Local SEO, or search engine optimization, is important for any kind of business. With local businesses, this can be a huge factor in getting more business. Up to 80% of local searches convert into paying customers.
When someone is searching for a local business, that means they're willing to go out and spend money right now. A good local SEO strategy means practically guaranteed new customers for your business.
Local searches are becoming an increasingly popular to find businesses nearby. Almost everyone finds out about local business online, with 97% of consumers using online media to shop locally, and 82% look for reviews online before visiting a business.
Local SEO has some of the same factors as regular SEO, such as incoming links from other sites, good relevant content, a fast loading site, and technical on-page factors like meta tags and structured data. However, there are some additional factors and differences.
One major factor unique to local SEO is setting up a Google My Business profile. When you search for local businesses, for example "restaurants," Google shows a map with a few results at the top.
Nailing your local SEO will mean your business shows up at the top of the page when people search for popular terms like this. These businesses have verified their profiles, added photos, and received a lot of positive reviews from their customers. These are just some of the factors that help your business show at the top of the page.
Adding photos of your business and products helps to complete your Google My Business profile, but you can also add posts. This is a good place to share any special deals your business is having, or news like any new product or service you're offering.
With any kind of SEO, backlinks are very important. When a relevant website links to your site, and Google sees this other site as reputable, and assumes your site must also be reputable.
With local SEO, it's important to gain backlinks from other local sites, such as business directories. These kind of links establish the legitimacy of your local business, and let Google know it's trustworthy.
Profiles on sites such as Yelp also help. Google wants to see that people are visiting your business and leaving positive reviews. Setting up social media profiles like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter also help with SEO, along with posting content there regularly and having engaged followers that like your posts and leave comments.
Adding resources to your website, like this blog, can help your site rank higher in Google. Not only is it valuable for users, but it can encourage other websites to link to your site, and we've just discussed the importance of backlinks. The more quality and relevant websites linking to your site, the better your site should rank.
Practically any type of business can add a blog to their website by providing useful information to their customers or related information that anyone on the Internet might find useful.
At Bidwell Websites, we've created this blog to provide helpful information to potential customers, while also trying to provide value to anyone who's interested in web design and development.
Your website should be easy to use, no matter if someone is using a desktop or laptop computer, a tablet, or a smartphone. The layout and design of the site should make it easy to navigate and find the information you're looking for.
Another factor in usability is page speed. When people have to wait too long for a webpage to load, they're likely to just hit the back button and move on to the next result. Google has also claimed page speed is a ranking factor. Either way, users returning the search results before using your site is bad for business, and bad for your rankings.
If you'd like your business to have more visibility with Google searches, and gain more customers who are ready and excited to give you a visit, then we can help with local SEO.
