An area of SEO that may fly under the radar of those learning about such things is Local SEO, that is, optimizing your online presence from relevant local searches. For small business owners that require a lot of business from local customers, having an online presence that allows locals to be aware of and interested in their business could be crucial in boosting sales and success. There are a couple of key steps a business can take to promote success in optimizing their local SEO.
First is for the business to claim their “Google My Business” (GMB) profile. By doing this it promotes the website in local map searches and increases the likelihood of being ranked higher in local results. GMB also allows businesses to post updates about promotions and other relevant news regarding the company. Next, it is crucial to ensure that all the information regarding the business is up to date, quality, and accurate. This includes the business name, phone number, address, website, and hours. Another step is to target local keywords such as the name of the city the business is based in or key landmarks in close proximity to the location. It is also helpful to ensure the local business has a presence across different directories such as TripAdvisor and Yelp.
Online customer engagement can be extremely helpful in boosting SEO and creating a reputable and engaging appearance online. Encouraging customer reviews and responding and interacting to these reviews can go a long way. Creating content that is relevant to the location of the business is another great way to engage customers. Building relationships with other businesses and collaborating with them is a healthy business habit to begin with, but it can also be a great way of acquiring more links to your business and boosting online traffic. There are many ways to engage with a local community online and to optimize local SEO, and for any small business looking to succeed I highly recommend taking some time to do so.
2 Responses
Really good post especially in mentioning the combination of GMB with TripAdvisor and Yelp. If companies are able to get those profiles set up it can be game changing in getting website and foot traffic!
Hi! I found this post really helpful because my client for my SEO project is located in a small town. I’ve been trying to use keywords that are relevant to the area my client is located in, so it’s good to know that I’m on the right track to optimizing my website for local SEO.