The benefits of geo-targeting with keywords

When considering keywords and search engine optimization (SEO), you may want to consider using geo-targeted keywords. These are specific keywords that have a geographical location worked into them. For instance, rather than just using the keyword “Italian restaurants”, one may use the keyword “Italian restaurants in Houston” or “Italian restaurants in Texas.” This can be applied to a wide variety of businesses and advertising campaigns.

That doesn’t mean it is right in every situation, of course. In some cases, a brand may have national appeal and no need for a geographical location. If you’re trying to sell products or services all over the globe, including geographical keywords may actually limit your audience in ways that you don’t want. But on the other side of the coin, geo-targeting can be beneficial for many local businesses.

Drawing local traffic

First and foremost, using geo keywords helps to increase your visibility in the local area and get the traffic you’re actually seeking. Some businesses are serving very specific areas and it doesn’t make sense to draw traffic from other places.

If your website for an Italian restaurant in Houston is getting hits from Michigan or California, for instance, you may feel like it’s a waste because that audience isn’t going to come to your restaurant for dinner. Instead, you want to focus on people in the Houston area who may actually be interested.

Creating an advantage in competition

Another thing to remember is that you are always competing with other businesses with search engine optimization. This is why very general keywords often don’t work. If your website is optimized for a term like “computers,” you are competing against every other computer-related business in the world.

But if you add geographical locations, you cut out some of this competition. Your computer repair shop in Houston doesn’t have to compete with similar businesses in Dallas or New Hampshire. This means that it can sometimes be easier to rank highly for very specific keywords that are longer and include geographical locations. There aren’t as many searches for these keywords, but you rank at the top of the page when they do happen. With more general keywords, there may be far more searches every hour, but you are not going to rank highly in any of them.

Setting up your keyword plan

Geo-targeted keywords are just one thing to consider when you are establishing a plan for search engine optimization and online marketing. Here at Content Customs, we have years of experience helping business owners in your situation and we would love to work with you so that your online efforts are successful. Give us a call today to get started.