Local SEO using an H1

Keep in mind that the strategies differ drastically between the different types of businesses and different types of local SEO.

 

There are retail/storefront-type businesses where you are trying to get people to come to you. There are also service-based businesses where you are going to go to them. The way you manage these and optimize them are drastically different.

There are "local SEO" and "Localized SEO" which are also very different. Local SEO is about your GMB Listing and the Knowledge Graph. You need to get connected to all of that and play the game most people think of when you say "Local SEO".

 

"Localized SEO" - which is where your H1's and Page Titles come in - is optimizing your site for the main SERPs - the "10 Blue Links" set. Typically you do want a page that describes your locations (and has structured data that matches up with your GMB listing) but it doesn't really need to be in the h1 to rank. It'll help - if people use that word in the term.

Keep in mind that a lot of searches are "localized" automatically. Search for "Plumber" and the regular results are going to be filled with plumbers who are near your (best known) location. So... having the word in the title, in that case, won't really help (or hurt) - what gets that showing up is Google understanding your location and/or service area.

 

If people outside your service area put the city name into that search, then sure... having that city name will help. But if those people aren't in the city and have to type the city name - doesn't that mean there's a good chance they are looking for something else besides a plumber that can come to them?

 

Put yourself in the shoes of a person on your site who is considering hiring or coming to you. On the page in question... would it be helpful to them to know what city you're in first and foremost? If so - then yeah... get the city into the title. If there are other more important and relevant things to the purpose of the page - put those things in there.