Local SEO, an introduction
What is local SEO?
Local Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the practice of optimizing the visibility of a physical location on a map service such as Google Maps or Apple Maps.
Why is local SEO important?
The “local” results usually appear at the top of the results page, example below for coffee shops near me.
This section of the results is called the “snack pack” and has been of growing importance over the last few years.
Users are increasingly shifting to mobile-only searches (over 50% of web traffic is on mobile devices) and searches on mobile tend to have local-intent (searching for something “near me”), local SEO thus is a must not a nice to have.
According to Google, 76% of people searching for something nearby visit a business within a day, and 28% of those searches result in a purchase.
How to get started with Local SEO?
As explained above, Local SEO is particularly important for mobile, you should therefore start by ensuring that your website is at the minimum mobile-friendly; nowadays the trend is going towards mobile-first architecture, as highlighted in our post about headless commerce, but let’s stick to Local SEO for today.
Once your website is mobile-ready, here is a starters’ guide to local SEO :
Start with a thorough keyword research
This will help you know how people are searching for your type of business. If we take the example of a coffee shop, are they searching for “coffee shop near me”, “coffee shop in Geneva”, “best coffee shop”, “vegan coffee shop” or “best coffee shops for brunch”. This step will help you optimize your listing with the most compelling description, categories, and services.
Claim & Optimize your business on Google My Business (GMB), but not only…
If your business already exists on Google Maps, be sure to claim it in order to administer it and be able to optimize it. If your business doesn’t exist yet, go to Google My Business and create it. You will have to go through a validation process to ensure you are the legitimate owner; typically, Google sends you a postcard (yes, a paper postcard!) containing an activation code. When creating your listing on GMB, make sure you place it on the exact location, use the official name, phone number, URL, and select wisely your categories. Remember that while Google is the largest search engines, other valuable places can feature your business (Apple maps, TomTom GPS systems, Facebook, etc.).
Optimize the consistency of your NAP (Name, Address, Phone) on online business directories and map services
Your business is featured in many places, maps services, business directories listings, blog articles, your website…make sure that the name, address, and phone number are consistently displayed across all these places as it is one of the highest ranking factors in local SEO. You might want to consider leveraging a service that does it automatically across hundreds of databases and sites, such as Yext.
Nurture your reviews
Reviews on your local listing on GMB or other places impact your visibility (both from a quantity than a quality standpoint) as search engines want to feature local business which are trustworthy and recognized by other users. Responding to reviews in a consistent and professional way is also considered a best practice.
These 4 steps are a start point into a complex tactic of optimization to ensure your physical location gets as much visibility as possible. Consistently showing up for searches takes time, efforts, and patience. Like many other digital marketing tactics, Local SEO is also changing a regular basis, evolving over time based on search engines updates.
Feels like a lot if information? Get in touch with us today to start optimizing your local visibility.
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