Short Tail Keyword Research: 7 Top Tools to Employ

Short tail keyword research entails optimizing a page for a short specific phrase type. This phrase type may be as general as a “finance” keyword or as specific as a “news” keyword.

With the right tools and strategies, you can use short-tail keywords to optimize your content and increase organic traffic to your website. So, what does a short tail keyword mean?

What Is a Short-Tail Keyword?

A short-tail keyword is a phrase or term that consists of one to three words. It is used in search engine optimization (SEO) to help target specific topics and content on websites. Short-tail keywords are often more general than long-tail ones, which can contain four or more words.

However, since they are so broad, they may need to be more effective at driving targeted traffic to your website. For example, using the short-tail keyword “dresses” could bring up results about any dress.

Examples of dresses it could bring up are prom dresses, wedding dresses, casual dresses, etc.

Why are Short Tail Keywords Important?

Short tail keywords are an essential part of any SEO strategy. People use the most commonly used words and phrases when searching for information online. Short tail keywords are typically one or two long words, such as “SEO” or “golf clubs.”

Marketers use short-tail keywords to drive many people (traffic) to their landing pages because it generates many searches. However, conversion rates are likely to be minimal. It may also be challenging to rank highly in SERPs using short-tail keywords unless you’re one of the market leaders.

Short tail keyword research: 7 Top Tools for Your Research

Finding short-tail keywords is an essential part of any SEO strategy. Short-tail keywords are typically one or two words that describe the topic you’re writing about. They are often used in search engine queries and can help your content rank higher in search results.

Enter all feasible search terms linked to your site’s products and services into these keyword tools below;

1. Google’s Ads Planner

You can get keyword suggestions and ranking opportunities with Google’s Ads Planner. You may check how a site is doing for specific terms and spy on competitors to learn about keyword opportunities.

2. Google Search Console

Google Search Console reveals how users find your site and how well it is optimized for particular search queries. You can see which pages are popular and adjust your keyword strategy and page optimization accordingly.

3. People Also Ask Section

Google’s People Also Ask section can give insight into the questions people might have and the terms they use in their searches.

4. Google’s Autocomplete feature

Use Google’s Autocomplete feature to learn more about people’s intent behind their searches. To achieve this, type the name of your service or product into the Google search bar, give a space, and examine the results.

5. AnswerThePublic

To better serve the public, AnswerThePublic has developed a keyword tool called “search clouds” that graphically displays search queries and the autocomplete function. They are like mind maps, but only for words or phrases.

6. SEMrush

SEMrush is one of the best SEO tools available today for conducting in-depth keyword analysis. The platform discovers high-volume, relevant keywords and provides each competition level. By applying these filters, you can refine your keyword suggestions by relevance, search volume, and difficulty.

These tools allow you to enter a seed keyword and generate related terms and phrases. You can then use these terms to create content that targets specific audiences.

7. Google’s Related Searches

Look at Google’s Related Searches to get ideas for additional short keywords to invest in. Are these related keywords shouting out to prospective buyers?

You can also use online forums and social media platforms to identify popular topics and trends related to your industry. This will give you insight into what people are looking for and what keywords are used to search for related content.

Benefits and Drawbacks of Short Tail Keywords

What kind of visitors you hope to attract should heavily influence your marketing keywords. Keywords with more characters in them receive fewer searches. Long-tail keywords are more effective in terms of conversion rates and other metrics.

There are a few factors that operate for and against the use of short-tail keywords. Short-tail keywords help increase a site’s visibility and traffic. If your site is “new” or your search attempts are new, you will be at the end of a long wait. Here are other pros and cons of short-tail keywords;

1. High Volume

For sheer traffic, a short-tail keyword will always triumph over a long one. The greater the volume of searches for a keyword, the shorter it should be. You might expect a lot of natural visitors if you achieve high rankings for a short-tail keyword.

2. High Competition

It’s understandable that everyone is competing for positions in search results for popular, short-tail keywords; the payoff is substantial. There is a lot of competition for keywords with relatively short tails.

Compared to Pizza Hut, Debonair, Domino’s, rating sites, and local searches, most pizza businesses would rank bottom when consumers search for a pizza. This indicates that unless a company is global, it may be impossible to enter Google’s first page of search results.

3. Non Targeted Audience

There’s the problem of not getting very “tailored” results from your search. You’ll be competing against giants like Samsung, Sony, and Amazon when doing a simple Google search for a DVD. The truth is when someone types “DVD” into a search engine, they can be seeking;

• Rental DVD player
• Film in DVD
• Businesses associated with DVDs
• DVD rental catalog or anything similar.

4. Expensive to Run

Short tail keywords are expensive because of the high competition for them. If you wish to promote popular search queries using short-tail keywords, Google Ads will be costly. The increased demand for them means you’ll have to pay more to appear in relevant online searches.

5. Low Conversion Rate

Most people bother about the low conversion rate short tail keywords produce. Let’s pretend you have a highly searched-for term at your disposal. It’s possible that even with 10,000 searches and 100 clicks, your conversion rate will be just 1-2 buyers. Although those few buyers may be your lifeblood, you may find more success with less competition by using long-tail keywords.

Conclusion

Short tail keyword research is an essential part of any SEO strategy. It helps you find hot topics, target specific audiences, and write SEO-friendly content.

It’s a method of finding low-competition keywords that allow advertisers to compete effectively in Google Ads. Advertisers prioritize high-volume, low-competition keywords to climb the competition ladder.