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Local SEO Strategies
In today’s marketplace, with more and more consumers using smartphones to find the products and services they need, a strong web presence that is optimized for search engines is essential for any business. Through search engines, the internet provides businesses with an audience. With millions of sites to choose from, businesses that use carefully planned SEO marketing strategies will stand out from the masses and have their results displayed on the front page of relevant searches.
What Is SEO?
When we talk about search engine optimization (SEO), we’re addressing the process of making sure all the online components of your business are optimized so that your search result appears in front of a relevant audience when they’re searching for your product or service.
What Is Local SEO?
It’s a variation where we further define that audience as someone who is currently, or will be, in the same geographic area as your business.
It’s an important distinction. For businesses that are online only with no physical store, standard SEO practices are sufficient. For brick and mortar businesses, mastering local SEO is critical. Why is that and how does it work?
Local Business SEO Explained
When a user visits a search engine and enters a term, Google’s goal (using Google as an example) is to provide you with the best, most relevant result. If the user enters “cake”, Google must make a determination. Is this item something the user wants close by or is the search meant to be global? Is the user looking for cake recipes so they can make their own cake? Or are they looking for a bakery in their town where they can order a cake? How does Google make that determination?
Local SEO is the method by which you communicate to Google, and other search engines, that you’re a bakery, not an online index for recipes. You can use local SEO marketing to provide search engines with the right information so that you not only show up when someone is looking for your product or service in your area, but that you show up in the very top results.
When a user searches Google, they are actually getting an index the search engine created by crawling the web, one link at a time. The position or rank of your site in a search engine’s results are determined by many factors like keywords used, the number of sites linking to yours, how easy it was to navigate the site, and more.
Local SEO Guide
For those just getting started with local business SEO, there are five important topics that should be the primary focus of your marketing strategy once you have a plan.
Google My Business Profile
Having a high-quality business profile on Google is a must. Once you verify your listing, you’re granted authenticity and authority on the category you’ve selected by giving Google a very strong indication as to who you are and what your business is about. Also, give careful consideration to the categories that are a match for your business. Using the example above, your business might be a bakery. Do you specialize in cakes? Further, do you specialize in wedding cakes or cakes for special occasions? Determining your categories from the beginning and integrating them into your Google presence and business listings can help speed up the process of achieving a good search engine position.
Compelling, Relevant Content
To many, content is using header tags, the right density of keywords or keyword phrases, and recycling the same topics. Doing such may get you better results in the search engines, but are the people on the receiving end going to get anything of real value from such content? Formulas can’t be used here. The top goal is to provide the audience with the information they are looking for. Do you have the product they seek? Do you provide a service they need? Your content should explain how you can meet their needs and do it better than your competition. On top of that, yes, it must also be search engine friendly.
List Your Business Around The Web
Listing your business name, address, and contact information around the web, particularly at authoritative local sites such as the Yellow Pages and Yelp, are not only beneficial in confirming to your identity to search engines, but provide additional links to your site which will also help your ranking. Be sure your information is consistent across all listings and keep track of all the venues where your business is listed.
In today’s marketplace, with more and more consumers using smartphones to find the products and services they need, a strong web presence that is optimized for search engines is essential for any business. Through search engines, the internet provides businesses with an audience. With millions of sites to choose from, businesses that use carefully planned SEO marketing strategies will stand out from the masses and have their results displayed on the front page of relevant searches.
What Is SEO?
When we talk about search engine optimization (SEO), we’re addressing the process of making sure all the online components of your business are optimized so that your search result appears in front of a relevant audience when they’re searching for your product or service.
What Is Local SEO?
It’s a variation where we further define that audience as someone who is currently, or will be, in the same geographic area as your business.
It’s an important distinction. For businesses that are online only with no physical store, standard SEO practices are sufficient. For brick and mortar businesses, mastering local SEO is critical. Why is that and how does it work?
Local Business SEO Explained
When a user visits a search engine and enters a term, Google’s goal (using Google as an example) is to provide you with the best, most relevant result. If the user enters “cake”, Google must make a determination. Is this item something the user wants close by or is the search meant to be global? Is the user looking for cake recipes so they can make their own cake? Or are they looking for a bakery in their town where they can order a cake? How does Google make that determination?
Local SEO is the method by which you communicate to Google, and other search engines, that you’re a bakery, not an online index for recipes. You can use local SEO marketing to provide search engines with the right information so that you not only show up when someone is looking for your product or service in your area, but that you show up in the very top results.
When a user searches Google, they are actually getting an index the search engine created by crawling the web, one link at a time. The position or rank of your site in a search engine’s results are determined by many factors like keywords used, the number of sites linking to yours, how easy it was to navigate the site, and more.
Local SEO Guide
For those just getting started with local business SEO, there are five important topics that should be the primary focus of your marketing strategy once you have a plan.
Google My Business Profile
Having a high-quality business profile on Google is a must. Once you verify your listing, you’re granted authenticity and authority on the category you’ve selected by giving Google a very strong indication as to who you are and what your business is about. Also, give careful consideration to the categories that are a match for your business. Using the example above, your business might be a bakery. Do you specialize in cakes? Further, do you specialize in wedding cakes or cakes for special occasions? Determining your categories from the beginning and integrating them into your Google presence and business listings can help speed up the process of achieving a good search engine position.
Compelling, Relevant Content
To many, content is using header tags, the right density of keywords or keyword phrases, and recycling the same topics. Doing such may get you better results in the search engines, but are the people on the receiving end going to get anything of real value from such content? Formulas can’t be used here. The top goal is to provide the audience with the information they are looking for. Do you have the product they seek? Do you provide a service they need? Your content should explain how you can meet their needs and do it better than your competition. On top of that, yes, it must also be search engine friendly.
List Your Business Around The Web
Listing your business name, address, and contact information around the web, particularly at authoritative local sites such as the Yellow Pages and Yelp, are not only beneficial in confirming to your identity to search engines, but provide additional links to your site which will also help your ranking. Be sure your information is consistent across all listings and keep track of all the venues where your business is listed.
