What Is Local SEO and Why Is It Important for Your Business Strategy in 2019
An effective search engine optimization strategy gives you an online presence for the entire world to see. However, some businesses have a target customer base on a local level – in or near a city they are located in. For those businesses, local SEO is essential, and here is why.
The ever-expanding eCommerce industry resulted in the development of new strategies when it comes to marketing tactics. More and more businesses are learning about SEO and fighting for their share of the market in the online playfield.
But what if your business depends on customers finding you in real life? How can your local shop gain more visitors by reaching out to people through the world wide web? This is where local SEO comes in, which is one of the growing trends of digital marketing in 2019.
What Is Local SEO?
Local SEO has a goal of optimizing your webpage so people who are residing near your store can find your faster and easier. You will be required to optimize your site according to the name of your city and the address where your store is located, among other things.
While starting your local SEO campaign from your own service area is good, you should also consider mentioning neighboring cities and towns. If you’re offering a unique service that can’t be found in other nearby urban areas, it is a perfect opportunity for you to attract customers from those areas. If there is increased competition, however, other methods should be used as well.
Local SEO works similarly to standard SEO. The difference is that standard SEO works best for general information searches, while local optimization targets searches which have a purchase intent on a local level (searches that include “near me” or the location itself).
Stats About Local SEO
Google says that about 46% of the searches have what’s called a local intent, a number which has grown since these kinds of stats are being recorded. One-third of all mobile searches have local intent as well. But it’s not all about people searching for a nearby business. They also tend to visit what they find in search results.
Namely, 72% of visitors who make local research visit the store in the radius of five miles. Moreover, 50% of mobile users visit a local store within a day after conducting a local search. Another stat suggests that 28% of searches for an item that’s in a store nearby result in the purchase of that item.
All of these stats and more speak greatly of the value of local SEO. If you do your local optimization properly, you are guaranteed an increase of visitors and buyers.
The Role of Google My Business (GMB)
If you wish to expand your local reach, creating a business profile via Google My Business is a priority. Making a listing with this service is easy, and all you need to do is list several key details regarding your address, phone number, official website, working hours, etc.
Your profile should also include detailed contact information, the description of your business, and its category. Other stuff that people will see when they Google your business will be generated by customers who have had the pleasure of visiting your store.
GMB will help put your business on a map – quite literally. When people search for your type of business on Google Maps, your profile will be displayed in the top right.
How to Use Local SEO?
Local SEO is not exactly rocket science, but it’s not easy to do either. There are many things that you should know about SEO in general before you can dip in its local waters.
First, you need to be familiar with the three principles of local SEO, which are proximity, relevance, and prominence.
Proximity relates to the distance between your store and the searcher, and it is the number one ranking factor of local SEO. Relevance tells Google and other search engines how relevant your business is to the specific search queries. It implements the same strategies as general SEO. You boost your relevance by working on your on-page and off-page signals.
Prominence is about working on your brand and gaining credibility through customer reviews, citations, links, and articles. Use tools to generate more reviews and make sure to respond to them as much as possible.
Conclusion
Of course, there’s a lot more to say about each one of these principles and about local SEO in general. However, these are only the basics of local SEO that you need to be familiar with right now. Once you understand how local optimization works, you will be able to achieve a higher online presence in your surrounding area.