Does name of town in title tag help if queries don't include the town name?

[Morris77]

Hi. Wanted to know if targeting local traffic online and the search volume of KWs in the area do not include the local names (according to KW planner) does it still help to keep the town names in the title tag? does google deliver local results based on location names in title tag if query didn't mention it?

[Patrick_G]

Hello Gebby,

You can put it in the title tags. If I ran a local business, I'd use it on a few title tags, but not my entire site.

I'd encourage you to think of how many different ways  you can really highlight on your website that you are a local company, both for your visitor and therefore Google. It's not really about how many times you add it to a title tag.

If you're going after local traffic, you should make sure your address ideally is part of every page, (like in the footer) or somewhere. That can also include things like a directions to our store page. Use local reference information in your copy as well. Be sure to fill out local directories as well, especially Google+ Local store page (I can't recall the new name for this). Ideally if you partner with other businesses in town, have a page of recommended partners, and get your partners to do the same for you. You want to send Google as many signals that you are part of that local community. Collectively those efforts will help you show up well in local search results.

An SEO that specializes in local results will hopefully chime in with more specifics.

[RangeMarketing]

I've pondered that same question and have never found research data that really supports it one way or another. I usually add the location in title tags for the highest authority pages. Our philosophy is that it does help for geo specific queries, which we believe is important, and doesn't necessarily hurt the ability to rank in a location when someone uses a non-geo specific query.

One thing you may have noticed is that the results are not identical for a geo specific term vs searching a term with a geo location set (or Google recognizing your location). You'll often see more national results and directory pages show up for the latter (ie. wikipedia, yelp, etc.) This is why it may appear to be harder to rank for non-geo specific terms, when in reality, Google is showing more national results.

Of course, as Patrick hinted, there are a lot of other local ranking factors that you should focus on. On thing I'll add to that list is to use schema.org HTML markup tags to the location on your website.

Hope this steers you in the right direction!

[TheeDigital]

Short answer: yes. When you append the location to the title tag (along with other key areas to make the page more focused in an area,) then you are telling the search engines that your target is in that city. When searching without the city name, as long as they are in the area, they will likely see wikipedia, some news, and some other big sites but you will also see some local results mixed in, sites specific to that area. If set your location to another city in another state and search, you will not see the same ones that are local to your market, but ones that are specific to the city you're searching from.

[DonnaDuncan]

**Does it help to include a town name in your title tag when KW planner shows no evidence that anyone is searching for it?  **

I agree with Patrick_G and RangeMarketing that yes it does. The KW planner tool doesn't necessarily give you comprehensive results. Rand Fishkin published a post in February 2012 that showed evidence that Google chooses to hide some of it's keyword information unless you specifically ask for it. If your goal is to rank organically for a keyword + town then yes, you should use your town name in the title tag on your most important pages.

Does Google deliver local results based on location names in title tag if the query didn't mention it?

Google looks for and delivers local (vs organic) results when the search query maps to a local business category for which it has results. If you include a town name in your title tag it will help boost your local search result ranking, but you have to be an indexed local business to begin with and it sounds like you're just talking about organic listings.

[Morris77]

Thanks Patrick! Some key tips that i will most definitely keep in mind. Thanks.

[Morris77]

Thanks Donna. Very insightful.

If i understand correctly, if the nature of my business has kws which do not map to a local business category (which means i can only hope to rank organically) then placing location in title tag will not help to rank for non geo queries.

correct?

[DonnaDuncan]

"if my business is using keywords that do not map to a local business category, then placing location in the title tag will not help me rank for non geo queries."

I always like to repeat the question to make sure I've understood what you're asking.

Your statement is true. Adding location data to your title tag might hinder your rankings for non-geo searches because you'll be wasting valuable pixels on characters the searcher cares nothing about and Google will consider irrelevant.

[Morris77]

Ok, thank you.