Discovering Long-Tail Keywords: 9 Effective Methods to Identify Long-Tail Phrases

This adorable long-tailed tit can teach us a lot! (Via BinaryApe) We’ve been emphasizing the importance of long-tail keywords for quite some time now. Recently, I discussed why new websites struggle to rank for highly competitive keyword phrases. The solution? Persistence and targeting more specific, less competitive long-tail keywords in the meantime. We’ve also addressed whether to focus on head terms or long-tail keywords in my Content Marketing FAQ. The answer? Both! As you develop your site content, your keyword strategy should naturally encompass both broad and narrow terms.

By now, regardless of your business size, type, or age, you understand that long-tail keywords are crucial for your SEO content strategy. These keywords can serve as the title and main topic for a focused blog post, article, video, infographic, or any other content format. You can also use them as variations to optimize longer guides or articles targeting a primary keyword, incorporating them into subheadings and image file names. Super-specific long-tail keywords are especially valuable for niche marketing campaigns.

So, where do you find these traffic- and lead-generating long-tail keywords? Here are nine tips to get you started.

1. Leverage Google Suggest

Google Suggestions are a fantastic resource for discovering long-tail keyword variations. Simply start typing your primary keyword into the Google search bar and observe the variations Google proposes:

If a phrase appears as a Google suggestion, you can be sure people are searching for it. While these suggestions may not always inspire confidence in humanity (the “I am extremely terrified of Chinese people” incident comes to mind…), they can spark excellent content ideas.

Similar to Google Suggestions, related searches appear at the bottom of the search engine results page (SERP), below the first page of organic results:

This section may provide more suggestions (in this example, eight keywords compared to the previous four) with a slightly more personalized touch (Google recognizes I’m in Colorado, hence the “Denver” and “Fort Collins” modifiers).

3. Utilize a Variety of Keyword Research Tools

Relying on a single keyword tool limits your results and likely causes you to miss out on numerous long-tail keyword variations. While Google Keyword Tool is a great starting point, consider these alternatives for unearthing more long-tail keywords:

nexus-security’s Free Keyword Tool – We might be biased, but our keyword tool consistently uncovers more long-tail suggestions and keyword niches than most other tools.
Google Trends – This tool reveals what people are searching for in real-time (for example, “Who will win the 2024 election?”).
Social Media Tools – Examples include YouTube’s keyword tool and Twitter Search.

Consulting multiple keyword tools increases your chances of finding diverse long-tail keyword variations.

4. Analyze Your Analytics Data

Your analytics data reveals a significant portion, if not all, of the keyword phrases leading visitors to your website. Examining these keyword referrers helps identify long-tail queries already driving traffic. These keywords might be relevant to your business but not specifically targeted by a single page on your site. For instance, we noticed many visitors arriving at our site after searching for “what’s a good click-through rate.” We created a page with that title, and it now generates substantial traffic.

To access your own long-tail keyword goldmine, navigate to your analytics platform and locate your organic keyword referrals. In Google Analytics, follow this path: Traffic Sources -> Sources -> Search -> Organic. Scan the terms for relevant long-tail keywords to incorporate into your content. Alternatively, analyze a larger timeframe (3, 6, or 12 months, depending on your traffic) to identify patterns. For example, search for question keywords (terms beginning with “what,” “why,” etc.).

5. Scrutinize Your Search Query Reports

If you’re running a PPC campaign in AdWords, leverage your Search Query Report like you would your analytics data. This report unveils the search queries prompting clicks on your ads, offering valuable insights to inform your SEO strategy. You gain more comprehensive access to this data compared to organic referrers in Google Analytics, making it easier to identify keywords driving conversions, not just traffic. Prioritize targeting high-converting long-tail keywords.

6. Explore eHow

Websites like eHow heavily rely on keyword research, particularly long-tail keyword research. Demand Media, the company behind eHow, Cracked.com, and others, utilizes powerful algorithms to identify and rank for long-tail keywords with highly targeted content.

While you may not have access to Demand Media’s resources, you can still learn from their approach. Explore these websites for keyword ideas. If eHow targets a specific keyword phrase, it likely indicates search volume and advertiser interest. Moreover, their content, often cheaply produced by freelancers, tends to be superficial and lacking in depth - the type of content Google now disfavors. Creating high-quality, valuable, and hyper-targeted content gives you a significant advantage in outranking these content farms.

7. Explore Q&A Sites

Like Demand Media properties, Q&A sites are valuable resources for long-tail keyword ideas. Consider exploring sites like:

Quora (Here are some tips for using Quora to generate content ideas.)
Yahoo Answers
Answers.com
Askville by Amazon
LinkedIn Answers

Questions naturally lend themselves to long-tail keywords, clearly indicating user intent for information.

However, always conduct keyword research to determine the search volume and competition level for each question. Not all questions found on Q&A sites are worthwhile targets.

8. Navigate Wikipedia

Wikipedia is arguably one of the most optimized websites online. Emulating its on-page optimization techniques can be highly beneficial. When researching a base term, examine the corresponding Wikipedia page. For example, consider the table of contents on the “Quantum Mechanics” page:

Many of these headings directly translate into long-tail keywords, such as “history of quantum mechanics,” “mathematical formulations of quantum mechanics,” and “applications of quantum mechanics.” Additionally, perform a page search (Control-F) for your primary keyword to identify variations within the text. The “See Also” section at the bottom of many Wikipedia articles can also help you discover clusters of related terms.

9. Learn From Competitors

For informational queries, Wikipedia is often a competitor. However, always analyze your competition when targeting a specific keyword. Begin with the head and mid-tail terms you aim to rank for, and observe the keyword variations employed by pages ranking in the top 5-10 positions. For instance, if you’re targeting “holiday crafts,” analyze the top-ranking page for that keyword and identify its keyword usage (keywords are everywhere!):

Have you uncovered other effective methods for finding long-tail keywords? We’d love to hear about them in the comments!