Use the Keyword Overview page as a launch pad in your keyword research. It's where you begin, and you can choose a path based on what you want to get from these new ideas: New content ideas? Filling gaps in existing ideas? Possible ad angles? Everything starts here. Type a keyword into the search bar to begin.

The page's layout encourages you interact with the results and start building on your first idea. Since we added new metrics, mind if we show you around?
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As with the domain overview (results page) on SpyFu, this keyword overview acts like a preview of our expanded features. Sections like "Similar Keywords" and "Questions" give you a taste of what's available, and you can "view more" to drill into any of those options. These help you come up with new ideas for keywords and content.

The sidebar includes additional metrics about the keyword you searched. These smarter stats help you prioritize this keyword and possibly adjust your strategy for it. Here's how.

We blend search volume data from multiple sources to give a better snapshot of search activity on this keyword, so it won’t be identical to Google’s metrics for search volume.

Why we included it
We strongly believe that there are better ways to gauge a keyword's potential than the search volume metric. However, since it is a well-understood stat, we think it's a good place to start telling the story of this keyword.
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This figure shows you the total number of clicks made on the SERP over the past month. It can include paid and organic clicks.

Why we included it

With this stat, we are getting closer to showing actual meaningful activity on the keyword. Clicks mean more than searches, at least when you're a site relying on visitors to your page.
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Some SERPs return enough information that the user does not have to click any results. Or, the keyword might be too broad to match what the searcher hoped to find. In that case, this metric will appear as a lower percentage.

Why we included it

Here's where things start to make a difference. As Google develops more sophisticated SERPs with rich snippets, we are seeing "zero-click results" at an all time high. This isn't a broad rule, though. It's important to see which keywords get clicks vs those with a higher rate of abandoned searches.
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In general, people are searching more often from their mobile devices. Some keywords make more sense to be a mobile search like "podcast app," and some align more with desktop use like "anti-malware software."

Why we included it
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The percentage itself is not as important as the range--whether it tracks high or low. When it does, you might adjust your strategy knowing that your page might need to cater well to a highly-mobile group.
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After showing you total clicks on the SERP, we break that down to the amount of clicks that went to the ads.

Why we included it
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This could be one of the most powerful new metrics for PPC. It gets right to the core of measuring the pull of the ads. Compare keywords--not by number of total searches or clicks--but by how many of those end up going to ads. That gives you a tremendous advantage in prioritizing where to spend your ad dollars.

We look at many different factors to score the keyword on how tough it will be for new content to rank for it. (0-100, 100 = most difficult). We consider the staying power of already-ranking domains, searches on this keyword, and the depth of ranking content as some of the factors. 

Why we included it

Compare this number to other keywords you're targeting to get an idea of how to prioritize your SEO campaign.
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These final metrics like cost per click and Google-reported search volume are still a big part of many search marketers' research. You'll notice that the search volume here comes from only one source (Google), so it won't necessarily match the figure at the top that blends multiple data points. 

The number of advertisers, homepages, and universal search stats all come from tracking this SERP over time.

​Number of Advertisers
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This tracks how many domains we've seen advertise on this keyword in the past 12 months. Find keywords with more stability, and you'll see keywords that the advertisers have come to rely on. 

Why we included it
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We often repeat the saying that advertisers can waste money on a weak keyword, but they won't waste money month after month. This could be worth drilling into the advertiser history to see who came and went after a month or two. 

Homepages
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Look at a SERP, and you can see the URL to the content that ranks. When the URL is the site's actual homepage (and not an extended path), we count it. The image below highlights the two homepages ranking for "podcast app."
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Why we included it
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Though Google has not confirmed this as a ranking factor, we see many indicators that homepages could get a ranking edge. Consider that count when you are gauging how tough it will be to climb the ranks.
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Our keyword research habits need to keep up with the public's search habits. As people rely on voice search and on-page answers from Google rich snippets, we have to adapt our metrics to mean more. 

Next-generation metrics are in place to help you optimize your content (and your approach) for this kind of shift. 

Old keyword habits won't do much for your search marketing efforts these days. Still, they've become commonplace. We hope this keyword overview helps with a refresh.