Local SEO: Keeping the Home Fires Burning

You’re a local business – or you conduct business locally – which makes getting yourself out there in front of the local market paramount. The Web Guys knows attracting local customers isn’t just about ad placement – there’s also local SEO to consider. Your local customers are their own unique subset, and they have their own unique ways of doing things. There’s no reason to push a square peg into a round hole here – getting a better handle on local SEO can help extend your reach to the very group you’re most interested in connecting with.

You’re Local, They’re Local: There’s Nothing Not to Love

Search engine optimization matters and local SEO targets customers in your area – the ones who are most likely to avail themselves of your wares and services. When it comes to local businesses, it doesn’t get any better than that, and one of the best tools at your disposal is getting your brand out in front of your target audience via local SEO.

You’re Going for Visibility Here

You join local listings, create local landing pages, and polish your online reputation in a bid for improved brand visibility in the sweepstakes that are search engine results. For their part, search engines like Google pay attention to information about location with every online move your company makes. The idea is to hook local consumers up with local businesses that sell what they’re looking for, and both relevance and credibility are key.

Ready to Get Started?

If you’re ready for your turn in the local market, there are several helpful hints to get you started.

Pay Attention to Your Google Business Profile

You probably don’t need to be reminded that the vast majority of search traffic comes directly from Google. When those local customers whom you’re ready to woo search online, they are – for the most part – turning to Google. This means your Google game needs to be tight, which translates to making sure your Google Business Profile is not only complete but also optimized.

Details to keep in mind include:

• Make sure your hours of operation, contact info, and address are all correct.
• Hit up Google Maps to ensure their directions are accurate and are guiding your people to the right place, which is especially important if you have more than one location.
• When you sync FAQs to your profile, you help answer your local clientele’s questions with minimal effort on their part – while you also broaden your reach.
• By posting company updates in relation to promotions, offers, and announcements, you help focus the local spotlight on your business.

Inconsistencies Create Chaos: Streamline the Process

If you’re only thinking about Google, you’re doing your business and your local customers a disservice. The fact is that Google does a rolling check-in with other online sources, including all the following:

• Facebook and other social media channels
• Apple Maps
• Bing and other search engines

When the information you share across platforms isn’t consistent, it weakens your local standing and can frustrate your potential customers and their ability to connect with you. Taking the time to keep your website updated and to keep all that third-party info in sync can go a long way toward bolstering your local standing.

Give Your Local Landing Page the Love It Deserves

Your local landing pages are designed specifically to entice locals who are in the market for what you have on offer – or who might be steered in that direction – into pulling the sales trigger. If your company has specials, hosts events, has more than one location, or has specific services or products you want to highlight, creating corresponding local landing pages can help spread the word to your target audience.

When it comes to optimizing local landing pages, all the following count:

• These local pages need to load swiftly and seamlessly – nothing less will do.
• Most of your local customers are looking you up on the fly, which means they’re using a mobile device or tablet. Failing to be mobile-friendly will not serve you well.
• When your local landing pages are rich with schema markup – or structured data – it affords search engines a bird’s-eye view of your content, which translates to better-informed users.

Manage Your Reputation

As a local company, your reputation on the ground couldn’t be more important, and your online presence can play a vital role. Google takes a holistic approach when it comes to ranking your business, and this includes giving reviews that don’t originate with Google a look. In other words, publishing reviews directly on your local landing pages helps put a brighter shine on your reputation, and another important factor is having a well-considered reputation management strategy in place.

Take a Global View

You’re targeting a local market, but this doesn’t mean you shouldn’t be taking a global view in the sense of monitoring how, where, when, and why your local audience is interacting with your brand online. Identifying trends in your online performance provides you with the information you need to fine-tune your online offerings. Strategies to try include:

• Incorporating keywords that real people – like your local customers – use in real searches
• Taking a holistic view of how customers prefer to engage with your business, including in relation to written content, visuals, videos, and beyond
• Understanding how your customers experience your brand through review analytics
• Paying attention to trends in your company’s performance over time, including in relation to your competitors

When it comes to local SEO, you’re on a journey that begins with just one step – reach out to a digital marketing professional today.

A Digital Marketing Pro Can Help You Master Your Local Market

The digital marketing experts at The Web Guys know their way around local markets and are standing by to help you dominate yours with SEO guidance that can take your online presence to the next level. We’ve got the experience, resources, and knowhow to help improve your website design, email marketing, social media management, and more! We serve areas across Indiana, Michigan, Arizona, and Florida including Carmel, Sarasota, Indianapolis, Evansville, Fort Wayne, Phoenix, Scottsdale, and Grand Rapids. Contact us at (317) 805-4933 to learn more today.