Welcome to the first in a short series of posts regarding the most important weapon of your online business, your keywords. Stay tuned for more or sign up for my newsletter and get them delivered to your inbox.

Keywords are not a one size fits all. You have two very different types of keywords – broad and longtail – and they can both help your site achieve authority in the search engine results pages (SERPs).

Broad keywords are very generic in nature. They tend to get more overall searches but it’s harder to rank high for those keywords due to the larger base of competitors. A good example of a broad keyword would be “dog.”

Longtail keywords are more focused and narrow. They have more words attached to them. Because fewer websites are trying to rank for those longer keyword phrases, you have an easier time ranking higher than your competition. A good example of a long tail keyword phrase would be “best dog training guide.”

For the very best results, you’ll want to use both types in your content creation. Sometimes you’ll be forced to use one over another, and sometimes you’ll choose to on purpose.

For example, when registering a domain or a web 2.0 property, you may not be able to find a URL available with a broad keyword. You may be forced to go down your keyword list and find the first available URL, which could be grouped in the longtail category.

In some instances, you’re going to want to shoot to the top of the SERP rankings, so you’ll go after a longtail keyword on purpose, whether it’s for a web 2.0 property or your own domain.

Here’s how many marketers think about the value of longtail keywords: while the longtail versions may get fewer searches individually, if you rank high for a large volume of longtail keyword phrases, you could effectively dominate in a niche where your competitor has only worked on ranking well for a couple of broad keyword phrases.

Consumers tend to type in longtail keyword phrases whenever they’re in a buying mood. Using our previous example, someone who wants to spend money on a dog training guide would go with the longer version.

A person who just types in dog could be looking for a pet, facts about a dog, pictures of dogs, or even using random slang to describe an unsavory cad who mistreats his girlfriend. You just don’t know, so the volume of traffic may not even be from prospective buyers, making their visit virtually worthless.

Tagged with: • • • • • • •