How to Choose Keywords for Your Coaching Website or Consulting Website
Most coaches and consultants either ignore SEO entirely or spend time chasing high-volume keywords that have nothing to do with the clients they actually want to attract.
Neither approach works. Here is a more useful way to think about it.
What keywords actually do
A keyword is the phrase someone types into a search engine when they are looking for something. When your website uses those same phrases in the right places, search engines learn that your content is relevant to that search and may surface your site in the results.
For coaches and consultants, the goal is not maximum traffic. It is qualified traffic: people who are already looking for what you offer and are at a stage in their business or life where your work is the right fit.
Understanding search intent
The same topic can be searched from very different places. Someone searching ‘what is life coaching’ is in an awareness stage. They are curious but not ready to invest. Someone searching ‘life coach for female entrepreneurs London’ is in a decision stage. They know what they want and are looking for the right person.
For service providers, the most valuable keywords are decision-stage and consideration-stage searches: people who have already identified that they need support and are evaluating their options.
This means your homepage and services page should target more specific, lower-volume phrases rather than broad, high-competition terms. ‘Executive coach for new leaders’ will bring fewer visitors than ‘life coach’, but those visitors will be far more qualified.
Three types of keywords your website needs
Service keywords describe what you do and who you serve. Examples: business coach for consultants, brand strategist for female founders, operations consultant for small businesses. These belong on your services page and homepage.
Problem keywords describe the situation your client is in before they know they need you. Examples: how to get better clients as a coach, why my website is not converting, and when to rebrand a service business. These are the foundations of blog content.
Location keywords matter if you work with clients in a specific geography or if local visibility is part of your strategy. Examples: business coach in Lagos, brand designer in London, web design for coaches in the UK.
How to find the right keywords for your specific practice
Start with your ideal client’s language, not your industry’s language. What would they type into Google if they were looking for someone who does what you do? What problem would they describe? What outcome would they search for?
Look at what searches your website already appears for in Google Search Console, which is free, and it shows you exactly what phrases people typed before landing on your site. This is often the most useful data available.
Look at the language your past clients use. The phrases in your testimonials, in client emails, in discovery call conversations are often exactly the phrases your ideal future clients are searching.
Where to use keywords on your website
Your page title, which appears in the browser tab and in search results, is the most important placement. It should naturally include your primary keyword.
Your meta description, the short paragraph that appears under your page title in search results, should include the keyword and read naturally as a summary of the page.
Your H1 heading, the main title on each page, should include the keyword or a close variation. Your opening paragraph should also include it naturally within the first hundred words.
Beyond that, the most important thing is writing for the person reading, not the algorithm. Search engines have become very good at understanding context. A page that clearly and specifically addresses a real question will often rank better than one stuffed with keywords but written for no one in particular.
The connection between keywords and positioning
Your keyword and positioning strategies are the same conversation.
If you are clear on who you serve, what stage they are at, and what problem you solve, choosing keywords becomes straightforward. You are simply describing your work in the language your ideal client uses to search for it.
If choosing keywords feels difficult, it often signals that the positioning needs work first. The Strategic Website Positioning Checklist helps you surface exactly where that clarity is missing.
Download it free via the link HERE.
