In SEO there’s nothing more important than choosing the right keyword. This template makes it easy to create a large list of keywords to choose from. And to add the metrics you’ll need to evaluate them.

But at the end of that process, you’ll still have to pick one. Here’s how to do that:

1. Use a tool like Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs or SEMrush to find the metrics you’ll need. (They can also help you find additional keyword ideas.) Then, make your decision based on the following factors.
2. Search volume. In general, the more searches a keyword gets each month, the better. (Because it means you can get more traffic)
3. Keyword difficulty. Most SEO tools (like Ahrefs and SEMrush) include keyword difficulty scores: The lower the difficulty, the easier it is to rank for. But if you don’t have access to a paid tool, the free MozBar browser extension can help. Install the extension, then search Google for the keyword you’re interested in. Look at the PA and DA scores of the top-ranking sites. The higher their scores, the harder they’ll be to compete against.
4. CPC (cost per click). This is the best way to know how much commercial intent a keyword has. Advertisers won’t pay more per click than what that traffic is worth to them. So a higher average CPC means the keyword is more valuable.
5. Relevance to your business. Valuable keywords indeed have higher CPCs. But that doesn’t always mean they’re valuable to YOU. There’s no clear number associated with this “metric”. It’s more of a gut check: Are your potential customers likely to search for this keyword? If so, great. If not, go with a different keyword (even if all of the other metrics check out).
6. Trend in search volume. I love to target keywords that are growing fast. I’d much rather target a medium-volume keyword that’s getting more searches each month than a huge one that’s declining. Ahrefs and SEMrush will both show you this info, but you can also find it in Google Trends.
7. Want more free SEO templates? See our full list here.