How to go after the
long tail of keywords
(and why it matters!)
Paola Didonè | Ayima Ltd
@latenitebird
Post migration
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What are long tail keywords anyway?
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Number of words in query
Search
volume
Number of words in query
Search
volume
“Red dress” 74,000 SV
Number of words in query
Search
volume
“Red dress” 74,000 SV
“Long red dress” 5,400 SV
Number of words in query
Search
volume
“Red dress” 74,000 SV
“Long red dress” 5,400 SV
“Cotton red dress” 260 SV
“Long tail kw are low search
volume, specific keywords typically
including at least 3 words”
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Long Tail
Of 9 billion searches,
92% get 10 searches or
fewer...
Ahrefs US Database
Number of words in query
Search
volume
Head term
Mid-tail
“Targeting long tail keywords
can improve conversion because
of the more specific intent”
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Where to target
long tail keywords?
There are 234 words in this
product description.
Product pages?
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Category & product traffic split
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Refocus this effort into facet
pages to target LT keywords
Product pages?
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The page is answering all
variations of People Also Ask
questions:
Category pages?
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These are all queries that
have around 50-60 SV
Category pages
- FAQ section
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Facet pages?
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Facet pages
- FAQ section
● Copy length: 53 words
● Long tail keywords:
○ 6x5 plastic garden shed -
80 SV
○ 6x5 shed plastic - 40 SV
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Rule #1: Check your
internal resources
Rule #2: Check what is ranking for
the keywords you want to target
Are there dedicated pages for the keyword?
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Rule #3: How low is the lowest
search volume you should go after?
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As usual, it depends: check the market size
Head term
search volume
Long-tail kw
search volume
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As usual, it depends: check the market size
Head term
search volume
Long-tail kw
search volume
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How to research
them at scale
Always start by researching
the main head term
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Example: 6x5 plastic shed
● You can check this manually
and choose lower search
volume keywords
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Use APIs to work at scale: SEMrush
● When using the API, filter
results by:
○ Low search volume
○ Number of keyword
variations you want
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Questions: Answerthepublic
● When using the API, filter
results by:
○ Low search volume
○ Number of keyword
variations you want
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Check competing pages
Who’s ranking for the main term?
● If different type of pages are
ranking on page 1 of SERP,
choose a transactional page
and an informational page
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Check what they are ranking for: Ahrefs
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Check what they are ranking for: Ahrefs
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Check what they are ranking for: Ahrefs
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Avoiding
cannibalisation
1. Keyword mapping
Use this template:
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Use this template:
Current ranking
URL & its position
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Use this template:
Current ranking URL
& its position
Traffic the current ranking
URL is getting (if any)
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Use this template:
Current ranking URL
& its position
Traffic the current ranking
URL is getting (if any)
Based on your internal
resources and
competitor research
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Example
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Regularly update your keyword
mapping with changes
implemented and traffic
obtained
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2. Cannibalisation dashboard
Ayima ART Report
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Ayima ART Report
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Use this data studio
template:
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Successful example
We implemented SEO
copywriting with long tail
keywords on more than
1500 pages
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Traffic post-implementation
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Traffic post-implementation
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Tracking of keyword ranking post-implementation
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Tracking of URLs post-implementation
Number of clicks
increased by 19%
What to remember
1. No need to always build additional pages
2. Research at scale and check competitors
3. Build a keyword mapping document and
update it
4. Build a keyword cannibalisation tracker
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Thank you

How to go after the long tail keywords (and why it matters!)