Local SEO marketing entails targeting a specific audience that already shows interest in what you offer. This can be an effective way to reduce advertising expenses and boost conversions.
Additionally, social media helps foster trust and authority for your business, giving you a competitive advantage that you may not otherwise possess.
Keyword Research
Keyword research is an integral element of any successful local SEO campaign. It can help identify the terms people use to search for products or services in your region, which in turn leads to highly-targeted traffic.
Conduct keyword research by creating a list of words related to your business and industry. This will serve as the basis for selecting which ones to target and creating content around.
Once you have a large list, use a keyword research tool to assess search volume and competition metrics for each keyword. Many tools will also provide additional data such as questions people ask and changes in search volume over time.
Local Business Listings
Local business listings are an essential element of your local SEO strategy. Not only are they free, easy to claim and optimize, but they provide a powerful way to boost your visibility locally.
A successful business listing is essential for achieving top rankings and attracting new customers. You should claim and optimize your listings on reliable business directories, making sure all information – like your name, address, phone number and website URL – remains consistent across all platforms.
Particularly on Google Business Profile, which is the most prominent local listing available on SERP. Utilizing Semrush’s Listing Management tool will allow you to quickly verify your presence and distribute your data across directories worldwide.
On-Page Optimization
No matter if your business is brand new or well-established, local SEO is essential for getting noticed. When done properly, it helps potential customers locate you quickly and takes them one step closer towards making a purchase.
Search engines use crawlers or spiders to explore and evaluate content on a site, helping them build an index of answers to user inquiries.
SEO is an intricate subject, so it’s essential to stay abreast of the most up-to-date best practices. On-page optimization plays a vital role in this, as it optimizes elements within pages which could boost their rankings and draw in more visitors.
Off-Page Optimization
Off-page optimization (OPO) is an umbrella term for all efforts taken outside your website to boost its page rank in search engine results pages. It encompasses link building, blogging, social media promotion, content marketing, forums and influencer outreach – and more!
Off-Page SEO can be a highly successful strategy for increasing your rankings in search engines, particularly local business listings. One of the most essential elements of off-page optimization is getting links from high-quality sites; this can be accomplished through tactics such as guest blogging, social media outreach and pursuing competitors’ backlinks.
Search engines use backlinks, also known as backlinks, to indicate that a page is of noteworthy quality and deserves higher placement in results. There are two primary types of backlinks: do-follow and no-follow, each having an impact on search engine rankings differently.
Local Citations
Local citations are online mentions of a business’ name, address, phone number and website (NAP). These can help a company gain visibility and boost its search engine rankings.
Citations are another way for Google to verify your business is legitimate and operating efficiently. When your business has consistent citations across multiple reputable websites, it can help boost its local search ranking.
Citations should be the cornerstone of any local SEO marketing plan. However, it’s essential to prioritize high-authority citations over low ones.
Social Media
Social media is an effective tool for increasing brand awareness and connecting with audiences. Though often underestimated, social media can also have a beneficial effect on your local SEO rankings.
Instagram, for instance, lets you geotag your photos – this helps Google verify the location of your business and display it as a result in local searches.
Facebook reviews can also be displayed in search results, which could sway a potential client to call or visit your store. When combined with NAP (name, address and phone number), these elements increase your likelihood of ranking high on local Google searches.