Does it make sense to pursue long-tail keywords with low search volume
-
Hi Moz community,
I need your insight into what would ensure better rankings. Some of the pages that I am optimizing are dedicated to niche products targeting specific verticals and the main keywords have really low average search volume (below 50). I'll give you an example (these are not the exact keywords, just an example to illustrate my dilemma): if my long-tail keyword is "student information management software" with search volume of 20, when do I stand better chances to gain search visibility: by optimizing the page for this long-tail keyword and incorporating it in the title tag, or by pursuing more generic keywords with higher search volume: "student" and "information management software"? If I am targeting short-tail keywords, will the page also rank for long-tail searches that are a combination of these keywords? In other words, which scenario gives better chances to rank higher: 1) pursuing short-tail keywords with high search volume in the title-tag 2) pursuing fewer long-tail keywords with lower search volume that are a combination of those in scenario 1?
Thanks in advance for your help!
-
Yes, this makes sense! Big thanks for sharing your insights, Kevin!
-
Yes, they will. However, Google will weigh the exact phrase differently. If all other factors are removed, Google will likely rank the optimized page with the long tails higher as opposed to the keywords being fragmented. Do a query of the long-tail to see if any result pops up for the exact phrase (using quotes). If you see many pages that come up, probably an indication of value and create an optimized page.
-
Kevin, thanks for your answer! In fact, my question is more around organic search, not PPC, but good observation on the quality score as well! What about when you are optimizing pages targeting specific verticals - this means that the search volume of the keywords will be even lower. Let's say my page is about mobility solutions for the healthcare vertical. If I pursue "mobility solutions" and "healthcare" separately (keywords with really high search volume), won't I also capture the searches for "healthcare mobility solutions" (low search volume)?
-
No problem!
Optimize for the long-tail keyword in question. Going more generic with your on-page elements and content is likely to dilute your other pages. You can use generic terms in content, but treat those as opportunities for internal linking, pointing generic keywords towards the page you're targeting for that particular generic term.
-
Logan, big thanks for your answer. This has been our understanding as well, so you validated our approach. Do you optimize the page copy and the title tag for the same long-tail keywords, or in the title tag you go for more generic terms/ high-level topics?
-
I would pursue optimized long-tail landing pages as long as you have resources and the page provides value.
For example, you noted "student information management software" & "information management software". If you only offer "student information management software" and no other, you should optimized for that page with those terms. If your company offers many types of "information management software", these should link to the different types (including student) on child pages. By doing so, you will have a chance for two pages to appear in the serps. In my experience, since these long-tail landing pages convert much higher because of less competition (see Logan's chart), the resources are typically worth it. Furthermore, since these long-tail landing pages are more optimized, your Quality Score will be higher in PPC and you will pay less and better visibility of your ad. Good luck!
-
Yes, it definitely is beneficial to attack long-tail keywords in your content strategy. This chart is my go-to point of reference any time this topic comes up. It very clearly illustrates the need for long-tail targeting in a comprehensive SEO strategy. Not to mention, your competitors are most likely NOT putting the time and effort into it, so you can get some pretty big wins in that regard.
-
long tail keywords tend to come up with much much better quality leads, meaning they will be less likely to bounce from your site.
Long tail keywords also tend to have less lookups and cheaper ad cost for the same reason, but again, are highly accurate when they do end up showing up as part of your ad campaign or as an organic result. There is less competition for them too oftentimes.
Browse Questions
Explore more categories
-
Moz Tools
Chat with the community about the Moz tools.
-
SEO Tactics
Discuss the SEO process with fellow marketers
-
Community
Discuss industry events, jobs, and news!
-
Digital Marketing
Chat about tactics outside of SEO
-
Research & Trends
Dive into research and trends in the search industry.
-
Support
Connect on product support and feature requests.
Related Questions
-
How do I do keyword research when search volume is unknown
Hi Mozzers! I do a lot of work in niche areas, and one issue I often confront in keyword research is unknown search volume. That is, I'll be doing keyword research in Keyword Explorer or Gooogle Search Console, and for the most relevant keywords, I find either very low search volumes, null search volumes, or "Data not available." How do I make good keyword planning decisions when I can't find good data for search volume? Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Andy
Keyword Research | | AndyKubrin0 -
Setting Up a Keyword Matrix
Greetings MOZ community!! My real estate web site contains about 500 pages with perhaps 70 pages targeting low volume, somewhat valuable but not very competitive keywords. Three to four URLs target very competitive terms. The following terms are among the most valuable: New York City office space,
Keyword Research | | Kingalan1
New York office space,
Manhattan office space,
NYC office space Such variants as: Office space in New York City,
Office space in New York,
Office space in Manhattan,
Office space in NYC
ETCETERA convert really well How would I match different terms to different URLs? For example I have just re-written the following two critical URLs: www.nyc-officespace-leader.com (home page)
http://www.nyc-officespace-leader.com/commercial-space/office-space (product page) Would it make sense to use "Manhattan office space" and variants on the home page while excluding "New York City office space" variants? At the same time I would use "New York City office space" variants on the "office-space" product page while excluding all mention of "Manhattan office space". Is this logical and does it conform to SEO best practices? For the "NYC office space" terms I would add them to http://www.nyc-officespace-leader.com/listings. This URL has almost no text but a strong potential to rent because of a high number of incoming internal links. Is this approach sensible? In general what measures should I take to prevent URLs from competing for the same keywords? Also, is there a software package or tools that I can use to come up with keyword variants? As a non SEO professional, can I create my own keyword matrix or is this really in the realm of a professional SEO consultant? Thanks, Alan0 -
What is the best way to research long tail search queries?
Hi, I am wondering if there is any special way to seek out long tail search queries? For example, when I search in Adwords or Ubersuggest for a particular group of keywords, I only ever seem to get 1 to 3 keywords. I am looking for the longer search terms like actual questions i.e. "Where is the best yoga studio in Doncaster?" Currently I rely on not hitting in Google in enter but I figure that there must be a better way? Thanks guys!
Keyword Research | | StoryScout0 -
Local Keywords
Hello everyone. Still loving MOZ. Question: When I research a keyword phrase such as Entertainers it is returning a local search of 15,972. I want to target three specific cities in my area ( Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Akron). When I research the phrase Cleveland Entertainers I'm getting a local search result of 0. Should I just assume that the search is still large enough to use? Should I target Cleveland Entertainers still with feedback of 0? Also is it a good idea to target the word entertainers with three separate pages to three separate cities? I'm planning on making three separate blogs with new content on each. This will not be duplicate content.
Keyword Research | | Jasonalanmagic0 -
Keyword Research Help
Hi all, My website is www.bruadair.com which is a luxury 7 bedroom villa in Barbados primary suited for large groups and weddings , using googles adword keyword tool i have been trying to establish some long tail keywords that i could include in my website. However i am finding it extremely difficult to find any long tail keywords (such as: Luxury 7 bedroom Villa Barbados ) that are receiving any local or global searches, it seems that there are only extremely competitive keywords receiving traffic. Does anyone have any suggestions as to how i can find effective keywords? With this type of website is it really as likely to be able to rank high due to the pure amount of keyword competition? I would really appreciate any help given as i am really struggling with my keyword research 😞 Thank you very much!!
Keyword Research | | Tmgale0 -
Keyword limit??
So is it right we are only allowed 300 keywords across all campaigns? if this is right how are we suppose to work with this? is there a way to make it higher?
Keyword Research | | OasisLandDevelopment0 -
Keyword Ranking
Soooooo, let's just say that I put a lot of keywords into the ranking tracker. Is there an easy way to reduce this list without having to go in word by word and pause or delete them? Like is there a bulk upload type of system? Thanks!
Keyword Research | | PGD20110 -
Keyword Traffic Estimator Tools
Hello, I'm relatively new to SEO and looking to find a good tool for estimating the search traffic volume of different keywords in order to focus efforts on higher yielding terms. Right now I'm using Google's traffic estimator but it doesn't seem to have much data for long-tail keywords. Is anything else out there better or more accurate? Thank you!
Keyword Research | | rawberg0