A poor long-tail keyword choice can waste SEO effort, so the real fix is to validate search intent, SERP competition, and phrasing before targeting any term. Long-tail keywords often rank more easily than broad terms, but only if the results page matches your content and the phrase is grammatically sound.
As with everything marketing-related, research is the most important part of the process. The same goes for long tail keywords. You need to be extremely careful about what you choose, or you will waste valuable resources on something that will not deliver the results you are looking for. Below you will find the biggest mistakes you can make when you research long-tail keywords to use in your next SEO campaign.
Underestimating The Use And Research of Long Tail Keywords
The first major mistake is a mental one: thinking it is always very easy to rank highly for long-tail keywords. While it is true that, in the vast majority of cases, it is easier to rank for them, the keyword is “majority”. Also, there is no guarantee that the long-tail keyword you choose will be highly beneficial to your campaign.
Remember that when you compete with just 10 very strong sites in your industry, you miss the first page of Google. Also, the results Google shows are not always exact matches. Even if the user searches for the long-tail keyword you optimize for, that does not mean the results will be fully related to that query.
You should always analyze all important metrics before you make your final choice.
Not Actually Analyzing The First Results Page
This is a very easy mistake to miss when using long tail keywords in your campaigns. Most people use a keyword research tool to gauge the level of competition and search volume. The problem is that blindly relying on these numbers can lead to a completely improper choice.
Here are some extra very important things you have to take into account:
- Is the phrase a “buying” keyword? – If so, most of the first ranks will be eCommerce sites. If you are running an affiliate site, there is a very low possibility that you will even make it to the first page.
- How authoritative are the first page results? – Is your first page competition filled with many larger sites that have a very high authority store? The only case in which you can really have a shot at getting to page 1 with long tail keywords is when the competition is mainly made up of weak sites.
- Do similar words appear in results? – Google often ranks sites that have similar words. They do not focus on exact words as they did in the past. This is because the search engine understands meaning. Because of this, even a very good long tail keyword with good metrics can be completely useless.
Basically, the best phrase to use is one that does not have many very strong sites ranking highly in the results.
Mainly Focused On Search Volume
You want to rank for the long tail keywords you choose. This is why search volume is not the most important factor to consider. Sometimes, a phrase with only 100 searches is very easy to rank and can deliver great results. It can be so much better than a similar keyword that is searched thousands of times.
Let’s think about a simple example. When you rank on the first page of Google for 50 keywords, each with around 100 monthly searches, your overall results will be better than when you are on the fourth page for a long-tail keyword searched for tens of thousands of times. The big search terms should be the main ones you target in your optimization campaign.
Neglecting Grammar
Never write a title for an article that does not make sense. Simply put, Google will just not show it in results, or at least not high. The results will also not be clicked. Even if the metrics you see for such keywords are great with the research tools you use, you should never even consider them.
Using Improper Keyword Research Tools
Last but not least, many site owners believe that all they have to do is use Google’s own keyword tool. It was created to help advertisers run their ad campaigns, though. Its main goal is not to help with SEO.
Fortunately, there are several great keyword research tools you can use. Some are even specialized in local SEO phrases or even YouTube phrases. Look for one you can afford and that specializes in SEO keyword research. This is a lot better than using research tools designed for advertising purposes.