What is long tail SEO?

 If you are looking to optimize your texts for natural referencing, perhaps you have already heard of the long tail?

This concept, widely used on the Internet, deserves particular interest for SEO. But what is the long tail, what is it for and how to use it?

Here's everything you need to know to master the long tail and implement your SEO strategy.

What is the long tail in SEO?

Invented by Chris Anderson in 2004, the long tail principle was first used by e-retailers who sold their many items in small quantities.

Subsequently transposed into the field of natural referencing, the long tail designates the sum of all the rare or rarely typed keywords by Internet users which generate more traffic than the sum of the main keywords.

The long tail brings together keywords that are rarely searched for by Internet users and therefore for which there is little competition. This is particularly due to the precision of the term, for example “blue men’s shirt”.

The graph below allows you to better understand the concept of the long tail in SEO.

On this graph, the red part represents the main keywords. They are few in number but very competitive, because they constitute a large part of the queries formulated by Internet users on search engines.

The blue part of the graph represents the long tail, that is to say all the keywords of less importance. A long tail expression generally contains 3 to 10 words compared to less than 3 words for the most competitive expressions.

The interest of the long tail for natural referencing

Even if the keywords used in the long tail are rarely searched for and used less by Internet users, they should be exploited for several reasons:

• The long tail can generate significant traffic : the addition of long tail expressions sometimes generates more traffic than the main keyword;
• Long expressions have little competition : since the keywords used in the long tail have little competition, it is easier to position yourself on the first page of Google results with a longer expression;
• The conversion rate is higher : long-tail keywords being more precise, they will bring you a higher proportion of qualified visitors, thus allowing you to increase your conversion rate .

The benefit of the long tail for paid SEO

For paid SEO too, it can be advantageous to seek to bid on long-tail keywords. As the competition is lower on these keywords, the return on investment is often more interesting:

• Long-tail keywords are cheaper : on Google Ads, you will be able to obtain lower costs per click on long expressions than on generic keywords, because fewer competitors make the effort to position themselves on them;
• The return on investment is more interesting : traffic is more qualified with long tail keywords. You will generally get a better conversion rate with long queries.

How to use the long tail to improve your SEO?

When launching your site, it may be wise to focus on long expressions containing low-competition keywords. You will in fact have an easier time positioning yourself on these keywords and you will generate more qualified traffic.

One of the simplest techniques for finding long-tail keywords is Google's related search.

Start by typing a generic keyword into the search engine.

Then scroll down to the bottom of the first page of search results to see searches related to your generic keyword.

You then discover long-tail expressions that you can use for your SEO. Obviously, it is advisable to rework the expressions found using semantics for example.

Even if you absolutely want to get qualified traffic to your site, don't spare your efforts on competitive queries. These will bring you stable and massive traffic.

As you will have understood, a good SEO strategy must combine long tail optimization and competitive keyword optimization.

5 good reasons to use long tail keywords

Why fight on a competitive query when in SEO long-tail keywords can bring in much more interesting traffic?

1. Less competition

We're not going to hide it, getting a position 0 or even a top 3 on a competitive query is not easy.

While the most perseverant will try by all means to position themselves on a short keyword, the most pragmatic will opt for optimizing long-tail keywords.

Less targeted than queries with a large number of monthly searches, short keywords are more difficult to place on the first page of Google.

2. Better conversion rate

On average, a long keyword offers a conversion rate 2.5 times higher than a generic keyword. For what ? Quite simply, because people who type a long query know what they are looking for.

Take for example the query “Italian restaurant”. It has over 27,100 monthly searches. The query “Italian restaurant nearby” has 170.

We can easily imagine that a person who types in the query “Italian restaurant nearby” would like to reserve a table. In terms of conversion, it's still better than the query “Italian restaurant” which returns to restaurants, but also to risotto recipes or top restaurants all over France.

The restaurant which has optimized its site on “Italian restaurant + the locality”, will most likely come up on Google when someone from the surrounding area searches for this keyword on the internet. It will also be much more likely to appear in voice search results such as “Alexa, find an Italian restaurant in Clamart”. People looking for this plan to book in an Italian restaurant. The conversion rate for this keyword is therefore much higher.

Another example with the query “risotto recipe”: it also has more than 27,100 searches. The first page of Google is occupied by sites with thousands of pages.

On the other hand, the query “original risotto” only has 170 monthly searches, but the first page is certainly occupied by important sites, but also by outsiders who have understood the benefit of optimizing a long-tail keyword .

3. The long tail helps the SEO of other pages

If you still want to position yourself on a competitive keyword, the presence of pages optimized for the long tail can help you bring “juice” to your page optimized for a short keyword. This is mainly thanks to the links.

It's a bit like the principle of the semantic cocoon , we start with a generic query, and we expand to subjects linked to the same theme, always deviating a little further from the main query.

The more pages you create that contain links to the main page (parent page or pillar page), the more weight it will carry in the eyes of Google. In other words, content written to seek to position content on long-tail keywords lends credibility to all of your content on the same theme.

4. The long tail is suitable for voice search

Long keywords are more likely to be spoken during a voice search.

Another example “English tractor” is a search that leads exclusively to online translators who teach you that “tractor” is called “tractor”.

While the search “what are the brands of English tractors” brings up lists of manufacturers, sales rankings of English tractors or even a spare parts site for English tractors.

Once again, we notice that the long tail keyword responds better to an interested audience than a general query.

5. The long tail is appreciated by search engines

Finally, long-tail keywords clearly answer Internet users' questions. And that is an important criterion in the eyes of Google.

A person who types a long query is more likely to come across content that interests them than a person who types a short keyword. It is therefore much more likely that he will stay on the site for a while.

A good sign for Google which does not appreciate flash visits and high bounce rates . Your site therefore has a greater chance of being perceived as relevant by search engines, thanks to the precision of the information you publish.

In addition, it is a good way to position your content in position zero. When you write an article that answers a question from an Internet user, your content has a good chance of being positioned directly on the results page in the form of a site excerpt. Your site then appears as a reference on the question.

Long tail SEO: why integrate it into your strategy?

The long tail SEO allows for more targeted positioning on search engines. The principle is to reference pages based on components with a length of 3 words or more. The number of combinations available is much greater, and the competition is much less fierce, which makes it easier to position yourself in the best places. Long tail SEO also allows you to separate yourself from your biggest competitors so you don't get crushed by finding certain niches.

A way to generate traffic in a simple and inexpensive way that can make the difference in developing your visibility in a medium or long term strategy. Here is what long tail SEO can do for your website and the development of stable and sustainable traffic.

How to work on long tail SEO?

To work effectively on long tail SEO, it is above all necessary to choose your long tails carefully. Indeed, just as with keywords, it is this combination of words that will allow you to differentiate yourself in the eyes of search engines to provide a more precise response following a query. In practice, long tail SEO is mainly worked in the text and content writing as SEO based on 1 or two keywords. However, it is necessary to ensure that the combination of several keywords is present numerous times, which can prove more difficult due to the length of the tail that must be inserted.

The long tail is also worked in the same content with other similar long tails which make it possible to generate a very positive synergy for the quality and quantity of traffic acquisition. A study must therefore be used beforehand to enable the correct insertion of the different terms into your content.

Why is the long tail less competitive?

By increasing the number of words that make up the long tail, we exponentially increase the number of combinations available for working on a long tail SEO. The longer it is, the more likely it is that the competition will be weak and the more it is possible to stand out from the competition to position yourself easily. Contrary to popular belief, only 18% of traffic is represented by the first 10,000 keywords.

The long tail represents nearly 70% of total traffic, which leaves many more opportunities to deploy a new source of traffic. A long tail is therefore less competitive due to the number of possible combinations, but also due to the increasing difficulty of SEO optimization without having to distort the content. Each combination must be worked on to cover the widest possible area and thus further increase the chances of generating traffic.

Should we only work on the long tail?

The long tail is an excellent way to acquire traffic in a stable and lasting way. In addition, pages optimized on the basis of a long tail SEO are much more likely to result in a conversion, which constitutes a real asset. However, despite its effectiveness, it is recommended to set up other traffic acquisition channels, diversity always being the best solution to sustain a website's traffic.

Long-tail SEO work generally complements more general content which will be targeted to a very specific keyword. By combining the different types of acquisition and creating a tree structure on the website, all the pages will create a synergy effect which will be positive for each of them, which will generate more traffic.

Can we make shorter articles to work on long-tail SEO?

In certain cases, and as competition can sometimes be very low, it is possible to produce shorter content. Especially on a long SEO long tail which ensures good visibility when tapped. To ensure the quantity of content and the level of optimization that you need to integrate on your site, it is essential to carry out an upstream study of the competition.

Low competition allows you to produce shorter content while the presence of long, optimized content will force your hand to do the same by pushing the optimization level to its maximum. However, it will be more common in the case of long tail SEO to encounter weak competition and the number of word combinations is much greater.

Long tail SEO

The long tail is ideal for positioning your content precisely. It is particularly effective for strengthening your SEO around a specific keyword, for example. By multiplying positioning on long SEO tails, you maximize your chances of generating traffic, and you strengthen other content that uses similar keywords. Before embarking on creating content optimized for a long tail in particular, it is important to carry out a study on them in order to identify those which generate the most potential traffic.

Word combinations that do not produce meaning or are never queried generate little interest, because there is a good chance that the content will generate little or no return. The long tail is particularly effective when it is used to answer multiple questions, but also to create a deep semantic cocoon to allow all of your visitors to find answers to their questions. This strategy, however, requires a lot more work due to the quantity of content to be produced, which is why it may be wise to outsource this part unless you have a team of qualified writers.

Our tip for creating long-tail content

Writing content to position articles on long-tail keywords can be tedious. It is indeed necessary to write very specific content, even if it is possible to write shorter articles than for competitive keywords.