The keywords you choose to track decide whether your SEO efforts bring you paying customers or just curious clickers. Pick the wrong ones and you can rank number one and still get no enquiries.

Here's how to choose keywords that actually matter for a local Australian business.

Start with what your customers type

Not what you call your service — what they type into Google. A plumber doesn't search for "residential hydraulic services". They search for "plumber near me" or "blocked drain repair Melbourne".

Write down the words your customers actually use when they call or email you. Those are your starting keywords.

Add your location

For local businesses, "keyword + suburb" or "keyword + city" is where the money is. "Plumber Melbourne" is more competitive, but "plumber South Yarra" or "emergency plumber Carlton" is easier to rank for and brings in people who are actually nearby.

Think about intent

There are three types of search intent:

Track a mix of all three, but weight your effort toward commercial and transactional.

Don't forget "near me"

"Near me" searches have exploded. Track "your service + near me" as a keyword — even if you're not in the same room as the searcher, Google uses their location, and you want to show up if they're close.

Steal (politely) from competitors

Type your competitor's URL into a keyword research tool and see what they rank for. If it's working for them, it's worth tracking for yourself.

Start small, then expand

Don't track 200 keywords on day one. Start with 10-20 of the most important ones, get a baseline, then add more. Rank Track's Starter plan covers 25 keywords — plenty to begin with.

Watch what happens

Choosing keywords isn't a one-time job. After a month of tracking, you'll see which ones move, which ones are stuck, and which ones bring in business. Double down on what works, drop what doesn't.

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