Search Volume: How to Find Monthly Search Volume

Monthly search volume (MSV) measures how many times a particular search query or keyword is entered into search engines each month. As the number of people looking up the same search term increases, so does the MSV of the subject. Search volume metrics are an important element of analyzing internet activity, particularly for search engine optimization (or SEO). [SEO](https://www.masterclass.com/articles/seo-strategy-guide) is a targeted effort to improve website traffic to a particular page by making your content readable and accessible to search engines. MSV is an especially important figure when a large part of your traffic is driven by organic searches, or searches not motivated by advertiser site promotion. Figuring out how to optimize your online presence through a list of keywords can improve your site traffic and help you generate more business. MSV indicates the popularity of certain subjects or trending topics which is a useful reflection of SEO, or how friendly your content is to a given search engine algorithm. Good SEO practices can put your content ahead of competitor content in search engine result pages, potentially driving more traffic to your site, or helping with your digital marketing. If you carefully choose the best keywords when publishing your website pages, your content may be more likely to show up in more search results online, meaning more likelihood of click-through rate (or CTR), driving more online traffic, and more business. Here is a general overview of how to collect and use monthly search volume: 1. __Use a keyword research tool__. You’ll need a keyword checker to find out the best keywords to use for your business’ website. Some keyword planners can be found for free online, but others may require paid subscriptions. These research tools can help you look up the popularity of particular keywords and see the context in which they’re used. 2. __Enter your target keywords__. Enter your specific content-related keywords into a search engine. For example, if you’re a beauty company looking to rank higher for hair care in search results, you can try entering “best hair care tips” to see the number of searches for the term, as well related keywords that have a high search volume. Try entering a variety of keyword ideas, including long-tail keywords (which are longer, more specific keyword phrases) to help figure out how to better reach your target audience. 3. __Incorporate the relevant keywords__. Once you have the results for a given keyword, you’ll need to use it correctly. Publish content (like articles or blog posts) containing keywords with higher MSVs that are relevant to your company or business. When you incorporate more keywords organically into your content, your site has a better chance of performing well and ranking high in search results. Get the [MasterClass Annual Membership](https://www.masterclass.com/) for exclusive access to video lessons taught by business luminaries, including Sara Blakely, Chris Voss, Robin Roberts, Bob Iger, Howard Schultz, Anna Wintour, and more. Monthly search volume (or MSV) is an important metric of search volume data, tracking the amount of times a particular keyword is entered into search engines monthly.