Why Is Local SEO Important and How to Implement It?

If you are looking to promote your business online to your local community, local SEO is quite an important and easy way to attract more customers.

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Often at times, people look up the address and business name before heading to the store or going through with the purchase. This is your chance to make a good impression and become a reputable member of the local community. Use the local SEO strategy and optimize it according to your best keywords. For example, use keywords such as Diner, Hotel, and so on to increase your visibility.

The local search consists of search terms that are, well, local such as:

• gyms in my area or city name
• doctors in my area or city name
• lawyers in my area or city name

Local SEO is used to promote your business’ visibility on locally based search results. It ensures your business gets found online and allows you to advertise your business. You need local SEO services if your business relies on providing a local service. Even if it doesn’t, it is still a free advertisement you can use, so go ahead anyway.

Use Local SEO to Attract Potential Customers

You should want your customers to have a memorable experience, and that experience starts with their online search, which most of the time goes through Google.

Don’t make it hard to find your business. People don’t like wasting their time, and you can simply guide them towards you. Use this to increase your business’ exposure to search keyword related queries such as a Doctor or Lawyer in my area.

How to Optimize Your Local SEO?

Use Listing Tools

You can use various online tools for listing your company online by entering its information. The most popular choice is Google My Business, but you can also use Apple Maps and Bing Places. Simply follow their instructions, and you’ll create your listing in almost no time.

Google My Business is free to use tool that helps you manage your online presence across Google Search and Maps. Enter and verify your business information, so your customers can find your business. Check out their instructions here.

When it comes to filling in your business name, make sure not to add keywords, as that is against their terms of service. There is a single option to choose for your business category, and you need to make sure to describe your business in general, the best you can. Don’t forget to add additional information such as work hours, services/products, phone number, pricing, or anything else you might find useful.

Try to take professional (FullHD) photos and add them so people can see your business is legit. Show why your business is better than the competition by explaining what it is about and make sure your customers get a general idea about your skills and workplace.

Optimize Keywords

To optimize keyword searches, you’ll need to figure out which keywords are searched for when looking for businesses similar to yours.

Each business is different, but let’s say your business sells used cars, so your customers will most likely search for “used cars in yourcityname”. They also might search for your business name directly, so you should link keywords to increase your rank. Use a free online tool to see what keywords similar businesses search for and use it to your advantage.

Don’t Forget to Maintain SEO!

You don’t simply set your local SEO once and then leave it be. You need to keep some things up-to-date from time to time.

Make sure to:

• Update relevant information as soon as it gets changed.
• Use Google Posts to add updates and promote your business.
• Read and professionally respond to customer reviews.

Food for Thought

You always need to be one step ahead of your competition since there are only three spots to rank in the Local Pack. Make sure your business stands out and become the top choice. If you’re not in the Local Pack, then your competition definitely is.

A fully responsive mobile-design is a must since lots of traffic comes from mobile devices. This means you need to improve page load times on mobile devices to assure a snappy experience which lowers bounce rates.

Get to know your customers and their keywords to target relevant search terms and improve your rank. Quickly improve local search rank and get better visibility, which increases traffic.

Try to get as many positive reviews as possible, and not only do they help your local SEO, but they also motivate potential customers. Search engines such as Google analyze customer reviews from various sources (Google, Yelp), so keep that in mind.

Getting mentioned/linked on other reputable local websites, articles, and blogs is always a plus as Google keeps track of that as well. This tells Google that you are serious about business.

Local SEO Benefits

Local search is actually quite popular as people want to find the quickest solution to their problem/need. Since people have been spending lots of their time on their mobile phones, mobile searches have grown quite rapidly.

Local SEO is a good ROI and actually better than typical ads. Your business is advertised directly to people who require such a service/product. It is also cheaper than regular ads meaning you get more for your money’s worth.

Potential customers often search for online reviews when looking for local businesses, so by being out there, you have a higher chance of recognition.

Conclusion

Local SEO isn’t hard to understand and implement successfully. Since it can be done for free and offers numerous benefits, it is a worthwhile marketing strategy. Let your existing and potential customers find your local business much quicker and increase your sales as well as search engine rank. Even if you don’t have a website, this is still a viable strategy that you’ll benefit from.