Long Tail Keyword: Everything You Need to Know

Last Updated on 4 months by Christopher Jan Benitez

Are you struggling to drive targeted traffic to your website?

Are you tired of trying to rank for short-tail keywords with high competition to no avail?

If so, look no further than long tail keywords!

This article discusses a long tail keyword, its benefits, and how to find them using various tools.

This way, you can find search queries that you can optimize for your website to attract highly-targeted traffic from organic search and increase conversions.

What are long-tail keywords?

On a superficial level, we can define long-tail keywords as those composed of at least four words.

For example, “best running shoes for flat feet” would be considered a long tail keyword, while “running shoes” would be a short-tail keyword.

Looking closer at booth keywords, you can also see that long tail keywords are more specific compared to the generic nature of seed keywords.

As a result, long tail keywords have a much clearer search intent.

Going back to the example above, people searching for “best running shoes for flat feet” are looking for running shoes designed for people with flat feet.

This way, they won’t get their soles hurt while running for hours.

Knowing users’ intent for searching these keywords is vital in helping them create the best content possible. That means publishing a page that provides information people want concerning their search query.

Below are the different keyword intents you must be aware of:

keyword intent - how to write a good blog post

“Best running shoes for flat feet” falls under the commercial intent category. From here, you must publish content that lists running shoes for those with flat feet that come highly recommended to customers.

Also, long tail keywords tend to have a relatively low search volume. That means only a handful of users enter them on Google and other search engines.

This makes these keywords less competitive and easier to rank as they are more specific and less likely to be targeted by many websites.

What Are the Benefits of Long Tail Keywords?

Considering all the qualities of long tail keywords listed above, they give you all the more reason to search for them whenever your conduct keyword research.

Below are advantages that make long tail keywords important in your SEO campaign:

  • Less competition – Long tail keywords are less commonly searched due to low demand. While this usually means you shouldn’t target these keywords, it is a low-hanging fruit opportunity for you to rank for them in search engine results.
  • More targeted traffic – They are more specific and detailed, making them more likely to attract your target audience or visitors looking for your website on search results.
  • Higher conversion rates – Visitors who come to your website using long tail keywords are more likely to be further along in the buying process and, therefore, more likely to convert into customers.
  • Better for voice search – Long-tail keywords are more natural for voice search queries, and users are more likely to use long-tail keywords when asking a question.
  • Clear search intent – Long tail keywords are more likely to match the intent of a user’s search query, making them more valuable for SEO as they can drive targeted, relevant traffic to a website.

Long-tail keywords can also help you create more specific and explicit content, improving user experience.

They can help you uncover niche topics not covered by your competitors, allowing you to create unique content and establish yourself as an authority in your niche.

How to Find Long Tail Keywords

To find long tail keyword examples for your website, there’s no better place to start than Google search.

There are three places where you can find long tail keywords when using Google:

Google Autocomplete

From Google’s homepage, enter the seed keyword on the search bar.

Without pressing Enter on your keyword or clicking on the search icon, wait for Google to provide you with suggestions of queries you may be looking for.

google autocomplete for finding low tail keywords

Google is trying to finish your query by predicting what you’re searching for, hence the name “Autocomplete.”

You can also use the Autocomplete feature in conjunction with the wildcard search operator (*).

Use the wildcard in the middle of your search query. What Google will do is replace the wildcard with words and phrases that users have entered.

google wildcard search operator for finding even more long tail keywords using Google autocomplete

People Also Ask

When you search for a keyword in Google, you may find the “People Also Ask” section that shows a list of questions related to your search query.

Four questions appear here. Click on a question, and it shows you the answer and which page it was pulled from. More importantly, it offers two additional questions below the list relevant to the question you clicked on.

Click on a question in the PAA section to show the answer to the question and open more long tail keywords to address.

You can repeat the process above to show more questions that you can use to the list of keywords to optimize.

People Also Search For

If you open a page on SERPs and hit “Back” on your browser, you will see this section below the page you clicked.

google people also search for section in SERPs

The terms you’ll find here are the same queries people have used to visit the page you clicked on.

The Related Search section on SERPs is located at the bottom of the page.

Google related search section for more long tail keyword ideas

They may contain additional long tail keywords you can include in your list.

If anything, you can search for the keywords you’ll find here to find other related keywords and refine your research.

It’s also possible that the queries you’ll find here are similar to those in the Autocomplete and People Also Search For sections.

Again, it depends on the query you entered.

Best Long Tail Keyword Tools

Using the process above, you should be able to unearth hundreds of long tail keyword phrases you can use for your website.

However, going through the same steps one at a time every time you research a topic is time-consuming.

So, to help you automate the process, we’ve compiled a short list of free and paid keyword research tools you can use.

They will help you pull long tail keyword ideas with just a few clicks of a button and at half the same.

Not only that, but they also provide extremely useful data to help you determine which keyword suggestions you should prioritize in your SEO strategy.

Without further ado, here they are:

Long Tail Pro

Long Tail Pro is an old-school keyword research tool that helps users generate long-tail keywords for their online content.

Create a project to enter a seed keyword to help you unearth ideas. You can also search your competitor’s domain URL, and the tool will extract keywords it ranks for. Finally, upload your keyword list to analyze their SEO metrics.

From the results, you can filter the keywords according to Average Keyword Competitiveness. This helps you identify which ones to target first in your campaign.

Nowadays, Long Tail Pro also lets you track your rankings, analyze your backlinks, and audit your website. It’s become a full suite SEO tool for helping you grow and measure your site’s organic traffic.

KWFinder

KWFinder is part of Mangool’s SEO tools and one of the better keyword research tools for identifying keywords to target in your strategy.

First, enter the seed keywords you want to draw ideas from or type in the domain URL of your competitor to see the keywords it’s ranking for.

The results page shows you a comprehensive dataset starting with its Keyword Difficulty.

The tool computes this by identifying the Link Profile Strength (LPS) of the pages ranking for each term.

The lower the average LPS of the ranking pages, the lower the KD, and the easier it is to rank for those terms.

If the term doesn’t show a KD, just click on it to update the score.

The tool also provides a “Questions” tab, which can help you find keywords in the form of questions commonly used in long-tail keywords.

You can also dive deeply into a keyword using MAngool’s SERP Analyzer. Click on “Analyze SERPs” from the KWFinder results.

You will be brought to a page where you can break down each ranking page according to additional SEO metrics, such as Majestic’s Flow Metrics and Moz’s Domain and Page Authority.

Answer the Public

Answer the Public is a keyword research tool that helps users generate long tail keywords for their online content. It can be used to find questions, prepositions, and comparisons people are searching for concerning a specific keyword.

By entering your seed keyword, the tool will generate a list of long tail keywords based on questions, prepositions, and comparisons commonly used in search queries.

You can toggle between Visualization or Data view to help you find the right keywords for your SEO campaign. However, you can only save the keywords as a PNG file in the Visualization view.

You can also view the alphabet soup method that organizes keyword ideas according to alphabetical order.

Search Response

Search Response is a free keyword research tool that lets you scrape specific long tail keywords found on People Also Ask, Related Searches, and People Also Search For sections on Google.

Upon signing up for an account, choose which feature of the tool you wish to use. You can enter your seed keyword, domain URL, or page URL to extract keyword ideas.

In this case, let’s check the PAA feature.

The best part about its results is organizing the search queries according to Popularity.

Search Response computes this metric by counting the times the question appears on SERPs for other search terms.

The higher the question’s Popularity is, the more reason you should answer it on your website.

Regarding the PASF feature, it works similarly to a traditional keyword research tool. It provides keyword suggestions with keyword data like search volume, SERP features, and others.

LowFruits

LowFruits is a relatively new tool that lets you find suggestions based on your seed keyword.

The best thing about this tool is its credit-based subscription.

Most tools above require you to pay a monthly or annual subscription, regardless of whether you burned through your allowed credits. Worse, the credits don’t carry over the following month or cycle.

With LowFruits, you only pay for queries you spend in your account. That also means it retains the same credits you had in the previous cycle to the next.

This is handy, especially if you’re not aggressive with your keyword ideas and only do it occasionally.

The tool possesses most of the features of other tools above. In particular, it is ideal for finding long tail keywords you should target for your brand-new blog.

It helps identify which relevant keywords to target using its “Weak Spots” feature. It analyzes the search results of an individual long tail keyword and determines pages with low SEO metrics.

find long hanging fruit keywords in this tool by clicking "Weak Spots"

If weak websites dominate a keyword’s SERPs, you have the best chance of leapfrogging over them and ranking on top of search engines.

You can also filter keywords according to your desired intent, particularly for finding commercial and transactional content keywords.

Filter keywords on LowFruits according to intent

It helps you identify which search queries have the highest chance of turning visitors into clients, customers, or affiliate sales.

On the other hand, you can filter PAA keywords if you’re looking to increase your topical authority by creating more informational content.

Find lang tail keywords on LowFruits by clicking on the PAA button.

Frequently Asked Questions

What Is Long Tail Keyword in Amazon?

A long tail keyword in Amazon is a more specific keyword phrase that is less commonly searched for but can still drive targeted traffic to a product listing. These types of keywords are typically longer and more specific than short-tail keywords.

How Do I Find Long Tail Keywords on YouTube?

To find long tail keywords on YouTube, you can use the YouTube search bar to enter a broad keyword and then use the suggested search terms that appear as you type. You can also use keyword research tools such as Google Keyword Planner, Ahrefs, or SEMrush to find long tail keywords related to your topic.

Is Long Tail Pro Free?

No, Long Tail Pro is a paid keyword research tool. It offers a free trial, but you must purchase a subscription to access all the features.

Conclusion

Understanding and utilizing long-tail keywords can significantly benefit your website’s search engine optimization and drive more targeted traffic.

By focusing on specific phrases rather than broad, general terms, you can attract a more qualified audience and increase your chances of conversion.

Additionally, by researching and incorporating long-tail keywords into your content, you can outrank your competitors and establish your website as a credible authority in your industry.

Overall, searching for long-tail keywords to add to your SEO strategy is essential to achieving higher search engine rankings and increased online success.

The next step is to cluster the long-tail keywords so you can optimize similar keywords together in a post, maximizing its ability to generate more organic traffic.