What is a longtail keyword?
Understanding Long-Tail Keywords
Imagine a typical search query like “shoes.” This is a broad, head keyword. Now consider “men’s black leather dress shoes size 10 for wedding.” This is a long-tail keyword. While “shoes” might attract millions of searches, a long-tail phrase will have significantly fewer. However, the users searching for long-tail keywords are often much closer to making a purchase or finding exactly what they need.
The term “long-tail” comes from the field of statistics, specifically from the concept of a “long tail” distribution. In search engine optimisation (SEO), it refers to the vast number of specific, low-volume search queries that collectively make up a significant portion of all searches.
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Illustration of Set of Fat Tailed and Long Tailed Distributions Chart Label o These less common searches, when combined, can account for over 70% of all web searches, even though individual long-tail keywords have low search volumes.
Why Are Long-Tail Keywords Important?
Long-tail keywords are crucial for several reasons, particularly in today’s competitive online landscape:
1. Higher Conversion Rates
Users searching with long-tail keywords are typically further along in the buying cycle or have a very clear intent. For example, someone searching for “best noise-cancelling headphones under £100” is likely ready to buy, whereas someone searching for “headphones” is probably just Browse. This leads to higher conversion rates for businesses targeting these specific phrases.
2. Less Competition
Broad, head keywords are fiercely competitive, making it difficult for new or smaller websites to rank. Long-tail keywords, on the other hand, have much less competition. This makes it easier to achieve higher rankings in search engine results pages (SERPs) and drive targeted traffic.
3. Improved SEO Performance
By targeting long-tail keywords, you can attract highly qualified traffic to your website. This can lead to lower bounce rates, higher time on site, and more page views, all of which are positive signals to search engines like Google, indicating that your content is relevant and valuable.
4. Better Understanding of User Intent
Long-tail keywords provide valuable insights into what your audience is specifically looking for. Analysing these queries can help you understand their pain points, questions, and desires, enabling you to create more relevant and helpful content.
5. Adaptability to Voice Search
With the rise of voice assistants like Alexa and Google Assistant, voice search queries tend to be longer and more conversational, naturally aligning with the characteristics of long-tail keywords. Optimising for these phrases can significantly improve your visibility in voice search results. For example, instead of typing “weather London,” a user might ask, “What’s the weather like in London tomorrow?”
How to Find Long-Tail Keywords
Finding effective long-tail keywords requires a bit of research and creativity. Here are some strategies:
1. Google Autocomplete and Related Searches
When you start typing a query into Google, the autocomplete feature often suggests longer, more specific phrases. Similarly, at the bottom of the Google search results page, you’ll find “Searches related to…” which can be a goldmine for long-tail ideas.
2. “People Also Ask” (PAA) Box
The “People Also Ask” box in Google SERPs presents common questions related to your initial search. These questions are often excellent long-tail keyword candidates as they reflect genuine user queries.
3. Forums and Q&A Sites
Websites like Reddit, Quora, and industry-specific forums are rich sources of long-tail keywords. People ask very specific questions on these platforms, revealing their exact needs and concerns.
4. Competitor Analysis
Analyse what long-tail keywords your competitors are ranking for. Tools like Ahrefs or SEMrush can help you uncover these insights and identify gaps in your own keyword strategy.
5. Customer Feedback and Support Logs
Your existing customers are a fantastic resource. Look at emails, chat logs, and support tickets. The language they use to describe their problems or questions can provide direct long-tail keyword ideas.
6. Keyword Research Tools
While many keyword tools focus on broad terms, they can also be configured to find long-tail variations. Look for features that allow you to filter by keyword length, search volume, or include specific modifiers. Popular tools include:
- Google Keyword Planner: Free and integrated with Google Ads, it provides search volume data and related keyword ideas.
- AnswerThePublic: Visualises questions, prepositions, comparisons, and alphabetical searches related to a topic, making it excellent for finding conversational long-tail keywords.
- Ubersuggest: Offers keyword suggestions, content ideas, and competitive analysis, including long-tail variations.
- Semrush & Ahrefs: Comprehensive SEO suites that provide detailed keyword research, including long-tail opportunities, keyword difficulty, and competitor analysis.
Optimising for Long-Tail Keywords
Once you’ve identified your long-tail keywords, the next step is to optimise your content for them:
1. Create Comprehensive Content
Since long-tail keywords are specific, the content you create should fully address the user’s intent. This often means writing detailed blog posts, articles, or product descriptions that answer all possible questions related to that specific query.
2. Natural Language Integration
Don’t stuff your content with keywords. Instead, integrate them naturally into your headings, subheadings, body text, and meta descriptions. Remember that search engines are sophisticated enough to understand synonyms and related concepts.
3. Use Them in Headings and Subheadings
Placing your long-tail keywords in H1, H2, and H3 tags signals to search engines the main topics of your content and improves readability for users.
4. Optimise Meta Descriptions and Titles
Craft compelling meta titles and descriptions that include your long-tail keywords. This helps attract clicks from the SERPs and accurately represents your content.
5. Internal Linking
Link relevant internal pages using your long-tail keywords as anchor text. This helps search engines understand the structure of your site and distributes “link juice” to other relevant pages.
6. User Experience (UX)
Ensure your website is user-friendly, loads quickly, and is mobile-responsive. A good user experience encourages visitors to stay longer, reducing bounce rates and sending positive signals to search engines.
The Future of Search and Long-Tail Keywords
As search engines become more sophisticated and voice search continues to grow, the importance of long-tail keywords will only increase. Google’s algorithms are constantly evolving to understand natural language and user intent more deeply. By focusing on long-tail keywords, you’re not just optimising for today’s search; you’re future-proofing your content for how people will search tomorrow.
In essence, long-tail keywords are about quality over quantity. They may not bring in millions of visitors, but they attract the right visitors – those who are genuinely interested in what you have to offer and are more likely to convert into customers or engaged readers. Embracing a long-tail keyword strategy is a smart and sustainable approach to SEO that can yield significant long-term benefits.