Are you the owner of a new small business that is in pursuit of a stream of local audience, but does not enjoy the reach and resources of a nationally recognized brand? If so, you can focus on your local SEO strategies, which when done right, will capture the right audience and referral traffic to your website by focusing on your specific location. By forging a local SEO strategy that is very relevant to your local customers, local SEO helps you appear on location-based searches for maximum engagement.
How do you improve your local SEO strategies for business?
Here are the various ways in which you can improve your local SEO.
- Create a Google My Business Account
Wondering how to improve your local SEO easily? Google My Business is a free service that establishes your presence on the search engine. Verify your presence on Google My Business by providing the latest information about your company, your logo, products/ services, payment methods, working hours, and so on. Doing this will help people find you on Google Maps and help you show up on search results as well, making your business accessible to the world. Additionally, you could pop up in the sidebar space of a Google search if Google authenticates your business. Once your profile is set up, encourage your customers to leave honest reviews and respond to every one of them.
- Ask for positive reviews
Customer reviews aid you in building the goodwill of your company. A perfect way to improve your local SEO is to make sure your customers are satisfied. After filtering out your satisfied customers, you can ask them to leave good reviews about your product or service via personal mail or text. A great number of positive reviews will encourage more of your potential customers to avail the services of your company. Address the reviews of the dissatisfied customers with grace and thank those who leave happy reviews. Many companies even organize promotional activities where part of the event is to leave a review. You can do this as a part of your local SEO strategies.
- Make sure your website is mobile optimized
According to Statista’s report of 2019, there are 3 billion internet users across the globe of which 51.65 per cent constitute mobile internet users. Also, a survey organized by Forbes in 2019 states that 95 per cent of smartphone users used their phones to search for local businesses. Of this 95 per cent, 61 per cent contacted the business and 59 per cent visited the stores. As everyone is “on the go” all the time, most of the web surfing is done on the phone. It is important to give an optimal experience to people who access your website from their phones. This is where mobile optimization comes in, which takes into account different screen-sizes and loading speed, making sure that people will not leave your site due to inconvenience. A mobile optimized website is flexible as it reformats itself to the optimal experience of various handheld devices.
- Plan your keywords
You need to factor in specific details that are endemic to your area while you tailor your local SEO strategies. This is why you will want to pick your keywords carefully. Google has a service called Keyword Planner and it lets you filter keyword searches that are based on location, which will help you find keywords that are relevant to your area. This makes your site relevant to the local community and will make your presence even greater. Do not forget to add the proximity of your business from various landmarks and hotspots in the locality.
- Optimize Local Business Directories
When you are setting up your online presence, you may want to take advantage of online business directories. Studies show that 79 per cent of people search online for local stores before making a purchase. It would only be wise to add your company’s up-to-date information such as your address, phone number and your business name on these directories as it increases your chance to appear in local search results. Create your business profiles on high quality, high ranking local directories which will boost your visibility and rank on SERPs.
- Encourage Others to Link Back to You
You will want to make sure you are dedicated to putting high-quality content on your website not only for the sake of quality but also to create sharable links for others. As a part of your local SEO strategies, you can also partner with local influencers who can link back to your website, so that you get more traction to your site. More traction to the website means more revenue, which in turn leads to more growth.
Google’s reports say that two-thirds of smartphone users are very likely to shop from businesses that have well-tailored online information. The content on the website, on-page optimization activities, and your link building strategies are crucial to the customization of your content so that it fits the needs of a potential customer who performs a local search. If you need undivided attention to the local SEO for your business, choose the services of a link building agency like Directory Maximizer, who can help you with your local SEO.
