How to Choose Keywords for Your Small Business Website
"Keywords" sounds like technical jargon, but the idea is simple. A keyword is just the words a customer types into Google when they are looking for what you offer. If you run a bakery, someone might type "birthday cakes near me." If you are a plumber, maybe "water heater repair in Springfield." Choosing the right keywords means figuring out those exact phrases and making sure your website uses them, so the people already searching actually find you. You do not need to be a marketing expert to do this well. You just need to think like your customer.
Start by Thinking Like Your Customer
Forget how you describe your business for a minute and picture the person who needs you. What would they type when they have your problem and reach for their phone? They are not searching for your clever business name. They are searching for what they need, in plain words.
A house cleaner should think beyond "cleaning services." Real people search "house cleaning near me," "move out cleaning," or "weekly maid service." A dog groomer might picture searches like "dog grooming," "puppy first haircut," or "cat nail trim." Write down every phrase you can imagine a customer using. This list is the raw material for everything that follows.
Get Specific and Get Local
Here is the most important tip for a small business. Do not chase broad, generic keywords. A single word like "flowers" or "lawyer" is searched by millions of people all over the world, most of whom will never be your customer, and you are competing against giant companies for it. You will lose that fight and it would not even help you.
Instead, go specific and local. These longer, more precise phrases are gold for a small business.
Add your location
Almost every local business should tie keywords to their area. "Landscaping in [your town]," "[your neighborhood] dentist," "auto repair near [your city]." The people searching this way are close by and ready to hire. That is exactly who you want.
Add the specific service
The more specific the phrase, the more serious the searcher. Someone typing "emergency furnace repair" is much closer to buying than someone typing "heating." Someone searching "gluten free birthday cake" knows exactly what they want. Specific phrases bring fewer visitors, but the right ones.
Think About Buying Intent
Not all searches are equal. Some people are just curious, and some are ready to spend. Try to focus on the phrases that signal someone is close to hiring or buying.
Compare "how does a heat pump work" with "heat pump installation cost." The first is a browser. The second is a buyer comparing options right now. Both can be useful, but if you have to prioritize, build your main pages around the buying-intent phrases and save the curious questions for helpful articles.
Check What People Actually Search
You do not have to guess in the dark. Google itself will help you. Start typing a phrase into the search bar and watch the suggestions that drop down. Those are real things people search. Scroll to the bottom of a results page and look at the "related searches" and the "people also ask" boxes. These reveal the exact words and questions your customers use, in their own language.
Pay attention to how customers phrase things when they call or email you, too. The words they use are the words to put on your site.
Use Your Keywords Naturally
Once you have your list, the goal is to weave those phrases into your website naturally. Your page titles, headings, and the plain text on your pages should reflect the words customers search for. A service page might be titled with the exact service and your town. Your homepage should make clear what you do and where you do it.
One warning. Do not stuff keywords in awkwardly or repeat them over and over. Google is smart, and cramming keywords in makes your site read like nonsense to actual humans. Write for people first, in normal language, and let the keywords fit in where they belong. A page that reads naturally and answers the searcher's question will always do better than one crammed with robotic repetition.
Keep It Simple and Let It Work
You do not need dozens of keywords. Pick a handful of specific, local, buyer-focused phrases that genuinely describe what you offer, and build clear pages around them. That alone puts you ahead of most small businesses, who never think about this at all.
If all of this sounds like one more thing you do not have time for, that is understandable. Catapult can handle it for you. You hand over your domain and tell us about your business and the customers you want to reach, and our in-house design team builds you a site with clear, sensible pages, usually within about 48 hours. It is $79 to launch and $9 a month after that, and the monthly includes unlimited change requests. Want to target a new service or a new town? You just ask and our team makes the change. You never have to touch a builder or puzzle over keywords again.
Choose your words the way your customers do, put them where they belong, and the people already searching for you will finally find their way to your door.