Question

How do you optimise for "near me"?  

Answer 1

Dominate the map pack with a strong GMB listing and link it to your Google Ads account and create location extensions. Forget targeting "near me" keywords or optimising the landing page for near me terms, I've tried it for multiple clients in the past and its never bore fruit and negatively impacts the user experience.  

Answer 2

I use zip codes but would love to hear other ideas

Answer 3

Radius targeting with bid modifiers

Answer 4

Depends on your client and their industry. Doesn't make sense to target 'near me' outside your clients target location area. We have a couple of national ecomm clients crushing on those terms at the moment with the UK lockdown.  

Answer 5

Near me is very unreliable becouse the internet providers change location due to theire position of servers.  

Comments

@balata484 not in the US. User position is based on GPS location of the device, if mobile. Desktop could be different, but I've never run across an IP address that wasn't reporting the right geo.  

Answer 6

Run super cheap local ads that send local people to search query (near me "keyword") with modified gmb link, so that your business shows instead of the competition

Answer 7

Set GMB location, setting campaign target - people in location. Location adjustments

Answer 8

You can use it in specifc locations and use the location in thr ad, but it sounds ridiculous to use near me in an ad or landing page since it would be near you.  

Comments

@greggs I saw a barber shop doing this with their landing page once. Cracked me up

Answer 9

For the targeted locations use zip codes. And then build a perimeter of excluded zip codes around the targeted zip codes. In location options select “people in my targeted location” and exclude “people in my excluded locations” I definitely use “____ near me” as a keyword. Also “cost of _____” and “_______ reviews or ______ companies near me” also perform well. Cheers

Answer 10

If you're trying to do more than using location extensions, the best way would be to use a feed, with an ad customizer. So, if is in x zip code, you'll show the city/town/neighborhood name. Whatever you do, if you have "near me" in your keywords, do NOT use DKI in that ad group. Your ad reads wrong, and that gives a poor impression of the business.  

Answer 11

Are you asking how to optimize your QS? I feel like all the answers above are general location settings you should use regardless.  

Comments

@dallman it's more about how to appear for "near me" in search and ads.  

Answer 12

Strong GMB listing and link it to your Google Ads account with create location extensions. & Bid higher on your keywords in a radio of a few miles around your actual address location.  

Answer 13

5km (short driving / few bus stop distance), +20% bid.  

Comments

@proctology how to execute this? Can you pls elaborate on this?  

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@wetzell use geo targeting with bid adjustments.  

Answer 14

Assuming you are referring to local businesses, you’ll want to set your targeting to ONLY the area you want to target people, for example maybe 20 mile radius. Then make sure to select only people living in that area. One common theme I see from inexperienced marketers is they use large city names or just things like “near me”/“nearby”. This is a good start, but usually those are the preliminary searches people do before making a decision. For example, “Thai food near me” will most likely lead to someone looking for restaurants close by. However, what I’ve done is setup multiple campaigns with targeting based on radius so I can say “Thai food in [enter neighborhood name]” or “Thai restaurant just five minutes away. ” Then if you go past 5 miles, adjust the creative to “within 15 minutes” etc

Answer 15

Don’t. Respect social distancing.  

Answer 16

Map citations