Keyword research for ecommerce websites means finding the words shoppers type into Google when they want to buy, then matching each word to the right product or category page. Keyword research for ecommerce websites differs from blog keyword research because the goal is a sale, not just a visit. In this guide I walk through the steps I use with online stores: defining your range, building seed terms, expanding with tools and your own data, sorting by intent, filtering, and mapping terms to pages. The benefit is simple: you spend your SEO and content effort on terms that bring buyers, not browsers who leave.
Key takeaways
- Start from what your store sells and what customers actually type, not from a tool export alone.
- Sort every term by intent: buying terms go to product or category pages, research terms go to guides.
- Map one main keyword to one page, so two of your URLs do not compete for the same search.
- Check Google Search Console every month for queries you already get impressions for but few clicks on.
What Is Keyword Research for an Ecommerce Store?
Keyword research is the process of finding the search phrases your future customers use. For an online shop, these phrases usually fall into three groups: product terms (such as running shoes size 10), category terms (such as trail running shoes) and research terms (such as how to choose trail shoes).
The first two groups drive sales. The third group brings people who are still deciding, and it often feeds your category pages or a buying guide. A good research list includes all three, clearly labelled.
I treat keyword research as a commercial task. Every term should answer one question: will a page on my store help this person buy, and does my store have the product to close the sale?
Step 1: Define Your Products, Margins and Customers
Before you open any tool, write down what you sell, which products make the most profit, and which are seasonal or slow-moving. Keyword work should follow your margin, not only the size of a search term.
- List your top 20 to 50 products and your main categories.
- Mark the products with the best margin and the deepest stock.
- Note who buys each product: consumer or business, age group, and country.
- Write down your delivery areas, because a term may only matter in one market.
This list becomes your filter later. A term that matches a product you do not stock, or cannot ship to your buyers, is not worth a page, however big its search volume looks.
If your store is new, this step may take an afternoon. If you run a large catalogue, group products into families first so that you can plan keywords by category rather than one SKU at a time.
Step 2: Build a Seed List From Real Shopper Language
Seed keywords are the broad starting terms. Write 10 to 30 of them, using the words customers use, not your internal product codes. Shoppers rarely search for your SKU or your brand's marketing name.
Good sources for seed terms are customer service emails, product review text, return reasons, and the on-site search box. Those phrases show the exact wording real buyers use when they describe what they want.
Next, type each seed into Google and read the autocomplete suggestions and the "People also ask" box. Note the modifiers that appear again and again, such as size, colour, material, budget, or "for beginners".
Step 3: Expand Your List With Tools and Your Own Data
Keyword tools such as Ahrefs, Semrush or Google Keyword Planner show related terms, approximate search volume and a difficulty score. Use them to widen the list, but treat their figures as rough guides, not facts. Different tools often disagree.
Your best data sits in Google Search Console, which shows the real queries that already bring impressions and clicks to your store. Export the last three to six months and sort by impressions. Terms with many impressions but few clicks often point to a page that needs a clearer title or better content.
Google Analytics adds the next layer. Check which landing pages bring organic visits that then add items to the cart. This shows which topics convert, not only which ones attract traffic.
Where competitor research fits
Look at the category pages of three to five competitors that rank well. Note the words in their titles, headings and filter labels. Do not copy their lists; use them to spot gaps, such as a material, use case or customer type they ignore.
Using the on-site search box
If your analytics tool records internal searches, export the top queries that return few or no results. Those are often the clearest demand signals you have, and they show words shoppers use that your product titles may be missing.
Step 4: Sort Every Keyword by Search Intent
Search intent is the reason behind a query. Google's guidance on helpful content asks you to match each page to what the searcher wants. For ecommerce, I sort terms into four groups, which I describe below and summarise in the table.
| Intent | What the searcher wants | Example phrase | Best page type |
|---|---|---|---|
| Informational | To learn or understand | how to clean suede shoes | Blog guide or buying guide |
| Commercial investigation | To compare before buying | best trail running shoes for wide feet | Comparison or category page with guide content |
| Transactional | To buy now | buy trail running shoes size 10 | Product or category page |
| Navigational | To reach one brand or site | brand name plus product | Brand or product page |
Informational terms teach. Commercial investigation terms compare options. Transactional terms show a clear intent to purchase, often with words like buy, price, or a specific size. Navigational terms name a brand or site you want to reach.
Navigational queries are mostly branded, and you cannot win them with content alone. Do not build a strategy around them. Focus your effort on the commercial and transactional terms that convert.
If a term is unclear, search it yourself and read the results. If Google shows shopping results and product listings, the intent is transactional. If it shows long articles and guides, the intent is informational.
Step 5: Filter Out Terms That Will Not Convert
Next, remove the terms that look good on paper but do not fit your store. Use simple checks rather than guesswork, and write down why you removed each one so the decision is easy to review later.
- Remove terms for products you do not sell or cannot deliver to your buyers.
- Remove terms where the top results are all large marketplaces you cannot beat on price or range.
- Remove terms with a different clear intent, such as jobs, free downloads or repair guides.
- Keep long-tail terms with a specific buying signal, such as a size, material or model number.
- Use difficulty scores only as a guide: a smaller store can still win niche product terms with strong pages.
Long-tail keywords are longer, more specific phrases. Each one has lower search volume, but the buyer is usually closer to purchase. For many stores, a large share of organic sales comes from these terms rather than from a few head terms.
This advice has limits. In some niches, a broad head term with strong buying intent is worth the effort, and a competitive market may need links and brand work as well as keywords. Treat the filter as a starting point, not a final verdict.
Step 6: Map Each Keyword to One Page
Keyword mapping means assigning one primary keyword to one URL. This prevents keyword cannibalisation, where two of your pages compete for the same search, and Google may pick the wrong one or split signals between them.
Create a simple sheet with these columns: keyword, intent, search volume (from your tool), current ranking URL, target URL, and action needed. Keep the sheet updated as you publish or retire pages.
- Product pages: one main product term, plus the exact product name and model number.
- Category pages: one broader term, such as "coffee grinders", with supporting terms in the description.
- Guide pages: question-style terms that link readers to a category or product.
- Filtered URLs: index them only when they serve a real search, such as a popular material or colour.
For large catalogues, faceted navigation (the filters on a shop page, such as size, colour and price) can create thousands of near-duplicate URLs. Decide which filtered pages deserve indexing, and block or canonicalise the rest. If you are unsure, ask a technical SEO specialist to review the setup.
Step 7: Check Your Pages Against the Keyword Plan
Once mapping is done, audit the target pages. Check the title tag (the clickable headline in search results), the main heading, the opening paragraph, the product description and the image alt text. Use the keyword where it fits naturally, and use related words that describe the product clearly.
Next, check the technical basics. Pages should load quickly and work well on phones. Google's guidance on Core Web Vitals explains the speed and stability measures Google uses.
Structured data helps search engines read price, availability and reviews. The Google Search Central structured data guide lists the product fields to include. Keep the product data accurate, because mismatched prices can cause problems in shopping results.
Finally, make sure product titles in Google Merchant Center match your site where possible. Consistent naming helps both organic and shopping results.
Common Mistakes in Ecommerce Keyword Research
- Chasing high search volume terms that bring browsers, not buyers.
- Targeting the same keyword on a category page and on several product pages.
- Using internal product codes as the main keyword instead of the words shoppers type.
- Ignoring Search Console and relying only on third-party tool estimates.
- Writing long guide content for terms that clearly need a product or category page.
- Changing URLs without redirects, which can erase rankings you already have.
Another common mistake is treating keyword research as a one-time project. Search behaviour changes with seasons, trends and new products. Review your list every quarter and after any major range change.
When this advice does not apply: if your store has only a handful of products, start with 20 to 30 core terms rather than a large spreadsheet. The method stays the same; only the scale changes.
How Often Should You Repeat Keyword Research?
For most stores, a full review every quarter is enough, with a lighter check each month in Search Console. Seasonal ranges, such as gifts or outdoor gear, may need a review before each peak season so the category pages are ready in time.
Add a full review after launching a new range, changing your site structure, or migrating to a new platform. Those events often change which pages rank and which URLs search engines find.
Keep a short change log. Note the date, the keyword, the page you changed and the reason. After a few months, this log shows which edits helped and which did not, so your next round of research starts from evidence.
Where to Learn More and Get Community Feedback
The official Google documentation is the best place to check how search works. Start with the Google Search Central: SEO starter guide and the Google Search Console Help pages on performance reports.
For practical discussion, practitioners compare notes in r/ecommerce and in r/SEO. Treat anecdotes there as ideas to test, not as proof.
For ecommerce SEO articles to compare with your own findings, the Ahrefs blog and Search Engine Journal publish regular guides on keyword research and search intent.
Questions & answers
What is keyword research for ecommerce websites?
Keyword research for ecommerce websites is the process of finding the search terms shoppers use before they buy, then matching each term to a product or category page. It focuses on buying intent, so the terms you choose should lead to sales rather than only traffic. Good research combines tool data, Search Console data and your own product margins.
How do I start keyword research for my online store?
Start by listing your top products, categories, margins and delivery areas. Then write 10 to 30 seed terms using the words customers use in emails, reviews and site search. Expanding that list with tools comes after you know what you sell and who buys it.
Which keyword tool is best for ecommerce?
No single tool is best for every store. Ahrefs, Semrush and Google Keyword Planner each show related terms and estimates, but their numbers differ. Google Search Console is the most reliable source because it shows the real queries that already bring your store impressions and clicks.
Should I target long-tail keywords or head terms?
Most ecommerce stores should target both, but they should start with long-tail terms that include a size, material, model or use case. These phrases attract fewer searches but usually show closer buying intent. Head terms like broad category names are worth targeting on category pages once your structure is clear.
How do I avoid two pages competing for the same keyword?
Assign one primary keyword to one URL in a keyword map. Use a product page for a specific product term and a category page for a broader term. If two pages already rank for the same query, merge them or clarify which page should own the term.
How long does ecommerce keyword research take?
A small store with a few dozen products can finish a first pass in a few days. A large catalogue can take several weeks because each category needs mapping and checking. Time depends on catalogue size, the number of markets you sell in and how clean your current data is.
Do I need an SEO agency to do keyword research?
You can do basic keyword research yourself using the steps in this guide. An agency or specialist becomes useful when the catalogue is large, the site has technical issues, or you sell in several languages and need careful planning for each market.
Keyword research for ecommerce websites works best when it starts with your products, uses real shopper language and ends with a clear page map. Revisit your list every quarter so it keeps pace with your range and the market. If you want a hands-on review of your store's keyword plan and category structure, see our SEO services page, or read the SEO for E-commerce guide for the wider picture.