Using Keyword Difficulty in Keyword Selection
Keyword Difficulty is useful as a starting point, but I would not use it as the deciding factor. Different SEO tools use different datasets and calculations, so the score is best treated as an estimate rather than a guaranteed prediction of ranking difficulty.
Search Intent — First check whether the keyword matches the purpose of the page. A lower-difficulty keyword is not useful if the content does not satisfy the searcher’s intent.
SERP Competition — Review the actual search results. Look at the quality of ranking pages, SERP features, content depth, and how closely those pages match the query.
Backlink Profiles — Compare the referring domains and backlink strength of competing pages. A high-quality backlink profile can make a SERP considerably harder to compete in, even when the tool’s difficulty score appears moderate.
Content Quality — Check whether competitors provide comprehensive, useful, and well-structured content. If the existing results have clear information gaps, there may be an opportunity despite a higher difficulty score.
Existing Website Authority — Consider the site’s topical relevance, established rankings, internal linking, backlink profile, and overall ability to compete. The same keyword can represent different levels of difficulty for different websites.
Existing Rankings — Keywords where a site already ranks on page two or near the top of page one can be particularly useful optimization opportunities. Actual performance provides stronger evidence than a difficulty score alone.
Practical Lesson
I would use the process:
Keyword Difficulty → Search Intent → SERP Review → Competitor Analysis → Backlinks → Content Gaps → Website Strength → Business Value
The main lesson is not to reject a keyword simply because its difficulty score is high, or target one simply because the score is low. Use the metric to narrow the research, then validate it against the real SERP and your website’s ability to compete.