Targeted Consumers Determine Keyword Selections

For close to 100 years, telephone books provided advertising options to local businesses that wanted to attract new customers. Local merchants used phone books to list their services and advertise their products to consumers. Since the 1990’s searches for local service providers have been available at the click of a mouse. Companies that once relied on telephone directories have replaced their local marketing strategy with online services. Printed directories have become obsolete as search engines provide instantaneous listings of businesses and service providers that appear on the screen of a computer or a smart phone.

Internet searches generate business for companies that operate in a local market when keywords are used to promote the business. Small businesses that employ a local marketing strategy have shifted their advertising away from the once popular telephone directories. Search engines that can be accessed with any Internet ready mobile device allow consumers to look for local businesses without flipping through the pages of a printed directory. Statistics reported by the search engines present the fact that 84% of all searches conducted online lead web surfers to local businesses. This means that people who use the search engines are mostly looking for retailers and service providers within their neighborhood.

As more people access the internet from mobile devices, the need for small business owners to incorporate online marketing into their advertising budget is becoming ever more important. A local marketing strategy that includes website optimization, search marketing and social media provides the tools for any small business owner to reach their target audience. Website optimization is the first step to attracting new business. Before launching a new website developers can add Meta tags to the source code that offer basic site optimization to small business owners.

Coded Meta tags offer page descriptions, keyword enhancement and landing page titles that differentiate a website from competitor’s businesses. When choosing keywords, be sure to target the people who look for specific products or services online. Creative and talented marketing professionals understand the importance of keyword selection. Before creating marketing campaigns, the experts define the characteristics of an ideal consumer and choose keywords that will draw the attention of someone who is ready to make an online purchase.

Website optimization and marketing campaigns that target local consumers are not randomly chosen. Before planning any campaign, a marketing strategist takes into account the people who are being influenced by the search engines. The defined characteristics of an ideal buyer provide the outline for selecting appropriate keywords that drive sales. Once the keywords have been aligned to the target consumer, a web developer can include the keywords in the optimization of a website. The coded Meta tags that appear inside the source code allow search engine directories to link information from articles and blogs to the keywords that are aimed at attracting local consumers.

When designating keywords for a website, be sure to spend time researching your ideal audience so that you can gear your optimization efforts specifically toward the people who use search engines to find local places of business. With the help of a marketing expert you can build a solid foundation of optimization that uses keywords to increase your business by focusing on the individuals who search the Internet for your products or services.