Improve your local SEO by targeting the right keywords. Learn how to identify, optimize, and rank for local search terms that bring traffic and conversions to your business.
Why Local Keywords Are Important
A key part of local SEO is understanding the search terms people use when they want nearby solutions. These local keywords need to be identified and strategically placed across digital assets to signal to both search engines and potential customers that your business is the right answer to local needs.
Unlike general keywords, local terms include—or suggest—a geographic reference. For instance, instead of simply searching for “Thai restaurant,” users might type “Thai restaurant San Francisco” or “Thai restaurant near me.”
The Benefits of Local Keyword Research
When done effectively, local keyword research and implementation can significantly improve a brand’s visibility across multiple platforms, including:
- Google Maps, local packs, and finders
- Organic search results
- Desktop and mobile searches
- Voice search queries
- Social media platforms
- AI-powered search results
This guide will walk you through how to find and apply local keywords for the businesses you market, helping you boost rankings and enhance visibility for local searches.
What Makes a Keyword “Local”?
Many local business owners get confused when they notice Google showing local results even if the search phrase doesn’t contain clear modifiers like “near me” or a city name.
For example, a search for “Thai restaurant” may still display a local pack of nearby restaurants. This happens because Google recognizes that the query carries local intent—the user isn’t searching for the history of Thai cuisine, but rather for a nearby place to eat.
Since Google has access to user location data, it can personalize both organic and local results to highlight businesses closest to the searcher.
However, this can sometimes lead business owners to assume they don’t need to optimize their digital assets for local searches because Google “handles it automatically.” That’s a mistake. The more you optimize for local intent, the stronger the signal you send to both search engines and potential customers that your business is a relevant solution within a specific geography.
When conducting local keyword research, look out for these key types:
- Explicit local keywords: Search terms with direct geographic markers such as city names, neighborhoods, or zip codes. Example: “plumber New York.”
- Implicit local keywords: Terms like “near me,” “nearby,” or “downtown” that depend on Google identifying the user’s location.
- Branded local keywords: Phrases that include a business name plus a local modifier, such as “Osha Thai San Francisco” or “Osha Thai near me.”
- Service + location combinations: Keywords that describe a service along with a location, e.g., “water heater repair San Francisco” or “water heater repair near me.”
- Unmodified high local intent keywords: Generic terms that still trigger local results, even without explicit modifiers, like “pizza delivery,” “Thai restaurant,” or “emergency plumber.”
By focusing on these categories, you can ensure your business is properly optimized to capture valuable local search traffic.
How to Find Local Keywords That Work
Finding the right local keywords is essential for reaching the audience in your community. There are several reliable ways to uncover powerful local keywords, and ideally, you should use these methods together for the best results.
1. Start with the Community
If the business is already running, your community is the best source of keyword ideas:
- Listen to customers: Have staff write down the exact phrases people use when asking questions (e.g., “Do you have gluten-free pizza?” or “Is your store pet-friendly?”).
- Review call logs: Analyze how customers phrase their needs during phone calls.
- Survey locals: Regional language varies—what one city calls a “sub” may be a “hero” or “hoagie” elsewhere. Learn the preferred local terms.
For new businesses, you can still do research by:
- Brainstorming seed keywords with the owner.
- Checking out competitors online.
- Practicing social listening on platforms where the local audience is active.
2. Use Google Autocomplete and “People Also Ask”
- Begin typing seed keywords into Google’s search bar and note the autocomplete suggestions. These reflect real searches by users.
- Explore the People Also Ask feature to see common questions customers are asking. This can help you spot opportunities, like searches for “gluten-free options at Thai restaurants.”
3. Use Keyword Tools
Keyword tools can generate ideas and provide insights, though they may not always show accurate local volumes. Some useful options include:
- Google Keyword Planner
- Semrush
- Moz
- Ubersuggest
- Google Trends (great for seasonal or regional search patterns)
⚠️ Keep in mind: For small towns, tools may not display much data for very specific searches (e.g., “Thai restaurant Mendocino”). A best practice is to research broad terms like “Thai restaurant” or “emergency plumber” first, and then add geographic modifiers (city names, neighborhoods, etc.) when optimizing your content.
Analyze Competitors
Once you’ve created an initial list of keyword phrases, the next step is to research your top local and organic competitors for those terms. Make sure to document the following:
- Keywords in Business Titles
Check how often competitors use keywords in their Google Business Profile names. Google’s algorithm tends to favor businesses whose names closely match search queries.
Unfortunately, this has led some to misuse the system by stuffing keywords into their titles, even though it violates Google’s Guidelines for representing your business. If your business name puts you at a disadvantage, rebranding with a DBA may be worth considering. For example, a descriptive DBA could rank better than a brand with a generic name like “Lemongrass.” - Business Categories
Use tools such as GMBSpy or GMBEverywhere to find the categories listed on competitors’ Google Business Profiles. These categories often reflect important local keywords you should include in your strategy. - Local Pack Justifications
Pay attention to the justifications shown for competitors in local pack results when searching for your target keywords. For instance, one business might display a review mentioning product details, while others show “Seen by shoppers” or “Sold here” notes.
Review our guide on the Current state of Google local justifications to better understand which keywords trigger these snippets and where they come from—such as reviews, Google Merchant Center, GBP services, or menus. - Competitor Landing Pages
Look at the landing pages competitors link to from their profiles. Observe how they incorporate keywords into elements like title tags, body content, image alt text, and other on-page factors. - Keyword Gap Analysis
Use SEO tools to identify keyword gaps. By entering up to three domains and selecting “Organic keywords”, you can compare your keyword profile against competitors. This reveals valuable search terms your rivals rank for but you may be missing.
Explore review sites, local directories, and AI-generated results
Beyond standard keyword research, you can uncover additional search term insights from the following sources:
Reviews: Customer feedback on Google Business Profiles, major review sites such as Yelp, Angi, or TripAdvisor, as well as neighborhood platforms like Nextdoor and industry-specific directories, reveal how people describe and search for local businesses. Google even provides summaries of frequently mentioned topics in reviews. By exploring competitor “Place Topics,” you can identify whether pricing, service quality, or other factors matter most to local audiences, helping you adjust your strategy accordingly.
Attributes: Many directories highlight business features through attributes. These descriptors can become useful keyword additions when refining and optimizing your content.
AI-generated results: In environments like ChatGPT or Google’s AI Overviews, pay attention if your competitors are being cited for important search phrases. Early evidence shows that being referenced as an authority across third-party sources increases the chances of visibility in AI-driven results. For example, if a Thai restaurant needs recognition for “vegan Thai food in San Francisco,” it must be mentioned alongside those terms across multiple trusted publications.
Where and how to use local keywords
On-page optimization
Once your keyword set is finalized, integrate them naturally in:
- Title tags
- Meta descriptions
- Headers (H1, H2, H3, etc.)
- Main content
Avoid repetitive stuffing—focus instead on thorough, natural writing that aligns with how your community searches.
Local landing pages
Depending on the business model, you may create different landing pages, such as:
- Location pages for multi-location businesses
- Department pages for multi-department companies
- Practitioner pages for individual professionals
- City pages for service area businesses covering multiple regions
These pages allow keywords to be included in areas like:
- Contact details
- Directions
- Testimonials
- Alt text for images
- Schema markup
- Video transcripts
- Inventory details
- Service descriptions
- Offers or promotions
Image optimization and technical elements
Images also contribute to search visibility. Enhance them with:
- Descriptive alt text
- Relevant file names
- Schema markup
Finally, smart internal linking signals to both users and Google which pages are most important. When one page connects naturally to another, link them using relevant keywords.
Google Business Profile (GBP) Optimization
When optimizing a Google Business Profile (GBP), it’s important to understand that it works differently from on-page SEO. While there are many listing fields that can influence rankings, GBP optimization is not as straightforward as adding keywords to your website.
We’ve already seen that Google often favors businesses whose names closely match search queries. In some cases, you might even consider registering a DBA (Doing Business As) if your current business name is limiting visibility.
Beyond your business title, think strategically about how keywords in different GBP sections may appear in local results. Be sure to take advantage of:
- Reviews, services, products, and menus – Google often pulls these into local justifications.
- Photos – Provide a visual representation of your core services or products.
- Videos – Offer an engaging way to showcase what you do.
- GBP attributes – Highlight features like “wheelchair accessible,” “outdoor dining,” or “women-owned” that matter to your audience.
- Categories – Choose the ones that best align with your customers’ search intent.
Common Local Keyword Mistakes to Avoid
While keywords are vital, misusing them can harm your credibility. Avoid:
- Keyword stuffing in your GBP business title.
- Creating multiple listings just to target more keywords (unless Google’s rules allow it).
- Overusing keywords in your content, making it sound unnatural or robotic.
- Publishing thin, duplicate content with only minor keyword swaps.
- Focusing only on broad terms like “Thai restaurant near me” instead of longer, specific searches such as “Thai restaurant open late near me that serves breakfast.”
- Relying only on keyword tools without experimenting with what resonates with your unique community.
Beyond Keywords: Building Context and Relevance
Remember, keywords are just one part of local SEO. Google evaluates businesses based on:
- Relevance – How closely your content matches search intent.
- Distance – How near your business is to the searcher.
- Prominence – How often your business is cited, mentioned, or linked to across the web.
While you can’t control a searcher’s location, you can improve the other two factors through:
- Maintaining accurate local listings across directories.
- Collecting and responding to reviews to build trust.
- Being active on social media and local online communities.
- Gaining unstructured citations and backlinks through content, PR features, partnerships, sponsorships, and community events.
Final Takeaway
Keywords still matter, but they’re only the foundation. Your ultimate goal is to be recognized as a local authority in your niche—whether that means serving the best Thai food in town, offering reliable accounting services, or running a top-rated pet grooming salon.
Measuring Results and Making Adjustments
Keyword research isn’t a one-time task — it’s an ongoing process that requires regular tracking and fine-tuning to ensure you’re targeting the right terms that actually boost your local rankings. Changes in how people search, updates to your products or services, or new features introduced by Google and other platforms may all call for revisiting or expanding your keyword list. To stay on track, make use of these practices:
- Track with Google Search Console – Monitor local impressions and queries, and test optimizations to see how they affect performance.
- Review GBP Insights – Watch for declines in calls, direction requests, or website clicks, which may signal your profile isn’t presenting itself as a relevant local option.
- Monitor both local and organic performance – Keep an eye on visibility across different search result types.
- A/B test key elements – Experiment with headlines, descriptions, and CTAs that incorporate local intent.
- Check AI-generated results – Stay aware of how your brand is being surfaced by emerging tools and whether you’re seen as a trustworthy source.
Ready for Local SEO Keyword Research
Local keywords are distinctive because they combine geography with what people are actively seeking — whether that’s services, products, or features. Through consumer surveys, keyword tools, and analysis of current search results, you can identify effective keywords for any local business. These should then be used naturally across digital assets to build relevance without sounding forced or spammy.
Ultimately, local keywords are just one piece of the bigger picture. The true objective of local search marketing is to connect the business you’re promoting with the community it serves, building visibility, trust, and long-term growth.
FAQs: How to Discover and Use Local Keywords for Stronger SEO
Q1. What are local keywords in SEO?
Local keywords are search terms that include a specific location along with the product, service, or business type. For example, “best CA firm in Ahmedabad” or “Italian restaurant near me.” They help businesses target customers searching within a defined area.
Q2. How can I find the best local keywords for my business?
You can discover local keywords by:
- Using tools like Google Keyword Planner, Google Trends, and SEMrush.
- Analyzing customer reviews and competitor websites.
- Checking Google Business Profile (GBP) insights for common search terms.
- Monitoring AI-generated answers and “People Also Ask” sections.
Q3. Where should I use local keywords on my website?
Local keywords should appear naturally in:
- Title tags and meta descriptions
- Page headers (H1, H2, H3)
- Main body content
- Location-specific landing pages
- Image alt text and file names
- Internal links and schema markup
Q4. How often should I update my local keyword strategy?
Local keyword strategies should be reviewed regularly, at least every few months. Track metrics using Google Search Console, GBP Insights, and performance reports to adapt to new trends, seasonal demand, or Google updates.
Q5. Why are local keywords important for SEO?
Local keywords improve visibility in location-based searches, helping businesses connect with nearby customers who are more likely to convert. They also strengthen relevance in Google Maps, local packs, and organic search results.
Q6. Do reviews and directories help with local keyword discovery?
Yes. Customer reviews and local directories often reveal the exact language people use to describe a business. These phrases can inspire keyword ideas and highlight unique selling points to focus on in your SEO strategy.
