First Mover's Advantage: SEO Strategy for a Product Category That Doesn't Exist Yet
SEO is all about capturing the existing interest of potential customers. But what if I'm working on a product that's pioneering a new category and has no search volume yet? Here's the plan...
Here goes…
Good news - you’re developing a groundbreaking product that's set to make a significant impact.
Bad news - currently, no one is searching for this product because they're unaware of its existence.
Great news - with SEO, you can strategically guide your target audience to your innovative solution, positioning yourself to lead in emerging search terms with minimal effort.
Here’s the strategy:
1. Publish content in related categories with high search volume
Even though you might not see any search volume for the keywords connected to your product, there is already an audience for it (NB: assuming that you're working on a product that solves an actual problem and has a product-market fit).
The first goal is to determine who that audience is (buyer personas) and which search terms they are currently using to find solutions for these problems.
Who is the decision-maker searching for a solution via Google?
If possible, talk to your current customers to determine the typical decision-makers whose jobs depend on finding a solution to the same core problem you are addressing.
What current solutions for the core problem are being searched for?
If the problem is genuine, there must be some solutions that your ideal target group is already using to address it (even if those solutions suck). Map all these solutions and related keywords, ideally by speaking with your customers again.
NB: Your product doesn't need to align with these solutions.
Example: Before SaaS tools existed for managing law firms, potential customers searched for “Excel templates for managing X in a law firm” and general best practices with queries like “how to manage a law firm”.
Compile a list of "old category terms" using SEMrush or a similar tool
Leverage the Keyword Research features to identify related keywords and determine search volumes, drawing from your previously mapped decision-makers, their challenges, and former solutions.
Create content that serves the right search intent and guides the customer to learn more about your product
In order to start ranking for these “old” category terms, you have to create super valuable content that serves the searcher’s original intent.
For example: if you’re targeting a term “Excel templates for [X purpose]”, you have to provide these templates within your content (and make them more valuable than the current top-ranking articles on Google).
Redirect the readers to your solution
The key part of this strategy is adding a paragraph to the content piece that offers an overview of alternative solutions - including your SaaS tool that replaces the need to use an Excel template.
Make this paragraph contextually relevant to the original query and helpful for the reader. Don’t be overly salesy here.
Start introducing the “new terms” in your content
When you’re adding a paragraph explaining the new innovative solutions, start using the new terms that are related to your product category that are not being searched yet, and link them to your glossary/wiki pages (see the next step).
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