Editor's note: The following is a guest submission from Piotr Pisarz, Executive Officer & Co-founder at Uncapped
How to Grow Your SaaS Product Using ‘Zero Traffic’ Search
Are you using zero volume keywords?
If not, there’s a chance that you’re leaving money on the table with your SaaS product—by not ranking as highly as you could do for your content.
This is because zero volume keywords, despite their name, are being searched by your customers. And because you face such little competition from your rivals right now, this is the time to start adding them to your content strategy.
Let’s find out how.
What are Zero Search Volume Keywords?
There are certain keywords that have little (if any) search history when you run them through a keyword research tool. They’re known as zero search volume keywords, which are typically long tail keywords that are super specific.
For example, “SEO for seafood restaurants” is longer than your average high volume keyword. And it shows zero search volume in Semrush.
The issue is that they might not look like they should be zero search volume keywords. Because in your mind, someone within your target audience should be searching this keyword.
However, while keyword research tools should most definitely be used as a guide, they’re not always 100% accurate.
For example, “related searches” on Google clearly have search volume. For whatever reason, keyword research tools don’t always pick them up.
As such, these keywords aren’t being used by SaaS companies despite the fact that there’s every chance your customers are typing them into Google.
Benefits of Targeting Zero Search Volume Keywords for Your SaaS Product
Not sure whether zero volume keywords are worth your time just yet?
Let’s see what you stand to gain by adding them to your overall SEO campaign.
Your Competitors Might Not Be Using Them
A lot of marketers will ignore zero volume keywords. This is because they’ve been taught to look for the high volume terms that will help them rank—like the short tail keyword SaaS financing, which quite naturally will have a lot of traffic and competition.
As a result, if you start optimizing your content with keywords that no one else is using in their content, you can outstrip the competition.
Remember, content marketing should be seen as a long-term investment. Instead of tackling high-volume keywords all the time that your rivals are also using, you can start with zero-volume keywords that everyone else is overlooking.
Zero Volume Keywords Allow You To Zone in on Your Audience
Circling back to our “SEO for seafood restaurants” example, zero volume keywords are generally laser-focused on a niche audience.
There are two things at play here. One is that it will be much easier for you to define a target audience and user intent, which in turn will help you to create better, more relevant content.
The second thing to bear in mind is that these keywords are often left untouched. This means the door is wide open for someone (you) to come along and create valuable content around them.
More Traffic
More traffic isn’t always a good thing. But by adding zero volume keywords to your SEO content marketing strategy, you can start to target prospects that so far haven’t found you (or other businesses).
And all you have to do is answer queries no one else has yet by including the keywords in high-quality content on your website.
Types of Zero Search Volume Keywords That Drive Qualified Traffic and Conversions for SaaS Products
As is the case with any keyword, there are different types of zero search volume keywords that you can use.
Alternative Keywords
An alternative keyword is an example of a prospect searching Google to see what alternatives there are to your SaaS product.
For example, “[your SaaS product] alternatives” is a zero search volume alternative keyword you could add to your content.
Comparison Keywords
Comparison keywords are similar to alternative ones—but they’re not quite the same.
Yes, this type of content will require you to compare your SaaS product with a rival. But while an alternative keyword looks like “[your SaaS product] alternatives,” a comparison keyword looks like “[your SaaS product] vs [competitor’s SaaS product].”
With this type of keyword, you can create content that pits your products against competitors. Demonstrating the strengths and weaknesses of either while (naturally) casting yours in a better light.
Best for … Keywords
A best for… keyword is longer than the above two. It’s used by prospects who are looking for a very specific solution.
For example, a SaaS best for… keyword might be “best SaaS product for small businesses in New York.”
If you’ve got what you feel is the best SaaS product for businesses in New York, you can build content around this keyword.
Again, the benefit of such a zero search volume keyword is that user intent is clearly defined. With a best for… keyword, the user exists in the middle of the funnel, which means they’re considering their options. This allows you to promote your product and help encourage them to choose you.
How to Find the Best Zero Search Volume Keywords for Your SaaS Product
Naturally, you don’t want to target all zero search volume keywords. So how do you find the ones that are the best for your SaaS product?
Know Your Audience
You will need to fully understand your audience and their specific pain points before choosing your zero search volume keywords.
Essentially, your mission should be to uncover as many pain points as possible. If you uncover one person in your audience who has a specific pain point, it’s highly likely that someone else in your audience will share it—and search for the solution.
Google Related Searches
When you enter a search query into Google and scroll to the bottom of the page, you’ll find Google’s Related Searches.
When you enter these keywords into a keyword research tool, they may be flagged as zero volume search keywords.
This doesn’t mean no one is searching for this keyword (they clearly are). It also means you’ve got lots of new ideas for keywords and content.
Google’s “People Also Ask”
Google’s “People Also Ask” is like Related Searches except it’s located nearer to the top of the page.
This section gives you more insight into what topics your audience is searching for.
To get more ideas, you can try different Google searches to see what “People Also Ask” suggestions appear each time.
Conclusion
Adding zero volume keywords to your SaaS product’s overall SEO and content marketing strategy could be the difference that sets you apart from your rivals.
What’s more, you could create topic clusters around these keywords and branch out into topics you never considered before.
That said, it’s always important that you keep your audience in mind. Create valuable content that’s been optimized with the target keywords, and answer your customers’ questions with as much depth as possible.
BIO: Piotr Pisarz
Piotr Pisarz is Chief Executive Officer & Co-founder at Uncapped. Prior to Uncapped, Piotr was a venture capital investor at Corviglia Capital, DN Capital and Finch Capital, focusing on banking and lending investments. Piotr has held multiple positions, including four years at Google helping directors deliver growth with data insights.
You can connect with Piotr on Linkedin or Twitter, or at www.weareuncapped.com.
