Besides long and short tail descriptors,
keywords may also be classified according to whether they target category seekers, the company’s product (brand) seekers,
or the competitor’s product seekers.
Category keywords are generic, short tail keywords, relating to almost any
product or service in the category. For example, Shampoo, Soap, Body Wash, Feel Fresh etc.
Brand keywords are the phrases that are tightly bound to a brand. Taking Dove
body wash as an example, these would include “one-quarter moisturising cream”, “real beauty”, “self-esteem”, “Dove body wash”
etc.
Competitor keywords target a competitor’s keywords. This can
be an effective strategy especially for a small player if the target competitor is a much stronger
player. If the brand Dove wants to target Johnsons body wash, it may target a Johnsons keyword such
as “for all you love”.
When pursuing competitor keywords, one needs to be mindful of legal implications especially when targeting
trademarks such as brand names, as this is illegal in several countries.
