier to rank for, and convert much better because they're so specific.

The Long-Tail Advantage in Numbers

Compare these two keywords for a store selling running shoes:

• ●"running shoes" — 200,000 searches/month, extremely high competition, vague intent, conversion rate around 1%
• ●"women's trail running shoes wide fit" — 800 searches/month, low competition, crystal-clear buying intent, conversion rate around 5–8%

The long-tail keyword drives fewer visitors, but those visitors are five to eight times more likely to buy. And because competition is low, you can realistically rank on page one within a few months instead of waiting years.

How to Identify Your Best Opportunities

Sort your spreadsheet and highlight keywords that meet all three criteria:

• ●Monthly search volume of 100+ (enough to be worth the effort)
• ●Low to medium keyword difficulty (realistic to rank for without a massive backlink profile)
• ●Transactional or commercial intent (connected to buying)

These are your priority keywords. Aim to identify 10–20 of these to start with. You'll assign each one to a specific page on your store.

Step 5: Map Keywords to Your Store Pages

Keyword mapping is the process of assigning one primary keyword (and two to three supporting keywords) to each page on your site. This prevents two common problems: keyword cannibalisation (where multiple pages compete for the same term and Google doesn't know which to rank) and orphan keywords (where you've identified great terms but never actually used them anywhere).

A simple mapping approach:

1. ●Homepage: Target your broadest branded or category term (e.g., "handmade soy candles" or "[Brand Name] candles").
2. ●Collection/category pages: Target mid-level keywords (e.g., "soy candle gift sets," "floral soy candles").
3. ●Product pages: Target specific long-tail keywords (e.g., "lavender vanilla soy candle 8oz").
4. ●Blog posts: Target informational and commercial investigation keywords (e.g., "best candle scents for relaxation," "soy vs paraffin candles").

Add a "Page Assignment" column to your spreadsheet. Every priority keyword should be assigned to exactly one page. If you don't have a page for a high-value keyword, that's a clear signal to create one — a new collection page, a new blog post, or even a new product listing.

If you're not sure how well your current pages are set up to receive these keywords, run your store through our free site audit tool. It flags missing meta titles, thin content, and other issues that would undermine your keyword work before you even begin.

Step 6: Put Your Keywords to Work

Research without implementation is just a spreadsheet you'll forget about. Here's exactly where to place your keywords once they're mapped:

On Product and Collection Pages

• ●Page title (title tag): Include the primary keyword near the beginning. Keep it under 60 characters. (e.g., "Lavender Soy Candle – Hand-Poured, 8oz | [Brand]")
• ●Meta description: Write a compelling 145–155 character summary that includes the keyword and gives a reason to click.
• ●H1 heading: Should match or closely reflect the primary keyword. Each page gets exactly one H1.
• ●Product description: Use the primary keyword in the first 100 words, then weave in supporting keywords naturally throughout. Write at least 250 words — thin descriptions hurt rankings.
• ●Image alt text: Describe the image using the keyword where it makes sense. (e.g., "lavender soy candle in glass jar on wooden table")
• ●URL slug: Keep it short and keyword-rich. (e.g., /products/lavender-soy-candle-8oz)

On Blog Posts

• ●Use the primary keyword in the title, first paragraph, one or two H2 headings, and the meta description.
• ●Link naturally from the blog post to the relevant product or collection page. This passes SEO value and guides readers toward a purchase.

If you're running your store on Shopify and haven't set up your SEO foundations yet, Shopify's free trial gives you access to built-in SEO fields for every page, product, and blog post — a solid starting point for applying your keyword research immediately.

A Quick Before/After

Before keyword research:

• ●Product title: "Serenity"
• ●URL: /products/serenity
• ●Meta description: (empty)
• ●Description: "A beautiful candle for your home. You'll love it."

After keyword research:

• ●Product title: "Lavender Soy Candle – Hand-Poured, 8oz"
• ●URL: /products/lavender-soy-candle-8oz
• ●Meta description: "Hand-poured lavender soy candle made with natural essential oils. Long-lasting 8oz jar, clean burn. Free UK shipping on orders over £30."
• ●Description: 300+ words covering scent notes, burn time, ingredients, and care instructions — naturally incorporating "lavender candle," "soy wax candle," and "hand-poured candle."

The second version gives Google (and your customers) everything they need to find you and feel confident buying.

Your Next Step: Start With Five Keywords This Week

You don't need to research five hundred keywords before making progress. Your action plan for this week:

1. ●Write down 20 seed terms based on your products and customers.
2. ●Run them through Google autocomplete and one free tool (Google Keyword Planner or Ubersuggest).
3. ●Pick five long-tail keywords with buying intent and low competition.
4. ●Assign each keyword to one existing page on your store.
5. ●Update those five pages — title tag, meta description, H1, and first paragraph.

Five pages, properly optimised for the right keywords, will do more for your organic traffic than fifty pages optimised for nothing in particular.

If you want a professional eye on your keyword strategy and on-page SEO, we can help. We build WooCommerce stores and done-for-you Shopify stores that are optimised for search from day one — no guesswork required.