By Dan Duke — Long-tail keywords can be a powerful part of a successful search engine optimization strategy. Because they speak to the search intent of users, they can help you reach people who are not just browsing for info but ready to take action.

‍

Keywords are one of the top Google ranking factors, and expert use of long-tail keywords should be part of any online content strategy. In this article, we'll explain why they are so powerful and how they can be used to boost search engine rankings. But first, let's review the fundamentals.

What are long-tail keywords?

Long-tail keywords are more specific than other keywords, and generally have a lower search volume than broader keywords. The thing that matters is the specificity, not the number of words, although they are typically over two or three words in length.

‍

They tend to be longer than two or three words because it takes more words to be more specific, but there is no set rule for the length. ‍In fact, the phrase long-tail keyword doesn't really come from the number of words. It comes from a common way of illustrating how they work.

‍

Imagine that you are looking at the profile of a kangaroo. The creature stands tall and looks to the left. His very, very long tail tapers off to the right. Draw a line from his toes to his head and label it "internet search volume." Label the horizontal line from his toes to the tip of his tail as "the number of search queries."

‍

Research shows that 60.7% of search volume or search demand is found in our friend's heads and shoulders. All that traffic is generated by a tiny number of keywords, 0.16%.

‍

The other roughly 40% of search traffic is represented by the sloping back and tapering tail of the kangaroo. This percentage involves millions of less popular search terms, keywords, and strings of words.

‍

Long-tail keywords got the name because they are in the long tail of the kangaroo. In the terminology of on-page SEO, the opposite of the long-tail is called a "head term" or a "short tail."

‍Go where the competition doesn't

Clearly, long-tail phrases don't generate as much search volume as head terms. But here's a little SEO strategy tip: They can benefit your business and bring you more website traffic. A tremendous amount of competition is trying to climb to the top of SERPs for head terms. To establish the domain authority necessary to rank at or near the top for search terms like "money" or "cars" takes resources far beyond most businesses.

‍

Instead, you can focus your content marketing by identifying long-tail keywords that don't have such intense competition and that are specific to your business.

‍

Even while targeting lower search volumes, keyword-rich content can bring excellent search results. By developing content that is relevant to your target audience, you can efficiently reduce your bounce rate, improve your click-through rates, and earn higher conversion rates.

‍

For example, Google's search results for "ice cream" bring billions of hits. It's a "head term" that could give marketers brain freeze. The top SERPs include brand names, recipes, trends (such as product recalls), and general information.

‍

A related phrase — ice cream shop — is a little more specific. We've moved away from the head term. The top results are more likely to be shops that sell ice cream, review sites, and news articles about ice cream shops. From the added word "shop," Google's search engine algorithms infer that users are looking for places to buy ice cream, and its page rankings reflect that.

‍

If you refine that search — ice cream shop Pittsburgh — that longer long-tail keyword gets similar results, but they are more specific. The shops are all in Pittsburgh, the reviews and news are all from that city. If you choose an even more specific phrase — ice cream shop fifth avenue Pittsburgh — the results show a similar refocusing.

‍

Someone doing that last search probably is interested in buying ice cream on Fifth Avenue in Pittsburgh. If you sell ice cream on Fifth Avenue in Pittsburgh, you could try to get more website traffic with content using "head terms." But a better marketing strategy would be to create content about the products and services you offer on Fifth Avenue in Pittsburgh and to make sure your site makes your location, hours and tasty treats perfectly clear to search engines and ice cream lovers alike.

‍

National and international brands have "won" the head keywords, like "ice cream." But long-tail keywords allow countless opportunities for smaller players to use content creation for niche targeting.

How do I develop and execute long-tail SEO?

Long-tail keywords are one of the most important SEO tools available. Most SEO campaigns use them to achieve three goals:‍

‍

• Increase organic traffic
• Improve conversions
• Build brand loyalty

‍

Notice anything about these goals, as well as the example in the previous section about ice cream-related keywords? They mirror the customer journey. People use different search terms as they move from researching toward buying and, possibly, advocating for a product. Long-tail keywords can be chosen to reach people in different stages of that journey and move them to the next stage.

‍

It takes a sophisticated understanding of content optimization to make the most of these powerful phrases. That's why many businesses turn to Rellify for help.

‍

First, we can develop a Relliverse™, providing you with a custom-AI subject-matter expert trained on your relevant focus topics. We'll do a gap analysis to identify your best content opportunities — finding the places where you and your competitors don't have relevant content that has a good chance to perform well. In other words, we can point to topics with lower search volume that can be "hidden gems" — especially where the competition does not have content or visibility in that area.

‍

Our AI-powered tools, whether you use them yourself for keyword research or have our experts use them for you, can give clear, actionable information on a wide range of factors, including:

‍

• Keyword difficulty. We show how difficult it would be to outrank competitors in Google’s top 20 for a keyword.
• Search volume. We provide estimates of monthly searches to help you assess potential search engine traffic for a keyword.
• Average ranking. This shows how well your content, and that of your competitors, is performing.

‍

Once we've established the best keywords to target, Rellify can take you with one click to extensive lists of articles based on those keywords. We can help you develop a comprehensive strategy for creating blog posts targeting those keywords. It's not enough to simply create content. It must be properly structured and organized on your site to gain the maximum value and provide the best user experience.

Long-tail keywords and user intent

When you choose keywords and create content, keep user intent in mind. ‍Search queries fall into three categories based on intent:

‍

• Transactional. The user wants to find a site and do something, often make a purchase. The user has decided to do something, or is all but ready to.
• Informational. The user wants to know something about a topic. Businesses can appeal to these users with relevant, in-depth content that includes a call-to-action that moves them into the transactional column.
• Navigational. The user wants to go to a particular website. If it’s not your site, there’s almost nothing you can do to pull them your way.

‍

These categories help to illustrate why it's important to target the right traffic, not just any traffic.

How to use long-tail keywords

Whether you write long-form content, listicles, or FAQs, the way you use keywords in your content impacts your success.

‍

Keyword placement is an important concept. To achieve full page optimization, place your long-tail keywords in strategic spots, such as:

‍

• The beginning of a blog post. Help bots and readers get off to a quick, solid start.
• Meta tags. The meta title and meta description of your article tell search bots what you are focusing on. Try to use the keyword at the beginning of the title and description, or as close to it as possible.
• Headings and subheadings. This reinforces the relevance of the article.
• URLs. This helps readers and search engines navigate your site and understand its organization.
• Image titles and alt text. These are text fields associated with photographs and illustrations in your content. They also help to show the relevance of your content.
• Anchor text. This is the clickable text in a hyperlink. When you link to a related article on your site, use the long-tail keyword for that article as your anchor text. If you can get backlinks for your articles — links from another authoritative site to your site — ask them to use the main keyword for each article.
• Social media. The use of long-tail keywords will boost the effectiveness of that content in the same way it helps your website content.

‍

On the other hand, it's counterproductive to try to force your keywords into an article too often. Keyword density is a measure of how often keywords are used in an article. Google used to penalize articles and sites that engaged in keyword stuffing, which involved cramming keywords into articles artificially to boost rankings. Now, it's more of an issue for readers. While there is no specific ideal keyword density, a range of 1-3% is generally recommended.

How do I find long-tail keywords for SEO?

To find the long-tail keywords that can gain you a competitive advantage, you need to conduct keyword research. This is a big part of every SEO strategy.

‍

In addition to Rellify's comprehensive platform, several tools for keyword research are available at a range of prices, including some that are free.

‍

‍Google Analytics is one of the best free keyword search tools available. You can use it to track the traffic coming into your website and understand what keywords drove that specific traffic. In addition, Google Trends can show you what keywords are hot at the moment.

‍

‍‍SemRush is a popular paid keyword search tool, and ‍Moz has also gained a large fanbase over the years.

Simple ways to do long-tail keyword research

Let's return to our ice cream shop example. We already know that something like “ice cream shop Main Street” is a possible long-tail keyword. Let’s try to identify three more.

‍

One easy method is to use Google search. Simply go to Google’s home page and begin to type “ice cream” into the search bar. Google's autocomplete suggestions will list long-tail keywords that are generating a lot of activity. These suggestions can help you develop content that people are, literally, searching for.

‍

Likewise, the bottom of the first page of a Google search offers Related Searches. This is a list of long-tail keywords related to your query.

‍

Another method is to use Google Analytics. Once you log in to your dashboard, you can click on Traffic Sources and then Keywords. From there, you will set up a goal, which can then be used to help you analyze your traffic data. Click on Goal Set Up and include as few or as many keywords as you have discovered. Over time, you will be able to see the conversion rates for each one. You can use this information to determine which ones are bringing in the most traffic.

‍Getting help from experts

Long-tail keywords are the bread and butter of a sound SEO strategy for finding and converting qualified leads. People searching for these specific phrases have a specific user intent in mind. You can easily address their needs with tailored SEO pages or blog posts on your website.

‍

If you’re ready to improve your SEO strategy, contact Rellify to learn what high-performing relevant content based on AI-assisted keyword research can do for you.