Keyword Research Tools for Local Businesses

How you approach keyword discovery and targeting can either start you on the right foot or send you down the wrong path. So, when mapping out your keyword strategy for your local SEO (search engine optimization) efforts, it’s not just about finding popular search terms; it’s about using your experience serving your local community to uncover the specific phrases and questions that potential customers in your area are using to find products or services like yours.

However, what we’ve found after over 15 years of providing professional SEO keyword research services, is that many business owners haven’t thought about the why behind choosing keyword terms and simply tailor their content and website pages for the most popular search terms in their industries.

While this might’ve worked back in the good old days, when search engine results pages (SERPs) were just plain white pages with links that matched the search query, a lot has changed, including the number of businesses competing for visibility on the same keywords.

That’s the reason why keyword research tools provide so many different types of data, to help businesses identify keyword terms that will help them with their entity clustering and outrank competitors in SERPs – especially those highly-coveted searches for local products and services.

Understanding Local SEO and Keyword Research

Local SEO is a specialized branch of search engine optimization that focuses on improving a business’s visibility in local search results. It’s about optimizing your online presence using TF-IDF and other strategies to attract customers who are in your area and are actively trying to find what your business is selling at a convenient location.

These searches often include specific geographic terms like city names, neighbourhoods, or “near me” phrases.

Why Keyword Research Matters for Local Businesses

In the context of local SEO, effective keyword research is crucial for several reasons, two of the main ones being:

1. Customer insights. The process reveals what your potential customers are searching for, helping you tailor your offerings, SEO content writing, and marketing messages.
2. Cost-effective marketing. By focusing on relevant local keywords, you can achieve better results with less effort and budget compared to broader, more competitive terms.

Types of Keywords Relevant to Local Businesses

Here are a few examples of the types of keywords Toronto businesses optimizing for local searches would focus on:

1. Geographic keywords. These combine your service or product with location terms (e.g., “pizza delivery in Milton”).
2. “Near me” keywords. The latest study showed that 63% of searches are conducted on mobile devices, making phrases like “coffee shop near me” or “24-hour pharmacy near me” a must for local SEO.
3. Local landmarks. Terms that include well-known local places or attractions can also be valuable (e.g., “hotel near the CN Tower”).
4. Local vernacular. Using region-specific slang, terms, or nicknames can help you connect with the local audience (e.g., know whether your customer uses the word “sofa” or “couch”).
5. Service-area keywords. These combine your service with the areas you serve (e.g., “plumber serving Mississauga and Brampton” or “SEO agency in Toronto“).
6. Long-tail local keywords. Longer, more specific phrases (e.g., “best vegan restaurant in downtown Ajax”) often have less competition and higher conversion rates.

Finding the right local keywords is the first step in developing a successful local SEO strategy – assuming that you’ve already completed and optimized your Google Business Profile. So let’s take a look at common keyword research tools for businesses and how to use them to optimize for local searches.

Free Keyword Research Tools

While paid tools often offer more comprehensive features, there are several excellent free keyword research tools that local businesses can leverage with other SEO AI tools to improve their SEO efforts:

A. Google Keyword Planner

Google Keyword Planner is a free tool within Google Ads that provides valuable keyword insights, such as:

• Discover new keywords related to your business.
• Get search volume data and trends.
• See how competitive different keywords are.
• Find keyword ideas based on websites similar to yours.

GKP is often where beginner SEOs and business owners begin their keyword research. It’s a nice introduction and helps ease you into the world of keyword research.

B. Google Trends

Google Trends offers insights into search term popularity over various time periods, in different locations and industries, and by platform. You can use this feature to:

• Compare multiple keywords to see which are trending.
• Discover related topics and queries.
• Filter data by geographic location for local insights.

Trends is particularly useful for identifying seasonal trends in your local market and adapting your content strategy accordingly.

C. AnswerThePublic

AnswerThePublic is a visual keyword research tool that generates questions, prepositions, and comparisons related to your seed keywords. With a free account, your three daily searches help you:

• Uncover long-tail keyword opportunities.
• Gain insights into customer questions and concerns.
• Generate content ideas based on common queries.

For local businesses, this tool can help you better understand what potential customers are asking about your products or services in your area.

D. Ubersuggest

Ubersuggest, while offering paid plans, also provides useful free features that allow you to:

• Generate keyword ideas.
• View search volume, SEO difficulty, and CPC.
• See top-ranking pages for each keyword.
• Analyze your competitors’ keywords.

Each of these free tools offers unique features for local keyword research. By combining them, you can develop a basic understanding of your local search landscape without investing in software. Remember to focus on keywords with local intent and reasonable search volumes that align with your business.

Paid Keyword Research Tools with Free Features

While free keyword research tools offer valuable insights, paying for professional keyword research capabilities provides more comprehensive data and advanced analytics. Here’s an overview of some popular keyword research subscriptions that have free basic tools.

A. Ahrefs

With a free version of Ahrefs, you can access the following features:

• Ahrefs Webmaster Tools (AWT). This allows you to monitor your website’s SEO health by scanning for over 100 common SEO issues that could be hurting your rankings. You can:
  1. Perform technical SEO audits
  2. See what keywords your website is ranking for
  3. Check who’s linking to your site and from where
• Keyword Generator. You can find up to 100 keyword ideas related to any topic.
• Backlink Checker. This tool shows you the top 100 backlinks pointing to any website or webpage.
• Website Traffic Checker. See search traffic estimates for any website or webpage.
• SERP Checker. This allows you to analyze the top 10 rankings for any keyword in any country.
• Domain Rating (DR) Checker. You can check the Domain Rating of any website to see the strength of its backlink profile.

With a paid Ahrefs membership, you gain access to a more comprehensive set of features, such as:

• Full access to Site Explorer. This includes detailed backlink analysis, organic search traffic data, and competitor research.
• Complete Keywords Explorer. Extensive keyword research capabilities, including keyword difficulty scores, search volume data, and keyword ideas.
• Content Explorer. This tool helps you find popular content in your niche.
• Rank Tracker. You can monitor your ranking progress on mobile and desktop.
• Site Audit. This provides a more in-depth technical SEO analysis of your website.
• Higher usage limits. Paid plans offer higher limits on reports, exports, and data access compared to the free version.
• Historical data. You can access historical data for backlinks, keywords, and more.
• Alerts. Set up alerts for new backlinks, keyword rankings, and mentions.

Credit: Ahrefs

B. SEMrush

Some of the features you can access with a free membership sign-up include:

• Perform keyword research. You can run 10 keyword searches per day using the Keyword Magic Tool or Keyword Overview, giving you access to 100 keyword results daily.
• Analyze competitors. You can use the Domain Overview report 10 times per day to get top-level SEO data on your website or competitors.
• Track keyword rankings. You can monitor up to 10 target keywords across search engines like Google and Bing.
• Run a website audit. SEMrush allows free users to perform a site audit with a crawling limit of 100 pages.
• Manage one SEO project. You can track keyword rankings, traffic, backlink opportunities, and on-page SEO issues over time for a single project.
• Use the SEO Writing Assistant. This tool helps optimize your content for SEO and readability.
• Audit local listings and manage social media accounts.

You can also sign up for a free trial of their Pro or Guru plans, which provide:

• Higher usage limits. Paid plans offer more searches, reports, and data access compared to the free version.
• Full access to all SEMrush tools and features. This includes comprehensive SEO, PPC, content marketing, and market research tools.
• More extensive keyword research capabilities. Paid plans provide more keyword data and insights.
• Advanced competitor analysis. You can perform more in-depth competitor research and analysis.
• Expanded site audit features. Paid plans allow for more comprehensive technical SEO analysis.
• Access to historical data. You can view historical data for keywords, backlinks, and more.
• Additional project management features. Manage multiple projects simultaneously.

SEMrush is particularly useful for local businesses due to its “Listing Management” tool, which helps you manage your business information across various online directories.

C. Moz Keyword Explorer

With a free Moz account, you can access:

• MozBar Chrome Extension. This free tool allows you to see basic link metrics like Domain Authority and Page Authority for websites as you browse.
• Limited Keyword Explorer. You can perform basic keyword research with some restrictions.
• Limited Link Explorer. You can view top backlinks for websites, but with limitations.
• Free Domain Analysis. Get a basic overview of a domain’s SEO performance.
• My Online Presence. A tool to check your business’s online listings.
• Basic Site Crawl. You can perform a limited technical SEO audit of your website.

If you sign up for a Moz Pro membership, you get access to the following features:

• Full Keyword Explorer. Comprehensive keyword research capabilities, including keyword difficulty scores, search volume data, and more keyword suggestions.
• Complete Link Explorer. In-depth backlink analysis with access to Moz’s extensive link index.
• Rank Tracker. Monitor your keyword rankings over time.
• Page Optimization. Get detailed on-page SEO recommendations for your content.
• Site Crawl. Perform more extensive technical SEO audits with higher page limits.
• Custom Reports. Create and export detailed SEO reports.
• Insights. A feature that provides prioritized SEO tasks and recommendations.
• Campaigns. A dashboard that aggregates data from various Moz tools for easier management, especially useful for agencies handling multiple clients.
• Higher usage limits. Paid plans offer more searches, reports, and data access compared to the free version.
• Premium MozBar features. Including Keyword Difficulty scores and more detailed metrics directly in search results.

Moz offers a “Local Market Analytics” feature in higher-tier plans, which is especially valuable for businesses targeting multiple locations.

There are also paid keyword research tools designed specifically for data collection and deep analysis of local SEO metrics, like Whitespark Local Citation Finder, Yext, and BrightLocal, for SEO super-nerds who want to get granular on keyword research for local SEO.

How to Use Keyword Research Tools For Local SEO for Businesses

As stated above, picking the right local keywords is the difference between getting seen in search results and getting buried on page 19 of a Google search. Here’s a step-by-step guide of general instructions on how to use a keyword research tool for local businesses:

Identifying Seed Keywords

• Start with your core products or services.
• List your location(s) and service areas.
• Brainstorm common customer problems or needs.
• Consider seasonal products, services, promotions, or special events.

For example, if you operate a bakery in North York, seed keywords might include “bakery,” “cakes,” “pastries,” “Yonge and Eglinton,” “North York,” “wedding cakes,” etc.

Analyzing Search Volume and Competition

Use your chosen keyword tool to check search volumes for your seed keywords. Look at the keyword difficulty or competition level, and find a balance between search volume and competition. Don’t ignore lower volume keywords – they can be valuable for local businesses – a keyword with 100 monthly searches and low competition might be more valuable than one with 1000 searches that’s highly sought after.

Focus on Searcher Intent

This is the lynchpin of SEO. Because while Google constantly updates its algorithm to target publishers of content made strictly to rank well in search results, their goal has always been to surface links that answer the searcher’s question. Now, regardless of your thoughts on Alphabet Inc.’s motivations, it’s fair to say their Search product’s tinkerings still haven’t hit their mark.

That said, all we can do is our best, which means writing people-first content that also includes popular and long-tail keywords. Here are some tips to help guide you in creating content that strikes the right balance:

1. Identify informational keywords (e.g., “how to choose a wedding cake”)
2. Find transactional keywords (e.g., “order birthday cake online”)
3. Look for navigational keywords (e.g., “bakeries near me”)
4. Consider local-specific intents (e.g., “Boston cream pie delivery”)

The impact of social media can’t be understated in local SEO. Think about creating all kinds of content that answers a keyword term’s search intent. This includes videos, infographics, podcasts, and blog posts that are closely related to your business and answer questions people in your local community are asking.

Incorporating Location-based Modifiers

When conducting your local keyword research, start broad and then narrow down. Begin with general terms related to your business, then refine with geographic, location-specific modifiers. Combine insights from various tools to get a comprehensive view of your keyword landscape if you’re using free keyword research tools.

Don’t forget to check for seasonal trends using tools like Google Trends to identify seasonal fluctuations in keyword popularity. Also, look at what keywords your local competitors are ranking for to find opportunities, gaps, and differentiators.

It’s also critical to Include natural language phrases that local customers might use when speaking to a voice assistant.

Final Thoughts

Remember, keyword research is an ongoing process. Regularly revisit and refine your keyword strategy to stay ahead of local search trends and changes in customer behaviour. By following these steps and consulting local SEO experts to help you continuously optimize your approach, you’ll be well-positioned to improve your local search visibility and attract more relevant traffic to your business.