How do I do SEO for a client who is starting a website that is in a niche with very little to none search traffic?

[Marcus_Wong]

I am helping a client do On-page optimization and link building. His website is rather like thoughtcatalog.com, where it is a collection of random articles, opinions and anecdotes with no fixed genre. He also has a section devoted to artsy pictures of women. To make things worse, I am in a country (singapore) where the population is small, and the search traffic for his kind of content is minuscule.

I have trouble finding out good keywords for him to target and I am considering not undergoing any serious keyword targeting at all (because it will detract from the style of his content). I did a little competitor research, and most of the websites in such a genre do not seem to do any keyword targeting at all!

In such a case, how do i continue to help him with SEO? should I abandon keyword research? What should i do to help him earn traffic?

[irvingw]

never abandon keyword research.

if these are article and stories why geotarget for only singapore? Singapore English and Chinese languages used there means you can target more than just the singapore audience I assume?

[Marcus_Wong]

While it is true that English and Mandarin is used, English is predominantly used on the internet back here. The site also targets readers of a certain proficiency in English, and of a certain intellect.

I already did some keyword targeting, but I predict much of the traffic with come from referrals and social media. Overtime, if things go well, search traffic will increase from branded searches.