Local Search Engine Optimization (SEO) has become increasingly popular as local businesses compete for the attention of local consumers. The benefits of SEO for a small business include increased web traffic and an increase in online sales. What many small businesses do not realize, however, is that their physical location is an important factor in the effectiveness of their local SEO efforts. It is important to localize your Internet marketing so that you reach potential customers in their local area. For example, it makes sense for small business owners in a specific region to target keywords related to that region on their website.
For example, if a person searches “Mallory Square Shopping Center in Philadelphia PA” on a search engine, they are more likely to find a business listing close by, rather than a business in a completely different region. On a local seo campaign, a business listing in the right region will draw more traffic. The right keywords also play a large role in local SEO. These keywords must relate to your target audience. For instance, a website promoting local events in the Greater Toronto Area would most likely use the phrase “causes local events” rather than “theater.”
When the consumer types in a search query into a search engine such as Google, Yahoo!, and MSN, their search results list websites that are most frequently targeted with their search query. A local SEO campaign should also target websites targeting similar searches, as well as websites that are highly ranked within the larger search engine. The largest search engine in the world, Google, uses its algorithms to rank websites according to relevancy. This ranking process is called Google Local.
In order to appear on the first page of Google Local, a website must show relevance to a searcher’s search query. Google’s Local Ranking algorithm takes into consideration a variety of factors such as title tags, meta description, and keywords. The higher a website ranks according to these factors, the higher up in the search results it will appear. This is one of the main reasons why local seo is so important for local businesses.
Google is not the only player in the game when it comes to local use. Yahoo! Local is another huge player when it comes to local use. Yahoo! Local features an advertising tool called Zagat, which allows local businesses to submit information about themselves to be reviewed by other local businesses and users like you and me.
Another popular way to gain local SEO traction is through content marketing, also known as blog posts. Content marketing revolves around putting valuable information about your business on various blogs throughout the internet. Blog posts can include local SEO content, but also things such as tips on how to grow organic traffic or help with customer service problems. Google has taken notice of blog posts and has begun to place more emphasis on them when determining where websites rank on its search engine. Local business should make sure that all of their marketing efforts include blog posts in order to gain some local SEO traction.
Another way to gain some organic search result leverage for local seo is by getting listed on the mobile devices of users in your local area. As mentioned above, Google has taken note of the mobile devices that are used by users when searching for local business. If your website is listed on the cell phones of local searchers, then it stands to reason that those searchers will eventually go to your website to see what you have to offer. A smart, local SEO strategy would involve listing on the cell phones of local shoppers. Mobile devices give local businesses the opportunity to reach a wide variety of customers.
The last strategy in local seo deals with the issue of user experience. Users do not like it when they have to jump through a lot of hoops just to find what they want. Rather than having to jump through hoops, a smart local SEO service would include a feature where a user can simply “contact us” after they have been unable to find the information that they are looking for through their search results.
