Optimizing your web site for local search is a key component in getting your site to appear in the search results within the cities and towns where you conduct the majority of your business.  If order for your site to appear, you need to let the search engines know where your business is located and the area you serve.  There are several ways to do this:

Adding the Geo Meta Tag

Using the geo meta tag in each web page’s source code may help.  Google says it doesn’t use this tag, however, Bing does.

Search for geo tag generators, or go to http://www.geo-tag.de/generator/en.html and type in your business’ address.  Generate the code, copy it, and paste it in the source code with the other meta tags.

Add Your Company’s Location Info to each Web Page

Add your business’ address (city, state, and zip code) in the footer or header on each web page, if possible.

Create a Contact Us Page for each Location

Create a “Contact Us” page for each of your company’s locations and optimize each page for that location.  Place the address in the title tag, H1 tag, url, and within the body’s content on the page.

List the City You Serve within the Text on a Web Page

For example, if you have a heating and air conditioning company in Denver.  You might add the following text (as a H2 or H3 tag) to the bottom of the page’s copy…

Stay Away from Listing Each and Every City and County You Serve

The search engines give weights to keywords.  If you list each city on a web page, the search engines view these as keywords, and your main keywords may end up being diluted.

Instead, Create a Web Page for Each Major Location or City You Serve

For example, if you have a business in Denver, Colorado, you might create a page focused on Arvada, Lakewood, Broomfield, Aurora, etc.  Make sure the content on each of these web pages is unique and not copied and pasted from one page to the next.