Local SEO is more important than ever thanks to an increase in mobile devices and usage. In order to get people through your door, you need to have a strong local campaign that attracts and maintains local customers. Fortunately, there are many free, simple and effective techniques involving local SEO that will improve rankings and boost ROI.
Dos of Local SEO
- Do optimize local pages using local keywords. At the very least, the page’s title tag should include the name of your company, a keyword and the location. These factors should also be considered when writing the meta description.
- Do write in a natural fashion. You don’t want to cram your brand name, location and several keywords into one title tag. Organic, conversationalist writing is best.
- Do create a Google+ Local page for each business location. This free profile will help you to be found easier, and the listing will appear next to the relevant search results.
- Do make sure that all names, phone numbers and addresses are consistent on local profiles, your website and social media. Google will look to third party sites like Yelp and Foursquare for reviews.
- Do get a local phone number. Unfortunately, 800 numbers won’t work for local SEO.
- Do encourage customers to leave reviews either on Google or third party sites. You can request this on a menu, business card or receipt, for instance. Reviews improve your rank, visibility and credibility.
- Do add greater appeal to potential customers by adding pictures, links and videos about your business. Make sure this content is optimized for mobile devices.
Don’ts of Local SEO
- Don’t make your content spammy by adding too many keywords or unnatural text. Remember, natural, interesting conversation is key.
- Don’t ever pay for fake reviews. It may seem like a good idea to boost reviews with the help of willing, paid participants or your own reviews, but it’s not. It’s hard to rebuild your credibility after posting fake comments.
- Don’t forget about your online presence. You can achieve a strong reputation with the basics: by providing excellent service and meeting your customers’ diverse needs.
- Don’t pay to be in a directory. Just like fake reviews, search engines don’t like this and will look at it as spammy behavior.
- Don’t make it difficult for customers to review you. Encourage reviews by offering direct links in emails or newsletters.
Similar to having a solid website, a good local presence comes from impeccable customer service, involvement in your community and a dedicated local profile that brings in reviews from loyal customers. With hard work and dedication, your local SEO efforts will pay off.
Need help building a rock solid local profile? Or maybe you need suggestions for improving your local search rankings using SEO. Let a team member from SEMGeeks help you out. Call us today at 1-866-405-4435.
