8 Tips to Improve SEO for Local Business

According to an estimate in a 2017 Review Trackers’ study, more than 35% of all search traffic is local. That said, optimizing your site for local SEO is the key to driving users to your site. This is a crucial marketing strategy, especially for smaller regional businesses or companies that want to drive traffic to multiple locations.

Optimizing for local SEO helps you compete more effectively against established brands that have been in the industry for ages. Here are eight simple steps on how to improve local SEO for your business.

Optimize for Google My Business

Google My Business is one of the best tools for getting your business in front of local customers searching for your products and services. By creating a Google My Business account and filling your listing, your local business will appear on Google Search local results, Google Maps, and Google Search Knowledge Panel. This makes it easy for customers to find your address, business hours, photos, and other information.

Optimize Website Content for Local Keywords

You want to optimize your website for keywords that are relevant to your local customers. Once you’ve done keyword research and have a list of local keywords you’d like to target, infuse them into your web content, headers, meta descriptions, title tags, and other SEO elements to boost visibility.
If you’re not sure which keywords to target, we at Digital Engage understand the ins and outs of keyword research. We’ll help you target the right keywords to improve your local SEO.

Optimize Your Website for Mobile

Closely connected to the practical importance of local SEO is the rising use of mobile devices. Your local customer could be in the neighborhood and using their smartphone to look for a company like yours. Paying particular attention to mobile-friendly web design, for example, improves your local search rankings.

Create Local Content

Creating local content is a great way to grab a local customer’s attention. Consider setting up location-specific webpages or writing blog posts about local events and activities. Creating local content can help you gain authority for areas you’re targeting. For example, if you own a car dealership in Miami, you can write an article with maintenance tips or other location-specific advice for car owners in Miami.

 

Optimize for Voice Search

Thanks to the prevalence of voice assistants such as Siri and Alexa, voice search is gaining popularity. Businesses need to leverage this and optimize their content into more conversational tones. The trick is to make information readily available as more people will be seeking answers or solutions to a problem when using voice search.

Get High-Quality Relevant Links

High-quality, relevant links from other websites provide ample opportunities to boost your local SEO. They factor in Google’s local ranking algorithm because they indicate your legitimacy and authority in a particular field. An excellent first step is to get your business listed in online directories.

Leveraging your offline relationships is also another way to go. For example, you can talk to other businesses or partnerships about linking to your website. Publishing high-quality content is also beneficial, as others will want to link to your website.

Get Regular Reviews from Happy Customers

Online reviews are essential in today’s world of stars and ratings. According to various studies, many people value positive third-party opinions as much as personal recommendations. Be sure to encourage your customers to leave positive reviews.

Use Location Pages

If you’re serving customers in different locations, leverage location pages by optimizing them to target those specific areas. Include details specific to each location, such as photos, individualized descriptions, contact information, etc. on each of the respective pages. This will ensure that local search results are relevant to local customers.

The Importance of Local SEO

Some ways to improve your local SEO include optimizing your website for local keywords, building citations, getting reviews, using local directories to list your business, and many more. Following the tips mentioned above will help increase your business’s visibility to local customers and your bottom line. However, optimizing your web presence for local searches can be challenging, especially without technical expertise. Not to mention, you never know when Google will update your algorithm, so it’s crucial to stay up to date on the most recent developments.

Digital Engage is a digital marketing and web design company based in Tennessee. Our professional team has expertise in services like website design and development Drupal Development Services, Joomla Services, Hubspot, Prestashop and others. You should choose us because we provide professional consultation, value our clients, have a track record of success, and are always available to provide you with the most professional services. Call us today to learn more about our services.