This makes your business easier for new customers to discover. Local SEO is a search engine optimization (SEO) strategy that helps your business be more visible in Google's local search results. From increased visibility to a more reliable appearance, dabbling in local SEO is a great option for your marketing efforts. Stop wasting your time and money in unrealistic competitive markets and focus on generating meaningful impressions right where you need them. If you're at work and want a pizza delivered to eat, for example, when you Google “pizza delivery”, a list of locations near your office is displayed on your local SERPS (search engine results pages).
That's why Google's local search algorithm includes a proximity factor, a sophisticated way of saying that Google takes your location into account when you search for a local keyword (a query with local intent). And since nearly half (46%) of Google searches consist of localized searches, you can't afford to lose this traffic. However, with the recent growth of mobile Internet access, mobile searches have exploded, so local SEO has become hugely important for the success of any company offering local products or services and for local sellers. While paying for ads may have been your only chance to gain high visibility before, using local SEO will reduce the need for these measures.
Focusing your SEO on local markets takes your status as a small fish out of the big pond and leaves you in a more realistically sized pool. Local SEO is a type of search engine marketing that involves optimizing your company's website and online profiles for local search. Using a broad SEO approach for a company that depends on local traffic opens the door to a lot of dead-end visits. There are many factors that influence your visibility in these searches, but keep in mind that local search continues to grow and change.
So, local SEO isn't just about rankings and traffic, but also about converting that traffic into paying customers and loyal followers for your local business. And while it may seem like an impossible feat to take on your biggest and most established competitors, the truth is that local SEO can give any company a good opportunity to rank high in Google search results. If you search Google for important keywords related to your business and a map with 3 listings (also known as a map package) appears below, local SEO can help you grow your business. Now that you better understand the basics of SEO and how Google ranks local search results, you can start focusing on the signals that will optimize your site's digital footprint in the local-oriented search ecosystem. Local SEO involves optimizing your website to rank higher on Google Maps and attracting more customers through your Google My Business profile.
Of course, you're the owner of a busy business and have a lot of tasks to do, so if you're looking for a professional to optimize your site for local search, give us a call.