Global SEO is vital to any business out there– businesses that operate on a national, multi-national, and global level as well as local companies with one or more physical stores. However, we cannot ignore the importance of local SEO, as the local SEO statistics tell us that 46% of Google searches are local, while 88% of those who did a local search on their phone visited a store within 24 hours.
Are you ranking highly in your area? If not, then you should know that your store could be losing to other businesses. Take these eight local SEO tips to improve your brand’s local SEO. Improving SEO takes some time, but these are a great place to start.
1. Google My Business
The first and foremost thing to do is to get your business listed on Google My Business. It is where customers primarily look for a business location, so get your company listed and add all the relevant information (name, address, directions, working hours, and phone number.) Complete your profile and keep it up-to-date. When Google verifies your business, you can get information about where people are coming from and how they are finding you.
2. Determine the Local Search Terms
What are people looking for? To optimize your site for local SEO, you need to know that. Identify the search terms that people in your area frequently search for, and you can do it by:
- Checking out your website analytics.
- Using Google AdWords or any other similar keyword tool to identify local keywords in your niche.
Typically, local search terms are a combination of the type of product or service you offer and the area-town-city where your store is located. Optimize your site so people could find your business to get the services they want.
3. Get on Major Review Websites
Two things strongly influence people’s purchasing decisions: their peers and online reviews. Online reviews are also a factor that Google considers when ranking a page, so being present on the most important review sites is crucial to your success. Some of the most prominent review sites you should consider getting listed on are Yelp, Foursquare, Yahoo Local, White Pages, Yellow Pages, Google+ Local, and TripAdvisor.
4. Schema Markup
To improve how your page is represented in SERPs, you can add specific code to your HTML. This code is called a schema markup, and it helps Google recognize some aspects of a web page. Also, it tells Google what the page’s content is all about. It can ultimately boost your click-through rates and rankings.
5. Local Link Building
Link building is another critical element of your regional SEO strategy. We can’t stress its importance enough. Be sure to optimize all your links to the best of your abilities by establishing a strong relationship with local sites that are related to your industry. You will build your brand authority by earning links from sites with high influence in your local area.
6. Optimize Content, Tags, and URL
Include your city and region and the target keyword of the page they describe in your content, meta descriptions, title tags, headers, and URL. That way, Google will know the geographical location that the page is relevant to and will index the page accordingly.
7. Feedback and Recommendations
Besides getting your business on relevant review sites, you should also ask your customers to post their input and recommendations online. It’s essential that they are talking about your business because it will make Google see your site as relevant in local search.
8. Mobile
Today, people don’t go out without their smartphone. While on the go, we use our devices to conduct searches right then when we need it. Business must be ready for local mobile search, so make sure to optimize your local search for mobile.
Don’t let local search be the elephant in the room. If you’re optimized for global SEO, don’t leave the local SEO waiting (especially if you do most of your business through your brick-and-mortar store). According to Search Engine Land, 85-95% of consumer engagement comes through local pages, local listings, and other location assets.
If you’re tech-savvy enough, you can go through the whole local search engine optimization process yourself. As for business owners who neither have time to do it nor a marketing department to deal with local SEO, don’t hesitate to ask for help. The Exceedion SEO team of experts is there to help you with all your SEO needs.
Contact us for further information regarding local search engine optimization for your business.