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Published On: January 13, 2023
Author: Kelly Oliver

SEO for City Websites: Tips and Tricks

Our expert tips cover keyword research, content optimization, mobile-friendliness, and the use of social media and local SEO techniques.

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As the owner of a city website, it’s important to make sure that your site is optimized for search engines. SEO, or search engine optimization, refers to the practice of improving the ranking and visibility of your website in search engine results pages (SERPs). By following the best practices in SEO for city websites, you can help potential visitors find your site more easily, which can lead to increased traffic and ultimately, more engagement with your community.

Here are a few key considerations for optimizing SEO for city websites on search engines:

  1. Research and select targeted keywords: Keywords are the terms that people use when searching for information online. By researching and selecting targeted keywords that are relevant to your city and the content on your website, you can improve your chances of ranking highly in search results for those terms. To identify potential keywords, consider using a keyword research tool such as Google’s Keyword Planner or Ahrefs.
  2. Optimize your site’s content: Once you’ve identified your targeted keywords, make sure to include them in your site’s content, such as in the page titles, headings, and body text. However, be careful not to stuff your content with too many keywords, as this can be seen as spammy by search engines and can actually hurt your ranking. Instead, aim for a keyword density of around 1-2%.
  3. Use descriptive and accurate page titles and headings: The titles and headings on your website’s pages are important for both search engines and users. They should accurately describe the content on the page and include your targeted keywords. For example, instead of a page title like “Home,” you could use a title like “Welcome to XYZ City – Your Guide to Local Events and Attractions.”
  4. Utilize alt text for images: Alt text, or alternative text, is an attribute that can be added to image tags in HTML. It’s used to describe the content of an image for search engines and users who are unable to see the image. By adding alt text to your website’s images, you can help search engines understand the content on your site and improve your ranking.
  5. Make sure your site is mobile-friendly: With more and more people accessing the internet from their mobile devices, it’s important to make sure your city website is mobile-friendly. This means that it should be easy to navigate and read on smaller screens, with no horizontal scrolling required. Google has a tool called Mobile-Friendly Test that you can use to see if your site is mobile-friendly.
  6. Use social media to your advantage: In addition to optimizing your website for search engines, it’s also a good idea to make use of social media platforms to promote your city and its events and attractions. By creating profiles on platforms like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, you can share updates and information about your city with a wider audience. Additionally, search engines often take social media activity into account when ranking websites, so an active presence on social media can help improve your site’s ranking.
  7. Consider using local SEO techniques: If your city website serves a specific geographic area, it can be helpful to use local SEO techniques to improve your ranking in search results for that area. This can include adding your city’s name and location to your site’s title tags and headings, as well as creating a Google My Business listing for your city.

By following these best practices in SEO for city websites, you can help improve the visibility and ranking of your city website in search results. This can lead to increased traffic and engagement with your community, and ultimately help you better serve your residents and visitors.

If you want to see what our solution can do for your city, take a look at our case studies. We have successfully built websites using our municipality platform. We increased awareness, security, and ease of use, as well as offer many new features that were previously non-existent. Take a look at our previous work and click the banner below to see what our solution offers.

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You can find our solution for your website by going to our municipality website design service. We build a sleek website for you at a flat rate. All bells and whistles are included. Check out our custom software and play around in our demos to find your perfect city website.

If you are interested in learning more about how this topic can help your business, please contact our agency on our contact page or call us at 1-888-964-4991. We publish a new article once or twice per month so make sure to follow us on social media and allow for push notifications if you want to stay in the loop with our agency and digital marketing.


Posted In: Business, SEO, User Experience, Website Design, Website Development

Kelly Oliver, Chief Financial Officer

About the Author

Kelly Oliver

Chief Financial Officer

Kelly Oliver is a Peruvian native who has been on the Mississippi Gulf Coast for 12 years and enjoys good Spanish food and Salsa dancing. She has almost a decade of experience in the casino and retail field. However, after an opportunity to work in the accounting field presented itself, she found that she had a real passion for numbers and spreadsheets. She decided to pursue an Accounting career.