Local Keyword Research For Small Business Owners
Local keyword research is an essential part of SEO and website building. It helps you identify the exact terms and phrases used by potential customers in your local area, enabling you to develop content that matches their needs and interests.
Knowing how to effectively utilize local keyword research is a powerful tool for driving organic traffic to your website, and it can help you create content that resonates with your local audience. In this blog post, we’ll discuss the importance of local keyword research, reveal common mistakes and misconceptions, and give you tips on how to find the right keywords to increase your website’s visibility and effectiveness.
Understanding the Importance of Local Keyword Research for SEO and Website Building
Local keyword research is a fundamental aspect of SEO and website building that should not be overlooked. Understanding local keyword research, allows you to effectively optimize your website to attract new customers.
One of the key benefits of local keyword research is the ability to identify the exact terms and phrases used by potential customers in your local area. Many business owners are surprised to learn that information on the exact keywords customers use on Google exists, as this is not widely known.
Location Specific and "Near Me" Searches
When people search for a local product or service online, they often include their city or “near me” to find the businesses closest to them. As a small business owner, optimizing your website for these local keywords can help you rank higher in search results and attract more customers.
With this knowledge, you can tailor your website content around these keywords increasing the likelihood of attracting organic traffic to your website.
How To Do Local Keyword Research
1. Define Your Local Service Area
To conduct effective local keyword research, the first step is to define the target area. This could be a city, county, or specific neighborhood. Using a city as the target area is recommended as most people include city names in their search queries. States are often included in keywords as well, but competing at a statewide level can be challenging, so focusing on city-based keywords is the best approach.
2. Use Keyword Tools to Identify Exact Queries
One mistake that many business owners make is assuming which keywords their customers are using. This approach often involves using industry jargon or official-sounding terms, rather than the words and phrases that potential customers are actually typing into search engines. To build a successful website that appears in search results, it’s crucial to utilize a keyword tool to find the exact terms being used.
The best keyword tools incorporate keyword difficulty and search volume features. It is preferable to use tools that permit you to refine search volume based on location.
3. Evaluate Keyword Difficulty
Another common mistake business owners make when doing local keyword research is choosing high-volume keywords. They mistakenly believe if the volume is high enough, they may get some clicks, even if they don’t rank high. However, these high volume keywords are often dominated by large corporations with bigger marketing budgets. Instead, it’s better to find keywords with manageable search volume and lower competition. This helps small businesses generate organic traffic and leads quicker.
Keyword Difficulty Tip - Long-Tailed Keywords
These specific phrases indicate a stronger intent to convert and are therefore more valuable to target. Additionally, long-tailed keywords tend to have lower search volumes, making them easier to rank for compared to more commonly searched terms.
4. Choose One Target Keyword
Once you’ve found a few keywords in your area with suitable search volume and low difficulty, choose one target keyword to focus on. Avoid the mistake of trying to incorporate multiple target keywords on a single page to increase traffic, as this dilutes the significance of each one. Instead, build your website around one specific target keyword to maximize its relevance and impact.
What To Do With Your Target Keyword
Once you have identified your target keyword, it should be integrated into your website to optimize search engine visibility. For existing websites, this will involve updating existing content to reflect the new keyword, and for new websites, the target keyword can be integrated into new content creation from the outset.
Using your target keyword with On-page SEO will be crucial in ensuring your website performs well on search engine results pages. This can include optimizing website headings, incorporating the keyword into image alt text, and ensuring your keyword density is appropriate for your word count (ideally, over 1,000 words). By conducting local keyword research and effectively implementing a target keyword throughout your website, you can ensure your small business is positioned to effectively reach and engage with potential customers.