How SaaS Companies Find Low-Competition Keywords

SaaS companies often struggle to compete for high-volume keywords dominated by industry giants. The smarter strategy? Focus on low-competition keywords - search terms with lower difficulty scores (under 30) that are easier to rank for in 30–90 days. These keywords not only drive organic traffic but also attract users with specific intent, leading to higher conversions. Here’s how to find them:

• Start with customer feedback: Interviews, support tickets, and reviews reveal the exact language your audience uses, uncovering hidden keyword opportunities.
• Use SEO tools: Platforms like Ahrefs or SEMrush can expand your keyword list with long-tail variations and intent-specific terms.
• Analyze competitors: Identify gaps in your competitors’ keyword strategies to find untapped opportunities.
• Validate search intent: Ensure keywords align with user needs and your product’s features.
• Prioritize effectively: Focus on keywords with low competition, strong business relevance, and high intent.

How to do Keyword Research for SaaS (Finding Keywords That Matter)

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Step 1: Find Seed Keywords from Customer Feedback

The best keyword research doesn’t begin with fancy SEO tools - it starts with listening to your customers. Why? Because your audience speaks in everyday language that can reveal hidden keyword gems. Instead of diving straight into competitor analysis or keyword databases, focus on how your customers describe their problems and needs. Often, these raw, unpolished phrases include "zero search volume" keywords that tools might overlook.

For example, a customer struggling with productivity might mention "task paralysis" or "decision fatigue." These phrases, straight from their mouths, can become your seed keywords - words and phrases that form the foundation of your keyword strategy.

Interview Customers to Discover Their Language

Talking directly to your customers is one of the most effective ways to uncover high-intent keywords. By interviewing unsatisfied users or potential customers who are still exploring their options, you'll hear how they search for solutions. These conversations are goldmines for bottom-of-the-funnel keywords - terms that often lead to conversions.

During these interviews or onboarding calls, try asking questions like: "What phrase did you type into Google when looking for a solution?" or "What were you using before finding us?". Record and transcribe these conversations to spot recurring themes. When the same phrase pops up across multiple interviews, you've likely found a keyword worth targeting.

Take TxtCart, for example. In January 2026, this Shopify SMS marketing platform shifted its focus from generic, high-volume keywords to specific, bottom-of-the-funnel terms like "Cartloop alternatives" and "Best SMS app for Shopify." This shift helped them attract high-value clients like HexClad, a cookware brand with over $500M in revenue, which discovered TxtCart through a competitor comparison article. The takeaway? High-intent keywords sourced from customer research often outperform generic ones in driving results.

Don’t stop at customer interviews - get your entire team involved. Sales, Customer Experience, Engineering, and Marketing teams all interact with customers differently and hear unique pain points. Combining these insights can help create a more comprehensive list of seed keywords.

Analyze Support Tickets and Online Reviews

Beyond interviews, dive into your support tickets and online reviews. These are treasure troves of customer language, especially from people who haven’t fully adopted your product's terminology yet. Sit down with your customer success team and review recent tickets. Look for recurring questions about workflows, integrations, and setup - these often translate directly into valuable long-tail keywords.

Pay attention to how support teams tag and categorize issues. These tags can reveal broader themes and recurring problems that are worth exploring further.

Online reviews on platforms like G2, Capterra, and GetApp can also provide keyword inspiration. On G2, for instance, check the "What problem is [software] solving?" section to understand how users describe your product’s value. Similarly, on Capterra, explore the "Alternatives considered" and "Reasons for choosing" sections to uncover comparison keywords and unique selling points.

"Sales and support teams know your customers and their pain points best, so talking to them can give you many helpful keyword ideas".

Don’t forget about community forums like subreddits or Quora threads. These platforms often reveal the natural language people use when troubleshooting specific problems in your niche.

Leverage Internal Search Data

Your own website’s search data can also reveal keyword opportunities. Google Search Console, for instance, shows the exact phrases people use to find your site. Head to the "Performance" section, then "Search Results", and check the "Queries" tab. Sorting by "Impressions" can help you identify broad seed keywords and high-level topics that users already associate with your brand.

Pay close attention to keywords with high impressions but low click-through rates or average positions. These represent areas where your content could be optimized to better meet user intent. Look for intent modifiers like "how", "what", "best", or "vs" to group keywords by their search intent - whether informational, commercial, or transactional.

These seed keywords will serve as the anchor for your broader SEO strategy, helping you pinpoint low-competition opportunities while laying the groundwork for more advanced research.

Step 2: Expand Keywords Using Research Tools

Once you've identified your seed keywords from customer feedback, the next step is to expand them into long-tail variations. This is where keyword research tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush, or Google Keyword Planner come into play. These tools can help uncover related search terms that users are actively looking for.

Generate Long-Tail Keywords with SEO Tools

Start by entering your seed keywords into tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush. Use features like "Phrase match" or "Matching terms" to explore all keyword variations that include your original term. For instance, if your seed keyword is "task paralysis", you might uncover phrases like "how to overcome task paralysis", "task paralysis ADHD", or "task paralysis at work".

To refine your results, apply "Include" filters to focus on intent modifiers. For commercial intent, try adding words like "best", "review", "vs", or "alternative." For informational intent, use modifiers like "how", "what", or "why". This approach helps you distinguish between casual browsers and users with a stronger intent to engage or purchase. Expanding your keyword list in this way ensures that you attract an audience that's aligned with your product or service.

Don’t ignore keywords with zero search volume, especially if they come directly from customer insights or point to emerging trends. These often-overlooked terms can reveal untapped opportunities.

Check Search Volume and Competition Metrics

When evaluating keywords, pay attention to metrics like monthly search volume, keyword difficulty (KD), and relevance. While monthly search volume shows how often a term is searched, it’s not the only factor to consider. A keyword with 10,000 searches per month might not be useful if your site can’t realistically rank for it.

This is where Keyword Difficulty becomes crucial. According to Ahrefs, low-competition keywords typically have a KD score between 0–10. For newer SaaS websites, focus on keywords with a KD below 10 and check the top-ranking pages to ensure they’re not dominated by high-authority competitors. If your site is more established, you can aim for keywords with a KD of up to 50.

Instead of chasing high search volume, shift your focus to Traffic Potential (TP) - the total organic traffic a top-ranking page can generate from all related keywords. For example, a keyword with only 100 searches per month could still drive 1,000 visitors if the page ranks for multiple related terms.

Once you’ve identified promising keywords, consider targeting user queries with question-based keywords.

Target Question-Based Keywords

Question-based keywords are a goldmine for capturing users who are actively searching for solutions. Queries like "How to solve task paralysis?" or "What causes decision fatigue?" indicate that someone is deep in problem-solving mode and could be ready to explore your product.

Most SEO tools include a "Questions" report that filters keywords containing interrogative words like "who", "what", "where", "when", "why", or "how". You can also explore Google's "People Also Ask" section for real-time questions users are actively searching.

Apply the same KD criteria (0–10) when evaluating question-based keywords. As Ahrefs CMO Tim Soulo puts it:

"Traffic is good for your ego, but not your bank account".

Focus on questions that not only attract clicks but also drive conversions. This strategy helps guide users closer to making a purchase while addressing their specific needs.

Step 3: Run a Competitor Keyword Gap Analysis

Now that you’ve expanded your keyword list, it’s time to focus on opportunities you might have missed - especially those with lower competition. A competitor keyword gap analysis helps you compare your rankings with others in your space, revealing untapped keywords you could target.

Here’s the trick: there’s a difference between business competitors and search competitors. Business competitors are companies selling similar products or services. Search competitors, on the other hand, are any websites that rank for the queries your audience is searching - even if they don’t sell the same thing. As Joshua Hardwick, Head of Content at Ahrefs, explains:

"Business competitors aren't always the same as your search competitors. When looking for relevant and valuable topics to cover, it's better to analyze the latter."

For instance, Ahrefs (an SEO tool) and Backlinko (an SEO course provider) don’t sell the same products, but they compete for the attention of the same audience. This distinction can guide your research into which competitors to analyze.

Find Your Top Competitors

Start by identifying the websites you’re competing against in search results. Google’s related:yourwebsite.com search operator is a simple way to find sites Google considers similar to yours. Tools like Ahrefs and SEMrush also provide "Competing Domains" reports, showing which sites rank in the top 10 for your target keywords. For high-value keywords, check "Traffic Share by Domains" to see who’s capturing the most organic traffic.

Don’t overlook customer input. Sites like G2 or Capterra often list "Alternatives considered" by users, which can reveal competitors you hadn’t thought about. If your site is new and doesn’t have rankings yet, try an "aspirational analysis" by benchmarking against a successful company in your niche.

Use Content Gap Analysis Tools

Once you’ve identified your competitors, leverage tools like Ahrefs Content Gap, SEMrush Keyword Gap, or Moz Keyword Gap 2.0. These tools pinpoint keywords where your competitors rank but you don’t. To dig deeper, analyze competitors at the subfolder or subdomain level (e.g., competitor.com/blog) to uncover content-specific opportunities rather than focusing solely on product-level keywords.

For example, Moz’s Keyword Gap 2.0 tool offers 20× more keywords per domain compared to its earlier version. It even uses interactive Venn diagrams to help you visualize keyword overlaps. Once you’ve collected the data, refine your findings by filtering for lower competition keywords.

Filter for Lower Competition Keywords

Keyword gap analysis can generate a ton of data, so filtering is crucial. Start by setting a Keyword Difficulty (KD) filter between 0 and 10 to focus on easier-to-rank terms. Then, apply a minimum monthly search volume (e.g., 500+) to weed out irrelevant or low-traffic keywords. Use a "doesn't contain" filter to exclude competitor brand names and common misspellings - ranking for a rival’s name is unlikely.

For the best results, prioritize keywords where two or more competitors rank. Pay attention to "Traffic Lift", which estimates how much traffic you could gain by overtaking a competitor’s position. This is especially helpful for keywords where you already rank in the top 20.

Finally, manually review the top-ranking pages for your chosen keywords. If the results are dominated by big brands with strong Domain Ratings, the competition might be tougher than the KD score suggests. As Joshua Hardwick points out:

"Ranking difficulty is relative. If you're Target, 'black sandals' is a low-competition keyword... If you're a small mom and pop shoe store, 'black sandals' is a high-competition keyword."

Step 4: Validate Keywords for Search Intent and Product Fit

Now that you've identified low-competition keywords through your gap analysis, it's time to ensure they align with both user intent and your product's offerings. Just because a keyword has low difficulty and decent search volume doesn’t mean it’s automatically a good fit for your SaaS. The real task here is to validate whether each keyword matches search intent and ties directly to your product’s value.

Check Search Intent from Top-Ranking Pages

Search intent is all about understanding what users want when they type in a query. Google prioritizes content that matches this intent, which generally falls into four categories: informational, navigational, commercial, and transactional. The table below breaks these down with examples.

To confirm a keyword’s intent, manually review the top 10 search results for it. If the results are dominated by review platforms like G2 or Capterra - or well-established brands with strong domain authority - you may face more competition than the keyword difficulty score suggests. Pay attention to the language in the keyword itself. Words like "how", "why", or "guide" often signal informational intent, while terms such as "best", "comparison", or "alternative" point to commercial intent. Additionally, PPC data can provide clues; keywords with a high cost-per-click and competitive bidding often indicate transactional intent and better conversion opportunities.

Match Keywords to Your Product Features

Once you’ve confirmed a keyword’s intent, evaluate how well it aligns with your SaaS product. Assign a Business Potential Score (ranging from 0 to 3) to measure how directly your product addresses the query. A score of 3 means your product is a perfect fit, while a 0 indicates no alignment. For example, if you’re working on a focus app like Onsara designed for people with ADHD, a keyword like "how to decide what to work on first" might earn a 3 - it directly matches the problem your product solves. On the other hand, a broader keyword like "productivity hacks for entrepreneurs" might only score a 1 since it’s less specific.

For early-stage SaaS businesses, it’s often better to focus on bottom-of-funnel (BOFU) keywords that drive signups rather than just generating traffic. For instance, a keyword with 50 monthly searches but strong commercial intent - like "project management software for remote engineering teams" - could be far more valuable than a high-volume, informational keyword such as "what is productivity".

Remove Keywords with Misaligned Intent

After mapping keywords to your product, refine your list by eliminating those that don’t align with your goals. Even if a keyword has low difficulty and high search volume, it might attract the wrong audience or contradict your business objectives. For example, a keyword like "best buy coffee makers" might seem transactional but is actually navigational, targeting users looking for the retailer Best Buy rather than general coffee maker options. Similarly, if your SaaS is designed for enterprise clients, it’s best to exclude keywords primarily aimed at freelancers or hobbyists.

Another factor to consider is the Domain Rating (DR) of the sites ranking on the first page. If all top results have a DR of 75+ while your site is at DR 30, the keyword isn’t truly low-competition since Google favors established brands for that query. Also, don’t automatically dismiss keywords flagged as "zero volume" by SEO tools. If these keywords address specific pain points identified in customer interviews, they might offer a first-mover advantage and lead to higher conversion rates.

Intent Category	Common Modifiers	SaaS Content Type
Informational	how, what, why, guide	Blog posts, tutorials
Navigational	[Brand Name], login, features	Homepage, login page
Commercial	best, top, vs, alternatives	Comparison pages, listicles
Transactional	pricing, free trial, demo	Product pages, signup pages

With these steps, you can refine your keyword list and prioritize the ones that align closely with your product and audience needs.

Step 5: Build a Keyword Prioritization Framework

Once you've confirmed keyword intent and ensured a strong fit with your product, the next challenge is deciding which keywords to target first. Without a clear system, you might waste time chasing high-volume keywords that are too competitive or low-value terms that don't contribute to your goals. A smart prioritization framework considers search volume, keyword difficulty, and business relevance to help you focus on the keywords that will actually make a difference for your SaaS.

Create a Volume × Difficulty Matrix

Start by mapping your keywords on a matrix with search volume on one axis and keyword difficulty on the other. This visual method helps you quickly identify "low-hanging fruit" - keywords with decent traffic potential and low competition - and "long-term targets" that might require more effort to rank for. To refine this, calculate a Priority Score using the formula: (Volume × CTR) / Difficulty. Tools like Moz can automate this process, or you can create your own system.

Before adding keywords to your matrix, check the Domain Rating (DR) or Domain Authority (DA) of the top-ranking pages. If most of the top 10 results have a DR of 75+ and your site is at DR 30, that keyword isn’t genuinely low-competition for you, regardless of what the difficulty score suggests.

For SaaS companies, business potential should weigh heavily in your decision-making. Use a simple 0–3 scale to score each keyword:

• 3: Your product is essential for solving the searcher's problem.
• 2: Your product helps significantly but isn’t indispensable.
• 1: Your product is only tangentially relevant.
• 0: No connection to your product.

For example, a keyword like "how to decide what to work on first" might score a 3 for a task management app like Onsara, while "general productivity tips" might only earn a 1.

The difference this prioritization can make is striking. Between 2021 and 2023, Geekbot, a SaaS company, published 22 high-intent articles that brought in 28,190 organic pageviews and 1,348 conversions - a 4.78% conversion rate. In comparison, their 42 top-of-the-funnel articles attracted 204,303 visitors but resulted in only 397 conversions, a mere 0.19% conversion rate. That’s a staggering 2,400% difference in conversion performance. This highlights why targeting high-intent keywords with strong business potential, even if they have lower search volume, is far more effective than chasing traffic alone.

Use a Comparison Table for Keyword Selection

Once you've scored your keywords, organize them in a comparison table to make data-driven decisions. Include metrics like search volume, keyword difficulty, intent, business potential, and your calculated Priority Score. Here's an example of how it might look:

Keyword	Search Volume	KD Score (0-100)	Intent	Business Potential (0-3)	Priority Score
[Competitor] Alternatives	1,200	25	Commercial	3	High
Best [Category] Software	3,500	55	Commercial	3	Medium
How to [Solve Pain Point]	800	15	Informational	2	High
What is [Industry Term]	15,000	75	Informational	1	Low
[Product Name] Pricing	450	10	Transactional	3	High

Use this table to filter out keywords where ranking is unrealistic, such as those with a difficulty score above 60 if your site has low authority. Also, consider excluding terms with fewer than 10 searches per month unless they have exceptional business potential. On the flip side, don’t ignore zero-volume keywords if they address specific customer pain points and align with your product. For instance, Circuit, a SaaS company, targeted niche "alternatives" keywords that SEO tools reported as having 0–10 searches per month. One article on "Routific alternatives" averaged 70 pageviews per month, and six similar articles collectively drove 149 organic signups. This shows how SEO tools often underestimate the value of long-tail, high-intent queries.

Conclusion

Low-competition keywords can be a game-changer for building a consistent growth strategy in SaaS. From identifying seed keywords to prioritizing effectively, this approach forms the backbone of a successful SEO plan. Start by tapping into your customers' language - support tickets, interviews, and feedback can reveal the exact terms they use. Use keyword research tools to expand on these ideas, then evaluate them based on search intent and how well they align with your product's strengths. The key is to prioritize strategically: focus on keywords that lead to signups, not just pageviews.

As Tim Soulo, CMO of Ahrefs, wisely points out:

"Traffic is good for your ego, but not your bank account."

This shift in mindset is vital for early-stage SaaS companies. Consider these stats: every day, 16–20% of Google searches are entirely new, and long-tail keywords account for about 70% of search traffic. By targeting these, you could see organic traffic grow by as much as 338% within a year.

Start small and focus on high-intent keywords that solve real customer problems. Use tools like Google Search Console to identify pages already receiving impressions and optimize them further. Instead of obsessing over rankings, track conversions - those are the metrics that truly matter. SEO takes time, often 6 to 12 months to deliver results, so patience and consistent effort are crucial. Early wins can fuel the momentum needed for scaling your keyword strategy.

By targeting low-competition keywords, you can establish authority and gradually expand your reach. Begin with bottom-of-the-funnel terms like "alternatives", "pricing", and product comparisons - these align closely with your product's strengths and drive immediate results. As you rank for these easier terms, you build domain authority, making it easier to compete for more challenging keywords over time. This strategy not only generates traffic but also positions your SaaS as a trusted, go-to solution in your niche.

The goal isn’t to rank for everything - it’s to rank for the terms that genuinely drive your business forward. Start with quick wins, build momentum, and then expand into broader topics that support long-term growth and revenue.

FAQs

How do I pick low-competition keywords for a new site?

Focusing on long-tail and niche-specific keywords can be a game-changer for your content strategy. These keywords usually have lower search volumes but also face less competition from high-authority sites, making them easier to rank for.

You don’t need fancy tools to get started - free keyword research tools and a bit of manual digging can uncover great opportunities. The key is to choose keywords that not only align with what your audience is searching for but also avoid the overly competitive terms that big players dominate. By targeting these more specific phrases, you can carve out a space where your content has a better chance of standing out.

Should I target “zero search volume” keywords anyway?

Yes, going after zero search volume keywords can make a lot of sense for SaaS companies. These keywords often open doors to reach untapped audiences, bringing in organic traffic and boosting visibility. Even though search demand might seem low, these terms can attract highly specific, niche audiences and contribute to steady growth over time, especially when combined with low-competition approaches.

What content should I create for each search intent?

When crafting content to align with user search intent, think about what your audience is looking for. For users with informational intent, focus on creating content like guides or FAQs. These should provide clear, detailed answers to their questions, making it easy for them to learn and understand.

For users with transactional intent, your content should highlight product features, real-world benefits, and case studies. Make sure to include strong calls-to-action that guide them toward making a decision, whether that's signing up, purchasing, or scheduling a demo.

To maximize visibility and conversions, target low-competition keywords that match these intents. By doing so, your SaaS content can effectively address both knowledge-seekers and potential buyers, meeting their needs at every stage of the journey.