A detailed understanding of long-tail keywords can work wonders for your SEO strategy. Even though conventional wisdom says that it is a waste of time to focus on keywords that get less search traffic; long-tail keywords are the exception. The trick to developing a successful long-tail keyword strategy is to first understand the importance of specific keyword phrases and how they relate to your business. This blog will give you a general overview of everything you need to know about long-tail keywords in SEO.
What are Long-Tail Keywords?
Long-tail keywords are low volume keywords that are highly specific and are generally used by consumers looking for a particular product or service. The unique thing about long-tail keywords is that they do not have a lot of competition, and they tend to convert exceptionally well.
For example, “cheap smartphones” is a popular search query,
while “cheap smartphones under 10000” is a long-tail keyword related to that query.
The term long-tail comes from the fact that theses keywords have over two or three words in them and tend to fall on the long tail of the search demand graph. The research found that even though few users searched for individual long-tail queries, these keywords actually form a significant portion of all Google searches.
How to Find Long-Tail Keywords?
Since long-tail keywords have a very high conversion rate, many businesses try to include them in their content so as to increase sales. It may come as a surprise to you that you do not need any technical SEO knowledge to find long-tail keywords relevant to your business.
The easiest way to find long-tail keywords is by using Google autocomplete.
When you take a broad topic and begin typing it into Google, you will notice that the search engine automatically throws up suggestions. The autocomplete suggestions will be related to the overall topic for which you’re searching, but they will be more specific.
Another way to search for long-tail keywords is to use the “People also ask” box
or the “Searches related to” section at the bottom of the search results page.
However, if you find it time-consuming to manually search for long-tail keywords in Google, you can always consult a digital marketing agency or use a professional keyword research tool.
Top 5 Popular Keyword Research Tools
- Ahrefs’ Keywords Explorer
- Google Search Console
- WordStream’s Keyword Tool
- Ubersuggest
- Moz Keyword Explorer
Benefits of Long-Tail Keywords for SEO
Easy to rank Long-Tail Keywords
The general consensus is that it is easier to rank for long-tail keywords than for common short-tail keywords since there are not many websites that compete for high rankings in the result pages.
For example, if you run a sports business that sells, let’s say hiking equipment, you may be tempted to use keywords like “sports” or “sporting equipment”. However, there will be high competition for generic keywords like “sporting equipment”, and you may not get the rank you want. You should rather focus on a specific keyword like “hiking equipment for winter”.
Long-tail Keywords attract a relevant audience
The mission of Google, or any search engine for that matter, is to provide users with relevant content based on their search queries. When a user searches for specific long-tail keywords, they are interested in gathering information.
Using long-tail keywords in your SEO strategy will help you engage with users who are already searching for products or services related to your business.
Importance in Voice Search
It is estimated that by the end of 2020, 30% of all browsing sessions will include voice search.
Long-tail keywords and voice search go hand in hand because spoken voice searches tend to be more conversational and reflect how we speak every day. You can work with the SEO company to find out how you can optimize your content using long-tail, conversational keywords so that you target voice searches.
How to Use Long-Tail Keywords?
Create Content Optimized Around Long-tail Keywords
The first approach you can take when it comes to using long-tail keywords is to create content based entirely on keywords that are trending.
For example, if a long-tail keyword like “How to increase followers on Twitter” is trending, then you can write an entire blog post on the topic and post it on your sites.
One drawback of this approach is that you will need to keep creating a lot of content since long-tail keywords do not get that many monthly searches.
Incorporate Long-tail Keywords into your Content
An alternate approach you can take is to optimize your content for short-tail keywords and then add specific long-tail keywords later on.
Sprinkling long-tail keyword phrases into your content will help you rank for different keywords. However, to avoid keyword stuffing, you can work with a team of experts at a digital marketing agency to optimize your content more efficiently.
Conclusion
While keyword research may not sound like a lot of fun, especially long-tail keyword research, you should know that it is the foundation of your entire digital marketing strategy. The bottom line is quite simple; when you target long-tail keywords, you will definitely end up getting tons of traffic from search engines. You can collaborate with the best SEO company in your area to learn the intricacies and technicalities of long-tail keywords so that you can figure out the best strategy for your business.
