Keyword research for lead gen offers
This guide gives you a repeatable method for building a keyword list for a lead offer before you spend on Google Ads. By the end you will be able to turn an offer into seed terms, expand them with Google Keyword Planner, sort every keyword by intent, map the keepers to ad groups, and start a negative keyword list from the terms you throw out.
Published 5 October 2026. How we write and check guides: editorial standards.
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What keyword research is for in lead gen
For a lead offer, the goal is not the largest list. The goal is a list of searches made by people the offer can serve, sorted so you can see which groups produce sold leads. A smaller list of clear searches usually beats a long list of loosely related ones, because every off-target click costs money and brings in leads that do not sell.
Do the research once per offer. A car accident offer and a roofing offer have almost nothing in common at the keyword level. The Google traffic overview explains how search campaigns connect to Summit landers.
Step 1: Write seed terms from the offer
Open a spreadsheet and write the seed terms by hand before you open any tool. Use four columns of seeds:
| Seed type | MVA example | Home improvement example |
|---|---|---|
| Service or professional | car accident lawyer, truck accident attorney | roof replacement, roofing contractor |
| Situation or problem | hurt in a car accident, rear ended | roof leak after storm, missing shingles |
| Product or type | rideshare accident, motorcycle crash | metal roof, asphalt shingle roof |
| Place modifier | near me, [city], [state] | near me, [city], [state] |
Pull situation wording from the offer page, for example the car accident offers or roofing offers spoke. Write terms the way a person would type them, not the way an industry insider would describe them. Aim for ten to twenty seeds per column before you move on.
Step 2: Expand with Google Keyword Planner
Keyword Planner is Google's own tool inside Google Ads. Google's help page use Keyword Planner explains its two main uses: discovering new keywords and getting search volume and forecast estimates for keywords you already have.
- Choose the option to discover new keywords. Enter three to five seeds from one column at a time, so the suggestions stay on one theme.
- Set the location to the states you plan to target and the language to English. Suggestions and estimates change by location.
- Download the results and paste them into your sheet under the column they came from.
- Repeat for each seed column.
- Use the forecast option on your shortlist later, after sorting, to see rough estimates for the keywords you plan to run.
Treat the estimates as a guide to relative size, not as a promise of traffic. Use the numbers to rank keywords against each other, not to plan revenue.
Step 3: Sort every keyword by intent
Add an intent column to the sheet and give each keyword one label. This is the most useful hour in the whole process.
| Label | Meaning | Example | Action |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hire | Wants a professional or service now | 'truck accident lawyer near me', 'roof replacement company' | Core ad groups |
| Problem | Describes a situation, may want help | 'what to do after a car accident', 'roof leaking after storm' | Test ad groups with tight negatives |
| Research | Comparing options or costs | 'how much does a new roof cost', 'do I need a lawyer after an accident' | Small test, judge on sold leads |
| DIY | Wants to do the work themselves | 'how to replace shingles', 'how to file my own claim' | Negative |
| Off target | Jobs, news, records, products, other meanings | 'paralegal jobs', 'accident on I-95 today', 'roofing nails' | Negative |
When in doubt, ask whether the searcher would be glad to land on a page that connects them with a professional. If not, the keyword does not belong in the campaign.
Step 4: Check the results page by hand
A label in a sheet is a guess. Before you commit a keyword to a core ad group, search it yourself in a private browser window, set to a location you plan to target, and look at what Google shows.
- Are the ads for the same kind of service you are offering? If the ads are for law schools, jobs or products, the intent is not what you thought.
- Do the organic results answer a question, or list businesses that do the work? Question pages suggest a Research keyword.
- Does a map with local businesses appear? That usually signals people want someone nearby, which suits a Hire label.
- Does the wording people use in the ads and titles match your seed terms? Borrow the plain phrasing, not brand names.
- Do not click on other advertisers' ads while you check. Look only.
Change the label in your sheet if what you see disagrees with your first guess. This step takes a few minutes per theme and often removes whole ad groups before they spend.
Step 5: Map keepers to ad groups
Group the Hire, Problem and Research keywords into ad groups of close terms. Each ad group should be tight enough that one set of ads can answer every keyword in it.
- One theme per ad group, for example "motorcycle accident lawyer" or "tub to shower conversion".
- Place modifiers in their own ad group when you plan different ads for them.
- Each ad group has a sub ID code in your sheet so results can be read by tracking link and sub ID.
- Research ad groups have their own budget line so they cannot crowd out Hire terms.
- The match type for each keyword is chosen on purpose. See match types and negative keywords.
Have a keyword plan ready for an MVA or home improvement offer? Apply and tell us your states and sources.
Apply as a publisherStep 6: Build the first negative list from rejects
Every DIY and Off target keyword you labeled is a candidate negative. Pull the common words out of them, for example "jobs", "salary", "school", "how to", "report", "today", "for sale". Add them as negatives at the campaign level or in a shared list. Google explains how negatives work in about negative keywords, including that negative keywords do not match close variants, so add singular and plural forms yourself.
Check each negative against your keepers before you save. A negative such as 'free' can block searches you want, depending on the offer. If a word appears in both lists, use a more specific negative phrase instead.
Step 7: Keep researching after launch
Keyword Planner shows what people might search. The search terms report shows what they actually searched before clicking your ad. Once the campaign runs, the search terms report is your main research source.
- Export search terms on a fixed routine, more often in the first weeks.
- Label each new term with the same intent labels.
- Add new Hire terms as keywords in the right ad group.
- Add DIY and Off target terms as negatives.
- Compare sold leads by ad group in your Summit reports, and move budget toward the groups that sell. See reading your publisher reports.
Leads are reported by tracking link, so the keyword-level view depends on how well you filled sub IDs. The tracking links and sub IDs guide covers naming.
Common mistakes
- Starting in the tool instead of the offer. Suggestions drift away from what the offer serves.
- Keeping keywords because the estimate is large. A large estimate with the wrong intent sends unsold leads.
- Mixing verticals in one list. MVA and home improvement searches need separate research and separate campaigns.
- No intent labels. Without them you cannot tell why an ad group sells or does not.
- Negatives that block your own keywords. Check every negative against the keeper list.
- Stopping research at launch. The search terms report shows real searches that no planning tool will.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use third-party keyword tools?
This guide uses Google Keyword Planner because it is Google's own tool and works inside your Google Ads account. Whatever you use, sort the results by intent and confirm them in the search terms report.
How many keywords should a new campaign have?
Enough to cover your core Hire themes, with a few tight ad groups. It is easier to add keywords from the search terms report than to clean up a large list after launch.
Should I target research keywords at all?
Test them in a separate ad group with its own budget. Some research searchers go on to submit and sell. Judge them on sold leads, not on clicks.
Does keyword research change by state?
Wording and demand can differ by area. Set Keyword Planner to your target states and add local place names as modifiers.
Related guides
How Google search works with Summit landers.
Turn the keyword list into controlled targeting.
Use the list in an MVA campaign.
Use the list in a service campaign.
Budget and structure for the first test.
Sources
- Use Keyword Planner, Google Ads Help
- About negative keywords, Google Ads Help
- About the search terms report, Google Ads Help
Turn your keyword plan into sold leads
Every publisher is reviewed before going live. Email us your offers, states and search plans.
Apply as a publisherOr write to team@summitleads.ai. We reply by email.
Already generating leads on your own forms? Sell your leads instead.