It’s hard to take advantage of digital marketing when you don’t have a presence on Google. Now that 88% of consumers turn to Google to get recommendations about local businesses, you can’t afford not to be listed. Unfortunately, it’s not that simple to create a website and show up at the top of the search results.
However, you can do a few things for local SEO if you aren’t getting results. Follow the local SEO tips below to start increasing your search engine ranking.
Optimize Google My Business
It’s hard to rank on the first page of Google as a local business without showing up on the map results. However, you can’t use traditional SEO to get the job done. You need to get on Google My Business to show up there.
One of the best local business SEO tips is to sign up to Google My Business and input your business information. Once you do this, your business will show up on the map, where you have a better chance of outperforming your competitors and appearing higher on the map results.
Use Local Keywords
There’s a big difference between ranking for a keyword like “home contractor” and “home contractor in city.” The former is a global search. If Google doesn’t have geo-located results for that keyword, you’re competing against companies worldwide.
However, that won’t be the case when you include your city in the keyword. Focus on creating content that targets the people who include their location in the search. This will help you appear higher for local searchers and outcompete companies that don’t.
Optimize Your User Experience
Local keywords won’t be enough to rank your website if you don’t offer a great experience to your users. Google has invested a lot of resources into learning what makes a great website experience. Because of that, it now plays a role in search engine ranking factors.
One of the big top local SEO tips to follow is to work on improving the user experience on your website. It shouldn’t take more than a few seconds for your website to load. You should also have a clean layout that doesn’t keep site elements cluttered together.
You may need a web designer to help with this, so make sure you reach out to one to improve your site’s design.
Create Citations
You have more than typical backlinks available when starting with local SEO. There are many business directories that display local companies. A great option is getting as many of these citations as possible.
At a bare minimum, focus on the higher-authority directories. You also need to ensure you input the correct information on all your listings. If you have different information on business listing websites, it casts doubt on your business and may hurt your rankings.
There Are More Local SEO Tips That Can Help Boost Your Rankings
The above local SEO tips are only a few things you can do to improve your standing in Google. The world of SEO is big, so there are many other local SEO marketing tips that can help you rise in search results. Ensure you keep learning these Google local SEO tips to maximize your chance of hitting the front page.
Head back to the blog to find more digital marketing tips to improve your brand’s presence online.
