How to find the right long tail keywords to focus a blog article on

12 September 2012

For individuals not fully abreast of the keyword situation online, a long-tail keyword can be a confusing term. In other genres, like science and mathematics, “long tail” refers to centralized distribution or a probability distribution. In search engine optimization (SEO), however, a long-tail keyword is a phrase which contains three to five (normally) words that are searched by a number of Internet users as they seek information.

Example: If a phrase like “losing weight without exercise” is a popular search term, this phrase ultimately becomes a great long-tail keyword. Since these phrases are much more specific, they’re overwhelmingly preferred by online businesspeople and search engines. Of course, these keywords constantly advance and change, especially in the genre of blogs. So if you’re searching for the best long-tail keywords to use with a blog article, you’re going to need some guidance.

Tips on Finding the Best Long-Tail Keywords and Phrases

1: Always Stay Current with Your Research

This seems like a fairly general, even generic tip, doesn’t it? Well, it is – but, then again, it isn’t. It all depends on where you’re researching. “Research” is something that’s been pounded into your head since primary school, but for long-tail keywords, you have to keep current. In the niche of your blog and your planned article, search for popular words and terms being used on locations like Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, and especially other blogs. Set Google alerts for suspected and spotted trends so you can jump on them before they fizzle out. Stay as current as you possibly can when checking for terms.

2: Stay Current with Your Content

It’s web business 101 to consistently post new content, but what this means is that the new content you post needs to be a current affair. It’s easy to find long-tail keywords that have already started to taper off. What you’re hoping to find are words on the upswing so that you can stay relevant while they’re pushing to trend, while they’re trending, and on their downslide. Always check the “news” section of your Internet browsers for different content and keyword ideas. The more current your content, the better your odds of riding a trending term from the start.

3: Brainstorm with Different Tools

A keyword-finding tool is essential to your success in online marketing, but you cannot settle for using only one tool. The idea here is to try multiple tools, from the more popular freeware tools to the lesser known bots out there. You want to brainstorm by trying different keyword combinations. When you spot terms three words or longer, focus on the competition, the number of people searching them, and learn to spot trends. Try Google’s tool, obviously, but also tools like Keyword Enchanter, Keywords Analyzer, WordTracker, WordStream, and other tools out on the market.

The important thing to remember with your blog article keywords is that they not only need to be relevant in the start, but they need to stay relevant. Just because your blog post falls to the back pages of your site doesn’t mean that the keywords won’t matter as long as they’re being searched.