Mark Williams-Cook: SEO Through User Questions & Intent (Opportunity & Authority)

Meet Mark Williams-Cook: The Question Detective

Ever notice that box on Google called “People Also Ask” (PAA) that shows related questions when you search for something? Mark Williams-Cook is an SEO expert who pays really close attention to those questions! He runs an agency called Candour and created a popular tool called AlsoAsked.com specifically to explore this PAA data.

What’s his big idea? He believes that understanding the exact questions people are asking Google is one of the best ways to figure out what content to create for your website. Instead of just guessing topics or focusing only on keywords with huge search numbers, he looks at the PAA box to see the real problems and curiosities people have.

Mining “People Also Ask” (PAA) for Gold

Mark thinks the PAA box is like a treasure map showing you:

What people really want to know: The questions reveal their specific needs and follow-up thoughts, a concept known as user intent.
How questions connect: His tool shows how one question leads to another, mapping out a user’s likely “train of thought.” He calls this “Intent Proximity.”

By analyzing these questions, you can create content that perfectly matches what users are looking for. For a Shopify merchant, this might reveal specific feature questions about a product. For a B2B SaaS company, it can uncover pain points their software addresses.

The Power of “Zero-Volume Keywords”

Mark also talks a lot about “zero-volume keywords.” These are search terms that most SEO tools report as having zero searches per month. Sounds useless, right? Mark disagrees!

Why they matter: He argues that “zero volume” often just means the tools haven’t measured the searches yet, not that no one is searching. These are often very specific, long questions (like “how do I fix a leaky tap behind the wall in a 1950s house?”).
The Advantage: Because most people ignore them, there’s less competition! Answering these super-specific questions can attract highly targeted visitors who are often ready to buy or take action. This is great for niche Shopify stores or B2B services solving very specific problems.

Practical & Tool-Assisted

Coming from an agency background, Mark’s approach is very practical. He uses tools (like his own AlsoAsked.com, crawlers, and even Artificial Intelligence) to make finding and using this question-based data easier and more efficient. He also shares lots of practical tips through his “Search with Candour” podcast and “Unsolicited SEO Tips.”

So, Mark Williams-Cook’s strategy is about being a detective – using PAA data and specific “zero-volume” questions to uncover exactly what users need, and then creating targeted content to meet that need precisely.

How Mark Williams-Cook’s Approach Fits Opportunity + Authority

Mark Williams-Cook’s practical, intent-driven methodology strongly aligns with our Ranking Opportunity + Ranking Authority = Traffic & Results framework, offering highly actionable ways to identify specific Opportunities and build focused Authority.

His approach excels at pinpointing often-overlooked areas where user needs are clearly expressed.

Uncovering Granular Opportunity: Mark’s techniques are laser-focused on identifying high-relevance Opportunities.

PAA Data Analysis: Using “People Also Ask” data is a direct method for uncovering the specific questions and intents driving searches around a topic. This reveals clear content Opportunities that directly match user needs. (Keyword & Topic Research).
“Zero-Volume” Keywords: Targeting these highly specific, low-competition terms allows businesses to capture niche Opportunities that broader strategies might miss. These often represent high-intent users further down the funnel.
Intent Proximity & Shifts: Understanding how PAA questions connect (“Intent Proximity”) and change over time (“Search Intent Shift”) allows for proactive adaptation, ensuring content remains aligned with evolving user needs and captures current Opportunities.
Building Focused Authority Through Answers: His methods build Authority by demonstrating helpfulness and expertise in specific areas.

Answering PAA Questions: Creating content that comprehensively answers the questions users are actively asking establishes Topical Authority and positions the site as a helpful, knowledgeable resource. (Content Marketing, On-Page SEO).
Targeting Specific Needs: Addressing “zero-volume” queries demonstrates a deep understanding of niche problems, building trust and Authority with highly targeted audiences.
Practical AI Application: Using AI pragmatically for tasks like content validation against PAA or technical fixes (like redirect mapping) improves site quality and efficiency, indirectly supporting technical Authority. (Technical SEO).

In essence, Mark Williams-Cook provides a tactical playbook for leveraging readily available search data (PAA) and overlooked keywords (“zero-volume”) to find high-intent Opportunities. By creating content that directly answers these specific user needs, businesses build focused Authority and credibility. It’s a pragmatic, tool-assisted approach ideal for identifying actionable content gaps and demonstrating expertise where it matters most to the user.

Key Takeaways: Applying Mark Williams-Cook’s Insights

Synthesizing Mark Williams-Cook’s approach within the Opportunity + Authority framework yields several actionable insights for finding targeted opportunities and building focused authority. Use these takeaways to guide your strategy, and click the links to dive deeper into the specific concepts explained in Section 4:

Leverage PAA Data: Regularly analyze “People Also Ask” data using tools like AlsoAsked.com to understand user questions and intent around your core topics. This is a goldmine for content Opportunities.
Target “Zero-Volume” Keywords: Don’t ignore highly specific, long-tail queries just because tools show low volume. Use them to capture niche Opportunities and demonstrate deep Authority. (Zero-Volume Keyword Strategy).
Monitor Intent Shifts: Track how PAA questions change over time (Monitoring Search Intent Shift) to keep your content aligned with current user needs (Opportunity).
Answer Questions Comprehensively: Build content that directly answers PAA questions to establish Topical Authority.
Apply AI Pragmatically: Explore using AI tools for efficient content validation, ideation based on PAA, or technical tasks, supporting both Opportunity identification and Authority signals.

Mark Williams-Cook’s Strategies in Action: Opportunity & Authority Breakdown

Let’s explore Mark Williams-Cook’s key methodologies, focusing on their practical application and impact on Ranking Opportunity and Ranking Authority.

Zero-Volume Keyword Strategy

Core Idea: Actively researching and targeting highly specific, long-tail keywords that keyword research tools often report as having “zero” monthly searches, based on the premise that these tools often miss niche query data.
Opportunity Impact: High (for niche relevance). While individual keyword volume is low, these terms often represent high-intent users searching for very specific solutions. Capturing these niche Opportunities can lead to highly qualified traffic and conversions, especially as collectively they can represent significant search interest. (Keyword & Topic Research). Ideal for specialized B2B services or unique Shopify products.
Authority Impact: Moderate. Successfully answering these very specific questions demonstrates deep expertise within a niche, building focused Authority and credibility with a targeted audience. It shows you understand their specific problems in detail.

Monitoring Search Intent Shift

Core Idea: Regularly tracking changes in the PAA questions associated with core topics to understand how user understanding, focus, or the context around a topic is evolving over time (e.g., seasonality, major events changing related questions).
Opportunity Impact: High. Allows businesses to proactively adapt their content strategy to align with current user intent, ensuring they continue to capture relevant Opportunities as search behavior changes. It helps avoid content becoming outdated or irrelevant. (Keyword & Topic Research, Content Marketing).
Authority Impact: Moderate. Keeping content fresh and aligned with current user understanding maintains credibility and Authority. Outdated content addressing obsolete questions erodes trust.

Practical AI Application

Core Idea: Using AI tools pragmatically to enhance SEO workflows, such as validating existing content against PAA questions at scale, generating content ideas based on PAA data, or automating technical tasks like redirect mapping during site migrations.
Opportunity Impact: Moderate. AI can accelerate the process of identifying content gaps based on PAA data, helping to find and prioritize Opportunities more efficiently.
Authority Impact: Moderate. Using AI for technical tasks like redirect mapping helps maintain site health and prevent errors during migrations, preserving technical Authority. (Technical SEO). Using AI to ensure content comprehensively covers PAA questions supports Topical Authority. However, Williams-Cook emphasizes practical application and awareness of AI limitations (like hallucination), ensuring AI supports rather than replaces human quality control needed for Authority.

Applying Mark Williams-Cook’s Insights: Tactical Focus

Based on Mark Williams-Cook’s methodologies, here’s a summarized list of tactics broken down by whether they primarily target Ranking Opportunity or Ranking Authority:

Tactics Primarily Boosting Ranking Opportunity

PAA Data Mining: Using tools like AlsoAsked to find specific user questions and content gaps.
Targeting “Zero-Volume” Keywords: Capturing highly specific, often high-intent niche searches.
Monitoring PAA Shifts: Adapting content strategy to evolving user intent and search trends.
Analyzing Intent Proximity: Understanding user journeys to capture related follow-up queries.
AI for Content Gap Analysis: Efficiently identifying unanswered PAA questions.

Tactics Primarily Boosting Ranking Authority

Answering PAA Questions Comprehensively: Building Topical Authority by directly addressing user needs.
Addressing Niche (“Zero-Volume”) Needs: Demonstrating deep expertise and building trust with specific audiences.
Keeping Content Aligned with Intent Shifts: Maintaining relevance and credibility over time.
AI for Technical Task Automation: Improving site health and technical reliability (e.g., redirect mapping).
AI for Content Validation: Ensuring content thoroughly covers identified user questions (supporting Topical Authority).

Conclusion: Finding Opportunity in the Questions Users Ask

Mark Williams-Cook offers a highly practical and effective approach to SEO grounded in deeply understanding user intent through the lens of the questions they ask. His focus on leveraging “People Also Ask” data and “zero-volume” keywords provides actionable strategies for uncovering often-missed Ranking Opportunities, particularly those with high user intent.

By building content designed specifically to answer these identified questions, businesses can establish strong Topical Authority and build trust by being directly helpful. His pragmatic integration of tools like AlsoAsked.com and AI demonstrates how technology can efficiently support this intent-focused strategy. Studying Mark Williams-Cook’s work provides a clear methodology for cutting through keyword volume noise, focusing on genuine user needs revealed in PAA, and turning those insights into targeted content that drives both relevant traffic (Opportunity) and focused credibility (Authority).

Opportunity & Authority = Traffic