The Importance of Local SEO
What is Local SEO?
Local Search Engine Optimization is a form of Search Engine Optimization. It focuses on making a local business’s visibility in local search engine results. Search engine results that appear in local searches typically reflect a “near me” search intent, i.e., the searcher is looking for a result “in [CITY]” or the search engine has been notified that they are searching for results within a certain area.
Companies can improve their visibility in local search results by using local search optimization strategies. These strategies target terms related to their company and products.
SEO vs. Local SEO – What’s the Difference?
Perhaps you’ve already heard of SEO. It means enhancing the visibility of your website on search engines worldwide. There is a GLOBAL theme there. The difference between local and general SEO lies in this factor. In contrast to the audience that isn’t local, local SEO targets the audience in your community near your business.
The term SEO encompasses local SEO (and also franchise SEO) as part of a broader umbrella of SEO. You will be able to develop better methods of engaging your qualified leads if you are aware of the differences between the two.
It doesn’t mean you should ignore generalized SEO if you’re a small local business. Having a general understanding of SEO would be a good starting point for any business owner looking to learn more about it. Our advice is to not limit your SEO efforts to the general sector for local businesses. Deepen your knowledge. Then you’ll get the highest ROI and see the best results.
What are the Advantages of Local Search?
Local SEO allows you to utilize your local market more effectively in addition to giving you a higher return on investment. SEO for local businesses is crucial, especially if your local business operates a physical store or provides a service in the local area. Your business information is made available to local searchers (who are usually more qualified) so it drives traffic to your physical location.
Online search results can convert to offline sales through local SEO
The Retail Dive survey indicates that 67 percent of consumers research the majority of their purchases online before shopping for them in brick-and-mortar stores. In addition, 30% of traffic goes to the first page of search engine results, so it makes sense that local businesses that appear at the top will benefit from those results. By utilizing local SEO, you can provide your business with visibility to every local consumer searching for products specific to your business niche, converting online searches into offline sales.
Local SEO advertising is free
Any business can benefit from local advertising. The local SEO process is like a local advertisement that provides consumers with free access to your web page. A local SEO campaign allows you to provide information about your business, such as the address and phone number, online. Additionally, SEO techniques can be used to draw attention to and promote the types of services or products you offer on your website. You can use this to boost your company’s online visibility, which can help make your company more well known to local residents. A local SEO campaign is free and considered a highly effective form of advertising online since there are no implementation costs involved.
You Can Get Customer Reviews With Local SEO
People often look online for reviews of new products and services before making a purchase. Potential customers may be wary of giving you their money if you don’t have any reviews. Getting quality reviews from previous customers is an effective way to use local SEO. Several local business listing directories enable consumers to review their local experience or the service they received. Customer reviews can even be encouraged by the business. By doing so, you will provide prospective customers with the necessary confirmation to complete their purchase.
Bring your service to customers who need it right now
Users frequently want a specific service in the near future when they search for it on the web. As an example of this, on local restaurant searches, nearly 64 percent of users convert either immediately or within one hour. Having a restaurant appear at the top of the search results is a great way to earn a customer’s business. All local businesses must make use of local SEO in order to reach local customers who need your products or services at the earliest stage. Local customers with an immediate need will likely choose to shop nearby if they see your local listing (not your competitors). If your business is closer to them, that increases the likelihood that they will choose you instead of a competitor located far away from them.
How Can a Local Business Improve its Local SEO?
Now, when we established what local SEO is and why you should pay more attention to it, let’s take a look at what can you to rise to the top of search engine results pages.
1. Adapt Your SEO for Voice Search.
With personal assistants like Alexa, Google, Siri, and Cortana accounting for about 10% of global search volume, this tip is no surprise. Simply add more long-tail keywords to adapt this new spoken aspect of SEO.
2. Allocate a Budget for Mobile.
We shouldn’t have to say this, but people keep avoiding it. As a retailer, you can expect to see as much as 70% or more of your traffic coming from mobile devices. Invest in mobile and your individual locations will benefit.
3. Establishing Local Link Building Helps Your Local SEO.
Look for opportunities to cooperate with other local stores, service groups, clubs, sports teams, schools, and non-competitive establishments in through co-promotion, sponsorships, etc. Link to their website either through page content or blogs and have them link back to you in the same way.
4. Improve your Local SEO By Prioritizing Your Store Locator.
To grab people on the go, optimize your store locator. You’ll receive for higher search rankings on relevant searches and increased local visibility for each individual location.
5. Personalize Ads For Local SEO.
List town names and local areas, and add location extensions and local landing pages with hyperlocal content to boost your local ad conversions.
6. Use User Generated Content.
People no longer have the time or patience to search through generic content. Consumers now demand relevant, local recommendations from people they can trust. Integrate local user-generated content on your local landing pages to solve this problem.
Avoid these common local SEO myths!
Local SEO is complicated, so you are due to make some mistakes. Here are some important rakes you should try to avoid stepping on.
1. If your citations don’t include your suite number, you’re doomed.
Google doesn’t actually recognize suite numbers for a vast majority of Google business listings.
2. Any differences in your business name are a huge deal.
Google is smart enough to connect listings together even if they are slightly different. Just make sure the address and phone number are correct so people can reach you.
3. NAP cleanup should involve fixing every single one your hundreds of listings.
Chances are, Google hasn’t (and won’t) index most of your hundreds of listings because they are on unmanaged sites with the same, repeated content. Don’t spend the time or money worrying about this.
4. There’s no risk in canceling an automated citation service.
It’s important for people to recognize that, if they decide to cancel, they might benefit from budgeting for some manual citation building/cleanup – just in case any problems arise.
5. Citation building is the only type of link building strategy you need.
Although citations are important, if that’s the only backlinking strategy you’re using, you’re most likely not going to rank well in competitive markets.
6. Google My Business is a citation.
Google isn’t really a citation. Using the example of academic papers, Google is like the paper itself and all of your listings out on the web are the resources supporting your paper, aka your citations.
Contact us if you want your small business to benefit from the help of a professional local SEO agency.
How does local SEO works?
Local SEO means 'optimizing' your online marketing to attract customers from a relevant local searches (e.g. nearby searches) through different search engines, such as Google, Bing, Safari, etc. But you also should pay attention to sites like Yelp, LinkedIn, Angi, different social media and others, because a lot of local searches happens there too.
What is a difference between SEO and local SEO
The main difference is scale: regular SEO focuses on covering of national or global scale, while local SEO helps you to boost visibility in your area. It is also easier to stand out locally due to lower competition.
How can I improve my local SEO?
A few easy steps can help you to boost performance of your business locally: adapt to the voice search, invest in mobile version of your site, establish link building with other businesses in the area, optimize your store locator, use personalized ads and user generated content to their maximum. Or you can always hire a professional. Here at Comrade Digital Marketing, we are always to happy to help you!
- Website UI/UX, content and conversion review
- SEO: 20-point performance check
- Digital marketing strategy
