What Is Local SEO?
Are you wondering how you go about producing stellar SEO results for your local business? Let’s first explain what local search engine optimization is. Not everyone is familiar with the concept and many misunderstand the strategy altogether. Local SEO does differ from traditional SEO
Local SEO is the process of strengthening the online visibility of local businesses on search engines like Google, Bing, and Yahoo. There are similarities with traditional SEO however local SEO includes the component of geography.
Let’s consider an example. If you were running an automotive repair shop in London, UK, you would want to be ranking higher in search engine results specifically for that geography. It wouldn’t do any good to appear higher in search results when people are looking for an auto repair shop in Paris. All you care about in your local area. That’s the most effective way to find customers in your area.
What are the most impactful ranking factors for local SEO? Google My Business is the largest ranking factor, followed by link signals, and review signals. If you’re ready to improve your Local SEO, follow these steps closely.
How to Nail SEO?
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Properly Optimize Your Website
How do you optimize your website? There are a few different ways. First, ensure that all emails and phone numbers are clickable on mobile devices. People are using their phones more and more to find information on local businesses.
If you make it difficult for people to interact with your website, they will leave. This is referred to as bounce rate. The more people that leave your website without interaction, the less Google will trust that you’re providing users with the information that they need.
Second, add a map of your business locations. You should already have a dedicated contact page on your website. Include a very brief map embed to help people visualize where you are located in relation to them.
Third, add testimonials from local customers. The more detailed these testimonials are, the better. If you have a testimonial that speaks about the city that a customer lives in or anything else that has geographical relevance, you want to be sure to prioritize that testimonial.
Fourth, implement Schema into your business. Schema is structured data that helps search engines understand what a website is about. Specifically, you want to use Local Business Schema. Schema is becoming more and more important to search engines. You want to get ahead of this curve. Don’t let your business fall behind.
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Have A Strong Online Presence
There are now hundreds of platforms that people use to get information about local businesses. You can’t rely solely on your website to deliver the information people are looking for. Google My Business is the most important. You must have a verified Google My Business listing if you want to succeed in Local SEO. Within Google My Business, be sure that you select the primary category most relevant to you. For example, if you’re wanting to improve the seo for water damage restoration companies, you’d select the Google My Business Category “Water damage restoration service.”
After that, claim your profile on popular review websites like TripAdvisor, Yelp, and FourSquare. If there are popular local review sites, claim a listing on those as well. Finally, don’t forget about the social platforms. At a minimum, make sure your Facebook page and your website are linked.
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Create Localized Content
Showing Google that you are a trusted resource within your niche and location is extremely important You do this by creating great content. If you are going to do this through a blog, please be sure to host the blog on your domain. Whenever you’re writing content, you want to talk about the city and neighborhoods whenever you’re able to.
Again, you want search engines to associate your business with the location. Use variations while doing this. You don’t always have to use the official name of a city. If locals, have an unofficial name to describe an area, include that in your content.
Talk about your city, what’s going on there, what’s popular, who’s popular, and anything else that provides local relevance. Consider interviewing local business owners if you’ve run out of original content ideas. It’s also a great idea to sponsor whatever local events you can. This will not only raise awareness but may result in some backlinks from other local businesses.
Conclusion
The local business community has increased tremendously in the past decade. People are constantly on the lookout for local goods and services. Online, they have become more knowledgeable and more discerning. Unfortunately, most small businesses have no clue about how to effectively create a strong digital presence for their business.
In the quest for success and sustainable growth in business, you need to add more emphasis to local search engine optimization. The more you invest in your local SEO strategy, the higher you stand a chance to rank your company in the local search engine results for your area. It is important for you to continuously be working hard at optimizing your business for both search engines and customers. This means learning as much as you can and thinking outside the box on how to better your local SEO strategies.
