The right list of church keywords can help people find your church online and enhance your overall church SEO (search engine optimization) strategy. By incorporating carefully selected keywords throughout your website’s content, you increase the chances of appearing in relevant search results when people are actively searching for churches online. These keywords act as virtual breadcrumbs, guiding visitors to your website and helping them discover your church.
So how do you know which keywords your church should target? Thankfully, we’ve done the research and are excited to share the top church keywords that you should include on your website. By sprinkling these keywords throughout your site’s content, you’ll make sure your virtual doors are open wide for people searching for churches online.
Local Keywords
Every month, there are over 500,000 Google searches for “churches near me.” This highlights just how many people are actively searching for local churches in their communities. Make it easy for them to find your church by incorporating location-specific keywords into your church’s website. In addition to targeting “churches near me,” don’t forget to also pursue keywords related to your specific city or county.
Top local keywords:
- churches near me
- local churches near me
- church services near me
- churches around me
- religious organizations near me
- church events near me
- churches in [city/county]
- churches near [city/county]
- [city/county] church services
- [city/county] religious organizations
Denomination Keywords
You’ll also want to focus on local keywords related to your church’s denomination, even if don’t identify with one. Denomination-related keywords are a great way to connect with people searching for a church that aligns with their religious values.
For those who don’t have a denomination, keywords like “non-denominational church near me” or “community church near me” can work wonders. Regardless of whether or not you have a specific denomination, it’s also a great idea to target characteristics that describe your church such as “christian churches near me” or “bible based churches near me.” The goal is to make it easier for them to feel a connection with your church in local searches.
Top denomination keywords:
- [denomination] church near me
- church near me [denomination]
- christian churches near me
- non denominational churches near me
- mass near me
- bible based church near me
- progressive churches near me
- spirit filled church near me
- evangelical church near me
- community church near me
Worship Service Keywords
Unsurprisingly, most churches would say Christmas and Easter are their highest-attended worship services. It’s crucial, especially during these significant church holidays, to prioritize keywords related to the special services you have to offer.
In addition to holiday-related keywords, make sure you target the time-specific services you have available. For example, consider keywords like “saturday night church services near me.” By doing so, you’ll make it easier for people to find information about your services, especially if they prefer attending worship on specific days or times.
Top worship service keywords:
- christmas eve church service near me
- christmas church services near me
- christmas day church services near me
- easter sunday church service near me
- easter church services near me
- easter services near me [year]
- easter sunrise service near me [year]
- good friday services near me [year]
- good friday services near me
- ash wednesday service near me
- maundy thursday service near me
- midnight mass near me
- churches that worship on saturday near me
- weekday church services near me
- late church services near me
- night service near me
- evening church services near me
- saturday night church services near me
- sunday night church services near me
- wednesday night church service near me
Felt Needs Keywords
“Felt needs” keywords target individuals who are struggling internally and looking to the internet for help. They might be dealing with mental illness, marital problems, relational difficulties, addiction, disorder, trauma, loss, and more. By adding these felt needs or “pain” keywords to your local SEO strategy, your church can reach more people who are hurting and provide the support they need. How incredible would it be if a spouse searched “divorce counseling” and found your church?
Top felt needs keywords:
- depression
- bipolar
- anxiety
- ocd
- fear
- help for ptsd
- social anxiety disorder
- panic attack
- anxiety attack symptoms
- divorce
- annulment
- divorce lawyers near me
- divorce therapy
- co parenting therapy
- marriage counseling before divorce
- family therapy
- separation counseling
- codependent relationship
- 12 steps of aa
- 12 step program
- help to stop drinking
- alcohol recovery
- alcohol use disorder
- rehab near me
- alcohol abuse
- pornography addiction treatment
- detox near me
- foster care
- single parent
- Struggling with money
Ministry Keywords
Lastly, you’ll want to include keywords related to the ministries your church has to offer. That way, when people search for youth group activities, mothers day out programs, or men’s bible studies in their local area, your church will show up. These keywords ensure that your ministries are accessible to those who are searching for them.
Top ministry keywords:
- christian youth groups near me
- church youth groups near me
- women’s bible study groups near me
- ladies bible study near me
- bible study groups near me
- men’s bible study near me
- churches with awana near me
- awana near me
- family activities near me
- mother’s day out programs near me
Where to Include Keywords on Your Church Website
So, you have a solid list of keywords for your website, but where should you place them? The key is to strategically incorporate these keywords into every page of your website, including ministry pages and blog posts. By doing so, you’ll enhance your website’s visibility, improve search engine rankings, and attract visitors.
Here are 10 important places where you should include your church keywords:
- Page titles and headings
- Meta titles and descriptions
- Page URLs
- Page body text
- Blog post tags and categories
- Anchor text
- Image alt tags
- Call-to-action buttons
- Navigation menu items
- Footer section
Curious about where your church is ranking for these website keywords? Our team at Reach The Lost would love to offer you a free Church SEO audit of your website to assess its performance on search engine result pages. We understand that dealing with church SEO can be quite overwhelming, but don’t worry – we’re here to share the load and support you every step of the way.
