If you’ve ever stared at a blank page wondering what kind of content to create next—whether a blog post, a YouTube video, or even a short-form clip—you’re not alone. One of the biggest challenges in content marketing is figuring out which topics are actually worth your time.
In this tutorial, I’ll show you how to use SEMrush to uncover “money keywords”—the ones that drive traffic, attract buyers, and help you promote products more effectively. I’ll also walk through a real example using Apify (a web scraping platform) to demonstrate how this works in practice.
Why “Money Keywords” Matter
Not all keywords are created equal. Some bring visitors who are curious but not ready to take action. Others, however, have high commercial intent—meaning searchers are actively looking for solutions and are more likely to convert into customers.
By learning how to quickly identify these money keywords, you can:
- Save time by focusing only on what’s profitable
- Create content that ranks and converts
- Find untapped opportunities your competitors may be missing
Step 1: Plug in a Competitor’s Domain
Inside SEMrush, start by entering a competitor’s domain or subdomain. In my case, I looked at blog.apify.com. Notice that by “competitor” I mean someone you’re competing against in the search engines, not a general competitor – in this case, I’m an affiliate of Apify (because I think their tool is amazing!) and so I want to come up with content ideas that are good opportunities to showcase the strengths of the product. SEMrush immediately shows me traffic trends and the keywords that domain ranks for.
This is like having a shortcut to your competitor’s content strategy—you can see what’s working for them and where the real opportunities lie.
Step 2: Analyze Keyword Rankings
From there, SEMrush gives you a list of thousands of ranking keywords. The key is to scan for:
- High-value keywords (like web scraping or data scraping)
- Low competition opportunities with reasonable keyword difficulty
- Commercial intent searches (such as Amazon review scraper or Zillow scraper)
These are the keywords worth creating content around because they signal an audience that’s willing to take action—whether signing up, buying, or downloading.
Step 3: Group Keywords Into Topics
Scrolling through pages of individual keywords can feel overwhelming. This is where SEMrush’s Topical Analysis comes in handy.
Instead of looking at isolated keywords, you can group them into clusters. For example:
- Web scraping (broad but competitive)
- AI web scraper (niche, easier to rank)
- Lead scraper tools (commercial intent, great for product-focused content)
By working with clusters, you’ll have a roadmap for blog series, YouTube playlists, or short-form videos—all aligned with the same profitable theme.
Step 4: Spot Quick-Win Opportunities
Not every keyword needs to be high-volume. Sometimes the real gems are lower-difficulty, medium-volume keywords like Amazon review scraper or Scrape Zillow info.
These are “quick wins” where you can realistically compete, especially if your website or channel doesn’t have massive authority yet.
Step 5: Turn Insights Into Content
Now that you know which keywords matter, here’s how you can turn them into actual content:
- Blog posts that answer specific keyword-driven questions
- YouTube videos walking through how-tos (like this tutorial)
- Short-form videos (TikTok, Shorts, Reels) hitting trending keywords
- Comparison or review content for affiliate promotions
This way, your keyword research directly powers your content pipeline instead of just sitting in a spreadsheet.
Final Thoughts
Using SEMrush isn’t just about finding keywords—it’s about identifying profitable content opportunities that help you grow traffic and revenue.
Whether you’re building an affiliate business, running a blog, or growing a YouTube channel, this approach saves time and helps you focus on what really matters: content that converts.