One common goal of all local businesses is to grab as big a share of the local market as they can. One way you can help your business show up higher in local searches is to optimize your website using proven local SEO techniques.
Often, small, local businesses tend to think too big, overshooting their audience and missing out on tons of local business. They focus on a more general message and forget about the importance of speaking directly to the specific needs of a local audience.
There is a huge potential for business growth for small businesses that focus their marketing on the local audience.
To grab a big share of the local business, you need to optimize your website and other digital presence so that when people search for things like “best hamburger in Galveston, Texas” or “bicycle shop near me”, your store shows up in those searches.
To make it happen, having a strong local SEO strategy is critical.
Let’s dig into the subject of local SEO and look at how it can help give a boost to your business.
What Is Local SEO?
SEO stands for search engine optimization which means optimizing your website to gain organic traffic from visitors using search engines like Google or Bing to find information they seek.
The concept of local SEO comes from the idea of marketing your business in the local area, and optimizing your website and digital presence to ensure you grab your share of the local searches looking for the products or services you offer. In order for your small business to earn more profit, you should first make sure that it is visible to your local audience.
How Does Local SEO Benefit Your Small Business?
Local SEO is very helpful to small businesses who earn most of their business from local patrons. Online shopping has allowed businesses of all size to appeal to customers from anywhere in the world, but many local businesses, even with an online presence, earn much of their business from nearby.
Thus, when someone is looking for what your business offers, and they want to get it from a local company, you need to appear at the top of their searches to gain that business.
Why does ranking matter for local small businesses?
When it comes to becoming a locally renowned business, the ranking matters a lot. If your business is on the internet lost in the online market crowd, you will miss out on tons of business.
You need to get the best local SEO services because local SEO will rank your business search engines, making it visible to the audience you want to target. With the help of local SEO, your business could rank for targeted local keywords increasing the exposure of your business in the locally targeted area.
Lead Generation
Lead generation is something that every business struggles with, but not those who focus on local SEO to boost their business.
As we mentioned above, local SEO can improve the ranking of your business website which means it will attract more and more internet users – specifically ones who are actively searching for what you have to offer.
With proper optimization, you can convert your visitors into leads that will further be converted into buyers as you move them through the pipeline.
Stats from this WebFX article (via HubSpot) show that leads that show up via SEO convert at about 8.5 times the rate of other sources.
Brand Image
The brand image of your business is one of the most important factors when it comes to business success. Every business wants to stand out to be the best in the market, and brand image is something that can make your business the most unique or likable one.
Local SEO can help your business have a stunning brand image or online reputation. The more users connect with your brand, the more they’ll stay on your site or share your content. This will boost your website stats, which Google views favorably when rankings sites.
Ranking of Google Business
This one is probably the most important thing when it comes to local SEO. By now you must have got an idea about the entire concept of getting the importance of focusing on local SEO.
The main motive of local SEO is to increase the exposure of your business in the local market and your Google Business (GB) listing plays a crucial role in it. Whenever an internet user is looking for a product or service on the internet, the first thing that he/she sees is the GMB listing.
Optimizing the GB listing is a very important part of any local SEO campaign. This will help your GB rank higher on the SERP.
These were just some of the benefits that your business can get with a good local SEO pack. But now it comes down to which local SEO tactics you should select.
Which local SEO tactics should you use?
This is probably the toughest decision because there are many companies that are providing local SEO packages, and there is a lot you can do in house as well. There are a couple of things that you should keep in mind if you want nothing but the best for your business.
The first thing that you need to consider is the local SEO package pricing and the additional cost of the listings and other aspects.
It is important to get pocket-friendly rates because your small business would like to have minimum investment and maximum ROI. You can also hire someone in house, but that comes, typically, with a hefty salary and paying for benefits.
Depending on the level of work you need done, local SEO can be very affordable, or it can be seriously expensive. One way to save some money and make sure you have local listings on all the right directories is to leverage a resource like Yext.
Yext allows you to craft one company description, upload it with all the right details (contact info, business hours, etc.) and then the platform will distribute it across tons of quality directories to instantly boost your local presence.
There are also a number of Yext alternatives to consider. So, do your research and determine which one is best for you.
If you decide to work with a company, one important thing to consider is the case studies of the company that you are about to deal with.
You should always know what quality of service the company has provided to its previous clients. And they should be able to prove the value they added for other clients.
Conclusion
Conducting local SEO activities is very important for any business, especially if you operate locally and source most of your business from the local community.
It helps the business get recognition in the local market. If your business is focusing on the local market, then you got to have the best local SEO packs.
- Why is Local SEO Important for Your Small Business? - May 12, 2021
A successful “local SEO” campaign will help your business because: Local SEO increases your website’s rankings in the search results and in the local pack. It increases organic traffic to your website & helps you earn more qualified leads. It will also help you outrank your local competitors.
All great points, Robert. Local SEO is so important for local businesses. Failing to focus on local SEO, you miss out on so many opportunities with people search on their mobile and other devices for nearby solutions to their purchasing needs.