Local SEO: A guide to Local Search Engine Marketing
What is Local SEO?
Local SEO (Local Search Engine Optimization), is sometimes referred to as local search marketing. It is an incredibly effective way to market your local business online. It helps local businesses promote their products and services to local customers when thye search for them online and in search engines.
The results are achieved through a variety of methods. Most of these results come through standard SEO, which are far easier to manage using local SEO tools and can require specific local SEO or local search marketing services from an SEO specialist.
Local SEO FAQs
The main difference between general organic SEO and local SEO is that local SEO has the geographical element.
If a user searches for an industry/service/product in your geographical location, the search engine, whether it is Google, Bing, Yahoo or even Facebook – knows that the search has local intent. All search engines want is to provide the user exactly what they’re searching for. If you are a local business that has implemented local SEO specifically then you are almost always going to show up ahead of one that has not.
If you are a small local business and offer services within your local area then having a local search engine optimization strategy is a must. You want to not only outrank your competitors but offer the search user the answer they are looking for. Implementing an SEO strategy will increase yous site traffic, attract new and existing customers.
Lets not forget that Google is the largest Search Engine in the world so your placement in Google is very important. The number of searches is dependant on the are you live and the product or services you offer. According to Google, back in 2018 46% of all searches within Google were carried out by users searching for local information. So, its pretty important!
There are so many benefits I can list for this question but here are just a few:
- A stronger web presence in your local market
- Higher search engine rankings in local search
- Your web content will rank higher in search, driving more traffic to your site.
- Increased website traffic
- An increase in phone calls from local potential customers
- An increase in foot traffic to your business location
- Increased sales revenue
- An increase in repeat business
- Stronger local community presence
Local and National Search Engine Optimization
How can Local SEO grow your business?
If you are marketing to your local target demographic then SEO needs to be at the forefront of your mind so your new and existing customers can find your site. You can guarantee at least one of your competitors is using SEO to grow their business.
One thing you can do immediately is claim your Google My Business. if you have not done this already then please do it. This gives you an automatic placement in Google near the top for local services or products you offer. Google My Business.
Hiring a local SEO specialist can really help grow your brand withing search engines and give that ever needed boost to more traffic and more importantly increased revenue.
How can Local SEO grow your business?
DID YOU KNOW? According to Google, 46% of searches have a ‘local intent’.
Anyone in the world with good enough SEO and authority can rank for a search query like ‘how to fix a leaking tap’, when the query has much more intent behind it, it becomes ‘plumbers near me’ or ‘best plumber in your location’.
For these types of local search query, which typically include a location or ‘near me’, search engines understand that what the searcher wants is business suggestions or results based on location, and so that’s precisely what they offer up in the local search engine results pages (SERPs). This difference in behaviour and result is precisely why local SEO is important and worth investing in alongside standard SEO.
