Enhance your local SEO strategy by targeting the right keywords. Learn how to identify, optimize, and rank for location-based search terms that bring traffic and conversions to your business.
Why Are Local Keywords Important?
A key element of local SEO is understanding the search terms people use when looking for nearby solutions. These local keywords help connect your business with potential customers in your area.
To succeed, local brands need to identify these terms and incorporate them across different digital assets. This signals to both search engines and users that your business is the right choice for specific local needs.
Unlike standard keywords, local keywords reference or imply geography. For example, someone may search for “Thai restaurant San Francisco” or “Thai restaurant near me” instead of simply typing “Thai restaurant.”
Benefits of Local Keyword Research
Applying local keyword insights can significantly boost your brand’s visibility across multiple platforms, including:
- Google Maps, local packs, and local finders
- Organic search results
- Mobile and desktop searches
- Voice search queries
- Social media platforms
- AI-powered results
This guide will help you identify and implement local keywords for your business, setting the foundation for stronger rankings in local search.
What Defines a “Local” Keyword?
Business owners are often puzzled when Google displays local search results even though a query doesn’t contain location modifiers like “near me” or “New York.”
For example, a search for “Thai restaurant” can still generate a local pack of nearby eateries. This happens because Google interprets the query as having strong local intent. In such cases, the user isn’t researching the history of Thai cuisine—they’re most likely searching for a nearby place to dine. Since Google knows a user’s location, it personalizes both local and organic results accordingly.
This kind of personalization can create the false impression that local optimization isn’t necessary. But that’s a mistake. By properly optimizing for local intent, you send clear signals to both search engines and potential customers that your business is relevant within a specific geography.
When conducting local keyword research, keep an eye out for:
- Explicit local keywords: Search terms with geographic markers such as city, neighborhood, or zip code.
- Implicit local keywords: Phrases like “near me” or “downtown” that rely on the search engine’s location awareness.
- Branded local keywords: Queries combining a business name with an explicit or implicit local phrase, e.g., “Osha Thai San Francisco” or “Osha Thai near me.”
- Service + location keywords: Searches combining a service with a place, e.g., “water heater repair San Francisco.”
- Unmodified local-intent keywords: Terms like “Thai restaurant,” “pizza delivery,” or “emergency plumber” that naturally trigger local results.
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How to Discover Local Keywords That Work
There are several reliable ways to uncover effective local keywords. Using these approaches together will give you the most complete picture.
Start With the Community
If the business is already operating, the best keyword ideas often come directly from customer interactions:
- Ask staff to record the exact phrases customers use when requesting help, e.g., “Do you have gluten-free pizza?” or “Is your shop pet-friendly?”
- Review call logs to capture authentic language customers use when inquiring about products or services.
- Conduct surveys or polls to clarify regional wording. For instance, the same type of sandwich might be called a sub, hoagie, grinder, or hero depending on location. Identifying local terminology reveals your audience’s preferred vocabulary.
If the business isn’t open yet, you can still research keywords. Brainstorm with the owner, study nearby competitors online, and monitor conversations on community platforms to understand local search behavior.
Use Google Features for Insights
Type your seed keywords into Google and note the autocomplete suggestions. These phrases reflect searches that are already happening.
Additionally, check the People Also Ask section. This feature highlights common queries related to your topic. For example, search results about gluten-free options at Thai restaurants show you the real questions potential customers are asking.
Using Keyword Tools
There are many free and paid tools available for keyword research, each with unique benefits. Popular options include:
- Google Keyword Planner
- Semrush
- Moz
- Ubersuggest
- Google Trends (helpful for seasonal or regional patterns)
It’s important to remember that most keyword research tools cannot always provide precise local search volumes. If you’re targeting a major metro area like Los Angeles or Seattle, tools may give fairly reliable estimates for keyword popularity and competition. However, when marketing businesses in smaller towns, you may find little to no data for highly specific terms like “Thai restaurant Mendocino” or “emergency plumber Monterey.”
Because of this limitation, a common best practice in local keyword research is to begin with unlocalized phrases. For example, research general terms like “Thai restaurant” or “emergency plumber” without modifiers. Once you have insights, you can add geographic terms later when optimizing your digital assets.
Analyzing Competitors
After creating an initial list of keywords, study how your strongest local and organic competitors are using them. Pay attention to:
- Business titles on Google Business Profiles (GBP): Google tends to rank businesses higher when their titles closely match user search queries. Unfortunately, this sometimes encourages keyword stuffing, which goes against Google’s guidelines.
- Categories on GBP: Tools like GMBSpy or GMBEverywhere can reveal which categories competitors have chosen. These categories are useful for expanding your local keyword list.
- Justifications in local packs: Look closely at the extra snippets of text Google displays alongside local business listings. These justifications come from various sources and can highlight relevant keywords and attributes competitors are ranking for.
Studying Competitor Justifications and Landing Pages
For example, one business may display a review snippet about “layers of gold,” while others show justifications such as “Seen by shoppers” or “Sold here.”
To learn more, review our full tutorial on the current state of Google local justifications. Pay attention to the keywords that activate these justifications and their sources, such as:
- Google Business Profile Reviews
- Google Merchant Center
- Google Business Profile Services
- Google Business Profile Menus
- Additional GBP fields
It’s equally important to examine how competitors incorporate keywords into their landing pages. Look for terms in title tags, body copy, alt text, and other on-page elements.
SEO tools can also reveal keyword gaps between your business and competitors. By comparing domains, you can uncover valuable phrases others are ranking for—or overlooking—that could strengthen your own strategy.
Expanding Research: Reviews, Directories, and AI
Beyond direct competitor analysis, more keyword opportunities can be found through:
- Reviews: Customer feedback on Google, Yelp, Angi, TripAdvisor, Nextdoor, or industry directories is filled with natural phrasing and useful keyword insights. Google even highlights common review topics in its Place Topics feature, which can help you understand customer sentiment around pricing, quality, or service.
- Attributes: Many local directories provide descriptive attributes. These terms can be applied to your keyword list and digital optimization efforts.
- AI-generated results: Tools like ChatGPT or Google’s AI Overviews may cite businesses when responding to local queries. To be mentioned, your brand needs to be recognized across third-party sources as relevant to those keywords. For example, if you want your Thai restaurant associated with “vegan Thai food in San Francisco,” your brand should be cited with those terms in multiple publications.
For deeper insights, read AI, Local Business Reputation, and Finding Your Magic Words to see how proximity and citations influence AI-driven visibility.
Where and How to Apply Local Keywords
On-Page Optimization
Once you’ve selected keywords, include them naturally in:
- Title tags
- Meta descriptions
- Headers (H1, H2, H3, etc.)
- Main body copy
Avoid keyword stuffing. Focus on writing comprehensive, human-friendly content that reflects the language your community uses.
Local Landing Pages
Depending on the business model, create tailored landing pages such as:
- Location pages for multi-location companies
- Department pages for businesses with multiple divisions
- Practitioner pages for businesses with multiple professionals
- City pages for service-area companies covering several regions
Use discovered keywords across landing page elements, including contact info, directions, reviews, schema markup, service details, special offers, and multimedia content.
Image Optimization and Technical SEO
Since images play a key role in search visibility, optimize them with:
- Alt text
- Descriptive filenames
- Schema markup
Also, strengthen internal linking by connecting related pages with keyword-rich anchor text, signaling importance to both users and Google.
Optimizing Google Business Profile (GBP)
While GBP optimization differs from on-page SEO, keywords still matter in GBP fields. Google often ranks businesses higher when names match user queries, which may require a DBA if your current name limits visibility.
Other important GBP elements include:
- Reviews, services, products, and menus (used in local justifications)
- Photos and videos showcasing products or services
- Attributes (e.g., Indigenous-owned, wheelchair-accessible, outdoor dining) that align with customer needs
- Categories that directly reflect the main intent of your target audience
Common Local Keyword Mistakes to Avoid
Using keywords to optimize your online presence is essential for SEO, but going too far can make your business look spammy to customers and low-quality to search engines like Google. Here are mistakes you should avoid:
- Keyword stuffing in GBP titles: Adding unnecessary keywords to your Google Business Profile (GBP) title can backfire.
- Creating multiple GBPs unnecessarily: Only set up more than one listing if Google’s guidelines allow it.
- Overusing keywords in content: If your writing sounds robotic, it won’t build trust or encourage transactions.
- Publishing thin, duplicate pages: Simply swapping out a few words across multiple pages signals poor quality.
- Focusing only on broad keywords: Don’t stop at “Thai restaurant near me.” Long-tail searches like “Thai restaurant open late that serves breakfast all day” often show real community intent.
- Avoiding experimentation: Tools show averages, but your local audience may use unique words or phrases you can tap into.
Going Beyond Keywords: Context and Relevance
Keywords are only one part of the puzzle. Google looks at three main signals when ranking local businesses:
- Relevance – How closely your business content matches search intent.
- Distance – How near your business is to the searcher’s location.
- Prominence – How often your business is cited, reviewed, or linked across the web.
You can’t control distance, but you can influence relevance and prominence by:
- Keeping all business listings accurate and consistent.
- Collecting and responding to reviews to build trust.
- Engaging on social media where your brand is being discussed.
- Earning citations and backlinks from directories, blogs, podcasts, videos, and community involvement.
Ultimately, the goal is to become locally recognized as an authority—whether that’s offering the best Thai food, expert accounting, or trusted pet grooming.
Measuring Results and Making Adjustments
Keyword research isn’t a one-time task. It requires ongoing monitoring to adapt to:
- Changing customer behavior
- New products or services
- Updates to Google and other platforms
Practical ways to measure and adjust include:
- Using Google Search Console to track impressions and queries.
- Checking GBP Insights for drops in calls, directions, or website clicks.
- Monitoring both local pack and organic rankings.
- A/B testing headlines, descriptions, and CTAs for local intent.
- Watching AI outputs to ensure your business is recognized as a relevant source.
Final Thoughts
Local keywords combine location with customer intent. By balancing research, testing, and natural implementation, you can create content that connects with your community, avoids spammy tactics, and positions your business as the go-to local authority.
