One of the very first activities to conduct at the beginning of any SEO campaign is to determine which keyphrases to target. It is no surprise that search volume is the main factor when deciding which phrases to focus your SEO campaign on. Often search volume is the only factor that is taken into account. However, there is one factor that many forget…
As competition for the top positions for high volume keyphrases continues to grow, the investment required to reap the benefits of the top Google positions will continue to rise. However, there is a way to avoid this high competition and the high costs associated with claiming those top positions.
The answer comes with long tail keyphrases. Targeting longer keyphrases can have added benefit over targeting single or double word keyphrases. Finding low competition keyphrases and securing high rankings can ultimately generate revenue for your website in less time and with less effort than investing large amounts of time and money for the most competitive keyphrases.
It has been reported that search queries are getting longer. This developing trend could be read in two ways. Either search engine users are becoming frustrated with the lack of relevant results they are receiving from one or two word searches, or users are becoming more sophisticated with their search queries. Either way, there are significant levels of search volume for long tail keyphrases out there waiting to be captured.
Due the very nature of long tail keyphrases they relate to more specific topics, products or services. Consequently such keyphrases receive fewer searches. However, competition for the top ranking positions in the search engines is far weaker for longer keyphrases than their more generic, shorter counterparts. In making the decision to target a specific long tail keyword that is relevant for your business/ website you are increasing your chance of first page ranking success before you have even begun. Whilst a top ranking position for a long tail keyphrase will not bring the same level of traffic as a general keyphrase, the traffic you do receive will be more targeted and consequently may be more likely to result in a sale.
With less competition for top ranking positions, along with the potential to secure higher conversion rates from long tail keyphrase traffic, in ignoring the long tail you could well be ignoring a significant opportunity.
Great post Matthew.
My experience confirms the tenets of this article. The Long Tail is where may opportunities lie hidden for savyy SEOs and SEMs. Ignore it at your peril…
Yep good call Matt. Long tail has always been a winner for small businesses and has often been ignored by larger ones in favour of the ‘big hitters’.
To add to your points above; when you rank well on long tail phrases you are capturing people very close to or at the point of purchase in their research cycle. Ranking on generic terms will help you here as they may have seen your brand earlier in the cycle and as a result you may increase your chances of being the person they buy from.
So I would totally agree – don’t forget long tail search!
I think the tendancy for bigger companies to focus on the big hitting search terms often stems from a desire to be seen in that position and, therefore, reinforce their status as industry champion.
For example, a company like Ikea would almost certainly want to be seen in the top spot for ‘furniture’ even though longer terms like ‘affordable contemporary furniture’ might bring in more relevant traffic and convert better.
Great points. As SEO matures and Google et al evolve and surfers become more savvy re their search criteria then SEO traffic managers need to stay ahead of the game. The end game is always to create/capture a customer/client via the visit . Too many poorly focused visitors only create extra work and impair focus for the client. So there is a balance to be achieved around brand/image management with product/service promotion.
Fun isnt it!