Search volume and keyword difficulty in SEO Fundamentals - Step-by-Step Execution

Concept Flow - Search volume and keyword difficulty

Start: Choose keyword

↓

Check search volume

↓

Is volume high?

No→Consider other keywords

Yes↓

Check keyword difficulty

↓

Is difficulty low?

No→Decide if worth targeting

Yes↓

Target keyword for SEO

This flow shows how to pick a keyword by checking its search volume and difficulty, then deciding if it's good to target.

Execution Sample

SEO Fundamentals

Keyword = 'shoes'
SearchVolume = 5000
KeywordDifficulty = 30
if SearchVolume > 1000 and KeywordDifficulty < 40:
    Target = True
else:
    Target = False

This example checks if a keyword has enough search volume and low difficulty to decide if it should be targeted.

Analysis Table

Step	Keyword	Search Volume	Keyword Difficulty	Condition	Decision
1	'shoes'	5000	30	5000 > 1000 and 30 < 40	True (Target)
2	'boots'	800	20	800 > 1000 and 20 < 40	False (Do not target)
3	'sneakers'	3000	50	3000 > 1000 and 50 < 40	False (Do not target)
4	'sandals'	1500	35	1500 > 1000 and 35 < 40	True (Target)
5	End of keywords	-	-	-	Stop checking

💡 Stopped after checking all keywords or when no suitable keyword found.

State Tracker

Variable	Start	After 1	After 2	After 3	After 4	Final
Keyword	-	'shoes'	'boots'	'sneakers'	'sandals'	-
SearchVolume	-	5000	800	3000	1500	-
KeywordDifficulty	-	30	20	50	35	-
Target	-	True	False	False	True	-

Key Insights - 2 Insights

Why does a keyword with high search volume but high difficulty get rejected?

Because the condition requires both high volume and low difficulty to target. See execution_table row 3 where 'sneakers' has enough volume but difficulty is too high.

Why is a keyword with low search volume not targeted even if difficulty is low?

Because the search volume must be above the threshold to ensure enough people search for it. See execution_table row 2 with 'boots' having low volume.

Visual Quiz - 3 Questions

Look at the execution_table, what is the Target decision for the keyword 'sandals'?

A False (Do not target)

B True (Target)

C Not checked

D Unknown

💡 Hint

Check execution_table row 4 under Decision column.

At which step does the condition fail because search volume is too low?

A Step 2

B Step 1

C Step 3

D Step 4

💡 Hint

Look at execution_table row 2 where Search Volume is 800.

If KeywordDifficulty for 'sneakers' was 35 instead of 50, what would be the Target decision?

A Not checked

B False (Do not target)

C True (Target)

D Depends on search volume

💡 Hint

Check condition in execution_sample and compare with execution_table row 3.

Concept Snapshot

Search volume measures how many people search a keyword.
Keyword difficulty shows how hard it is to rank for it.
Good keywords have high volume and low difficulty.
Check both before targeting keywords in SEO.
Use thresholds to decide if a keyword is worth it.

Full Transcript

This lesson shows how to decide if a keyword is good for SEO by checking two things: search volume and keyword difficulty. First, you pick a keyword. Then you check how many people search for it (search volume). If the number is high enough, you check how hard it is to rank for that keyword (keyword difficulty). If difficulty is low, you decide to target that keyword. If either volume is too low or difficulty is too high, you skip it. The example code and table show this decision step by step for different keywords.

Practice

1. What does search volume indicate in SEO?

easy

A. How many people search for a keyword

B. How difficult it is to rank for a keyword

C. The number of backlinks a page has

D. The loading speed of a website

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the meaning of search volume

   Search volume measures how often a keyword is searched by users in a given time period.

2. Step 2: Differentiate from keyword difficulty

   Keyword difficulty measures how hard it is to rank for that keyword, not how popular it is.

3. Final Answer:

   How many people search for a keyword -> Option A

4. Quick Check:

   Search volume = Popularity [OK]

Hint: Search volume = keyword popularity, not difficulty [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Confusing search volume with keyword difficulty
• Thinking search volume measures website speed
• Mixing search volume with backlinks count

2. Which of the following correctly describes keyword difficulty?

easy

A. The number of times a keyword is searched

B. The effort needed to rank high for a keyword

C. The total number of keywords on a page

D. The length of the keyword phrase

Solution

1. Step 1: Define keyword difficulty

   Keyword difficulty shows how hard it is to rank well on search engines for a specific keyword.

2. Step 2: Eliminate unrelated options

   Options about search count, keyword count, or phrase length do not describe difficulty.

3. Final Answer:

   The effort needed to rank high for a keyword -> Option B

4. Quick Check:

   Keyword difficulty = Ranking effort [OK]

Hint: Difficulty means how hard to rank, not search count [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Mixing difficulty with search volume
• Thinking difficulty is keyword length
• Confusing difficulty with number of keywords

3. If a keyword has a high search volume but also very high keyword difficulty, what is the likely outcome?

medium

A. No searches and no competition

B. Easy to rank and get many visitors

C. Low visitor traffic and easy ranking

D. Hard to rank despite many searches

Solution

1. Step 1: Analyze high search volume meaning

   High search volume means many people search for the keyword, so potential visitors are many.

2. Step 2: Analyze high keyword difficulty meaning

   High difficulty means many competitors rank well, so it is hard to appear on top.

3. Step 3: Combine both factors

   Even with many searches, ranking is tough, so getting visitors is difficult.

4. Final Answer:

   Hard to rank despite many searches -> Option D

5. Quick Check:

   High volume + high difficulty = tough ranking [OK]

Hint: High volume + high difficulty means tough to rank [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Assuming high volume always means easy ranking
• Ignoring keyword difficulty when choosing keywords
• Thinking high difficulty means low search volume

4. A marketer chooses a keyword with low search volume and low keyword difficulty. What is the main issue with this choice?

medium

A. The keyword is too long

B. The keyword is too competitive

C. The keyword will bring very few visitors

D. The keyword is irrelevant to SEO

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand low search volume impact

   Low search volume means few people search for the keyword, so visitor potential is low.

2. Step 2: Understand low difficulty impact

   Low difficulty means it is easy to rank for the keyword.

3. Step 3: Identify the main issue

   Even if easy to rank, the keyword brings few visitors due to low search volume.

4. Final Answer:

   The keyword will bring very few visitors -> Option C

5. Quick Check:

   Low volume = few visitors [OK]

Hint: Low volume means few visitors, even if easy to rank [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Thinking low difficulty means high competition
• Confusing keyword length with difficulty
• Assuming low volume means irrelevant keyword

5. You want to pick a keyword that balances good visitor traffic and easier ranking. Which keyword profile should you choose?

hard

A. Moderate search volume and low keyword difficulty

B. High search volume and high keyword difficulty

C. Low search volume and low keyword difficulty

D. High search volume and low keyword difficulty

Solution

1. Step 1: Understand the goal

   The goal is to get good visitors and rank easier, so balance is key.

2. Step 2: Evaluate options

   High search volume and high keyword difficulty: Hard to rank despite many visitors.
   Low search volume and low keyword difficulty: Easy to rank but few visitors.
   High search volume and low keyword difficulty: Ideal but often very competitive.
   Moderate search volume and low keyword difficulty: Moderate visitors and easier ranking, a practical balance.

3. Step 3: Choose the best balance

   Moderate search volume with low difficulty offers a good balance of traffic and ranking ease.

4. Final Answer:

   Moderate search volume and low keyword difficulty -> Option A

5. Quick Check:

   Balance volume and difficulty = Moderate search volume and low keyword difficulty [OK]

Hint: Pick moderate volume + low difficulty for best balance [OK]

Common Mistakes:

• Always choosing highest volume regardless of difficulty
• Ignoring difficulty and picking very hard keywords
• Choosing low volume keywords expecting high traffic