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Personal Keyword Difficulty

Overview​

Personal Keyword Difficulty (PKD) is a customized metric that evaluates how difficult it will be for YOUR specific website to rank for a keyword, rather than using a generic industry-wide difficulty score. It considers your site's unique authority, existing rankings, and competitive position.

Try It Out​

What is Personal Keyword Difficulty?​

Personal Keyword Difficulty adjusts traditional keyword difficulty metrics based on:

  • Your domain authority: Your site's existing strength
  • Your current rankings: Keywords you already rank for
  • Your topical authority: Expertise in specific niches
  • Your backlink profile: Quality and quantity of links
  • Your content quality: Historical performance
  • Your competitive position: Where you stand vs. competitors

Why Personal Keyword Difficulty Matters​

More Accurate Opportunity Assessment​

Traditional Keyword Difficulty:

  • Shows difficulty for an "average" website
  • Treats all websites the same
  • May discourage you from winnable opportunities
  • May encourage pursuing impossible keywords

Personal Keyword Difficulty:

  • Customized to YOUR website
  • Accounts for your existing strengths
  • Reveals realistic opportunities
  • Helps prioritize effectively

Better Resource Allocation​

  • Focus on keywords you can actually win
  • Avoid wasting time on impossible targets
  • Identify quick-win opportunities specific to you
  • Prioritize based on your unique position

Strategic Advantages​

  • New sites: Identify accessible keywords despite low authority
  • Established sites: Find opportunities others might miss
  • Niche sites: Leverage topical authority
  • Local businesses: Factor in geographic relevance

Factors in Personal Keyword Difficulty​

1. Your Domain Authority (DA/DR)​

How it affects difficulty:

High Authority Site (DA 70+):

  • Industry-standard difficulty of 60 might be 40 for you
  • Can compete for competitive terms
  • Needs less link building per keyword

Medium Authority Site (DA 30-70):

  • Some keywords easier, some harder than average
  • Sweet spot for many opportunities
  • Strategic approach needed

Low Authority Site (DA less than 30):

  • Most keywords harder than standard difficulty
  • Focus on long-tail, low-competition terms
  • Build authority progressively

2. Topical Authority​

Your expertise in specific subjects

Strong Topical Authority: If you're recognized in a niche:

  • Keywords in your niche become easier
  • Google trusts your content more
  • Related keywords rank faster
  • Less backlinks needed

Example:

  • General site: "running shoes reviews" = Hard
  • Running-focused site with 100+ shoe reviews: Medium

3. Current Ranking Position​

Where you already appear

Position 11-20 (Page 2):

  • Personal difficulty: Much easier
  • Already in the game
  • Optimization can push to page 1
  • Quick win potential

Position 21-50:

  • Moderate personal difficulty
  • Some existing relevance
  • Needs content improvement + links

Not Ranking:

  • Higher personal difficulty
  • Starting from zero
  • Full optimization needed

4. Content Quality History​

Your track record

Consistently High-Quality Content:

  • Lower personal difficulty
  • Google trusts your new content faster
  • Better initial rankings
  • Faster ranking improvements

Inconsistent or Thin Content:

  • Higher personal difficulty
  • Need to prove quality first
  • Slower ranking progression

Your link equity

Strong, Relevant Backlinks:

  • Can compete with fewer additional links
  • Authority flows to new pages
  • Lower personal difficulty for related topics

Weak Backlink Profile:

  • Need more links per keyword
  • Higher personal difficulty
  • Longer timeline to rank

6. Competitive Position​

Who you're up against

Facing Weaker Competitors:

  • Lower personal difficulty
  • Can rank with less effort
  • Opportunities even in "high difficulty" niches

Facing Strong Competitors:

  • Higher personal difficulty
  • Need exceptional content + links
  • Longer-term strategy required

Calculating Personal Keyword Difficulty​

Basic Formula Approach​

Standard Difficulty Score (from tools like Ahrefs, SEMrush) ± Your Authority Modifiers = Personal Keyword Difficulty

Authority Modifiers​

Domain Authority Modifier:

  • DA 60+: -15 to -20 points
  • DA 40-60: -5 to -10 points
  • DA 20-40: 0 points
  • DA less than 20: +10 to +15 points

Topical Authority Modifier:

  • Strong topical authority in niche: -10 to -15 points
  • Some authority: -5 points
  • New topic for you: +5 to +10 points

Current Ranking Modifier:

  • Already top 20: -20 points
  • Already top 50: -10 points
  • Not ranking: 0 points

Content Quality Modifier:

  • Consistently high-performing content: -5 points
  • Average content: 0 points
  • Poor content history: +5 points

Example Calculation​

Keyword: "best wireless headphones" Standard Difficulty: 65 (Hard)

Your Site Factors:

  • Domain Authority: 45 (Modifier: -7)
  • Topical Authority: 5+ headphone reviews (Modifier: -10)
  • Current Ranking: Position 28 (Modifier: -10)
  • Content Quality: Strong (Modifier: -5)

Personal Difficulty: 65 - 7 - 10 - 10 - 5 = 33 (Medium)

Interpretation: While this keyword appears "hard" generally, it's actually medium difficulty for you due to existing relevance and rankings.

Using Personal Keyword Difficulty​

Opportunity Identification​

Quick Wins (Low PKD):

  • Focus here for fast results
  • Keywords where you have advantages
  • Page 2 keywords (positions 11-20)
  • Topics where you have authority

Strategic Targets (Medium PKD):

  • Worth pursuing with proper resources
  • Balance of effort and reward
  • Build supporting content first
  • Plan link building campaigns

Long-term Goals (High PKD):

  • Aspirational targets
  • Requires significant investment
  • Build topical authority first
  • Multi-month or multi-year strategy

Prioritization Framework​

Priority 1: Low PKD + High Value

  • Easy to rank + significant business impact
  • Do these first
  • Quick ROI

Priority 2: Medium PKD + High Value

  • Worthwhile investment
  • Main content calendar focus
  • Strategic importance

Priority 3: Low PKD + Medium Value

  • Fill content gaps
  • Build topical coverage
  • Support main targets

Priority 4: High PKD + High Value

  • Long-term investments
  • Requires patience
  • Build incrementally

Avoid: High PKD + Low Value

  • Poor resource allocation
  • Not worth the effort
  • Unless building authority for related terms

Tools and Techniques​

Tools That Support PKD​

SEMrush:

  • Keyword Difficulty metric
  • Personal Keyword Difficulty feature
  • Considers your domain data
  • Competitive positioning analysis

Ahrefs:

  • Keyword Difficulty score
  • "Position History" for your site
  • Domain Rating considerations
  • SERP overlap analysis

Moz:

  • Keyword Difficulty
  • Domain Authority factor
  • "Ranking Keywords" report
  • Competitive analysis

Manual Calculation:

  • Export standard difficulty scores
  • Add your site metrics in spreadsheet
  • Apply modifier formulas
  • Calculate personal scores

DIY Personal Difficulty Assessment​

Step 1: Gather Data

  • Export keyword list with standard difficulty
  • Note your current rankings
  • Document your DA/DR
  • Identify topical authority areas

Step 2: Create Scoring System Build spreadsheet with columns:

  • Keyword
  • Standard Difficulty
  • Your Current Position
  • Topical Match (Yes/No)
  • Calculated PKD
  • Priority Score

Step 3: Apply Modifiers Use formulas to automatically adjust:

=StandardDifficulty + AuthorityModifier + RankingModifier + TopicalModifier

Step 4: Set Thresholds Define your difficulty ranges:

  • 0-30: Low PKD (Quick wins)
  • 31-60: Medium PKD (Strategic targets)
  • 61-100: High PKD (Long-term goals)

Real-World Applications​

For New Websites​

Challenge: Low authority, everything seems difficult

PKD Strategy:

  • Focus on micro-niches
  • Target long-tail keywords (lower competition)
  • Build topical clusters
  • Look for keywords with weak competitors
  • Accept that most keywords have high PKD initially

Timeline:

  • Months 1-6: Target PKD less than 20
  • Months 7-12: Expand to PKD 20-40
  • Year 2+: Tackle PKD 40-60

For Established Sites​

Advantage: Can tackle competitive keywords

PKD Strategy:

  • Leverage existing authority
  • Find PKD quick wins in competitive spaces
  • Expand topical authority to new areas
  • Target high-value keywords with medium PKD
  • Compete for industry terms

For Niche Authority Sites​

Strength: Deep topical authority

PKD Strategy:

  • Dominate long-tail in your niche
  • Lower PKD for niche keywords regardless of standard difficulty
  • Expand to adjacent topics
  • Build moats around main topics
  • Branch into related niches strategically

For Local Businesses​

Unique Factor: Geographic relevance

PKD Strategy:

  • Geographic modifier makes keywords easier
  • Local pack has different dynamics
  • Citations and reviews affect PKD
  • Competitor landscape is local, not national
  • "near me" and city-specific terms have lower PKD

Combining PKD with Other Metrics​

PKD + Search Volume​

Ideal: Low PKD + High Volume Reality check: Rare combination Strategy: Balance volume with difficulty personalized to you

PKD + Business Value​

Priority scoring:

Priority = (Business Value × Search Volume) / Personal Keyword Difficulty

Higher score = higher priority

PKD + Search Intent​

Match PKD assessment with:

  • Informational: Lower PKD acceptable (builds authority)
  • Commercial: Medium PKD worth it (research phase)
  • Transactional: Worth higher PKD (direct revenue)

PKD + Timeline​

  • Low PKD: Results in 1-3 months
  • Medium PKD: Results in 3-6 months
  • High PKD: Results in 6-12+ months

Set expectations accordingly

Advanced PKD Strategies​

Progressive Difficulty Climbing​

The Ladder Approach:

  1. Start with low PKD keywords
  2. Build authority and rankings
  3. Your PKD for related keywords decreases
  4. Tackle previously "impossible" keywords
  5. Repeat

Example:

  • Start: "budget wireless earbuds under $50" (PKD 25)
  • Build: 10 earbuds reviews, gain links
  • New PKD: "best wireless earbuds" drops from 70 to 45
  • Tackle: Now achievable with your grown authority

Competitor-Relative PKD​

Compare your PKD to specific competitors:

  • Competitor A (stronger): High relative PKD
  • Competitor B (similar): Medium relative PKD
  • Competitor C (weaker): Low relative PKD

Strategy: Target keywords where you have PKD advantage vs. competitors

Seasonal PKD Fluctuation​

Some keywords get easier seasonally:

  • Lower competition during off-season
  • Build rankings when PKD is lower
  • Maintain through high-competition season

Topic Cluster PKD Reduction​

Building topic clusters reduces PKD:

  • Create pillar content
  • Add cluster pages
  • Internal linking strengthens signals
  • Each new page reduces PKD for related keywords

Monitoring and Adjusting​

Regular PKD Reassessment​

Monthly:

  • Check ranking changes
  • Update current position modifiers
  • Identify newly achievable keywords

Quarterly:

  • Reassess domain authority
  • Evaluate topical authority growth
  • Recalculate PKD for target keywords
  • Adjust strategy based on changes

Annually:

  • Full competitive analysis
  • Comprehensive PKD recalculation
  • Strategic planning based on new PKD landscape

Success Indicators​

PKD is working when:

  • Winning keywords at predicted timeline
  • Accurate difficulty predictions
  • Efficient resource allocation
  • ROI meets or exceeds projections

PKD needs adjustment when:

  • Consistently over/underestimating difficulty
  • Unexpected ranking successes or failures
  • Major algorithm updates
  • Significant site authority changes

Further Reading​