Local SEO (search engine optimization) is a form of search engine optimization designed to reach local or regional audiences. It’s especially beneficial for smaller businesses that operate locally and can help them rank higher on SERPs.
According to research by marketing analytics software company Moz, authentic reviews play an integral part in increasing local search and snack pack rankings. Here are some strategies on how you can gain more authentic reviews for your business.
Keyword Research
Keyword research is key to any effective SEO strategy, and local SEO is no exception. Begin by identifying all of the keywords that best describe your products and services before using tools like Autosuggest or related search to see which terms your target audience is using.
Next, incorporate location modifiers as keywords that clearly express a searcher’s intent. These keywords could include phrases such as “local,” “near me,” or even place names such as cities and towns.
Once you’ve identified your keywords, store them in Google Keyword Planner for easy reference and filter by search volume and difficulty to quickly identify those that are both pertinent to your business and feasible to rank for. Also consider reviewing what terms your competitors are ranking for to get ideas for keywords you hadn’t considered previously. When finished, track SEO progress by monitoring website traffic analytics through Google Analytics and tracking SEO progress using analytic software like Webtrends Analytics.
On-Page Optimization
On-page optimization refers to various techniques designed to increase your website’s rankings in search engines, such as optimizing its content, meta descriptions, title tags and internal linking. Furthermore, on-page optimization involves making sure your web page is technically optimized to reduce page load times and enhance user experience.
Local SEO involves making sure your business’s information is consistent across all online platforms – such as your Google My Business profile, local citations, and directories – including your Google My Business page, local citations, directories and websites. Furthermore, local schema marking provides search engines with important contextual clues as to who and what your services are about.
Accumulating authentic reviews can play an integral part of local SEO and snack pack rankings. Ahrefs’ Keywords Explorer can assist in identifying localized search terms that provide opportunities to gather reviews for your business.
Link Building
Link building is one of the keystones of SEO, particularly local SEO. By building quality backlinks from relevant websites, you can improve your local search rankings and drive targeted traffic directly to your site.
Link building from industry-related websites is key to any local SEO campaign, and Ubersuggest can help you identify which websites link back to your competitors and target them as possible link-building targets.
Find local community forums and online publications as a source of links. While these may have lower domain authority than reputable industry publications, they can still prove beneficial due to their local relevance.
Another effective strategy to build local links and establish local relationships is through sponsorship of local events and groups in your community. Most groups that accept your sponsorship will feature it on their websites – this serves to both build local ties while simultaneously increasing exposure.
Reputation Management
No matter if you own a local restaurant or bed and breakfast, online reputation management is vital to its success. Doing it right means amplifying positive reviews while responding appropriately to negative ones; and with effective PR disaster avoidance strategies in mind; managing online reputation is part of local SEO that should be handled by either an agency or your own staff team.
Search engine optimization requires high-quality links from other websites, and this is even more critical in local search. Effective public relations strategies can help secure these links from reliable sources – thus increasing local rankings and strengthening SEO results.
Customer reviews play an integral role in local search and snack pack rankings, so ensure you collect as many authentic customer reviews as possible and complete your profiles so Google can find you and protect against errors in listings or citations from compromising your online reputation.