In this guide, you will learn about the basics of local SEO.
Local SEO is crucial for small businesses. According to statistics, 4 out of 5 customers search for local information. This means if your business is not optimized for local searches, you might be losing 80% of your customers. It is significant if you want to reach your target audience and stay relevant.
This guide talks about everything you need to know about local SEO.
What is Local SEO?
To simply put it, local SEO can be defined as the method of improving your online presence to attract customers, increase leads, and brand awareness from local searches. Search engines use the location of the users depending on the IP addresses for deciding what results to show. This means when people search for services like car wash or dentist, they will see the results based on their location.
According to Google, near me, searches have increased by almost 150% instead of conventional local-based searches. Also, 46% of the searches have local intent. And 74% of customers visit the store that day after searching for something locally.
So, this makes it clear that local searches are imperative for businesses to be visible and attract more customers.
How Does It Work?
Now that you know what local SEO is, let’s see how it works. Local SEO works exactly like normal searches. When you search for something, the search engine will scan through the index and display the right results for the query.
The only difference is that Google uses various factors for ranking such as NAP citations, keywords used in online reviews, shares on social media, Google Maps star rating for the business, and much more.
Tips and Tricks for Local SEO
Here are some tips that you can follow.
Try Using Location-Based Keywords
If you want to improve the organic ranking for your business, you should use location focused keywords. For instance, you are a dentist offering services in Los Angeles. You can use a keyword like a dentist Los Angeles. It will be better to use the keyword in the headline.
Add Google Map Direction on Your About Page
There is no better way to improve your local SEO than to show where you are located. A wonderful way to do it is by embedding a google map on your About Us page. Doing this is extremely easy, all you have to do is find your business on Google Maps and get the embed code.
Get Help From Review Sites
You can create accounts on reviews sites like Yellow Pages, Angie’s List, Yelp, and Insider Pages. It is important to encourage customers to write reviews about your business. Good reviews of your business can be helpful.
Hence, local SEO is crucial for small businesses more than ever in tiring times as these. We hope this guide will help you have an understanding of what local SEO is and how you can optimize your website. You can always get a professional from an SEO agency in Melbourne.
