In the world of SEO (Search Engine Optimization), long tail keywords should be one of the most important aspects of your firm’s SEO strategy. That’s because even as the world of search engine optimization is constantly evolving and changing, content and context are always going to be the most important factors in any search.
Before diving into the importance of long tail keywords in SEO, it’s important to understand the definition of a long tail keyword. It helps if you look at a long tail keyword as a search phrase rather than a string of keywords. This phrase is meant to be more specific, capturing a narrower and more targeted search audience.
When an investor goes to their search engine to start searching for a financial advisor, what are they going to type? Financial Advisor? Or will they type: Best financial advisor for retirement planning in my city? The second option is an example of a long tail keyword.
Read on to learn more about how long tail keywords can help your firm with its Internet visibility:
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More is More
When using long tail keywords, they are by definition longer than a single keyword. And this is of course intentional. When someone is searching for financial advisors and they use the term “financial advisors” or “investing,” those terms are going to bring up a pretty wide range of results.
However, if they entered “fiduciary financial advisor in Dallas Texas” they would come up with an entirely different, and more relevant, list of search results. As a financial advisor, using long-tail keywords in conjunction with singular keywords in your SEO efforts can help you rank higher when the searching becomes more specific.
This doesn’t mean you should stop using standard keywords, but rather utilize all types of SEO strategies, including long tail keywords. Important note: Singular keyword searches will still turn up results from keywords used as part of a long-tail keyword as well.
Context is Everything
This is because more and more in the world of search marketing and SEO, context is everything. Long tail keywords have the ability to provide context and intent behind a user’s search query. For example, Google has been known to favor exact search queries that match a website’s long tail keywords.
This shows an understanding of what the user is intending to search for and allows Google to provide the most relevant results to that request. This results in a win-win-win scenario: the user gets the content they were looking for, Google provides that result, and the website in question gets traffic to their page.
It can’t be said enough how important it is to stay in the good graces of search engines such as Google. Any online marketer can tell you that if Google can’t or won’t deliver your page in search results, your online marketing strategy can be over before it starts.
Who is BERT and Why Should I Care?
In 2019 Google launched a new algorithm named BERT. This technology, in a nutshell, was designed to emphasize natural language processing and intent searching, rather than matching search queries based on a string of keywords.
It’s through this technology that long tail keywords are really getting to shine. If marketers weren’t paying attention to long tail keywords before, they certainly should be now. Another important reason to take note of BERT and long-tail keywords, in general, is the use of voice assistants and AI in search.
With more and more people using Alexa and Google to search by simply asking a question to their mobile assistant, search queries are becoming a lot more conversational. Google and other search engines are taking note of this technology, and it will be beneficial to anyone who cares about their search rankings to pay attention and plan their SEO strategy accordingly.
Boost Your Blog
Long tail SEO keywords are also a big benefit to boosting your blog. This is because there are many places within the structure of a blog post that you can use long tail SEO search terms to provide context to your content.
These include your URL, page title, H1 tags, body text and the alt text in images. Once you get visitors coming to your blog through your SEO efforts, be sure to provide additional value through the use of infographics, videos and of course quality content. This will not only help you gain favor with Google by reducing bounce rates, but it will also increase your conversion rates.
Structured Data
Another SEO trend that Google is prioritizing is known as structured data. According to Google, “Structured data is a standardized format for providing information about a page and classifying the page content; for example, on a recipe page, what are the ingredients, the cooking time and temperature, the calories, and so on.”
The same thing goes for a website on any other topic – it needs to be structured in a way that Google can understand it so it can get your website in front of the right people. This strategy can also be achieved through the use of long tail keywords.
If you’re noticing a theme throughout this article – you’re correct. Long tail keywords have an important part in many aspects of SEO strategies that Google is favoring.
Long tail Keywords Often Have Less Competition
Because long tail keywords are a string of keywords and more specific in nature, they generally have less competition than single keyword terms. This is a great opportunity for those looking to boost their organic search results by utilizing long tail keyword phrases specific to their business, expertise and/or geographic and ideal demographic audience criteria.
In fact, long tail keywords probably bring in most of your organic traffic, so it’s essential to add them as part of your overall strategy.
They Can Help with Difficult Terms
If your firm offers a specific service, you may struggle with the more difficult search terms. By integrating the main search terms within your long tail keyword phrase, you can bring those terms closer to the top of the rankings. This can also help you keep up with the competition by taking competitive terms and integrating them into a larger overall long-tail search term.
The importance of long tail SEO search terms cannot be overstated in today’s ultra-competitive and ever-changing SEO environment. If you are looking for help with long tail keywords or any SEO strategies for your firm, reach out to a qualified digital marketing agency to learn more.
