Local SEO is a search engine optimization tactic that businesses use to focus their SEO strategies on local searches. Instead of competing with other businesses all over the world, they focus on one location so they can have a better chance to rank high in search engine results pages or SERPs. Therefore, it can give them more leads and have a higher chance of turning into conversions.
Here is a guide on how you can rank your business using local SEO strategy:
Step 1: Create a Mobile-Friendly Website
Search engines give plus points to websites that are responsive. You can use site-building software such as Site Beginner to create your own website. Make simple pages that won’t look messy or doesn’t have any distracting elements like colors that are too bright, or flashy images.
People usually rely on their smartphones when searching for something, that’s why your website should have a responsive mobile version. If your site isn’t mobile-friendly, they may not continue browsing through your pages because it may be slow or worse, it doesn’t appear in the mobile SERP at all.
Step 2: Register in Google My Business
Google My Business is a huge player in local SEO. The box where local businesses appear when you search for places near you is called the snack pack. It is displayed higher, on top of the organic results.
Open up Google My Business and enter the following information:
- Business name
- Address
- Contact information (phone, email)
- Website
Pin your location on the Google map screen that will appear and verify your listing. Google will give you instructions on how to verify, and usually, you’ll receive a phone call or a postcard. Once verified, you can add other info such as your operating hours, individual services, and even photos.
Step 3: Keyword Research
Keywords are crucial for SEO. For local SEO, the key here is to use keywords plus the location. For example, you’re a pool cleaning service in Napa, California. You can use keywords such as:
- pool cleaning service in Napa, CA
- pool cleaners in Napa, CA
- swimming pool maintenance in Napa
When you use a keyword generator, you’ll find that plenty of results would appear. You can use any of those and use more than one. However, don’t use all of them in a single web page. It’s called keyword stuffing, and that’s just one of the black hat SEO techniques you should try not to use.
Step 4: On-Page SEO
On-page SEO is when you optimize the pages of your website. Below are a few ways you can do that, and remember you need to incorporate keywords on these to optimize them.
- Blogs – Write helpful articles and blogs that are useful for your potential visitors.
- URL – Keep your URLs short and include the keywords as well.
- Title – Include the keywords in the title of your pages.
- Meta description – This is the short description that appears below the title on the SERP.
- Images – Photos can be optimized, too, by adding tags and a title on the photo.
Step 5: Link Building
Links are also one of the biggest players in SEO. A good backlink profile can help you rank higher in SERPs.
You can do this in two ways:
- Creating blog posts
In step 4, it’s mentioned to write blogs on your website. These articles should be relevant to your industry, and should contain useful information for the people. So for a pool cleaning service in Napa, you could come up with articles such as Tips on Making Your Pool Stay Clean Longer, or Why It’s Important To Balance the Chemicals In Your Pool. - Guest blogging
Find blog sites that are in the same industry as yours and see if they allow guest blogging. You can contribute an article for that blog which contains a link to your website. It’s how you bring in the visitors on your site.
Step 6: Regularly Update
The snack pack listing on Google allows customer reviews and questions. When someone has a relevant query, make sure to respond. It’s not only the website’s responsiveness that’s necessary, but also yours as the business owner.
Update your content as well. If you’re not thrilled with the idea of changing your content often, create evergreen content that is relevant for a long time. Make sure to always be on the lookout for errors such as grammar and spelling mistakes. Those may be small things, but they can affect your reputation by changing the way people view your professionalism and attention to the business.
Final Thoughts
SEO is such a broad topic, and many strategies can fit one business better than another. The key is to know what suits your business best and working your way through it. It’s going to take some time for you to learn everything, especially with such a vast amount of information, but it’s all worth it in the end.
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