Local SEO can be an excellent way of increasing awareness for your business within its target area and connecting with clients while simultaneously increasing sales. This method is particularly valuable for companies operating within specific geographical regions.
Discover keywords relevant to your local audience and rank for them, while optimizing your website for local search.
Keyword research
Keyword research is an integral component of local SEO. It allows you to target searchers searching for products or services similar to yours and increase website traffic while reaching more customers.
Local SEO keyword research can also help you to identify keywords specific to your local area. This is important, as searchers will typically include their city, state or town when performing searches – using these keywords can help increase rankings in local search results and thus increase visibility for your brand.
To conduct local keyword research, you can utilize various free and paid tools. Ubersuggest and Google Keyword Planner can assist in finding related keywords while other tools such as Answer the Public, Ahrefs and KWFinder may provide more accurate keyword data as well as valuable insight such as search volume levels.
On-page optimization
On-page optimization is one of the cornerstones of local SEO. It involves things such as optimizing your website for keywords, writing keyword-rich content and including NAP citations; verifying your business information through Google My Business, using structured data to increase search engine visibility and verifying business listings on Google My Business.
An effective on-page strategy includes including keywords in each title tag on your site. But this shouldn’t mean repetitively repeating them – which is known as keyword stuffing – instead, strive to incorporate them organically and think of ways they could fit naturally into your content.
Longtail keywords are another on-page strategy to utilize for better results, which consists of stringing together three or more specific terms that describe your product or service. If you sell gas boilers, for instance, then longtail keywords would include phrases like “gas safe boilers” or “gas boiler installation.” Unlike broad keywords which have more competition these longtail words tend to convert more effectively and lead directly into sales.
Link building
Local link building should be an integral component of your digital marketing strategy. It helps your business rank higher on Google Maps and increase overall online visibility, connecting with consumers and building trust through publishing relevant and keyword-rich content on your website.
Building links from local, authority sites in your industry is also critical. Ubersuggest can help you locate these websites; don’t focus on spammy or irrelevant sites – look for sites related to your local business that provide value to consumers instead.
Build local ties by gathering reviews from both customers and businesses in your community. Encourage customers to write reviews on Yelp or other social media platforms; or post testimonials directly onto your website as these will serve to demonstrate your expertise in your field – consumers are more likely to trust you if other people have spoken highly of your services or products!
Social media
Social media should be an integral component of your local SEO strategy for retail stores, restaurants, or service-based businesses. Social media helps boost rankings while drawing in new customers while staying relevant to audiences.
Local search has revolutionized how businesses promote themselves online, supplementing traditional SEO tactics with additional effort and focus. While traditional SEO techniques remain key components of success, local search offers new challenges that necessitate additional consideration and work.
Establishing consistent NAP (name, address and phone number) information across all social media platforms, web pages and online directories is critical in maintaining consistency while decreasing errors that could negatively impact search engine rankings.
Adopting a clickable map as part of your website’s homepage is another effective way to increase exposure on Google maps. This feature enables visitors to see your location and contact info, helping them decide whether your store or restaurant should be the next one they visit. Google also utilizes this data in providing customized results when someone searches.