Is there an easy way to see how competitive a local search term is?

[jimmyseo]

Is there a quick and easy way to see how competitive local search terms are?  I am looking at helping my clients show up on the local search results.  Some times all I have to do is claim a listing and they move right to the top.  Sometimes I claim a listing and nothing happens so I get links and I get reviews and it takes awhile.  I want to be able to put an accurate price point on the service I am offering.  I have looked at the search volume and it hasn't been the best indicator because some industries are more competitve than others.  Any help or suggestions would be appreciated.

[asfand448]

Hi JimmySEO,

Thank you for reaching out with your question about evaluating the competitiveness of local search terms for your clients. It's great to see your dedication to helping your clients improve their visibility in local search results.

Assessing the competitiveness of local search terms can indeed be challenging, as it varies depending on factors such as industry, location, and the level of competition. While search volume can provide some insights, it's not always the most accurate indicator of competitiveness.

Here are a few strategies you can consider to better understand and evaluate the competitiveness of local search terms:

Google My Business Insights: Utilize the insights provided by Google My Business to gain a better understanding of how your clients' listings are performing. Pay attention to metrics such as views, clicks, and actions taken by users, which can give you an idea of the level of competition in your clients' local market.

Competitor Analysis: Take a closer look at your clients' competitors who are ranking well in local search results. Analyze factors such as their website optimization, content strategy, reviews, and backlink profile to identify areas where your clients can improve.

Local Search Ranking Tools: Consider using local search ranking tools such as Moz Local, SEMrush, or BrightLocal to assess the competition level for specific keywords and locations. These tools can provide valuable insights into keyword difficulty, local search rankings, and competitor analysis.

Review and Reputation Management: Pay attention to your clients' online reviews and reputation, as positive reviews can significantly impact their visibility in local search results. Encourage your clients to actively solicit and manage their reviews to improve their local search rankings.

When it comes to specific keywords like "balloon garlands," it's important to analyze the search volume and competition level in your clients' local market. You can use tools like Google Keyword Planner to get insights into keyword trends and search volume.

Consultation with SEO Experts: If you're unsure about the competitiveness of certain local search terms, consider consulting with SEO experts or agencies who specialize in local search optimization. They can provide valuable insights and recommendations based on their experience and expertise.
Ultimately, accurately pricing your services will depend on factors such as the level of competition in your clients' local market, the complexity of the optimization work required, and the potential impact on their business. By leveraging a combination of the strategies mentioned above, you can better assess the competitiveness of local search terms like "balloon garlands" and provide your clients with informed recommendations.

I hope these suggestions help you better understand and evaluate the competitiveness of local search terms for your clients. If you have any further questions or need additional assistance, feel free to reach out anytime.

[Brown_Miller]

@jimmyseo
To quickly assess the competitiveness of local queries:

• Use keyword research and competitor analysis tools.
• Analyze search results and local listings.
• Actively gather reviews and links, and optimize your website for local search.
• Track and analyze metrics to evaluate the effectiveness of the strategy.

[Zarii4041]

To gauge the competitiveness of a local search term, utilize keyword research tools like Google Keyword Planner or SEMrush. Analyze the search engine results page (SERP) to see the number of ads and local businesses competing for the keyword. Check local business directories and listings to assess the local competition. Use location-specific modifiers in your keyword research to narrow down competition. Additionally, consider analyzing competitors' websites to understand their targeted keywords and rankings.

[gooday2day]

All this time later, Google Keyword Planner remains one of the best options for assessing the competitiveness of a local search term. It provides insights into the average monthly search volume, competition level, and suggested bid for specific keywords. Enter your desired search term and location to see how competitive it is. For example, if you're a local bakery in New York City, you can use Google Keyword Planner to gauge the competition for keywords like "bakery NYC" or "best cupcakes in NYC." Also, you can explore related keywords and their competitiveness to refine your local SEO strategy. Remember to consider factors like search volume and relevance to your business when analyzing competitiveness.

[tom533]

Yes, several tools and methods can help assess the competitiveness of a local search term. One straightforward approach is to conduct a manual search on search engines like Google, using the target search term and observing the number of results returned, as well as the types of websites ranking prominently. Additionally, utilizing keyword research tools such as Google Keyword Planner, SEMrush, or Ahrefs can provide insights into search volume, competition level, and potential difficulty for ranking locally. These tools often offer data on keyword difficulty scores, estimated competition levels, and suggested bid amounts for paid search campaigns. Analyzing local business directories, competitor websites, and social media platforms can also offer valuable insights into the competitiveness of specific search terms within your locality. By combining these methods, businesses can gain a comprehensive understanding of the competitiveness of local search terms and formulate effective strategies for optimizing their online presence.

[vividkreations]

Google Keyword Planner is a free tool provided by Google Ads that helps advertisers and website owners research keywords for their ad campaigns and SEO efforts.

[jhon832745]

Yes, there are several methods you can use to gauge the competitiveness of a local search term:

Google Keyword Planner: Google Keyword Planner is a free tool within Google Ads that allows you to research keywords and see their competition level. While it primarily focuses on paid search, it can still provide insights into the competitiveness of keywords in general.

Google Search: Simply searching for the term on Google and observing the number of search results and the types of businesses or websites ranking can give you an idea of the competition level. Look for the presence of local businesses, directories, and other relevant websites.

Local SEO Tools: There are several SEO tools specifically designed for local SEO that can provide insights into keyword competitiveness. Tools like Moz Local, SEMrush, and BrightLocal offer features to analyze local search terms and competition levels.

Google Maps: Searching for the keyword on Google Maps can show you how many businesses are listed for that term in the local area. Pay attention to the number and quality of the listings, as well as the presence of reviews and ratings.

Google Trends: Google Trends can help you identify the popularity of a search term over time. While it doesn't directly measure competitiveness, a consistently high search volume for a term may indicate higher competition.

Manual Analysis: Manually reviewing the top-ranking websites for the keyword and analyzing factors such as domain authority, content quality, backlink profile, and on-page optimization can give you insights into the level of competition.

By using a combination of these methods, you can get a better understanding of how competitive a local search term is and make informed decisions for your SEO strategy.

[sarahwalsh]

Yes, we would highly recommend using Moz Pro, to see how many backlinks your competitors have, this can give you a good idea, of how much SEO work you need to do.

[WhatsApp_Gold_APK]

Thank you Greetings واتساب الذهبي .

[Gyi]

+1 for mozbar overlay & getlisteg.org

You can also look at your competitors' Google Places and review the "More about this place" section. You should be able to get a good idea of where your competitors are obtaining local citations.

[MiriamEllis]

Hi JimmySEO,

Some good responses here. I also thought I'd throw into the mix SEOverflow's competitive analysis toolkit:

http://www.localsearchtoolkit.com/

I think you might find that very helpful.

Cheers!

Miriam

[MarloSchneider]

Casey's answer pretty much nails it, here are a few specific tricks I use to make the process faster though:

Using the moztoolbar do a SERP overlay on the sites for the search term to easily get a feel for the difficulty of competition based on domainrank.

Do a whitespark report to see how many citations the other sites have compared to your site.

Do getlisted.org search on their sites/your sites to get a basic idea of how involved the other sites on the local search are.

Run on page optimization reports for the terms, local and not, to see if you can gain a relevancy advatnage.

[caseyhen]

Hi Kicksetc - it's not quick and easy, but you can do some comparisons that will be helpful.

Basically, you'd want to build an Excel chart (or Google Spreadsheets / OpenOffice) that mimics the metrics that might go into local rankings. For example, see this post talking about all the potential ranking factors and how they correlate - http://www.seomoz.org/blog/google-places-seo-lessons-learned-from-rank-correlation-data

You could extract out those data points and compare them against each other for different queries to get a sense of how competitive/hard it might be to rank in the top results on a local/maps/places search.

Sorry there's nothing quick and simple. We're working in the long term to expand our KW Difficulty tool to perform analyses on local/places results, but it's going to be a while before we get there.

Best of luck!