Start Your SEO with the Right Keywords

I’m sure you’ve noticed that in Star Wars, the Stormtroopers never seem to hit whatever they’re aiming for. That franchise would have been wrapped up in 30 minutes if the Stormtroopers could hit a target and complete the goal. Far too many times, in a galaxy not far, far away, I’ve seen too many businesses and websites shooting and missing like Stormtroopers – primarily with their SEO attempts. You can write the absolute best content for your website, but if you’re using the wrong keywords, your success rate will be that of a Storm Trooper. 

With SEO, it all starts with keywords. Keywords, more importantly the right keywords, are the aim behind every piece of content be it a blog post, landing page, product description, or service page. And if you don’t take time to aim your SEO blasters? You’re likely not going to hit anything meaningful – like search traffic, leads, or sales. Kind of like when the Stormtroopers hit the wall or trees or who knows what. 

Why Keywords Are So Important

The keyword used on your site should be the same words and phrases people are actually typing into Google and search engines when they’re looking for something. If the content on your website doesn’t line up with what users are searching, Google’s very unlikely to put your site in front of them. It’s a massive miss for the Storm Trooper. 

The quality of your content won’t make up for a lack of keyword focus. The great content you have needs to have the keyword worked into it and throughout it. Think of the Storm Trooper who has the single greatest blaster in all of Star Wars. That Storm Trooper is still going to miss the mark. 

What Makes a Keyword “Good”?

While there is no shortage of the data you can analyze for a keyword when choosing which to work with, there are 3 main things we always recommend to look at first.

• Search Volume – This tells you how many times or how often a keyword is searched. For many small businesses, a keyword search volume of 10–100 searches per month is a great spot to start. That might sound small, but those keywords are usually more target specific and realistic to rank for.
• Keyword Difficulty (KD) – This is a score that provides an estimates of how difficult it would be to get your website to rank for that keyword. It is essentially a measure of just how big of a fight is it going to be to get to rank for that keyword. A KD of 25 or less is usually a great starting point, especially if your site is still building domain name authority.
• Relevance – While this won’t show up exactly in a keyword report from a place like SEMrush.com, you should double or triple check that a keyword will really be meaningful to your business. Make sure it is for a service you offer or in an area you cover. Just because a competitor ranks for it doesn’t mean you need to or should as well. 

Local SEO & Strategic Keyword Targeting

Local SEO takes keyword strategy to a whole new level by incorporating geographic relevance—your goal isn’t just to rank, it’s to show up right when potential customers in your service area are searching. It starts with identifying “geo-modified” keywords (e.g., “plumber in Green Bay”) or terms with local intent like “near me,” which signal to search engines that you serve a specific location. Then, create content and pages that naturally integrate those terms—think service pages, blog articles, FAQs—while ensuring your Google Business Profile, NAP (Name‑Address‑Phone), and citations are consistent. According to Search Engine Land, local SEO is all about “optimizing and promoting a business’s digital assets to increase visibility for searches related to a particular geography” searchengineland.com.

Meanwhile, keyword research remains the backbone of effective SEO—for both local and broader approaches. As Full Scope Creative advises, you should prioritize keywords with sufficient search volume, low-to-moderate difficulty scores, and strong relevance to your services fullscopecreative.com+1fullscopecreative.com+1. For small or newly established local businesses, it’s smart to target niche phrases that average 10–100 searches per month and a keyword difficulty under about 25. These niche, location-specific keywords (e.g., “Green Bay bike repair shop”) offer a better shot at ranking and attracting qualified traffic than highly competitive generic terms. This balanced approach ensures that you’re aiming with purpose, not firing Stormtrooper-style in the SEO galaxy.

Hit Your Target

If you’ve seen Star Wars (and you for sure should have by now), you’ve seen how Stormtroopers fire their blasters endlessly and still manage to miss their target. Don’t let your website and business suffer the same fate. If you skip keyword research, you’re shooting like a Stormtrooper and hoping something works.

But if you take the time and aim at the right keywords you’ll be aiming with purpose. You can then create great content that aligns with what people are actually searching for in Google. It could be for a blog post, your homepage, or a local service page, but starting with strong, relevant keywords gives your SEO real direction.