Keyword research is the starting point for all eCommerce SEO. Get it right and every other part of your strategy becomes easier. Get it wrong and you spend months optimizing for keywords that never bring buyers.
Here is a straightforward guide to doing keyword research for eCommerce websites — the right way.
Why eCommerce Keyword Research Is Different
Unlike a blog or service website, your goal is not just traffic — it is sales. That means you need keywords that signal buying intent. Someone searching ‘running shoe reviews’ is still deciding. Someone searching ‘buy Nike Air Zoom Pegasus size 10’ is ready to buy right now.
Your keyword strategy needs to capture both — early-stage researchers and ready-to-buy shoppers.
Step 1: Start with Your Product and Category Structure
Before you open any keyword tool, map out your store structure. List every product category, subcategory, and top product. Each one of these is a potential keyword target.
For example: if you sell outdoor gear, your categories might include tents, sleeping bags, hiking boots, and backpacks. Each of these is a starting point for keyword research.
Step 2: Use a Keyword Research Tool
Tools like Ahrefs, Semrush, or Google Keyword Planner help you find keywords related to each category and product. Enter your seed terms and look for variations that have search volume and buying intent.
Pay attention to three things: search volume (how many people search it per month), keyword difficulty (how hard it is to rank for), and search intent (what the person actually wants).
Step 3: Focus on Transactional and Commercial Keywords
For product pages, target keywords with clear buying intent. These often include words like ‘buy,’ ‘shop,’ ‘cheap,’ ‘best,’ ‘deal,’ ‘free shipping,’ or the specific product name and model number.
For category pages, target broader category keywords. These are often shorter and more competitive but drive high volumes of relevant traffic when you rank for them.
Step 4: Find Long-Tail Keywords
Long-tail keywords are longer, more specific search phrases. They have lower search volume individually but are easier to rank for and often convert better.
For example, ‘best waterproof hiking boots for women with wide feet’ is a long-tail keyword. Anyone searching this is very specific about what they want — and much more likely to buy when they find the right product.
An experienced eCommerce SEO agency builds keyword strategies that balance high-volume head terms with large numbers of converting long-tail keywords.
Step 5: Analyze Competitor Keywords
Look at what your top competitors rank for. Tools like Ahrefs and Semrush let you enter a competitor’s URL and see all the keywords they rank for. This is one of the fastest ways to find keyword opportunities you may have missed.
Look for keywords where competitors rank but where you could produce better, more optimized content.
Step 6: Map Keywords to Pages
Once you have your keyword list, assign each keyword (or group of keywords) to a specific page on your site. Each page should target one primary keyword and several closely related secondary keywords.