I stopped using expensive SEO tools for simple keyword research… so I built my own

I used tools like Ahrefs and Semrush.

They’re powerful. No doubt.

But for most of my daily work, I noticed something:

I didn’t need 100 reports.

I just needed:
→ good keyword ideas
→ clear intent
→ fast results

Especially for small tools and content.

The real problem I faced

When I was doing keyword research, I kept asking:

Where are the actual questions people search?

Not just keywords.

Questions.

Because now with AI (ChatGPT, Google AI, etc.), visibility is shifting.

People don’t search:
“keyword tool”

They search:
“How to find keywords for my blog?”

That’s a different game.

What I actually needed

So I simplified my requirement:

• Question-based keywords
• Short, medium, long keywords
• Easy filtering
• No complexity
• No login
• Fast results

That’s it.

So I built my own keyword research tool

Instead of trying to compete with big tools…

I focused on what I actually use daily.

The tool helps you:

• Find question-type keywords (important for AI visibility)
• Filter by short / medium / long keywords
• Discover simple, usable keyword ideas quickly
• Skip all the heavy dashboards

No friction. Just results.

Why question keywords matter now

This is something I’m seeing more and more:

Search is becoming conversation.

AI tools don’t just match keywords…
they answer questions.

So if your content doesn’t match questions…

You miss visibility.

What I learned building this

Most people don’t need “more data”.

They need:
→ clearer keywords
→ faster workflow
→ less thinking

Same pattern I saw in my tools:

Less complexity → more usage

Curious about others here

Do you still rely on big SEO tools…

or have you simplified your keyword research process?

And how are you adapting to AI-driven search (question-based queries)?

#seo #buildinpublic #webdev #tools