Keywords are a significant part of SEO or search engine optimization, and selecting the best keywords to target is important for the success of a business or website. To get search engine robots to precisely detect the subject matter of your site, you need to target relevant keywords by placing them into different elements of the website such as content, descriptions and headings etc.
Targeting the best keywords serves two important roles, SEO and content marketing. If you are unsure of which keywords to target, an SEO agency Manchester can help. Short tail keywords and long tail keywords are the two main types of keywords. However, it is important to know which of these two to target. Long tail keywords are search specific while short tail keywords are more general. Here are the main differences between the two:
Short Tail Keywords Explained
Short tail keywords are often suited to offering general information. They are also called head terms at times. Typing terms like “SEO”, “marketing”, or “laptops” makes it difficult for search engines to identify the specific search intent. These terms are quite generic. Without serving an appropriate knowledge category, these short tail keywords bring great search volumes. Because of the vague generality of the search, search engines can’t figure out and fulfill every search intent. Most importantly, a few of these search results from short tail keywords are pretty irrelevant, that can lead to lower conversions. Content creation requires you to use keywords throughout to make search engines categorize and recognize what you are communicating.
Long Tail Keywords Explained
Long tail keywords are pretty more specific. These are long phrases that target users at different phases of the search. Long tail keywords are more descriptive phrases and they use longer phrases with more specificity. These keywords meet the intent of the user by appealing to relevance, therefore, enhancing the conversions.
As compared to short tail keywords, such as “laptops”, using long tail keywords leads to fewer search results and better relevance to addressing the search intent. These long tail keywords don’t essentially contain the “head” keyword, and don’t need to be of a certain length. With that being said, the majority of the long tail keywords are from 3 to 7 words in length.
Conclusion – Which Keywords to Target?
To conclude this entire debate into a simple table, you can see that the long tail keywords are a far better choice for some specific reasons. At the end of the day, all you need to do is what best suits your needs and your business. Yes, you need to save money and have a significant presence in the online market. So, long tail keywords must be targeted.
In addition, you should remember that the point of having an online business is not to get people to click on your website and walk away unsatisfied with the results their search engine gives them; the idea is that they spend some amount of money!
