Local SEO is a key aspect of digital marketing, as it optimizes your business for location-specific searches. Google utilizes the user’s IP address for desktop searches and geolocation for mobile searches to serve results based on the user’s location. This feature helps display businesses near the user, who may be searching for a hotel in London. Besides the search results, local SEO also helps your website appear in other positions on the search engines, such as ads, images, and the One Box.
In addition to the big picture, local SEO can help your brick and mortar business get noticed more easily in local search results. For more information on the benefits of local SEO, read on! Let’s take a look at how it can benefit your business. You’ll be amazed at the results! Not only can local SEO make your business more visible on Google, it can also help you attract more local customers. But before you can reap the rewards of local SEO, you need to understand how it works and what to do.
Using local SEO strategies is essential for every business. You should make sure your website is easily searchable for local customers. If your website is not found on Google, your competitors have already done that for you. To stand out from them, you must go beyond the basics and find opportunities that your rivals have not yet considered. To do that, start with content creation. Local content does not necessarily need to be a blog. Consider creating resource guides, presentations, or technical specification sheets.
It is important to remember that your website’s ranking in local search results is based on public perception and customer reviews. For this reason, local SEO is particularly important for brick-and-mortar businesses. Google estimates that 88% of mobile users will contact a local business within 24 hours after searching for it. If your local SEO campaign is done well, you can expect to see a huge boost in your organic traffic. So, don’t worry if your website isn’t the best in the world.
Besides improving your website’s organic rankings, local SEO can increase foot traffic. The majority of searchers look for restaurants in their area and local SEO can help your business stand out among the local competition. Often, competitors do not claim their Google Business Profile, so claiming it is essential to get ahead of the competition. Once your website is listed on Google, it’s easy to access. You can use the local pack in local search results to attract customers in the vicinity.
Lastly, make sure your content has relevant and quality backlinks. It’s vital to monitor your competitors’ keywords and backlinks, citations, and review profiles. Tools like BrightLocal can help you monitor your competitors. Since Google is constantly changing its algorithms, local SEO is constantly evolving. You should be aware of these changes so that your business can react accordingly. Once you’ve mastered these tactics, you’ll be well on your way to ranking in local search results.
In addition to improving your business’s local SEO, customers read reviews and trust reviews for relevant information. Almost eighty percent of consumers read reviews online when looking for local businesses. 73% of consumers only look at reviews written within the last month, and 48% of them would not use a business rated lower than a four-star rating. This is because local search ranking relies on information from four major sources: a business’s website, social profiles, Yelp reviews, and customer reviews.
Another important area to improve your local SEO is the NAP. This stands for name, address, phone number, and website URL. All of these should be consistent across the various platforms on which you’re active. These citations can also help your business gain social media followers. This type of SEO strategy can lead to increased sales and improved customer reviews. And, it can also help you reach new market segments. So, how does local SEO benefit your business?
As local search engine traffic continues to grow, local SEO helps local businesses achieve better results in the search results. Local SEO helps businesses get higher page rankings and reach their target audience. When consumers look for local businesses, they typically click on the first three listings on a Google map. This way, they’re likely to buy from your business and make repeat purchases. The best part is, these customers will become repeat buyers. Local SEO is a vital part of marketing for small businesses, and it’s crucial to have your site optimized with relevant local keywords and phrases.