Have you been in a situation when there are not enough people searching and using the right keywords for your SaaS solution?
You have done your keyword research, and you have found that there is just not enough search demand. That makes it hard for you to tap into a large enough audience of people who are searching for you.
This is a pretty common issue for SaaS companies. However, there are a few ways to approach this challenge. But first, let’s make sure we’re on the same page on what keyword research tools show is in terms of demand.
The simple definition of keyword volume is the number of searches a particular keyword has in a given time period (usually a month).It is one of the crucial SEO metrics you should consider because it determines the interest people have in your topic.
In other words, if you have low search volume keywords, that means not very people are currently searching on these terms.
If you are wondering how to check the search volume of a keyword, you can read our guide on all the essential SEO tools, where we talk about how to use some SEO platforms for this purpose. Keep in mind that various keyword research tools calculate keyword metrics such as volume and difficulty differently, so you shouldn’t mix data from multiple tools.
Let’s get back to the problem – low search volume for the keywords that describe your SaaS solution.
What is specific for SaaS is that people will rarely search for your specific solution, especially in cases when you’re trailblazing or creating a category of your own.
So you’d have to go for keywords with informational intent that could possibly lead to your product as the solution. Think of the problem that your SaaS solution addresses and then brainstorm the problem-related queries you can start optimizing for.Sometimes your SaaS business can be so niche that people will not even realize they have such a specific problem. In such cases, even problem-oriented queries will have a low search volume.
This is where it gets a bit trickier. You have to make your audience realize that they have a problem in the first place by addressing much broader topics. Once you create problem-awareness, you can go a step further and start working on solution-awareness, and on your brand awareness next. In a nutshell, this is about the buyer awareness matrix and applying it to your digital marketing strategy.Here's an example:Let's assume that you have created software that enables Clothing E-commerce businesses to integrate a virtual fitting room.
These e-commerce businesses probably don't even know they need a virtual fitting room.
So they won't search for ‘virtual fitting room software,’ right?
But it is already pretty common to use fit finders on such websites. So what you have to do is start by targeting keywords for problems and solutions which are already popular. And then prove you are better.
There are a few ways how you can turn things around when you have low keyword search volume.
As low as your keywords search demand is, this is still your lowest hanging fruit – people searching for your solution right now. This demand is still very, very valuable, and you should make the most to capture it and maximize your visibility for these keywords.
Even though the volume is low, if you can get a nice slice of that demand to your website, landing page, or app, and converting, then you could still have an excellent cost of acquisition (CAC).Low volume keywords such as long-tail keywords are usually extremely relevant to your target audience. Target them with relevant content, ad campaigns, and remarketing to get the best visibility. The more relevant the content, the higher the chances users will convert.
Secondly, if you have low keyword search volume, you’d need to invest in educating your audience and creating that demand. You can do that by:
Create SaaS content resources that focus on the pain points before you introduce your specific solution. By nurturing and educating your target audiences, you gradually make them aware of your brand and your specific features.
While your focus keywords have low search volume, there may be an opportunity to lean on your distant competitors’ keywords.
Suppose your SaaS solution is solving a problem in a radically different way. In that case, you can target the audiences – and the keywords they are searching with – of the more traditional solutions to the same problem. You can target them and present your product as a better alternative.
Or, they might be searching for something complementary to what you have to offer. That is enough to qualify them as your addressable audience. To do that, you’d need to identify what makes a user qualify for your ideal customer profile.
Here is an example. A few years ago, Output.com launched a SaaS music production platform, Arcade. It’s a loop-based instrument that can draw upon an ever-expanding library of samples or the user’s own imported loops. What makes Arcade extremely special is the endless ways music producers can manipulate and modify the loops within the platform to make them sound just right.Arcade created a vertical of its own – it’s not just a sample library, and it’s not just an FX tool. One of the ways we’ve been able to target audiences for this SaaS product has been the adjacent intent – to use Arcade, you need to have a digital audio workstation (DAW).From creating ad copy to content marketing strategy and targeting, this adjacent intent has been instrumental in driving growth for Ouput’s SaaS product.Consider ways to qualify your audiences based on adjacent intent and address their information needs with relevant content. This way, you’d get them exposed to your brand early in the user journey, and hopefully, you’ll be successful at converting them.
So here’s what you need to do when your SaaS solution keywords have low volume:
This way, you’d make the most out of your current opportunities but also nourish and grow that addressable audience in the long term.
Here’re more thoughts on the specific challenges that SaaS companies face with Search Engine Optimization and organic growth.
My job is to match talented, motivated marketers with high-growth companies, arm teams for success, and then get out of the way.
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