Heads, Tails, and Long Tail Keywords

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Del curso dictado por University of California, Davis

Search Engine Optimization Fundamentals

1040 calificaciones

University of California, Davis

Search Engine Optimization Fundamentals

1040 calificaciones

Curso 2 de 6 en SpecializationSearch Engine Optimization (SEO)

Gain an understanding of search engine algorithms and how they affect organic search results and websites. Building on this knowledge, you’ll learn the key elements for creating an effective SEO strategy, including how to select keywords and perform keyword research; consumer psychology and search behavior; and how to conduct on-page SEO analysis to identify opportunities to improve a website’s search optimization.

De la lección

Keyword Theory & Research

Welcome to week 4! In this module, we are going to discover a variety of strategies for developing keywords for your site. This critical step is what helps direct your ideal buyer to the content that meets his or her needs. In the lessons that follow, we’ll learn about keyword theory and how understanding the common behaviors of web searchers can help you hone your list of keywords. We’ll also see how you can use a variety of SEO tools to conduct an audience and use this data to develop personas of your ideal buyer. Once you’ve completed this module, you should be able to craft a list of optimal keywords that will help get your site recognized.

Keyword Theory & Research Introduction0:55

Choosing the Right Keywords4:45

Stages of Search7:36

Heads, Tails, and Long Tail Keywords5:51

The Science of How Users Conduct Searches5:05

Getting to Know Your Audience6:01

Creating Your Ideal Buyers Persona6:00

Conoce a los instructores

Rebekah May
SEO Manager & Lead SEO Instructor, Lead Qual
UC Davis Division of Continuing and Professional Education

Welcome back.

We know by now that all keywords aren't created equally.

Some keywords will help you build authority for

your site by getting the right kind of attention.

In this lesson,

we'll explain the difference between the more general head terms and the more

specific tail terms that can be used when identifying keywords for your sites.

We'll see why even the long tail keywords account for

a lower volume of overall searches.

They're extremely beneficial to driving the right traffic to your site.

There are many different aspects that go into choosing the right keyword to target.

Another part of the keyword selection process involves choosing keywords

that best match buyer intent, have low competition, and

generate more traffic to your site.

Let's discuss what SEOs call long tail keywords.

Long tail keywords are important to use in your keyword strategy.

Long tail keywords are used less frequently

because they are more difficult to optimize for.

You can't always predict the exact long tail phrase a customer might use.

However, the majority of your traffic

will naturally come from these longer tail phrases.

These phrases are often more specific.

Because of their specificity, they have a higher probability of conversion

due to being later in the stages of the buying funnel and search cycle.

In addition, because these keywords are so specific they are a lot less competitive,

making it easier for you to rank highly and attract more traffic.

For example, ranking for the keyword laptops might seem like a great idea,

but popular search terms like this actually make

up less than 30% of the overall searches performed online.

The remaining 70% of queries are what are known as long tail keywords,

or keywords that are longer and more specific.

This chart from Maas does a great job of

showing how many searches come from long tail keywords.

Your website's own traffic will closely follow this chart.

You can view this chart on their website at the link provided in your study

materials.

Let's go over some examples of keywords and their length.

The keywords textbooks or

even textbook rentals are considered head terms because they are not long tail,

are very competitive, have a lot of search volume, and are more broad.

As we get more specific and do search queries such as online textbook rentals,

that becomes more mid to long tail.

However, you can get even more specific

with a phrase such as rent college textbooks online.

These long tail keywords are easier to guess and optimize around.

Then there are the really long tail transactional queries,

where users know what they want, such as the exact book name.

This will have a very low search volume but is worth it if you rank for

these, because the traffic will find exactly what they want on your site and

be very likely to convert.

For example, let's take a look at search volume for the keywords we just discussed.

We can see that textbooks has a very high number of monthly searches.

It's easy for clients to get distracted by this and demand to rank number one for

textbooks or even textbook rentals.

But if your main focus is online textbooks rather than

operating a physical store front, this may not be the best choice for you.

You could get even more targeted by choosing more appropriate keywords.

In this scenario,

the customer is still in the information gathering phase of their purchase.

The keyword online textbook rentals has lower volume, but is more specific.

The user is now at the stage where they have a better idea

of what they are looking for.

The same goes for online college textbook rental.

This is even more specific.

Now, you may be looking at the keyword online college textbook rental and

thinking, wow, there's a big difference in search volume between

online textbook rentals and online college textbook rental.

But when you think about it,

you're able to target four very targeted keywords with this one long tail phrase.

You can target textbook rentals, online textbook rentals,

college textbook rentals, and the full phrase online college textbook rental.

By keeping this full phrase in mind and writing content for

these pages, you are slowly building authority for the topic textbooks,

which can eventually help your site rank higher for more competitive phrases.

It’s also important to remember that this volume is for the exact phrase above.

There are a number of different ways this can be worded in search results,

resulting in a variety of long tailed keyword traffic

that can result from this particular key phrase.

You should now be able to define head terms and tail terms, and

make appropriate recommendations regarding the right types of keywords to target.

You should have a clear understanding of the importance of long tail keywords and

where these keywords are within the buying cycle.

That completes the video portion of this lesson.

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