SEO can never work in your favor if you do not put in work. Remember that the core objective is to make your brand visible. For that to happen, there are SEO strategies that you cannot afford not to employ. That may include social media marketing, link building, and analysis of the various SEO metrics and so on. The most important of them is keyword research.

Keyword research is what differentiates a site that the audience can easily find and one that cannot. That said, it shows just how important keywords are. It is the keyword you use that direct visitors to your website, making them potential leads and sales. That means that you cannot afford to gamble with the keywords: it is a win or loses situation. You are better off winning. Therefore, you need to rethink your keyword research strategy so that to be sure that you are doing the right thing. The first step towards successful keyword research is avoiding the following mistakes.

1. Ignoring the Long Tail keywords
Did you know that long tail keywords have a higher search volume than the shorter keywords? Furthermore, they tend to get more social shares. If you are slow on keyword research for the long tail keywords, you are missing out on a lot.

You should invest more time evaluating more than the single keyword phrases. For the folks that have no idea of what long tail keywords mean, in simple terms, it is the keywords that consist of three to four words. Why do you need to focus on long tail keywords during keyword research? On top of generating more traffic, they provide context which is something that Google will be more than glad to rank you for, and there will be less competition for the specific keywords.

2. Not choosing keywords with enough search volume
A high search volume is merely the number of people that use particular keywords in their search queries. Ignoring the keywords with a high search volume is ignoring an opportunity to generate more traffic on your website. However, there are two sides to a coin in this case. While the keywords with high search volume might get you the traffic that you are looking for, the chances are there are too many of you are targeting the keywords. It is therefore essential that you incorporate other tools that will help you know the number of competitors that are looking to rank for the keywords before you put them into action.

 3. Not looking at the competitors targeting a specific keyword
When you find that keyword that is doing so well during your keyword research, it is vital that you also go the extra mile to confirm how many of your competitors are targeting the same keyword. If the levels are high, that should tell you that it is not the keyword to use for your SEO.

You should instead use the information to improve on the keyword and create a new keyword that you will not be competing for with anyone. The trick is simple; you will be the only one ranking for that keyword.

4. Not finding out the keywords that your competitors are ranking for
It is an unwritten SEO rule that you should always keep an eye on your competition. That includes even during keyword research. There are keyword research tools that will help you keep track of the keywords your competitor is ranking for.

Monitoring the keywords, your competitors are ranking for will help you identify the wins and opportunities when it comes to keyword use.
 The other mistake that webmasters make in keyword research is by not doing it as often. Note that SEO is a dynamic subject. This goes for all its metrics and keyword research included. The keywords that you were ranking for yesterday may not be the same ones that will make you rank today. The only way to keep up with the changing keyword trends is by being frequent with keyword research.

If you have not been benefiting much from keyword research, then you need to stop making the mistakes above and invest in keyword research tools like https://keyword.com/.