How to Search for Keywords on a Website

Intro

99% of search users today never go past the first page of search results. This means that your website needs to be well-optimized to position your business at the top of the search engine results.

Searching websites can be a useful strategy for identifying related keywords in your industry. Use the search function to track search volume and uncover keyword ideas based on your competitors.

If you’re wondering how to search for keywords on a website, you have come to the right place. This article covers a few techniques you can use to search your website or others to identify keywords.

We’ll also review how a keyword research tool can help speed up the keyword research process and help create content that’s well-optimized while also resonating with your audience.

What Is Site Search for Keywords?

Site search for keywords is an SEO strategy that involves finding specific keywords on a website. Doing so allows you to learn more about the keyword strategy, targeted keywords, and optimization techniques that a website uses to rank. Site searches can also assist in creating a content strategy that beats out your competitors.

Is a Website Search for Keyword Research Effective?

Using search to find keywords on a website can be an effective strategy and offer the following benefits:

• Helps identify backlink opportunities: Searching the keyword list of relevant websites can help you discover potential backlink opportunities, which helps boost your ranking results even more.
• Offers tips to improve content: Searching a given keyword helps with content strategy by acquiring more topic ideas and competitive content gaps.
• Leads to more keyword research data: Conducting keyword research is an ongoing process that requires regular keyword suggestions. Website search is an excellent way to come up with more keyword ideas.
• Makes it easier to understand competitors: Searching a website domain allows you to better understand your competitors, including their targeted search terms.
• Allows you to locate statistics: The search bar can make it easier to find statistics or topic-specific search terms that you may want to link to or quote back to in your own content.
• Finds references for specific statistics or quotes: Site search can also speed up the time it takes to find references for specific statistics or quotes you notice in Google search results.

Finding the right keywords is an important part of ranking well for the most-used search engines. Site search is one of the available techniques that can help you discover the most relevant keywords.

5 Effective Ways to Search for Keywords on a Website

The top search engine results pages are typically websites that have taken the time to understand their target audience’s search habits.. Searching for keywords on a website is a great way to do this that makes finding keywords easier and faster. Here are a few of the most effective ways to search for keywords on a website.

Use the Website’s Search Function

An estimated 70% of users use the search bar function when visiting a website. You could also use CTRL+F to identify and count the number of associated keywords on a competitor’s website. Most websites have their own search bars, which assist with manually searching keywords or topics.

A broad search also allows you to identify related topics, which can also assist with content ideation or discovering keywords you’re not yet targeting in your industry. While this method of searching can help find keywords on a website, it’s important to note that it can also be time-consuming and ineffective. The website’s search function is usually best paired with other search techniques.

You could also search within the website’s HTML code, which allows you to search keywords not listed on-page, such as in the alt tag, title tag, or meta descriptions. You can do this with the following steps:

• Open the web page you want to search using Google Chrome.
• Right-click on the web page using your mouse cursor.
• Click “View Page Source”
• Select Ctrl+F
• Type in the keyword in the search bar
• Press Enter

You could also use this method to search “meta description” or “header” to find keywords. However, it’s important to note that you’ll have to complete this process with each page as HTML search only searches the page that you have open.

Explore with Google Keyword Planner

Google Keyword Planner is an excellent tool to find keyword ideas. Many marketers use this tool to complete a keyword search prior to running Google AdWords. However, this tool is completely free, which means you don’t need an active paid Google ads account to benefit from it.

Completing a keyword search using this tool is simple with the following steps:

• Create a Google Ads account
• Create an account with a campaign
• Confirm business information
• Click ‘Tools and Settings’ in top panel, then ‘Keyword Planner’
• Click ‘Discover New Keywords’
• Select ‘Start with a Website’
• Enter the web pages URL
• Click ‘Get Results’

Use Keyword Tools to Find Ranked Keywords on Search Engines

Keyword tools can be useful when you’re not sure what keywords or variations of keywords you’re searching for. Keyword research tools allow you to find short- and long-tail keywords based on generalized searches or topics. An effective SEO strategy includes a good mix of both.

Using tools in your keyword research process also provides you with other valuable information, like search volume and keyword difficulty. Many websites also search for keywords to help with content ideas.

Here are a few of the best tools to include in your keyword research:

• Google Keyword Planner: As mentioned above, the primary use of Google Keyword is to select specific keywords for ads, but it can also be valuable for identifying organic keywords.
• SEMRush organic research tool: The SEMRush organic research tool helps brands with identifying keywords, tracking rankings, and monitoring competitors.
• Clearscope Keyword Discovery: Clearscope’s Keyword Discovery tool helps find organic keywords and trending phrases.
• Answer the Public: Answer the Public is a free website that provides you with a list of relevant keywords or phrases that people use when searching.
• **Google Trends:**Google Trends is similar to Answer the Public in that it provides you with search trends, which can be valuable in industries with fluctuating seasons.
• AlsoAsked: AlsoAsked provides valuable insights into organic search trends and search intent.
• Moz Keyword Explorer: Moz Keyword Explorer narrows down your targeted keywords based on priority, which helps with planning content and optimization.
• Ahrefs Keywords Explorer: Ahrefs Keywords Explorer helps generate thousands of keyword ideas, and include ranking difficulty and potential traffic.

Utilize Search Operators

If you’re looking for a specific topic on a website, you might use Google search operators, like the “site” function. This allows you to search keywords or topics within a specific website. You can complete a specific site search using the following steps:

• Navigate to Google
• Type “Site:” and the specific web page you want to search - Site:domainname.com
• Input the keyword in the search engine
• Press Enter

This search provides you with a list of related pages that only come from the intended website. You can also narrow down your website search by domain. For example, if you want to search for keyword phrases within a webpages blog versus their home page, you can add the blog/ to the domain name.

Google site search can be an effective tool when completing competitive research. Use Google search operators to learn more about your competitor’s keyword strategy. Other Google search operators can help narrow down your results even further. Here are a few suggestions:

• AND: Input ‘AND’ when you want results that display two topics or keywords together.
• “-”: A “-” allows you to exclude a certain phrase or topic.
• “( )” Using “( )” allows you to group multiple searches together.
• Related: Using “Related” allows you to search for websites similar to the input domain name.

Use a Python Script

Using a Python Script can also help you search websites for specific keywords or phrases. However, this advanced method will require a little coding knowledge. This strategy involves using Python to implement a script that crawls the website in search of specific keywords or in some cases, broken links. A Python script can also be helpful in avoiding keyword stuffing by identifying keyword locations, including off-page.

Of course, it’s important to note that even this advanced method has its limitations. For example, Python script isn’t as effective in finding keywords based on ranking.

The Takeaway

Website searches are an effective method of identifying keywords or relevant topics. You can search websites for keywords using a number of methods, including the website’s search function, free or paid tools, or search operators. Users with advanced coding knowledge may find value in using Python script methods.

FAQ

Is Google Keyword Tool free?

Yes, Google Keyword Planner is free. Once you create a Google Ads account, you can use this tool to find the best keywords.

How Can I Do Keyword Research for Free?

You can research keywords for free using site search techniques or free tools like Keyword Explorer. Other free keyword research tools include Moz Keyword Explorer and Google Search Console. Google Trends and Ask the Public are also useful free tools that can be effective in keyword research or content creation.

Is Search Engine Optimization an Expensive Method?

Using SEO to find the right keywords can require a significant upfront investment. However, the potential for better optimization and matched user intent can lead to better rankings and more organic traffic, often making the investment well worth it. SEO has many different levels, each of which produces varying results and requires different investments.