semrush-keyword-research

name	semrush-keyword-research
description	Research, expand, score, and prioritize SEO keywords with the semrush CLI. Use when the user asks for keyword research, search volume, CPC, difficulty, related keywords, broad-match keywords, question keywords, keyword clustering inputs, SERP domains for a query, or a prioritized keyword opportunity table powered by Semrush CLI output.

Semrush Keyword Research

Use semrush keyword ... commands to turn seed terms into a prioritized keyword opportunity set. Keep this skill focused on keyword discovery and scoring; use semrush-competitor-research for domain gaps and semrush-paid-search-intelligence for ad strategy.

Prerequisites

Verify the CLI and credentials if the session has not already done so:

command -v semrush
semrush account auth status --output json --quiet

Use --output json --quiet for analysis, --database for region, and --dry-run before large requests.

Workflow

1. Identify seed terms, target market, language/region, product or page type, and goal.
2. Pull exact metrics for seeds.
3. Expand with related, broad-match, and question keywords.
4. Inspect ranking domains for high-value terms.
5. Prioritize by intent, relevance, volume, difficulty, CPC, and business value.
6. Return a table plus recommended next content or landing-page actions.

Core Commands

Exact seed metrics:

semrush keyword overview "project management software" --database us --output json --quiet
semrush keyword batch "project management software" "task management app" "kanban tool" --database us --output json --quiet
semrush keyword difficulty "project management software" --database us --output json --quiet

Expansion:

semrush keyword related "project management software" --database us --limit 100 --output json --quiet
semrush keyword broad-match "project management software" --database us --limit 100 --output json --quiet
semrush keyword questions "project management software" --database us --limit 100 --output json --quiet

SERP and paid visibility:

semrush keyword organic "project management software" --database us --limit 20 --output json --quiet
semrush keyword paid "project management software" --database us --limit 20 --output json --quiet
semrush keyword ad-history "project management software" --database us --output json --quiet

All-database check for global terms:

semrush keyword overview "project management software" --all-databases --output json --quiet

Filtering And Interpretation

Use these lenses when ranking opportunities:

Signal	Interpretation
High volume, low difficulty	Good candidate for priority pages if intent matches.
Low volume, high CPC	Often commercial and worth landing pages or comparison content.
Question modifiers	Good FAQ, support, glossary, and featured-snippet inputs.
Broad-match variants	Good clustering inputs; remove near-duplicates before planning pages.
Ranking domains	Strong competitors imply higher content and authority requirements.

Do not treat Semrush volume as exact demand. Use it as a directional planning metric and preserve the database/region in the output.

Output Format

Return a compact result that is easy to act on:

Field	Description
keyword	Query or normalized variant.
intent	Informational, commercial, navigational, transactional, or mixed.
volume	Semrush reported volume for the selected database.
difficulty	Semrush difficulty when available.
cpc	Paid search proxy for commercial value.
recommended_page	Existing page, new article, comparison page, category page, FAQ, or no action.
priority	High, medium, low, or exclude.
reason	One sentence tying metrics to business relevance.

Include the exact commands run and the selected --database in a short appendix.

Related Skills

• Use semrush-competitor-research to compare keyword gaps against ranking competitors.
• Use semrush-paid-search-intelligence when paid results, CPC, or ad history drive the decision.
• Use semrush-batch-workflows to repeat keyword discovery with recipes.