While setting up a site for SEO (search engine optimization) has become a standard process for almost every website owner, some still stumble when obtaining success with it. This is because most SEO providers offer a one-size-fits-all approach to this potent marketing method. Instead of offering personalized solutions such as local SEO, they are intent on pushing generic keyword rankings.
Needless to say, that approach doesn’t work for businesses that operate in a specific area.
Focused on methods that enhance a website’s outreach in a specific geolocation, local SEO is a highly effective way for businesses to improve their local keyword rankings and search engine presence.
Here are a few tips to improve your local SEO and get the most out of this efficacious practice.
1. Select Your Keywords From a Local SEO Perspective
Setting up your website for generic SEO is one thing, and setting it up with a focused approach for local SEO is another. While you will still be setting up your essential accounts such as Google Search Console and Google Analytics, the path for your keywords would be different.
For instance, if you have a furniture store in Denver, then instead of selecting keywords like “furniture stores” and thinking you have done your job, you would need to look into specific variations such as “furniture store Denver” and “furniture stores in Denver”. By narrowing down your keywords, you will take the first step into establishing your local SEO.
2. Optimize Keywords Throughout Your Website Content
Once you have researched and selected your keywords, the next phase would be to optimize them naturally throughout your website.
Ensure that you are using your local SEO keywords through essential pages such as your Homepage and your About page as well as your Products or Service pages. Also, make sure to include essential keywords in crucial areas such as your website footer, but do so in a natural manner.
Remember, search engines will only your associate your website with your target region if they find any reason to do so. And this content provides one of the most compelling reasons in that regard.
3. Create Targeted Service Pages
One essential tip in improving your local SEO is to create targeted service pages for each location that you are targeting. Taking from the Denver furniture store example above, if your services extend to nearby areas or throughout the state, then ensure to create target pages for each of those areas.
For instance, if the aforementioned furniture store sells its products in adjacent areas such as Boulder, then creating a specific page highlighting the service area would be crucial. The same approach applies to other cities as well as the state of Colorado.
In these pages, make sure that you use the local SEO keywords optimally in body content as well as crucial sections such as the meta title and description. This increases your chances of appearing in search results at higher rankings.
4. Make Use of NAP Citations
Name, Address and Phone Number (NAP) citations refer to your business’ contact details being mentioned on a web platform along with your website’s URL. This enhances your chances to be associated with local search results.
NAP Citations can be created through sites such as Yelp or Angie’s List. In addition to this, they can also be distributed through credible press releases on platforms such as PR Newswire.
5. Create or Claim Your Google and Bing Business Listings
In order to enhance your search engine presence, make sure to create your Google My Business and Bing Places for Business listings with your essential business information. If they are already created, then make sure to claim them and have your address verified accordingly.
This enhances your chances to appear in local results. On Google, it also increases the possibility for your business to appear on the knowledge panel that appears on the right side of the screen when someone searches for your business name.
6. Use Schema Markups
Schema markups are a great way to ensure that your website’s information is presented to search engines in a structural format. While this coding is quite technical to set up, a local SEO expert can help you effectively in this regard.
These markups help the search engines absorb more information about your website. This, in turn, lets the search engines return detailed results against your business.
7. Get Reviews from Customers
While this may seem like more of a branding approach than one that has to do with higher rankings, it actually is a very effective contributor to local SEO.
In order to return more relevant results to customers, search engines provide preference to those sites that seem active in their service. A higher number of reviews on different platforms as well as search engine centric services such as Google My Business improve your chances of appearing in local results.
Local SEO is a Broad Practice, Which is Why Professional Help is Recommended
As you may have realized by now, local SEO is anything but easy. It requires you to take more than just a few steps, and even then you have to keep updating your approach to comply with any evolving algorithms by search engines.
That is why it is essential for you to seek the help of a local SEO professional. These professionals cannot only help you with starting steps such as local keyword research, but also with broader aspects such as website pages, NAP citations, and schema markups.
For more information on what local SEO can specifically do for your website and how we can help, call us today or visit our services