Figuring out what long-tail keywords are and how they work can be quite daunting, especially if you’re not a digital marketing expert. However, if your SEO game is on point, you have the chance to get a high ranking on search engine results pages for long-tail keywords that correspond directly to what your target consumers are looking up online. But how do long-tail keywords work exactly?
Long-Tail Keywords Zero In on People Who are Ready to Convert
Basically, long-tail keywords are made up of several words or phrases that indicate exactly what users search for in Google. In the realm of digital marketing, just a couple of keywords are searched by users very regularly, while long-tail keywords are searched by users more sporadically. For instance, people search for the keyword “SEO” quite regularly, while a long-tail keyword version of this might be “SEO services Denver CO”.
The reason why the long-tail version isn’t as searched for as frequently as the simple version “SEO” is that they don’t really apply to all users. The long-tail keyword version is what specific users search for when they are looking for a specific service or product they want to buy. Basically, the long-tail version communicates the exact intent of customers, particularly their intent to convert, instead of just a general interest. This essentially means that using relevant long-tail keywords will help you reach your target market more easily. This also means that you need to determine what your target market is searching for specifically so you can incorporate those keywords into your SEO campaigns.
Long-Tail Keywords Help You Determine What Kinds of Content You Should Be Creating
If you have identified your target market, you could use their pain points and interests as seed keywords for finding long-tail keywords relevant to their needs. For instance, if a lot of your target customers are into travel, you could search for related long-tail keywords such as “best travel insurance in…”. Once you’ve gathered the keywords most relevant to your content strategy, you could build your content around those. For example, you could create an infographic, series of posts, or videos comparing different types of travel insurance. Instead of guessing what content to offer users, you could refer to your list of long-tail keywords to create more user-targeted content.
Opt for Low Competition, But High Search Volume Long-Tail Keywords
Since long-tail keywords are inherently very specific, competition is usually low. That being said, aside from having low competition, you also need to ensure that your long-tail keywords have high search volume. This doesn’t necessarily mean thousands of daily searches Instead, select a keyword that is typically searched several dozen to a hundred times per day. This is a good indicator for how frequently your target consumers are searching for those keywords actively.
Building your content with relevant long-tail keywords instantly optimizes your digital marketing efforts for search. Done right, long-tail keywords will help direct users that are ready to convert to your site, and make your business reach the top of the search engine results.