Using local geography in your online key phrases can be an extremely effective tactic when your business wants to rank for competitive keywords. By exploring local search, small business owners and marketers can benefit from both direct lead generation and general brand awareness.
Recent research by the Kelsey Group reported that 70% of Americans consult the web before making local buying decisions, while 36% of search engine queries now request local results. We use geographically-rich terms for many of our clients. Vision Computer Solutions would have a tough time ranking for “computer repair” but ranks on Google page one for “Michigan computer repair”.
Daniel at Wordtracker wrote a great article covering more on the long tail of local search.