Local SEO is a great way to increase your sales, especially if you are just starting out. Start your local SEO research from an area that you are trying to get customers from.
It would be best to look at areas where there are fewer businesses. Also look for the ones similar to yours so that you can gain more of their potential customers.
There are many different things that play into local SEO and choosing the right keywords for your website will make all the difference when it comes down to getting people both locally and nationally interested in what you have to offer.
In case you think you cannot handle your local SEO campaign on your own, you can always hire professional local SEO services providers. You can then focus on your core task without having to worry about managing your local SEO daily tasks.
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Local SEO For Small Business
The world is becoming a global village with people moving to different parts of the world. According to one report by JWT, nearly 60 percent of marketers expect more than half of their leads to come from mobile marketing this year. That means small businesses that wish to grow and tap into lucrative markets will need to change how they market themselves to stay afloat.
Local search is one of the many ways for small businesses to achieve greater visibility and increase their sales. It has become an effective marketing tool for thousands of entrepreneurs who are now leveraging it to generate more qualified leads through localized advertising campaigns. Here are some additional benefits you too can enjoy by implementing local SEO strategies in your business.
Benefits Of Local SEO For Businesses
Increase Your Site Traffic
One of the goals most local businesses have is to increase their site traffic. If you want more customers visiting your website, then you need to ensure it’s visible on search engines, especially on Google and other top players in the industry. Local SEO can help you accomplish this with strategies such as high-quality content marketing and site optimization, as well as link building and social media.
Increase Your Brand Awareness
With local SEO strategies such as Search Engine Marketing, you can increase brand awareness and visibility by getting more customers to visit your website and sharing it on their different social media platforms. When people turn to search engines for answers or purchase help, they will likely use the word “near me” to find out what you have to offer.
Increase Your Revenue
If you’re looking for strategies that can help your business grow, then local SEO is the answer. Even if you are doing marketing right now with search engine optimization or pay-per-click campaigns, it’s not as effective as local SEO because there are no regional restrictions. Implement local SEO strategies to rank higher in your business category, attract more people to your page, and ultimately increase conversions for a steady flow of leads and sales.
Increase Your Customer Base
With local SEO strategies, you will not only find new customers but also be able to retain the customers you already have. For instance, if you’re thinking about expanding your business operations, the modern way to do it is to launch a mobile app and engage social media users. By engaging with consumers on multiple platforms such as Facebook and Twitter, you will be able to retain existing customers and gain new ones through referrals.
Gain Edge Over Your Competitors
Increase Your Competitiveness With local SEO strategies, you can increase your competitiveness with your competitors, which is a good way to surpass the existing businesses in the industry. By merely optimizing your site for specific keywords related to your business, SEO can help you gain more visibility on search engines and ultimately increase revenue.
Increase Your Visibility Locally
If you want to be visible in a particular market or geographical location, then implementing local SEO strategies is your best bet. Make sure you are up-to-date on the latest trends in local search so you can be placed on top of the list for location-specific searches. Local organizations have a better chance of gaining more visibility through organic listings which then increases their brand awareness.
Local SEO Boosts Sales & Revenue
By implementing local SEO strategies, you can be sure that your website will rank higher on SERPs giving people a chance to easily find you and increase your sales. Moreover, the modern way to do marketing is through social media platforms because it helps you stay connected with existing customers as well as potential buyers who are looking for a solution to their problems.
Local SEO Best Practices To Boost Your Traffic, Leads And Sales
Search engines have developed considerably over the past few years. Today there are more than just “the one” Google that we all know and love (or loathe). There’s now Yahoo! and Bing, both using fairly similar algorithms to index pages. One of the biggest changes is in local SEO best practices; given the differences between these search engines, there are now different rules for achieving the best results.
To start with, we’re going to look at Google Places and how it’s changed. We’ll then take a look at Bing Local as well as Yahoo! and what they do differently from each other and Google.
Keep Google At The Center
Google has always been more about the actual search results, whereas Bing focuses on local results with their “Cities” list. Google’s new Places pages are very different from what came before them. They’re not full-blown listings of every business in a category; instead, they provide an easier way for customers to get information about your company, contact you or even place an order.
Utilize Google Places
Your business is likely to be listed on Google Places, even if you haven’t put yourself forward for inclusion. This gives you a head start against local search competitors who are not claiming their listings since these results will appear within the general SERPs. It also means that there’s more to gain by claiming your Google Place page since it’s often quick and easy to do.
You can claim your Place page here: http://www.google.com/business. The username you create should be the same as that for your Google Webmaster Tools account, which is where you’ll manage many of your SEO activities for your Google Places listing.
Once you’ve done this, ensure that your business name, address, and phone number are consistent across both accounts. This will help with the verification process when you attempt to claim your place; however, this isn’t necessary if you’re only using Google Places for basic listings of your company’s details.
Target Local Keywords And Optimize for Local Search
Also remember that all geographical searches on Google fall under the local SEO umbrella, not just those related to Places. If you want to be on the front page for “Italian restaurants in London,” it’s not enough to just claim your
Place and add yourself to it; you’ll also need to ensure that your website has a Google map and that all of your articles, images, and video include your target location.
After this, you’ll need to make sure that your website’s title, keywords, and description are well optimized for both local and general keyword phrases. You should also set up Google Analytics correctly in order to track your site’s visitors across multiple devices.
Utilize Google+
Google+ is another important aspect of local SEO; this means creating a business page with the same information as in your Place page. You should link these both to your website and make sure you add the correct category for your business type when creating a Google+ page since this is often different from what appears in Places.
If you want to really boost your local rankings, consider claiming other similar Place pages in your geographical area. This will help increase your authority and will be reflected in your own page’s ranking, assuming that you include the target keyword phrase.
Start The Process With Google Alerts
You can start this process using Google Alerts and by searching for your business name and location on Google Maps. A more thorough approach would be to use a spreadsheet listing all of the potential Places pages, along with their titles and URLs.
You could then use a scraper to get the titles and URLs for each page, although this would probably be a very time-consuming way of going about it.
Quick Tips To Boost Your Local SEO Efforts
Here’s a list of best practices to help boost your local visibility:
- Create a Google Places account for your business and link it to your website, along with all of your social media networks.
- Use keywords in the title, description, and other elements on your Places page so that it appears high on local searches. You should also include your geographical location since Google geo-codes Places listings by default.
- Make sure your website is indexed by Google so that it appears in general rankings for the keywords you want to target. This may require some extra work with things like XML sitemaps and submitting your site’s home page to Google directly.
- Add a local business section to your website, which lists all of the Places information and optimized keywords you’ve used. This will help boost your overall search visibility as well as increase traffic to your site from general searches.
- Use Google Analytics plugin for WordPress to obtain accurate data on where traffic to your website is coming from. You can then use this information to fine-tune your Places listing and SEO strategies in the future.
Advanced Local SEO Tips
- Make sure that you’re signed up with Google Webmaster Tools. Otherwise, it’s unlikely that people will find it when searching for your business name.
- Consider using other local search services, such as YP or Dex-knows, to attract more users to your Places page. These may require different content strategies and optimization techniques, so you should closely monitor the results they bring in to ensure that it’s worth your while.
- Keep an eye on reviews on your Places page and make sure you respond to any comments or messages from users.
- You can also ask for reviews from satisfied customers, which is a good way of getting new visitors.
- Encourage users to add photos and videos of your location.
- You could also use check-in services such as Facebook Places, and Foursquare to increase your visibility.
- Ensure that you’re included in all of the relevant local directories that exist for your industry and location. These include the likes of Yelp, TripAdvisor, Yellow Pages, and more.
Utilize Third-party Resources
- Take advantage of local deals websites such as Groupon or LivingSocial to gain regular traffic from these services daily. They’re a good way to draw in business without having to invest too much time or money.
- It’s a good idea to track your results using analytics software such as Google Analytics or Piwik tracking codes. This allows you to see which strategies are bringing in the most traffic for comparison with future campaigns.
- Make sure that you’re using the same address for your Places page, website, and other directories. This makes verifying your listing very simple with Google’s verification process. To prevent confusion with users who are searching for your business or browsing reviews on your competitors’ sites.
- Check out Google Maps Engine, a paid service that allows businesses to manage their listings in bulk.
- It’s designed for larger companies, but smaller ones may find it useful too.
- Check out Google+ to monitor user activity on your page and interact with them directly. It’s the main hub for Google+ users who are looking for businesses in their area. Take full advantage of this resource to increase visibility and improve your search engine rankings.
Conclusion
The importance of local SEO has only increased in recent years. People are excessively using mobile phones to make simple searches at restaurants near them.
You’re missing out on potential customers who might be right down the street from your business! If you are not using your website and social media platforms as an opportunity to market locally.
Local search is here to stay and with that comes more opportunities for businesses like yours.
Author Bio:
I’m Jason Carl. My passion for reading, writing, and sharing my experiences with my design and marketing fraternity is contagious. For the past 6 years, I have been working as an SEO analyst at a prominent USA firm and am always excited to connect with other designers and marketers.
