What Are Your Customers Actually Searching For?

When was the last time you thought about what your customers are actually searching for online?

And no, we don’t just mean searching for “your business name.”

We mean the questions they type into Google when they have a problem. The phrases they use when they’re comparing options. The questions they ask on Reddit. The things they complain about in reviews. The questions they send you in an email or DM.

Because if you want your marketing to connect with your audience, you need to understand what matters to them. Not just what YOU want to tell them.

The good news? Your customers are already giving you plenty of these clues.

Start With the Questions Your Customers Are Asking

Traditional keyword research is still an important part of SEO. Tools like Google Keyword Planner can help you understand what people are searching for and how often those terms are searched. Other tools like Answer The Public can also be useful because they show the questions and phrases people commonly search around a particular topic.

This type of research is becoming increasingly important because search is becoming more conversational.

With AI-powered search and Answer Engine Optimization (AEO), people are asking full questions in natural language rather than simply typing a couple of keywords.

Instead of searching “Calgary web design,” for example, someone might ask:

“How much does it cost to build a website for a small business in Calgary?”

Or:

“What should I look for when choosing a web designer?”

Those questions can give you some valuable insight into what your audience actually cares about.

Look Beyond Keyword Tools

Keyword research is only one piece of the puzzle. Sometimes, the best customer research doesn’t look like marketing research at all.

• Check out Reddit and online forums.

Look for conversations related to your industry. What are people frustrated about? What questions keep coming up? What solutions are they recommending to each other?

You can also check Quora and other online communities where people ask questions and share experiences.

• Pay attention to social media comments and DMs.

Look at your own social channels, but don’t stop there. Take a look at what people are saying on your competitors’ posts, too.

• Read your reviews, and your competitors’ reviews.

Reviews can tell you exactly what customers value. Maybe they love that a company is responsive, easy to work with or transparent about pricing. Maybe they repeatedly complain about slow communication or confusing websites.

That information is marketing gold.

Don’t Forget the Conversations You’re Already Having

You may not realize it, but some of your best audience research could already be sitting in your inbox. Look through emails, DMs, sales conversations and customer service questions. What questions do you answer repeatedly?

If five different customers have asked the same question, there’s a good chance other potential customers are wondering about it, too.

That question could become a blog post, or an FAQ on your website. Maybe it could even become a social media post, or it’s own web page designed specifically on that topic and help your business appear in search results.

In other words, stop thinking of customer questions as interruptions and start thinking of them as content ideas.

Google Your Business Like a Customer

Here’s a simple exercise you can try today.

Open Google and pretend you know absolutely nothing about your business. What would you search for if you were looking for the product or service you offer?

Don’t search your business name. Search the problem you solve. Then look at the results.

Do you show up?

If not, take a closer look at the businesses that do. What topics are they covering? What questions are they answering? What language are they using?

This doesn’t mean you should copy your competitors. It means you can identify gaps and opportunities to create content that better answers what your potential customers are looking for.

Turn Customer Insights Into Better Marketing

Once you know what matters to your audience, you can use that information across almost every part of your marketing.

The language your customers use can help shape your SEO keywords and website copy.

Common questions can inform your AEO strategy, helping you create content that directly answers natural-language searches.

And the phrases customers use to describe their problems can even help shape your ads, email marketing and sales messaging.

The goal isn’t to create content simply because a keyword has a high search volume. The goal is to create content that is actually useful to the people you want to reach.

In Conclusion: Listen First, Market Second

The best marketing doesn’t start with, “What do we want to say?” It starts with, “What does our audience want to know?”

Your customers are already telling you what matters to them through their searches, questions, comments, reviews, and conversations. It’s up to you to listen to them, and then create marketing that meets them where they’re at.

Need help figuring out what your customers are searching for? Or how to turn those insights into a stronger SEO, AEO or content strategy? Contact BuzzMate Marketing. We can help you turn customer questions into marketing opportunities today!