Keyword Research & Opportunity Finder

Purpose

Identify high-value keyword opportunities for NextStep Therapy that balance search volume, difficulty, and business value, with focus on Ontario therapy market.

When to Use This Skill

• User asks "what keywords should I target?"
• User mentions "keyword research" or "keyword opportunities"
• User provides Ahrefs or GSC data
• Planning new content or pages
• Prioritizing SEO efforts for quarter/month

Research Foundation

2024 Therapy Keyword Insights

Key Statistics:

• 3+ million monthly searches for therapy-related terms in North America
• 70% of new patients find therapists via internet search
• Keywords with difficulty < 40 are achievable for newer sites
• Long-tail keywords (4+ words) have higher conversion rates
• Location-based keywords are critical for local practices

Optimal Difficulty Ranges:

Site Authority	Target Difficulty	Notes
New (< 1 year)	0-30	Focus on long-tail, local
Growing (1-3 years)	20-45	Mix of quick wins and stretch goals
Established (3+ years)	30-60	Can target competitive terms

Sources:

• Keyword Research 2024
• Keyword Difficulty Guide
• SEO Keywords for Therapists

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Data Request Template

Always ask user for this data:

To provide expert-level keyword recommendations, I need:

1. AHREFS DATA (if available):
   - Keyword Explorer export for seed keywords
   - Keyword difficulty scores
   - Search volume (monthly)
   - Parent topic data
   - SERP features present

2. GSC DATA (if available):
   - Queries report (last 3-6 months)
   - Pages report with avg position
   - Impressions, clicks, CTR by query

3. COMPETITOR DATA:
   - Top 3-5 competitor domains
   - Ahrefs organic keywords report for competitors

4. BUSINESS CONTEXT:
   - Primary services to promote
   - Target cities/regions
   - Existing top-performing pages
   - Seasonal considerations

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Quick Start Workflow

Step 1: Gather & Categorize Seed Keywords

Therapy Practice Keyword Categories:

Category	Examples	Volume Range	Difficulty Range
Condition + Service	"anxiety therapy", "depression treatment"	High (1000+)	High (50+)
Condition + Location	"anxiety therapy toronto"	Medium (100-500)	Medium (30-50)
Treatment Modality	"ACT therapy", "CBT counseling"	Medium (100-500)	Medium-High (40-60)
Audience Specific	"university student anxiety", "executive stress"	Low-Medium (50-200)	Low (10-30)
Question/Long-tail	"how to find a therapist in ontario"	Low (10-100)	Very Low (0-20)
Local Intent	"therapist near me", "virtual therapy ontario"	High (500+)	Medium-High (40-55)

Step 2: Priority Score Calculation

Formula:

Priority Score = (Volume Score × 0.30) + (Difficulty Score × 0.35) +
                 (Intent Score × 0.20) + (Business Value × 0.15)

Where:
- Volume Score: 0-100 (normalized from search volume)
- Difficulty Score: 100 - keyword_difficulty (inverted, lower KD = higher score)
- Intent Score: 0-100 (transactional = 100, informational = 50)
- Business Value: 0-100 (core service = 100, tangential = 50)

Score Interpretation:

Score	Priority	Action
80-100	Highest	Target immediately
60-79	High	Target in next 30 days
40-59	Medium	Build topic cluster around
20-39	Low	Long-term roadmap
0-19	Lowest	Deprioritize or ignore

Step 3: Identify Quick Wins

Quick Win Criteria:

• Difficulty < 40
• Volume > 50/month
• Clear commercial/transactional intent
• Relevant to core services
• No cannibalization with existing pages

Quick Win Template:

QUICK WIN OPPORTUNITY:
Keyword: [keyword]
Volume: [monthly searches]
Difficulty: [KD score]
Priority Score: [calculated score]
Current Ranking: [if any]
Recommended Page Type: [service/location/blog]
Estimated Time to Rank: [30/60/90 days]

Step 4: Cannibalization Check

Critical for therapy sites with multiple location pages:

Before targeting any keyword:

1. Search GSC for query matches
2. Check if multiple pages rank for same term
3. Identify which page has highest authority
4. Consolidate or differentiate

Cannibalization Detection:

Search: site:nextsteptherapy.ca "target keyword"

If 2+ pages appear:
- Analyze which ranks higher
- Check search intent alignment
- Decide: consolidate or differentiate

Common Cannibalization Issues:

Issue	Solution
Multiple city pages ranking for provincial keyword	Strengthen pillar page, adjust city page focus
Blog post competing with service page	Consolidate or adjust blog focus
Old page competing with new page	301 redirect old to new if new is better

Step 5: Map Keywords to Content

Keyword-to-Content Mapping:

Intent Type	Page Type	Example
Commercial (high intent)	Service page	"anxiety therapy toronto"
Navigational	Homepage or About	"nextstep therapy"
Informational	Blog post	"how to cope with anxiety"
Transactional	Booking/Contact	"book therapy appointment online"

Topic Cluster Assignment:

PILLAR: anxiety-therapy-ontario.html
  ├── CLUSTER: anxiety-therapy-toronto.html (location)
  ├── CLUSTER: anxiety-therapy-burlington.html (location)
  ├── CLUSTER: students/university-anxiety.html (audience)
  ├── CLUSTER: professionals/work-anxiety.html (audience)
  └── CLUSTER: blog/5-ways-manage-anxiety.html (informational)

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Ontario Therapy Keyword Database

Condition Keywords (High Value)

Anxiety:

Keyword	Est. Volume	Difficulty	Notes
anxiety therapy ontario	500+	45-55	Main pillar target
anxiety therapist near me	300+	50-60	Local intent
anxiety treatment toronto	200+	40-50	City-specific
therapy for anxiety and depression	400+	45-55	Dual condition
virtual anxiety therapy	150+	30-40	Service format

Depression:

Keyword	Est. Volume	Difficulty	Notes
depression therapy ontario	400+	45-55	Main pillar target
therapist for depression	250+	50-60	General query
depression counseling near me	200+	45-55	Local intent
online depression therapy	100+	30-40	Service format

Trauma/PTSD:

Keyword	Est. Volume	Difficulty	Notes
trauma therapy ontario	150+	35-45	Lower competition
ptsd therapist	100+	40-50	Specific condition
trauma-informed therapy	100+	30-40	Approach-focused

Audience Keywords (Lower Competition)

Students:

Keyword	Est. Volume	Difficulty	Notes
university student anxiety	50-100	15-25	Quick win
college student counseling	50-100	20-30	Quick win
academic stress therapy	30-50	10-20	Quick win
first year university anxiety	20-50	10-20	Very low comp

Professionals:

Keyword	Est. Volume	Difficulty	Notes
executive stress therapy	30-50	15-25	Quick win
work anxiety therapy	50-100	20-30	Quick win
burnout therapist	50-100	25-35	Quick win
career anxiety counseling	20-50	15-25	Quick win

Location Keywords

Major Cities:

Location	Format	Est. Difficulty
Toronto	[condition] therapy toronto	45-55
Ottawa	[condition] therapist ottawa	35-45
Mississauga	therapy [condition] mississauga	30-40
Hamilton	[condition] counseling hamilton	25-35
London	therapist [condition] london ontario	25-35

Smaller Cities (Quick Wins):

Location	Format	Est. Difficulty
Burlington	anxiety therapy burlington	20-30
Oshawa	depression therapist oshawa	15-25
Kitchener	anxiety counseling kitchener	20-30
Sudbury	therapy sudbury ontario	15-25
Barrie	therapist barrie ontario	15-25

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Analysis Output Template

# Keyword Research Analysis
Date: [Today's date]
Data Sources: [Ahrefs, GSC, etc.]

## Executive Summary
- Total keywords analyzed: [X]
- Quick wins identified: [X]
- Highest priority opportunities: [X]
- Cannibalization issues found: [X]

## Priority Opportunities

### Tier 1: Quick Wins (Target Now)
| Keyword | Volume | Difficulty | Priority Score | Page Type |
|---------|--------|------------|----------------|-----------|
| [keyword] | [vol] | [KD] | [score] | [type] |

### Tier 2: High Value (Next 30 Days)
| Keyword | Volume | Difficulty | Priority Score | Page Type |
|---------|--------|------------|----------------|-----------|
| [keyword] | [vol] | [KD] | [score] | [type] |

### Tier 3: Build Clusters (60-90 Days)
| Pillar Keyword | Cluster Keywords | Total Opportunity |
|----------------|------------------|-------------------|
| [pillar] | [clusters] | [combined volume] |

## Cannibalization Issues

| Keyword | Competing Pages | Recommended Action |
|---------|-----------------|-------------------|
| [keyword] | [pages] | [action] |

## Topic Cluster Recommendations

### Cluster 1: [Topic]
- Pillar: [page]
- Clusters: [list]
- Internal linking plan: [brief]

## Content Calendar Recommendations

### Month 1:
1. [Page type]: "[Title]" targeting [keyword]
2. [Page type]: "[Title]" targeting [keyword]

### Month 2:
1. [Page type]: "[Title]" targeting [keyword]
2. [Page type]: "[Title]" targeting [keyword]

## Next Steps
1. [Action item]
2. [Action item]
3. [Action item]

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Cannibalization Deep Dive

How to Detect

Method 1: GSC Query Analysis

1. Export Queries report
2. Filter by query containing target keyword
3. If multiple pages appear for same query = cannibalization

Method 2: Site Search

site:nextsteptherapy.ca "anxiety therapy"

If 5+ results, you may have cannibalization.

Method 3: Ahrefs Keywords Report

1. Run site audit
2. Check "cannibalization" report
3. Review overlapping keywords

How to Fix

Scenario	Fix
Two strong pages	Keep both, differentiate intent
One strong, one weak	301 redirect weak → strong
Multiple location pages cannibalize pillar	Add unique local content, strengthen pillar
Blog post vs service page	Consolidate or add canonical

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Special Considerations for Therapy Keywords

YMYL Implications

• Therapy keywords are YMYL (Your Money Your Life)
• Google applies higher scrutiny
• E-E-A-T signals critical for ranking
• New sites need stronger authority signals

Seasonal Trends

Season	Trending Keywords
Jan-Feb	New year anxiety, SAD, motivation
Mar-Apr	Spring anxiety, academic stress (finals)
Aug-Sep	Back to school, university anxiety
Nov-Dec	Holiday stress, seasonal depression, loneliness

Competitor Intelligence

Request from user:

Can you export Ahrefs organic keywords for these competitors:
1. [competitor 1]
2. [competitor 2]
3. [competitor 3]

I'll analyze which keywords they rank for that we don't.

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Sources

Keyword Research:

• Keyword Research 2024 Hidden Gems
• SEO Keywords for Therapists
• Keyword Difficulty Explained

Cannibalization:

• Keyword Cannibalization Guide (SEMrush)
• How to Fix Cannibalization (Backlinko)

Therapy SEO:

• SEO for Therapists 2024
• Local SEO for Therapy Practices