Understanding Local SEO Keyword Research
Definition of Local SEO Keyword Research
Local SEO keyword research is the process of identifying and analysing the search terms people use when looking for products, services, or amenities within a specific geographic area. This research helps businesses uncover what potential local customers are searching for, enabling them to tailor their online content accordingly. It focuses on keywords that attract users actively searching for offerings in their immediate vicinity, thus generating highly targeted traffic with a higher intent to purchase.
Importance for Businesses Targeting Local Customers
Any business that relies on a local customer base can benefit immensely from local SEO. When your business ranks well in local search results, it becomes more visible to potential customers who are nearby and ready to make a purchase. This not only increases foot traffic to physical locations but also boosts brand awareness in the local community. For small businesses, the ability to target local customers ensures that marketing efforts are not wasted on audiences who will never visit their stores or use their services. Moreover, establishing a robust local online presence can enhance long-term growth, facilitate low-cost lead generation, and build a strong brand identity.
Difference Between Implicit and Explicit Local Keywords
When conducting local SEO keyword research, it is crucial to differentiate between implicit and explicit local keywords. An explicit local keyword includes a geographical modifier, such as “car accident lawyer Philadelphia.” Here, the searcher specifies a location within their query, explicitly indicating their local intent.
On the other hand, implicit local keywords do not include a location modifier. For instance, a search for “car accident lawyer” without any geographic term still may have local intent. Search engines often infer the local context based on the user’s IP address or other location data, and deliver results tailored to their geographic vicinity. Understanding and leveraging both types of keywords ensures comprehensive coverage of all potential local search intents, ultimately driving qualified traffic and conversions.
By laying the foundations of effective local SEO keyword research, businesses can better position themselves to capture and convert local search traffic, thereby driving sustained growth and engagement.
Identifying Core Terms and Locations
Brainstorming Industry-Related Keywords
The first step in identifying core terms and locations is brainstorming industry-related keywords. This involves thinking about the specific industry your business operates within and listing keywords connected to what you offer. Begin by considering your main services or products. For example, a pet grooming business might start with keywords like “dog grooming,” “cat grooming,” and “pet care.”
To further refine your list, utilise brainstorming techniques such as mind mapping and brainwriting, where ideas are generated individually before being discussed as a group. This helps diverse perspectives contribute to a comprehensive keyword list. Additionally, look at related searches on Google, which can provide useful ideas.
Listing Products, Services, and Customer Pain Points
Next, create a detailed list of your products and services, ensuring each item is represented by multiple keywords. For example, an auto repair shop might list “oil change,” “brake repair,” and “tire rotation.” Expand this list by considering synonyms and variations; this accounts for different ways customers might search for the same service.
Understanding customer pain points is crucial in this step. Pain points are specific problems your customers face that your business can solve. For an auto repair shop, pain points might include “engine trouble” or “car won’t start.” Targeting these pain points in your keyword strategy not only attracts traffic but also ensures the visitors are likely to convert due to their urgent need for solutions.
Compiling Relevant Location Terms and Modifiers
Once you have your industry-specific and pain point keywords, it’s time to compile relevant location terms and modifiers. Location terms enhance local SEO by specifying the geographical area you are targeting. Start by listing the city, neighbourhood, and even specific landmarks or regions relevant to your business.
For instance, use “best bakery Brooklyn” instead of just “bakery” to capture local search traffic. Incorporating geo-modifiers like city names (e.g., “Chicago,” “Brooklyn”), state names, and zip codes ensures that your business appears in location-specific searches, increasing the likelihood of attracting nearby customers.
By methodically identifying core industry terms, listing products and services alongside customer pain points, and compiling relevant location terms, you lay a solid foundation for your local SEO keyword strategy. This structured approach helps your business connect more effectively with its local audience, paving the way for improved visibility and higher conversion rates.
Expanding Your Keyword List
Expanding your keyword list is a critical step in your local SEO strategy. This phase revolves around stretching the initial set of core terms and location keywords identified earlier, enhancing your ability to capture traffic effectively.
Using Keyword Research Tools
The first tool to consider for this process is utilising AI tools. Begin by entering a relevant term—known as your seed keyword—into the message bar, along with phrases such as “use this seed keyword to find optimal local related terms”. The tool will generate a comprehensive list of related terms. For instance, if your seed keyword is “coffee shop”, the tool will produce variants such as “best coffee shop near me” or “coffee shop in London”.
Applying Filters to Find Local Keywords
Semrush allows you to apply advanced filters to sift through keywords effectively. By selecting the “Advanced filters” option, you can customise your search to show results that include or exclude certain terms. This can be particularly useful in distinguishing implicit from explicit local keywords. For instance, you might include “nearest” and “near me” filters to capture explicit local searches.
Evaluating Search Volume and Keyword Difficulty
Evaluating search volume and keyword difficulty helps determine the practicality of targeting certain keywords. In the Keyword Magic Tool, each term is assigned values in the “Volume” and “KD%” (Keyword Difficulty) columns. Your goal is to find a balance between high search volume and manageable difficulty. For example, a keyword like “best coffee shop near me” with high volume but moderate difficulty might offer significant traffic with attainable ranking potential.
After refining your keyword list using the filters and evaluating the metrics, you should have a diverse set of keywords with strong local relevance and feasible ranking opportunities. This foundation will support the creation of targeted content and informed SEO tactics, preparing you to attract more local traffic and improve conversion rates.
Understanding and enhancing your keyword list in these ways ensures a robust start to a well-rounded local SEO strategy that accurately targets and engages the right audience.
Analysing Competitor Keywords
Identifying Top Local Competitors
Identifying top local competitors is the first step in analysing competitor keywords. Start by using Google to search for local keyword phrases relevant to your business. The top-ranking domains in the search engine results pages (SERP) for keywords like “auto repair near me” are your local SEO competitors. Tools such as “I Search From” can help simulate searches from specific locations if you’re physically not in the targeted area.
Using Tools like Keyword Gap to Find Untapped Opportunities
Keyword Gap tools are essential for uncovering untapped keyword opportunities. By comparing your keywords with those of your competitors, you can identify which keywords they rank for that you do not. Tools like SEMrush’s Keyword Gap allow you to enter your domain alongside competitors, and filter the results to focus on relevant keywords you have yet to capitalise on.
- Steps to Perform Keyword Gap Research on SEMrush:
- Identify Competitors: Add the competitors into the SEMrush Keyword Gap tool.
- Filter Results: Browse different tabs within the tool to filter for high-importance keywords not targeted by your site.
- Evaluate Opportunities: Prioritise keywords that are relevant to your business and have a good chance of ranking.
Filtering for High-Ranking Competitor Keywords with Local Intent
Once you have identified your competitors’ keywords, the next step is to filter these keywords for local intent. High-ranking competitor keywords with strong local intent are invaluable as they already demonstrate a market demand. Use SEMrush or similar tools to view data such as keyword rank, search volume, and difficulty. For instance, a keyword like “best pizza in Bristol” showcases local intent and can attract consumers ready to convert.
- Tools for Competitive Keyword Analysis:
- SEMRush
- Ahrefs’ Content Gap
Each of these tools provides detailed insights into which keywords competitors are successfully ranking for and offer metrics to help you evaluate their potential impact on your own strategy.
By comprehensively analysing competitor keywords, your local SEO efforts can become more targeted and effective. Building a robust keyword strategy based on these insights ensures better search visibility and higher conversions.
Successfully identifying and integrating competitor keywords into your own SEO strategy requires meticulous research and ongoing evaluation. This tactical approach enables businesses to stay competitive and maintain a strong online presence.
Evaluating and Prioritising Keywords
Assessing Local Metrics for Each Keyword
Evaluating the effectiveness of your local SEO keywords requires a keen understanding of metrics that reflect search behaviour in specific geographical locations. Critical factors to assess include search volume, competition level, and cost-per-click (CPC). These local metrics provide insights into how often keywords are searched, the competitiveness of ranking for these keywords, and their potential cost in paid advertising campaigns.
Search volume indicates the popularity of a keyword among local users. Higher search volumes suggest greater interest, implying a higher potential for driving traffic to your website. However, keywords with moderate search volumes but high user intent can also be quite valuable.
Prioritising Low-Hanging Fruit Keywords
Focusing on low-hanging fruit keywords – those with lower competition but significant traffic potential – is a strategic method for quick wins. These keywords may not have the highest search volume but are easier to rank for due to lower competition. Tools like Semrush’s Keyword Magic Tool can help identify these opportunities by highlighting keywords with manageable Personal Keyword Difficulty (PKD) scores.
To target low-hanging fruit keywords:
- Identify Keywords with Medium Search Volume: Keywords with moderate search volume often have less competition and can be quicker to rank for.
- Check Keyword Difficulty Scores: Ensure the keyword difficulty score is within a range that is realistic for your website’s current SEO strength. Aim for a PKD score of 0-49, which denotes feasible competition levels.
- Evaluate Cost-Per-Click (CPC): If you also run paid campaigns, understanding CPC can help optimise your budget.
Considering Search Volume and Personal Keyword Difficulty
Balancing search volume with keyword difficulty is crucial for an effective SEO strategy. High search volume keywords with appropriate PKD scores should be prioritised, especially if they are closely aligned with your business’s core offerings and customer pain points.
- Search Volume: Choose keywords that are frequently searched by your target audience. High search volumes can enhance visibility and drive significant web traffic.
- Personal Keyword Difficulty: Assess how hard it will be to rank for each keyword based on your site’s authority and content relevance compared to competitors. Aim for keywords with lower difficulty scores to improve your chances of ranking well in a shorter time frame.
By carefully evaluating and prioritising local SEO keywords based on these metrics, you can create a more targeted and impactful SEO strategy. This approach will ensure that your efforts are directed towards keywords that offer the best potential for improving local search visibility and attracting qualified traffic.
Transition to the next aspect of local SEO ensures that you cement these foundational strategies, setting the stage for deeper keyword-to-content mapping and further optimisation steps.
Mapping Keywords to Content
Using Keyword Strategy Builder for Automatic Keyword Grouping
The first step in effectively mapping your keywords to content is organising them through keyword clustering. This process involves grouping similar keywords based on search intent. To start, add relevant keywords to the Keyword Strategy Builder from your Organic Research Reports. You can tag and categorise these keywords to form clusters that share the same intent, making it easier to plan content around them.
Creating a Content Plan Based on Keyword Clusters
Once the keywords are organised into clusters, the next step is to formulate a content plan. This plan involves creating or optimising content that targets these clusters. Start by examining your existing content:
- Identify pages that could be optimised to include new keyword clusters.
- Determine if new content pages need to be created for clusters that don’t fit well with existing content.
For each keyword cluster, assign a primary keyword and several secondary keywords, ensuring the content appeals to various search intents. Following the plan keeps your content strategy focused and aligned with user queries, enhancing your chances of ranking for multiple related terms.
Assigning Keywords to Existing or New Pages
Now, it’s time to assign the keywords to your web pages. For effective SEO, it’s crucial to avoid “keyword cannibalisation” by using the same keyword across multiple pages, which can dilute your ranking potential. Instead, map each keyword cluster to a specific page type:
- Existing Pages: Update relevant content to include new keyword clusters, ensuring the primary keyword is prominently featured in the title, headers, and throughout the text.
- New Pages: Create dedicated pages for unique keyword clusters that don’t fit with the existing content. Employ structured data and SEO best practices to optimise these new pages.
Utilising tools like Keyword Clustering can help improve this process by showing relevant metrics and providing clustering suggestions, making the assignment task more efficient.
By mapping keywords to content effectively, you pave the way for your local SEO strategy to drive more traffic and conversions. Proper keyword mapping ensures that your content is optimised to meet the varied search intents of your potential customers.
Optimising for Multiple Locations
Conducting Separate Keyword Research for Each Location
For businesses with multiple locations, local SEO is crucial to ensure each site ranks well within its respective local area. Begin by conducting distinct keyword research for every location using tools like Semrush’s Keyword Magic Tool. Each area’s residents may use different search phrases and have unique needs, so it’s essential to consider these nuances.
Keep the following steps in mind:
- List Location-Specific Keywords: Identify words and phrases relevant to each location’s local market. For example, a bakery in London may target “best bakery in London,” while its New York counterpart might focus on “New York bakery.”
- Evaluate Local Search Metrics: Assess search volume, competition, and keyword difficulty for each location. This ensures you are targeting terms that provide the best opportunity for visibility and conversions.
Creating Location-Specific Pages
Optimising your site’s structure can dramatically improve its local search performance. Each location should have a dedicated page that includes:
- Contact Information: Ensure the name, address, and phone number (NAP) are consistent across all platforms.
- Localised Content: Tailor the page content to reflect the local culture, events, and news relevant to that location. For instance, mention local landmarks or popular events in your content.
- Location-Specific Testimonials and Reviews: Highlight customer reviews from each area to build trust and credibility.
Targeting Unique Local Keywords for Each Area
Finally, it’s vital to target keywords unique to each location. Here are some strategies:
- Use Local Modifiers: Incorporate the location name into your keywords. For example, instead of targeting “best coffee shop,” use “best coffee shop in Birmingham.”
- Explore Local Competitors’ Keywords: Analyse what local competitors are ranking for in each region. Tools like Keyword Gap can help you discover keywords that competitors are using but you are not.
- Include Local Jargon and Phrases: Keywords that reflect local dialect or commonly used terms can enhance relevance and improve local SEO performance.
Each of these elements contributes to a more robust local SEO strategy, making your business more prominent in each local marketplace. This approach ensures that each business location has a tailored strategy, enhancing visibility and driving conversions.
By leveraging these techniques, your business will be well-equipped to capture local search traffic and better serve the needs of your local customers, ultimately driving growth and engagement.
Leveraging Google Business Profile
Incorporating Local Keywords in Business Descriptions
Optimising your Google Business Profile (GBP) begins with incorporating local keywords into your business descriptions. This involves identifying relevant keywords that reflect your services and location, then strategically embedding them into your profile.
Start by crafting a succinct but detailed business description that highlights your key offerings and service areas. Ensure to use natural language that includes your primary local keywords. For instance, if you run a bakery in Manchester, phrases like “Manchester bakery”, “fresh pastries Manchester”, and “artisan bread Manchester” can be useful. Remember, it’s not about keyword stuffing but about creating a coherent narrative that naturally integrates your keywords.
Selecting Appropriate Business Categories
Choosing the right categories for your business is crucial for improving its visibility in local searches. Google limits the categories you can select, and they must closely align with your services. It’s advisable to choose as many accurate categories as apply to your business to cover all possible search queries.
To add or edit categories, access your GBP dashboard and click on “+ Add another category”. As you type, Google will suggest related categories; select the most relevant ones. For example, if you have a primary category like “Bakery”, supplementary options like “Cafe” or “Pastry Shop” could enhance your profile’s reach.
Optimising Google Business Profile (GBP) for Local Search Visibility
Optimisation of your Google Business Profile for better local visibility involves several steps to ensure it ranks well on search engines and attracts local customers. Here are key strategies:
Verify and Update Your Information
Regularly verify and update your business information such as address, phone number, and business hours Google Support. Accurate details help Google and potential customers trust your profile, impacting your ranking positively.
Utilise Photos and Posts
Adding high-quality photos and regular posts can enhance engagement and improve your profile’s visibility. Photos of your products, store interior, and team can give potential customers a better sense of your business. Posts can include updates, offers, or news related to your business.
Engage with Reviews
Customer reviews are critical for local SEO. Encourage satisfied customers to leave positive reviews and respond promptly to them. Addressing negative reviews constructively also builds credibility and demonstrates good customer service.
Integrate Google My Business Features
Take advantage of GBP features like messaging, booking, and FAQ sections. These tools not only provide additional avenues for customer engagement but also signal to Google that your profile is active and user-oriented.
By following these steps, you can turn your Google Business Profile into a powerful tool for driving local traffic and conversions. With an optimised profile, you can stand out in local search results and attract more customers to your physical location.
