Local SEO can be one of the best strategies for bringing new customers and revenue into your business. By employing this method, your rankings will increase on search engine result pages (SERPs).
Local SEO also assists with building brand recognition and trust among your audience, increasing foot traffic to your physical store location.
1. Keyword Research
Local keyword research is an integral component of any successful SEO campaign, helping to identify which terms are most pertinent to your business and target them in your content. Furthermore, it allows your site to become optimized for local searches resulting in increased visibility and traffic.
Keyword research can be accomplished using different tools, including Google Autosuggest and related search. In addition, competitive analysis involves looking at your competitors’ online presence to see what they’re up to and where their backlinks come from.
Search intent should also be kept in mind when choosing keywords, with local intent ideally being preferred over general. You can determine this by either checking whether a keyword appears in a local pack, or by looking through search results to see what businesses appear nearby the user’s location.
2. On-Page Optimization
Step two of local SEO involves optimizing the content on your website pages for local searches, including optimizing titles, headings, URLs and content to include relevant keywords. It’s also important to ensure your images have alt text and internal links point towards appropriate pages.
BrightLocal reports that on-page SEO is an integral factor for local search and map pack results, which should come as no surprise as searches with geographical qualifiers tend to have greater purchase intent than broad queries.
Monitoring business listings across consumer directories and social media is vital, especially if your business spans multiple locations. Our Listing Management tool makes this simple by compiling all of your listings in one convenient place and automatically correcting any inaccurate or inconsistent details that arise.
3. Backlink Building
Local SEO (search engine optimization) is a subset of search engine optimization that allows businesses to be found by customers within their geographical region. Local SEO involves optimizing websites and building links so as to rank higher in local searches on Google.
Link building encompasses both on-page and off-page techniques. On-page strategies involve making sure business information, like names and addresses, are consistent across the web; off-page techniques involve finding backlinks from other websites.
Backlinks to local events or organizations that appeal to your target audience can help create backlinks locally. For instance, tourist boards could feature businesses catering specifically to tourists as a means of not only creating backlinks but also increasing exposure. This would not only increase their backlink count but may lead to potential customers and backlinks as a result.
4. Social Media Marketing
One effective strategy for local SEO is creating relevant, high-quality content relevant to your target audience, such as blog posts, videos, infographics or podcasts that offer value to the readership.
Optimizing your Google My Business profile is another essential technique, enabling businesses to manage and list their company on Google Search and Maps, increasing your chances of appearing in local pack results and Google Map search results.
Facebook and LinkedIn provide an effective means for building up citations – mentions of your business name, address, phone number and website (NAP) appearing on third-party sites – that can contribute to local search ranking factors. Citations play a pivotal role in local search, so social media platforms like these provide great ways of creating them.
5. Link Building
Link building is an integral component of SEO, and local search engine optimization (LSEO) should not be any different. Incorporating local citations, producing engaging localized content and correcting your name, address and phone number (NAP) across the web are all vital to local search engine optimization success.
Regular link building focuses on creating high-value content that attracts links naturally, while local link building targets websites and publications with audiences in your region – like local blogs, community forums or consumer directories.
Less scrupulous businesses may engage in practices designed to boost their rankings, such as keyword stuffing or listing incorrect location details. It’s essential that you regularly monitor these listings and take any steps necessary against any spam profiles you encounter.