your local search engine optimization (SEO) efforts are just as important as your overall SEO reach. Local SEO enhancement means that you are working toward bringing in customers in your area, what the vast majority of small businesses should do, especially if they are locally based. Here’s what you can do to enhance your local SEO.
Join Google My Business
That Google needs to know where you are located may seem preposterous. Then again, when you realize how much wrong information online is accepted as truth, giving this search engine giant a helping hand isn’t such a bad idea after all.
This is where Google My Business comes in. When you visit that site and claim your business, you unlock a lot of marketing potential at no cost to you. By sharing your business address, hours and other pertinent information, your business will appear on search, maps and on Google+.
You can upload photos, encourage reviews, build a fan base and share your posts across Google+. Discover a new way to reach your customers and to enjoy a surge of traffic you might have missed previously.
Use Local Terminology
You may have been using general terms to describe your business, but it can’t hurt to include local terminology as well. In fact, incorporating locally-based words can help bring people to your website.
The two pages on your blog or website that should be locally focused in your “about” and “contact” pages. You already hint where you are located, now step out and emphasize that location. Why miss customers who may be right under your nose?
Use Social Media
Your chance to reach local customers can be enhanced by making use of social media. Google+, Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn and Instagram provide tools for you to make contact with others. Claim your space online, add in a locally-focused profile and have at it.
You will find that regular social media interaction can benefit your business. It shouldn’t take hours of your day, but it should be time well spent. Take photos of you and your products with your customers, share their reviews and retweet their news. That sort of interaction will benefit your enterprise and bring in new business to you.
Interlink With Other Businesses
There may be businesses that complement, rather than compete with what you do. For instance, you may operate a photography business, thus your natural complementing businesses would be a florist, a country club and a string orchestra service. Yes, these are all wedding proprietors.
Because of your naturally occurring partnership, it behooves you to reach out to them. Likewise, they may reach out to you. Thus, exchange links with local businesses that match what you do — you will both benefit from this cross exchange of customers.
Local Ads Make Sense
A lot of businesses have moved away from newspaper, radio, television and other locally-based methods of advertising. Certainly, most people use the Internet to connect, but you shouldn’t dismiss local advertising completely.
Indeed, your reach can extend to the weekly newspaper, to an area talk show host or to a church bulletin. Consider the sources that your customers use to find information. If you are not sure, then ask them!
Local SEO
Your Local SEO efforts can and should extend beyond your regional, national and global relationships. After all, it is your local following that you are most likely to know personally, the people you strive to build relationships with and conduct business with as well.
