Thu, March 28, 2024

Free Access: Local SEO: Why it’s important and why you should care

If you are a brick-and-mortar business with a physical location, you will want to rank high in local searches. You want to be found online when buyers are searching for your services.

There is one great compelling reason you want to rank high in local search: If you don’t rank, you don’t get calls, store visits, or website traffic. If you don’t get those, you don’t make money. It’s just that simple.

How do we know this is true? Here are two data points that exemplify the point:
• 97% of potential customers searched online to find a local business (Source: Hubspot)
• 88% of local business searches on a mobile device either call or visit the business within 24 hours. (Nectafy)

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Here are three (of many things) you can do to improve your local SEO.

1–Claim your Google Business Listing

Google is the go-to source for many people looking for information on the internet. If customers see a complete listing for a business on Google Search and Maps, they are 2.7 times more likely to consider that business to be reputable. Businesses know how important it is on Google, and claiming and optimizing their listing gives them a boost in getting discovered.

2–Optimize Your NAP (name, address, phone number) citations

Last week’s article (see it here) talks about how to get your listing accurate and distribute it across the web.

It is essential that your clients ensure their listings are up to date, as 88 percent of local searches result in a prospective customer visiting a store 24 hours. With 81 percent of consumers performing an online search before making a purchase decision, having accurate and up-to-date information is crucial.

GroupRB can help you with this with an Augusta Business Daily promotional offer here. (see ABD Special Offer – Listings Marketing Monthly)

3–Onpage content

Another key item is to have updated and relevant content on your site. Refreshing and updating your pages regularly can increase your local search rankings. Including relevant location information and product keywords helps.

There are many other factors that play into local SEO, including backlinks, reviews, listings, getting verified on Google Maps, and more.

So what does all of this get you?
Hopefully, your business will get listed at the top of the Google Maps Pack. This is a highly sought-after position that is especially important for mobile searches. See the image below for an example.

As always, there are no easy wins – this takes work and time, but it is a task well worth the effort.
In case you missed it, we have a quick (and free) audit report you can run at https://grouprb.com/get-your-free-online-audit-report/ that will help you understand where your business ranks in SEO and listings.

Until next time, remember that you deserve marketing that actually works.

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