Getting started with Researcher

Choose the right Researcher workflow, evaluate keyword evidence, and save useful opportunities for content creation or tracking.

Researcher helps you discover, measure, compare, and organize keyword opportunities for the selected client. It opens on a focused Keyword report and keeps the broader research tools available in the same area.

Before you start

Select the correct client and define the market you are researching. Depending on the workflow, prepare a seed topic, keyword list, client domain or URL, and competitor domains. Confirm the location and language before running research because they can change the returned data.

Research workflows

Keyword report — Analyze one exact keyword, or expand the batch option when you already have a bounded list.
Discover — Expand a seed topic into related keyword ideas and saved research.
Explore — Review keywords associated with a domain or URL.
Content gaps — Compare the client’s keyword coverage with competitors.
Lists — Organize and revisit saved keywords.

Rankability fills the country from the client’s location and then its domain, and says so beneath the control when it does. Change it when you want a different market; that choice overrides the client default for the run. When useful, expand Search location to add a city or region.

Research without a workspace

Open Tools from the main navigation and choose Research keywords when researching a prospect or topic that does not belong to a client workspace yet. Keyword reports, batch analysis, Discover, Explore, and Content gaps use the existing research workflows and show their usage impact before you start. Workspace keyword lists are not available in Tools; use the client’s Research area for list-based planning.

Return to Tools → Saved reports to find research and one-time benchmarks created there by your team. Search by name, keyword, or domain, filter by report type, and use Open report on the saved result. The list shows creation date and status, with pagination for older work. Saved research and Saved benchmarks apply the corresponding filter. Client workspace reports stay in their workspaces.

Opening a saved report does not automatically start another provider request. Older content-gap records can retain only their inputs and counts, and domain results depend on available saved cache. If results are unavailable, review the notice before explicitly rerunning research. Running fresh research uses the applicable account allowance.

For a one-time visibility snapshot, see Running benchmark reports.

Turn results into a decision

Check that the returned keywords match the client, audience, location, and intended search problem.
Compare volume, difficulty, cost-per-click, intent, and the score displayed in the current view.
Inspect the actual search landscape before treating a metric as proof that a keyword is a good fit.
Save useful keywords to a list, then use them in a content or tracking workflow.

Understand usage

Research actions show usage impact before they start. Discovery, batch analysis, domain exploration, history, and content-gap analysis are included in full-platform pooled usage. Review the scope before confirming a large run.

Understand the scores

The main Researcher tables use Opportunity score to help prioritize keywords. KO Score appears in Keyword Overview and is a separate score. Do not transfer a threshold from one score to the other. Keyword metrics are estimates and can be missing or delayed; a blank value does not automatically mean zero.

If the results are not useful

Make the seed topic more specific or correct the location and language.
Remove irrelevant domains or keywords and rerun a narrower comparison.
Check whether the operation failed or whether only a source metric is unavailable.
Contact support with the client, workflow, input, time, and visible error if a run repeatedly fails.