When local consumers are looking for products and services nearby, they usually begin their search online.
According to the most recent local consumer survey conducted by BrightLocal, 78% of people use the Internet repeatedly to gather information about local businesses in their area, with 21% performing local searches every day.
In order to be discovered, it is essential to appear in local organic and Map Pack search results. This provides an opportunity to convert potential customers into in-store visitors, scheduled appointments, or other forms of paying clientele.
1. Check For Technical Errors That Could Impact Indexing
In order to be discovered by search engines, it is essential to have a strong understanding of the fundamental process of how search engines crawl and index websites. Acquiring this foundational knowledge will serve as a valuable guide for your future SEO endeavors.
You might come to the conclusion that dealing with technical SEO matters, like indexation, is overwhelming alongside running your business. If this is the situation, you will, at least, comprehend the tasks you are entrusting to an SEO agency or consultant.
2. Create Exceptional Content
When considering the process, the delivery of messaging, offers, and calls to action to your audience is facilitated by content. However, in the search results, your small business is not only contending with similar businesses.
To stand out, your content must be exceptional as you are competing against media publications, informational websites, big brands, local review sites, and various other sources that produce relevant content for your products and services.
Before you begin enthusiastically producing blog posts, it is important to first develop a local content strategy that is in line with your business objectives. It is essential to include various types of local content and follow established on-page local SEO best practices to improve search optimization for each piece.
3. Incorporate Local Link Building Into Your SEO Strategy
According to John McAlpin, links serve as the currency of the web and hold significant value as a trust signal for search engines like Google. They indicate that your content is supported or endorsed by others. In particular, local links are specifically used to demonstrate trust and endorsement from individuals or entities within the local area who are relevant to your business.
Our Local SEO Guide includes a valuable starting point for your local link building strategy, which is his article ‘What Is A Local Link & How To Find More Local Link Opportunities’.
4. Get Your Google Business Profile In Order
In order to have a comprehensive local search strategy, it is essential to have a well-optimized Google Business Profile (GBP). Although Google gathers local business information from numerous sources on the web, it considers its own profiles as the ultimate reliable source for any local business.
These profiles, formerly named the Google My Business program, have become increasingly richer and interactive in recent years, making them more beneficial for local searchers.
Today, GBPs enable you not only to have access to key business information like your location and contact details but also to:
- Help searchers understand the experience they’ll have at your business with a variety of high-quality photos and videos.
- Showcase offers, events, and more with Google Posts.
- Interact with customers via Messaging, Q&A, and responding to reviews.
- Proactively share differentiating features, health and safety information, payment methods, and more with Attributes.
5. Ensure Local Listings Are Accurate
Google prioritizes the experience of the searchers above everything else. Thus, inaccurate or out-of-date information that has a negative impact on the searcher’s experience can greatly hinder your local visibility.
The information found on your business listing online, whether on social media, in a local directory, in Yellow Pages, or on review sites like Yelp or Trip Advisor, should allow searchers to easily convert without any interruption.
Having the wrong phone number, address, hours of operation, or other key business information listed can result in a searcher showing up at a closed store, for example.
When their GPS system sends them to your previous location, it can be challenging for search engines to determine the accuracy of different versions of your business data found online. Google aims to provide the most relevant answer to each user’s query, so it’s important to ensure that the algorithm doesn’t doubt the reliability of your business information.
Tracking listings manually is a challenging and time-consuming task because data aggregators and directories are constantly scanning for business information updates. As a result, misinformation or outdated listings can easily spread, leading to widespread dissemination of incorrect details such as address, URL, or operating hours.
To streamline the process of scanning for business listings and monitoring their accuracy, small businesses can utilize a local SEO tool such as Moz Local or Semrush.
6. Focus on Your Unique Offerings
When vying for the attention of potential customers online, remember that you are in competition with other companies. In order to stand out in web searches related to your industry, search for keywords that reflect your unique offerings or geographic location, as these are factors that differentiate you from others in the market.
If you have a limited budget, you will need to focus on specific keywords when participating in a pay-per-click campaign, where your company’s ad appears above or next to the unpaid search results. These keywords are highly competitive to purchase, and you are required to pay the search engine company each time someone clicks on your link.
7. Don’t Overstuff your Site with Keywords
According to Google’s webmaster guidelines, it is advised to prioritize creating web pages for users rather than search engines. Excessive use of keywords can alter the content’s meaning and annoy readers, therefore it is best to avoid going overboard with it.
Please rephrase the text below while making sure to maintain the same meaning. Do not add or remove any information. Focus on making the text clear and easy to read. “First, decide which tasks are most important. Then, create a plan for completing those tasks. Once you have a plan, start working on the tasks one by one. Break each task down into smaller, manageable steps. As you complete each step, mark it off your list. Remember to take breaks and stay focused on the task at hand. Finally, review your progress and make adjustments if necessary.”
8. Get Social
Social media can be a valuable asset in your SEO strategy as individuals employ social media platforms as search engines. For instance, they frequently utilize Facebook’s search function to look for companies or products. Additionally, when individuals search for your company or related terms, your company’s social media profile will also appear in the search results.
9. Make Sure your Website is User-Friendly
To ensure your website is user-friendly, ensure it has a clean layout and is easily navigable. It is important to immediately convey your identity and the services provided to visitors. Enhance readability by incorporating numerous headings and placing your keywords in these headings. By doing so, the headings will be more noticeable to search engines, ultimately improving your search ranking.
In terms of SEO, it is crucial to consider site speed. Annoying your visitors with a slow-performing site should be avoided at all costs. Additionally, it is important to optimize your website for mobile platforms as search engines now penalize sites that are not mobile-friendly.
10. Measure Results
You can obtain additional information about your site’s SEO performance and your visitors by using free and inexpensive tools like Moz, SpyFu.com, SEMRush.com, and Google Analytics. These tools will provide insights into how your site was discovered (search engine, referring website, etc.), the geographical location of your visitors, and the duration of their stay on each page.
This blog post provides additional details on how to analyze your data for the purpose of optimizing your SEO performance. Moreover, if you are interested in comprehending the significance of conducting a website analysis and the necessary steps to perform one independently, refer to the article titled “How to conduct a website analysis”.
11. Be Patient
Monitor results from the first day, but do not anticipate quick outcomes. It typically takes a few months to make noticeable progress in search engine rankings. Additionally, bear in mind that SEO is continuously evolving. What proves effective today may not remain so in the next two or three years. Persist with your efforts and ensure you stay updated on the latest alterations that impact rankings.
12. Aim High
The majority of your users will not go beyond the initial page of search results. To have a favorable placement, it is important to be featured within the first two pages of search results. Once you reach page three, your page will be hardly visible to anyone. Hence, it is advisable to set high goals and strive for a prominent position in search results.
