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Long tail SEO All businesses can benefit from using niche long tail keywords to improve their SEO and find new customers for their products and services.

What are long tail keywords?

Long tail keywords generally refers to searches of 3 or more keywords, each one narrowing the search to a more and more specific sector, service or product. Here is an example:

  • A general search might be on the word ‘Jewellery’
  • A more detailed search might be ‘Silver Jewellery’
  • And a long tail search might be ‘Buy Silver Jewellery Online’.

Obviously the narrower the search, the fewer searches but a lower quantity will mean a higher quality as your website will more closely match their EXACT requirements.

How to find and develop long tail keywords?

Just using Google’s search box will provide suggestions, and their Keyword Tool is free and simple to use. Not only will it tell you the number of local searches for any long tail term you develop, but it will also offer other suggestions.

SEO and long tail keywords

Once you have developed these terms you will need to use them effectively to maximise their SEO value. Here are some ways to use them:

  1. in the URLs of your website pages and blog posts
  2. in the metadata
  3. in the titles, subtitles and body copy of your website
  4. in the titles and copy of your blogs, Facebook posts and other social media
  5. in your anchor text for links

Long tail links

Consider the use of long tail keywords in hyperlinks (the link anchor text) to your specific web pages, blog posts, articles and other social media. You can have a number of these long tail links going to each page. It appears as if Google is giving greater weight to varied, long tail links to page – to Google, longtail links appear both more ‘natural’ and also closer to what your website visitors are actually looking for.

The effects of using long tail links

If done successfully the use of these links will do more than improve your ranking for those specific terms. It’s likely that it will be indirectly affecting the page’s importance for shorter versions of the hyperlink – so where the long term tail is ‘Buy Silver Jewellery Online’ both variations, ‘Buy Silver Jewellery’ and ‘Jewellery Online’, get affected as well as other possible key phrase combinations. Additionally the page and then the website will gain authority as you build authority from the base (of long tail keywords) to the top (Homepage). If you feel you need help devising or implementing this strategy, a reputable internet marketing agency may be a great source of advice and support. 

Image credit – Marcio Okabe

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