Around 80% of local searches lead to conversions, and a high conversion rate is one of the most important indicators of marketing success. Not only does local SEO drive valuable traffic and leads, but it’s also a sustainable way to grow online without perpetually relying on high ad spend.
If you have a physical store or offer services locally, optimizing your website for local SEO is definitely a must.
Local SEO vs Standard SEO
Standard SEO targets the broader, geographically diverse audience. Local SEO, on the other hand, hones in on specific locations such as cities and districts.
Google uses a different set of algorithms and criteria to rank localized results. Even if the keyword users type in don’t have the words “near me”, Google will automatically consider proximity, especially if the keyword has a local intent.
For example, when people search for ‘best pizza’, Google shows a map of nearby business listings. There’s a unique section at the very top of the results page, listing the top three search results, also called the Local Pack. If you’re offering local products or services, one of your main SEO goals should be to make it to this Google Map Pack.
Optimizing your website for local SEO is not an option– it’s a must. According to Google:
- 30% of all mobile searches are location-related
- 78% of people who search for a local business on their phones visit it within a day
- 28% of searches for something nearby lead to a purchase.
The Local SEO subset is definitely unique and worthwhile since it actually translates to direct calls and foot traffic. Whether you’re a retail business, restaurant, hotel, or a service provider like HVAC, plumber, or electrician, optimizing your website for ‘near me’ queries can help you drive unpaid traffic and conversions for a winning business.
But how exactly does local SEO work? While standard SEO highly considers content quality and website usability, Google mainly uses the following criteria to determine local SEO ranking:
- Relevance: Whether or not the result matches the query
- Distance: How far the user’s location is from the business
- Prominence: How popular and well-reviewed the business is
Some of the specific ranking signals for local SEO include:
- The location that the person is searching from
- NAP citations
- Presence of Google Business Profile listing
- Keywords used in Google Business Profile
- Sentiment of online reviews
- Keywords used in online reviews
- Number of check-ins at that location
- Shares on social media
- Google Maps star rating for that business
Both standard SEO and local SEO are important. You don’t have to choose one over the other. In fact, you can supercharge your SEO strategy by targeting both local and organic search results.
How to Do Local SEO
The main goal of local SEO is make it easier for potential customers in your area to find your business. Some of the biggest things that matter for Local SEO are the following:
1. Claim & Complete Your Google Business Profile
Google Business Profile is widely considered the most important factor for local SEO. According to Statista, 77% of users rely on Google when searching for local businesses. The key is to not just create it but optimize it effectively. Fill out your GBP completely and make sure to add pictures as listings with photos get 42% more requests for directions and 35% more website visits.
You also have to make sure all the information is updated, including any changes like additional products or services, new business hours, or new locations. Consider your GBP listing your digital storefront and optimize it both for Google and your target customers.
Here are the main things you can do to fully optimize your Google Business Profile:
- Make sure that all information are complete and accurate– This includes your:
- Contact information
- Primary business category and additional categories
- Address (if you have a storefront)
- Service area (if you visit or deliver to customers and clients)
- The products or services you offer
- Business hours (including holiday hours)
- Business attributes (e.g., Wi-Fi availability, outdoor seating, etc.)
- Collect Reviews
You may be collecting reviews on many channels including social media, but it’s better to direct people’s reviews to Google to increase your SEO “near me” rankings. You can include writing Google reviews as a part of your customer lifecycle plan and request so after each successful purchase. You can even print copies of your listing’s QR code for easy access when customers visit your location.
Not all reviews may be positive (and you are also not allowed to incentivize good reviews nor discourage bad ones). Whether they’re good or bad reviews, reply to each one of them anyway to show users and Google that you’re engaged, responsive, and committed to customer satisfaction.
- Add new photos and Google posts weekly
Make your Google Business Profile look its best by adding pictures regularly. This hints Google that you’re active with your profile– not to mention how Google is increasingly using photos in local results. Avoid using stock photos and use real photos of your business’s location, products, services, amenities, or even daily activities and real workplace moments.
You can also make the most of GBP posts to showcase business updates, events, and more. These posts appear prominently both on Google Search and Maps, helping you attract more visibility and engagement. They’re not an actual ranking factor but a good way to keep your profile looking active and maximize opportunities for discoverability.
Make the most of other GBP features like Google messaging and stay on top of new ones to further optimize your listing. The goal is just to present your business in the most accurate and thorough way possible. Focus on giving Google detailed and trusted information, and you should be on the right track.
2. Build NAP Citations Locally
Citations are online mentions of your business. NAP stands for Name, Address, and Phone Number, and the key is to ensure that your citations are consistent around the web. Even the spelling has to be an exact match– like using ‘Ave.’ instead of ‘Avenue’.
One of the easiest local links you can get is one from the Chamber of Commerce. Other places to prioritize include local sites like Nextdoor, review sites like Angi, and other niche directories like TripAdvisor or Open Table. Other general options include:
- Social media sites like Facebook and Instagram
- Yelp
- Foursquare
- Trustpilot
- Waze
- Hotfrog
- BOTW
- Bing Maps
NAP citations are not limited to business directories and data aggregators. Any mention of your business in local blog posts can already be considered a citation if it includes your name, address, and contact information. Thus, you need to actively manage this department to ensure that everything is consistent, and nothing is outdated or inaccurate.
3. Ensure Localized Content
If you’re servicing multiple locations, you can improve your discoverability if you create landing pages specific to each target location. For example, even if you only offer one type of service like “bookkeeping” but have a wide service area across an entire state like “Texas”. You can create service pages specific to each city or county.
Even your products and services should have their own individual service pages. Prioritize localized terms with search volume. You can use a keyword volume checker like Keywords Everywhere to verify search demand.
It’s also ideal to target long-tail keywords as they have more specific intent and thus have higher chances of driving conversions. Plus, long-tail keywords generally have lower keyword difficulty, helping you rank faster and more effectively. For example, if you have a restaurant, instead of targeting a broad local keyword like “restaurants in new york”, you can target longer, more specific keywords like “italian restaurants in new york”, “cozy restaurants brooklyn”, or even “fun restaurants nyc”. Use keyword tools like Keywords Everywhere to explore other ideas instantly.
You can use our long-tail keyword tool Keyword Planner as well to easily explore long-tail keyword options directly from your browser. This tool uses the autosuggest APIs of Google, YouTube, Amazon, eBay, and Etsy, helping you discover fresh and high-demand keyword ideas you wouldn’t have thought of.
Also Read: How to Use Keyword Planner
4. Get On-page SEO Right
Some of the best practices for on-page SEO include:
- Use keywords not only in the content but in the url and meta tags as well.
- Make sure chosen keywords have the right search intent.
- Perform solid interlinking to and from pages where relevant.
- Optimize images by compressing image files, using image structure data, captions, and image sitemap.
- Internally link to and from pages where relevant.
- Embed a Google Map on your About page or location pages.
Optimizing these on-page elements can help drive not only website traffic but also foot traffic for local businesses. Make your pages attract both web crawlers and human readers. Take care of the technicalities and write compelling copy that engages and converts.
5. Localized Link Building
There are a lot of other off-page opportunities that can support local SEO. Besides building citations using directories, you can also consider:
Ethical link exchanges
Link exchange is a legitimate link building strategy if done ethically, with a focus on providing value to readers and not just to game the system. For example, if you have distributors, suppliers, partners, contractors, or other affiliates, you can link from their sites by having you added to their clients page, case study page, or even just announcing the partnership via a blog post.
Work with local bloggers and publications
Go local in organizing your PR campaign. There are a lot of local bloggers and publications relevant to your business, eager to collaborate. Just make a list of the relevant ones and reach out with a mutually beneficial offer. If you’re hosting an anniversary event or organizing a grand re-opening, you can invite local news sites and they’d typically be glad to cover these stories.
Other types of outreach mainly involve offering value in the form of a guest post, interview, collaboration, or even sponsorship. There are also certain influencers who are into reviewing products relevant to their brand. You can consider offering select ones your product or service in exchange of an honest review posted on their website.
All these activities shouldn’t just be considered as a form of transaction. To do it right, consider this a relationship-building exercise. Follow them on social media, engage with their posts, and build long-term partnerships to really help cement your footprint locally.
6. Make Your Website Mobile Responsive and User-friendly
Up to 63% of searches are done on mobile. In 2023, Google also confirmed their transition to mobile-first indexing. This means that your website’s usability will primarily affect how it gets indexed and ranked. Here are some of the mobile-first best practices you can implement:
- Make website navigation simple and user-friendly.
- Don’t overwhelm pages with too much text and images– allow for some white space.
- Pay attention to details and focus on a smooth user experience across the board. Take care of user flows, checkout processes, and all micro-interactions that may cause friction.
- Design your website for taps and swipes instead of just mouse clicks. Buttons and navigation tabs must then be thumb-friendly.
- Mobile layouts should be responsive across all devices and browsers.
- Ensure fast load speed– avoid elements that may only slow down mobile experience and leverage conditional loading and other necessary optimizations.
- All aspects of design and copy should be geared towards stickiness and conversion. Strive to make users stay on your website for longer instead of immediately bouncing. Use effective messaging to compel people to read more, engage more, and take action.
7. Monitor Local Pack Ranking
There are rank tracking tools like BrightLocal, SEMrush, and Ahrefs that can specifically monitor local pack ranking. Monitoring your ranking allows you to make further optimizations and stay ahead of competitors in your area. You can also track your Google Business Performance (formerly Insights) to check how users are discovering and interacting with your profile. Make it a habit to check this report every month and actively find more ways to improve engagement in the local SEO scene.
Conclusion
Your target customers are literally just steps away. Not fully optimizing your website for local SEO is like leaving money on the table. It’s time to upgrade your digital footprint in the local-oriented search ecosystem.
Implement the tips and strategies above and start getting attention and clicks from audiences in your backyard.