Keyword Strategy Builder

What Is the Keyword Strategy Builder?

The Keyword Strategy Builder is a tool that organizes your keyword research into structured content plans. The tool analyzes up to 10,000 keywords and groups them into topics, pillar pages, and subpages. This structure tactic helps you plan which pages to create and which keywords to target on each page.

Keyword Strategy Builder is available with paid subscriptions to the SEO Toolkit. The tool works by taking seed keywords and building a complete content map around them. 

You can create lists from scratch, import keywords from other Semrush tools, or upload existing research.

How Does Keyword Strategy Builder Work?

Keyword Strategy Builder works by transforming keyword lists into organized content plans. The tool follows a three-step process: you add keywords, the tool analyzes and structures them, and you use the results to create content.

Step 1: Add keywords to create a list. You can start with up to five seed keywords to generate a structured list. You can also import keywords from other Semrush tools like Keyword Magic Tool or Organic Rankings. Alternatively, you can manually upload up to 2,000 keywords at a time.

Step 2: The tool structures your keywords. For structured lists created from seed keywords, Keyword Strategy Builder groups related keywords into topics and clusters. The tool identifies pillar pages for broad topics and subpages for specific subtopics. The tool prioritizes pages based on relevance to your seed keywords, search volume, keyword difficulty, domain diversity, and SERP features.

Step 3: Use your structured list to plan and create content. You can apply preset filters to find the best opportunities for your strategy. You can send keywords directly to the SEO Writing Assistant or the Content Toolkit to create content. You can also send keywords to Position Tracking to monitor rankings or to PPC Keyword Tool for paid campaigns.

How to Create a Keyword List

Keyword Strategy Builder offers six methods to create keyword lists. Each method creates either a structured list with automatic Topics and Pages or a regular list you organize manually.

1. From Keyword Strategy Builder Homepage (Recommended)

Create a structured list: Enter up to 5 seed keywords. Keyword Strategy Builder automatically generates Topics, Pillar Pages, and Subpages.

Create a regular list: Start with an empty list and add keywords manually or import them later.

Best for: New content strategies (structured) or organizing existing research (regular)

2. From Keyword Overview

You can add keywords from Keyword Overview analysis.  Click the "+" sign next to a keyword to add it to a list.

Creates: Regular list with individual keywords and full metrics

Best for: Building lists from single-keyword research

3. From Keyword Magic Tool

You can send keywords from Keyword Magic Tool. Select keywords and click "Send keywords" or use the "+" sign.

Creates: Regular list with bulk keyword sets

Best for: Organizing large keyword research sets

4. From Keyword Gap

You can add keywords from Keyword Gap analysis. Click "+ Add to keyword list" or use the "+" sign.

Creates: Regular list with competitor keywords

Best for: Building lists from competitive gap analysis

5. From Organic Rankings

You can pull keywords from Organic Rankings. Navigate to the “Positions” or “Position Changes” tabs and click "+ Add to keyword list."

Creates: Regular list with competitor organic keywords

Best for: Targeting specific competitor terms

6. Imported Manually

You can import keywords via CSV or XLS. Upload up to 2,000 keywords at a time from the homepage.

Creates: Regular list with your existing research

Best for: Migrating external research or spreadsheets

Choosing Your Method

Use Method 1 (structured list) when you:

• Plan new content strategies from scratch
• Need automatic Topics and Pages organization
• Want pillar and subpage suggestions

Use Methods 2-6 (regular lists) when you:

• Already have completed keyword research
• Need to organize specific terms
• Prefer manual control over organization

Note: You can convert regular lists to clustered lists using the "Cluster this list" button.

Understanding Your Keyword Lists

After creating a keyword list, you will see one of two interfaces depending on how you built your list. The interface you see determines how you organize and work with your keywords.

The Two List Experiences

Keyword Strategy Builder provides two types of lists: structured lists and regular lists. Each type offers different features and organization methods.

Structured Lists

Structured lists are created when you enter up to 5 seed keywords on the Keyword Strategy Builder homepage. The tool automatically generates Topics, Pillar Pages, and Subpages for your keywords.

Structured lists include:

• Auto-generated Topics and Pages
• Topical overview widget
• Pillar and subpage suggestions

Structured lists work best when you plan new content strategies from scratch.

Regular Lists

Regular lists are created when you import keywords from other Semrush tools, upload keywords manually, or start with an empty list. You organize regular lists manually using folders and tags.

Regular lists include:

• Flat table view
• Manual organization with folders
• Full metric visibility

Regular lists work best when you organize existing research or track specific terms.

Note: You can convert regular lists to clustered lists using the "Cluster this list" button.

Navigating Structured Lists

Structured lists organize your keywords into Topics and Pages. The tool groups related keywords into topics and identifies pillar pages for broad topics and subpages for specific subtopics.

Understanding Topics and Pages

Pillar pages target broad topics and serve as hub content. Pillar pages rank for high-volume head terms and provide comprehensive overviews of a topic. Each pillar page links to multiple subpages.

Subpages target specific subtopics and support pillar pages. Subpages rank for more specific long-tail keywords. Subpages link back to their parent pillar page and create a topic cluster structure.

Pillar pages target broad topics and serve as hub content. Subpages target specific subtopics and support pillar pages.

The tool prioritizes pages based on five factors:

• Relevance to your seed keywords
• Search volume
• Keyword difficulty
• Domain diversity
• SERP features

The Topical Overview Widget

The Topical Overview widget displays your Topics and Pages in a visual format. The widget shows how keywords are grouped and organized across your content plan.

The Topics & Pages Tab

The Topics & Pages tab displays your structured keywords in a hierarchical view. Each row shows a pillar page or subpage with associated metrics and keywords.

The Table Tab

The Table tab displays all keywords in a flat list view. Use the Table tab when you need to see individual keyword metrics across all Topics and Pages.

Pages Details Panel

Clicking a page in the Topics & Pages tab opens the Page Details panel. The panel shows which keywords belong to that specific page and displays individual keyword metrics.

You can take action on keywords directly from the Page Details panel:

• Send keywords to create or optimize content
• Send keywords to Position Tracking to monitor rankings
• Export keywords to use in other tools
• View SERP features and intent distribution for the page

The panel helps you understand which keywords to target together on a single page.

Using Preset Filters

Keyword Strategy Builder offers four preset filters to help you prioritize keywords:

“Best for Strategy” filters keywords that balance search volume, difficulty, and relevance. 

This preset shows pages with the best combination of KD and Volume, the most relevant pages, and pages with the intent for the top and bottom of the funnel.

For each topic, the preset automatically:

• Identifies up to three pages with the strongest relevance
• Selects up to three pages with the most favorable combination of low keyword difficulty and high search volume
• Highlights up to three highly relevant pages that specifically target either informational searches or commercial searches.

Use this filter when you want well-rounded opportunities that align with your seed keywords.

“Easy Start” filters keywords with lower difficulty scores and high search volume. Use this filter when you need quick wins or have a newer domain with lower authority.

“Quick Conversions” filters keywords with transactional or commercial intent. Use this filter when you prioritize revenue-driving content over informational content.

“More Potential Traffic” filters keywords with the highest search volumes. Use this filter when your goal is maximum visibility and you have resources to compete for competitive terms.

You can refresh keyword metrics at any time to see the latest search volume, keyword difficulty, and other data.

Navigating Regular Lists

Regular lists display keywords in a table format with two main tabs. You can view keywords organized by pages or see all keywords in a flat list.

The Pages Tab

The Pages tab shows keywords grouped by page. Each row displays a page with its keyword count, intent distribution, average keyword difficulty, and total volume.

The Table Tab

The Table tab displays all keywords in a flat list view. Each row shows an individual keyword with its metrics including search volume, keyword difficulty, intent, and competitive density.

You can select keywords from the table and send them to other Semrush tools. Send keywords to Position Tracking to monitor rankings, to the Content Toolkit to create content, or to PPC Keyword Tool for paid campaigns.

Clustering Keywords

You can cluster keywords in a regular list using the "Cluster this list" button. Clustering groups related keywords together to help you identify content opportunities and organize your research.

You can refresh keyword metrics at any time to see the latest search volume, keyword difficulty, and other data.

How to Use Your Lists

Keyword Strategy Builder allows you to take action on your organized keywords. You can send keywords to other Semrush tools, export your research, or create content directly from your lists.

Send Keywords to Position Tracking or PPC Keyword Tool

You can send keywords from your list to monitor rankings or build paid campaigns.

To send keywords to Position Tracking:

1. Select the keywords or pages you want to track
2. Click "Send to Position Tracking"
3. Choose your tracking project or create a new one
4. The selected keywords will begin tracking daily rankings

To send keywords to PPC Keyword Tool:

1. Select the keywords you want to use for paid campaigns
2. Click "Send to PPC Keyword Tool"
3. The keywords will open in PPC Keyword Tool where you can organize them into campaigns and ad groups

Note: Both actions work the same way for structured lists and regular lists.

Export Your Keyword List

You can export keywords to use in external tools or share with your team. Keyword Strategy Builder exports in three formats: XLSX, CSV, or CSV semicolon.

To export your list:

1. Click the "Export" button
2. Select your file format (XLSX, CSV, or CSV semicolon)
3. Choose to export all pages and keywords or only selected pages and keywords
4. The file will download to your device

Exported files include all keyword metrics such as search volume, keyword difficulty, intent, and competitive density.

Create Content or Briefs

You can send keywords to the Content Toolkit to create optimized content or build detailed content briefs.

To create content with AI:

1. Select the keywords you want to target
2. Click "Create brief or content"
3. Select "Article in Content Toolkit" and "Apply"
4. The Content Toolkit opens with your selected keywords

Follow the steps in the Content Toolkit to have the AI write the content for you. 

To create a content brief:

1. Select the keywords you want to target
2. Click "Create brief or content"
3. Select "Brief in Content Toolkit" and "Apply"
4. The Content Toolkit opens where you can build your brief

Content briefs help you plan comprehensive content before writing. AI-generated content provides a complete first draft based on your target keywords.

How to Share Lists

You share lists in Keyword Strategy Builder by clicking the "Share" button and entering recipient email addresses. Sharing allows you to grant Viewer or Editor access to your keyword lists with other users.

Sharing from the Main Page

You can share lists from the main Keyword Strategy Builder page. The "Share" button is located above your keyword lists.

To share lists from the main page:

1. Click the "Share" button above your lists
2. Select one or more lists you want to share
3. Enter recipient email addresses (separate multiple emails with commas)
4. Choose access level: Viewer or Editor
5. Click "Share"

Viewer access allows recipients to view the list but not make changes. Editor access allows recipients to view and modify the list.

Sharing Individual Lists

You can share a single list directly from the list row. Click the "Share list" button to the right of any list name. 

The Share settings panel opens where you can:

• Share the list with new users
• View all users who have access
• Change user permissions
• Stop sharing with specific users

Viewing Shared Lists

Shared lists appear in the "Shared with Me" tab. Select the "Shared with Me" tab in Keyword Strategy Builder to view all lists others have shared with you.

The tab displays:

• Each shared list name
• The list owner's email address
• Your access level (Viewer or Editor)

You can leave a shared list at any time. Only the list owner can delete a shared list.

Note: When other users update metrics on lists you shared with them, the refresh uses your Keyword refresh limits. Corporate account owners have Editor access to their subusers' lists by default.

Limits

Keyword Strategy Builder limits vary by subscription level and include keyword capacity, clustering actions, metric refreshes, and sharing permissions. Keyword Strategy Builder is part of the SEO Toolkit. All limits reset monthly except the total keyword capacity.

Keyword Capacity

All subscriptions can store up to 200,000 total keywords across all lists in Keyword Strategy Builder. Deleting lists does not restore this capacity.

Clustering and Structuring Actions

Clustering or structuring a list counts as one action against your monthly limit, regardless of how many clusters the tool creates.

• Without SEO Toolkit: 0 actions per month
• Pro SEO: 10 actions per month
• Guru SEO: 30 actions per month
• Business SEO: 50 actions per month

Deleting lists does not restore these limits. Limits renew each month.

Keyword Metric Refreshes

You can manually refresh keyword metrics to view updated search volume, keyword difficulty, and SERP data. Each keyword refresh counts against your monthly limit.

• Without SEO Toolkit: 0 refreshes per month
• Pro SEO: 250 refreshes per month
• Guru SEO: 1,000 refreshes per month
• Business SEO: 5,000 refreshes per month

List Sharing Permissions

Sharing permissions depend on your subscription level and the recipient's subscription level:

• Paid users can share lists with Editor access to other paid users
• Paid users can share lists with Viewer access to all users (including Free users)
• Free users cannot share Keyword Strategy Builder lists