Traffic from small keywords or big keywords

[rob3786]

Do you get your real money depositing players from "small keywords" e.g. high roller online slots jackpots or "large keywords" e.g. slots guide

This would be interesting to see as a poll

[JamieF]

Hi Rob

Interesting question, it will depend on what you keywords you are focusing on your site and what people search for.

I think another interesting question would be what obscure keywords visitors have used and landed on your site.

[Simmo!]

Just as an aside, what you refer to as "small keywords" is known in SEO circles as the "long tail". A typical site structure might look like this, where each page hangs off a page targeting a higher traffic yet relevant term

slots
online slots | free slots
microgaming online slots | rtg online slots | playtech online slots
etc etc

Unless the site is established, most people aim at bulding many pages using long tail terms in a logical structure, and the bulk of traffic may well come from the pages in the tail. The larger the long tail gets, assuming it remains relevant to the principle term of the page/section it dangles from, the more likely the term(s) above will rise in the rankings, so eventually over time, and somewhat contrary to life experience, the "tail" starts to feed the "head"!

[EP Relations]

There have been some good suggestions above. Many of the long tail key words will convert better than the shorter, more general ones. For example, although "online casinos" is the very popular term, I'd much rather have someone arrive at my site having searched, "how to deposit at Casino Tropez" because the likelihood that this person will convert is much higher.
In addition to brainstorming and targeting some of these long tail key words, you should also take a look at what keywords people are already using to get to your site and target those. Building pages to specifically target those keywords is also a great idea for SEO.

[LiveCasinoPartners]

I agree with EPDirector, because the difference is the intention of the user. The one that types in "deposit with visa on a UK casino" has the intention of depositing now, while someone who types in "best casinos" might be window shopping.

Also, there's no way for me to know directly which keywords convert due to the fact that there's no conversion tracking associated with the keywords. the only way I know is based on the type of traffic overall, and the the overall performace of the programs.

[masontech]

Most of mine come from long tail searches and I think this will be true for all but the top sites as ranking well for generic terms in our industry is very, very hard.

[rob3786]

I think this is a very important section for newbies to take a look at as often they think they will not make any money unless they rank position 1 for keywords such as online casinos and casino guide. Listen to what other affiliates have said here the long tail will bring in depositing players and more content you have, unique content that is, the more real players you have the chance of converting.

I found this interesting as I thought you guys would say you brought in most from the short tail.

[Simmo!]

If you can get a decent ranking on the "short tail" then undoubtedly you'd bring in more players, but the mere definition of the term means there's only a few sites that can get to that position.

The trade off is that while quantity will improve, the quality of player will probably be lower, but if you can get there it's going to be easier to increase revenues IMO.

Your main problem with the short tail is not just getting there, but staying there. The competition is a lot more fierce and you will become dependent on one or two terms for your revenue. One algo change, one major marketing kick from a competitor or a small mistake could see you shift down, and even a couple of places could be the diference between a business and a hobby site. A risky business but as everyone knows, risk = reward. The long tail spreads the risk far more evenly and provides a better foundation for a succesful business, albeit with a slower build-up.

The key to the long tail is finding terms that are still searched, quite specific to "real" players and not overly crowded. Wouldn't mind betting everyone thinks "Thunderstruck slot" which is short tail, low volume searches but a good converter, yet quite crowded as it's arguably the best known slot. You really need to think slightly outside the box and find better terms. This is where it really is a BIG advantage to be a player and know what's what.

[EP Relations]

I agree with Simmo. Obviously the most desireable keywords will bring in more players, but there is the practicality of what is easier to rank for and there was the initial question of what actually converts better. I still think that for a new site that is not already dominating various keywords, that its good business practice to go after keywords that are both easier to rank for, and more likely to convert.
An added bonus of ranking for multiple long tail phrases that are all on the same topic of the desireable short tail key words is that it will make it much easier to begin to rank for both.