Team Creatives

 

February 12, 2010 - 2010: Using Long Tail in Paid Search

Long tail is a type of statistical distribution where a high-frequency population is followed by a low-frequency population which gradually tails off. In keyword research, it is the expansion of a core, generic, high volume keyword phrase to include numerous combinations and permutations o the keywords and relevant phrases. Long tail is said to be very useful for SEO and internet businesses. Users search on the internet through phrases. If websites will take advantage of this, they may get significant traffic. They can do this by adapting long-tail keyword research.

Conversion will go higher through a well-studied long-tail keyword research because people who are making long-tail searches are arguably further along in the buying cycle. With this at hand, long-tail has become the most effective method or trend in internet marketing, especially in paid search or Pay Per Click (PPC).

Why long-tail keyword research is essential and will play well? Because...

• 56 percent of buyers who search use queries of three or more words, while only 7 percent use one word or an acronym
• 20-25% of all Google search queries are unique
• What Google describes as long tail advertisers make up half their revenue
• Searchers are using longer queries

So what are the advantages of using long-tail in paid search?

• Long-tail keywords, en masse, can provide significant search volume (high impressions)
• Long-tail keywords have less competition than generic keywords (lower cost per click (CPC), higher click-through rate (CTR))
• Long-tail keywords are more specific than generic keywords, so ads can be better tailored to match the searcher’s needs (higher CTR, higher Quality Score, less wastage from irrelevant searches)
• People making long-tail searches are often further along in the buying cycle and more willing to buy than people making generic searches (higher conversion rate)
• These lower CPCs, higher CTRs and higher conversion rates mean long-tail keywords can be extremely profitable (lower cost per acquisition (CPA))

Search volume (impressions)- searches of 5 words or more accounted for 21% of all impressions. While long-tail keywords may be individually insignificant, a PPC campaign with thousands of long-tails can be a serious source of additional traffic.

Click-Through Rate (CTR)- Long-tail keywords have less competition, so there is a higher chance someone will click your ad, and also, they are more specific in their requirements, so you can write a more targeted and relevant ad to encourage the searcher to click.

Cost Per Click (CPC) and Average Position- long-tail keywords are cheaper than generic keywords. CPCs do fall very slightly as word length increases from 3 to 12 words, but I would hardly call that significant.

Conversion Rate- long-tail is more likely to convert because people who make longer, more specific searches have already done their research and know exactly what they want. They are further along in the buying cycle so are more likely to open their wallet.

Cost Per Acquisition (CPA)- Conversions from long-tail searches seem to be cheaper than conversions from generic, short-tail searches.