Take out your mobile device and Google “best restaurants near me.” Predictably, Google won’t show results from giant global food chains near you, but the local restaurants that were smart enough to realize the importance of Local SEO and act accordingly.

In this article, we’ll go over these smart actions that will allow your website to stand out locally. But first, let’s define Local SEO.

Local SEO (search engine optimization) refers to a series of actions you need to take to improve the visibility of your business in search engine results like Google. We’re primarily talking about local businesses here, which should focus on the local aspects of their online journey. So this makes sense for local business owners and most small business owners offering local services or a brick-and-mortar or retail business. 

For example, I also own Phone Repair Philly, an electronics store with 4 locations ih Philadelphia. For the past 7 years I’ve focused on Local SEO & Google My Business to rank higher in local search results. By doing so this allows me to generate organic and authentic leads and customers. We generate $1.5 Million in annual sales, and 70% of that comes from local search results!

Honestly, Local Search Engine Optimization is a total GAME CHANGER for small business owners. It can make or break your business because it strongly effects your bottom line and profits.

Statistical data shows that 78 percent of local searches on mobile phones lead to an offline purchase. Another interesting figure: 46 percent of searches have a “local intent,” meaning that prospects search for specific services or products near their location.

So optimizing your Website, Google My Business & Local SEO has never been more critical.

Here at Momentum Digital we have worked with hundreds of small business owners to optimize their search results and rank them higher online. Just read our Google reviews and check our our marketing case studies!

Let’s talk about the Local SEO Guide for Small Business and how SEO works.

To understand local SEO, we must first understand how search engines (like Google) work. Well, it isn’t that simple, and we don’t have the space to explain it here.

What you – as a small business owner – should remember is this: When you search for something, the search engine evaluates a number of ranking factors gathered through bots and crawling your website. And based on this evaluation, you get a ranking.

Key Factors to consider:

• Google My Business Optimizations
• Posting photos, reviews and posts to GMB
• Creating hundreds of relevant citations and directories
• Creating and posting to social media profiles and directories
• Getting organic high authority Backlinks to increase Domain Authority
• Optimizing your website for all SEO aspects
  • Page Speed and mobile friendliness
  • Adding metadata and tags
  • Optimizing on page SEO with linking, tagging, compressions
  • Fixing all technical SEO issues – start with this FREE SEO Audit

Here are some beneficial tips on improving your local SEO that our agency focuses on and implements for all of our SEO Marketing clients around the world.

#1 Google My Business

Google Business Profile, or Google My Business, is a platform that uses Google search and Google maps to provide local business owners with a way to reach customers. To optimize your website for Google My Business, you should:

• Create and complete a Google My Business profile.
• Use Google posts on your profile.
• Encourage your customers to share positive reviews.
• Provide honest responses to reviews and include location.

#2 Incorporate Google Maps Into Your Website

Incorporating Google Maps into your website is critical to its success. It helps your customers find your location on the map and navigate faster and more efficiently. You can use free embed tools or directly use the maps integration code.

#3 Engage on Social Media

Social media isn’t just for big companies and influencers. Even as a small business owner, you can benefit from getting involved in social media 

Set up a local business page, and post your products or services regularly. Keep customers updated and entice potential customers with discounts and special offers. Even if you have an excellent website with the best content and UI /UX, a social media account is the true “living entity” of your online presence.

Perhaps Facebook users benefit the most from local business pages. After all, two-thirds of Facebook users in all countries visit a local business page at least once a week. But other social media platforms like Instagram and TikTok can also give your business an edge.

#4 Create Local-Focused Content to Build Links

When it comes to local ranking, backlinks play an important role. Backlinks are links that point to your website from other sites. The more quality backlinks you get, the more valuable your website becomes.

Google considers backlinks as a vote of confidence. And developing a content strategy is the best way to get more backlinks.

The key to a successful backlink strategy is quality content, which is an appropriate length. Long-form articles get 77 percent more backlinks than short blogs.

Citations and Directories are similar to backlinks as well but with less credibility. They are strongly suggestions to help produce your NAP and brand across the internet with consistency.

#5 Optimize Your Website for Mobile

Local and mobile searches are closely linked; 61% of all Google searches come from cell phones.

Many people visit your website to look for reviews, find directions to your business or get useful pieces of information.

If your website isn’t mobile-friendly, they will leave. For example, they should never zoom in or out to see something on their phone; the screen size should automatically adjust.

What is a mobile-friendly website? The four basic elements that any mobile-friendly website should include include 

• Responsive page display
• Readable fonts
• Proper text formatting
• Optimized media display

#6 Participate in Local Business Events

Would it surprise you to learn that there’s a lot you can do offline to improve your website’s local SEO? 48 percent of marketers invest at least 20 percent of their marketing budget in live events.

Attending local business events, especially those with a strong social media presence, can help your business in more ways than one. They’re an opportunity to market your business and a great way to get to know your audience and the community you serve.

This if a unique aspect of our Local SEO Guide for Small Business because not many companies focus on having live or local events. This can help you get organic press, backlinks, and social recognition or shares.

#7 Optimize Page Structure

SEO optimization for local businesses is much more than business listings and content. Usually, people overlook the structure of their website.

Page structure includes headings, title tags, meta descriptions, and URLs. If you use these elements correctly, you can further improve your content and your ranking in SERPs.

You should create a sitemap strategy as to how you want to format your website structure and pages based on your products and services.

#8 Optimize for Voice Search

Many people use voice search to find local businesses such as restaurants, gas stations, etc. About 22% of voice search queries are made to search for location-based content. Therefore, local businesses should use this method to develop an SEO strategy for local voice searches. This will significantly increase business web traffic and boost sales.

This is also a rather new and unique tool for our suggestions when implementing our Local SEO Guide for Small Business.

#9 Invest in Google Ads With Local Keywords

Typically, small business websites have a small budget.. You need to invest wisely in growing your business online. Where should you hedge your bets? For most businesses, Google Ads is a good place to start.

Google Ads is a paid advertising system that allows you to appear prominently in the SERPs.

This isn’t an organic approach but Google will recognize and promote your business which has seen a decent increase in organic search improvements as well. Trick move Google!

#10 Use Location Pages

A location page – a landing page for a city or a page for a service area – is a targeted web page that contains all the important information about your business location for customers and search engines. 

Location pages make it easy for customers to find specific information about your business’s location, and many of their components serve as ranking factors for local-specific search results.

You can see on our partner website for Momentum 360 that we have dozens of Location pages that help with Local search rankings.

#11 Ask for Reviews

Can you remember the last time you visited a restaurant or bought an item without reading ratings and reviews? The answer is a resounding no if you’re one of the 82 percent of consumers who conduct local online searches.

Customer reviews are the lifeblood of your business. This is especially true for new and small businesses.

How do you get online reviews from customers?

First, make sure there’s a place where clients can leave reviews. Your Google My Business profile and Yelp business listing are good places to start.

Some customers are happy to provide a review when asked, but in most cases, you’ll need to encourage them to do so.

Google also provides you a custom Google Business Profile Review Link for your business. If you log into GMB you can find this link. You can share this link via text, email, social media, or directly with clients and customers.

So we’ve learned that small business owners need local SEO optimization more than anyone else. We’ve reviewed 11 local SEO tips from which even the smallest businesses can benefit. From keyword research to social media marketing to paid advertising, you can optimize your website today to benefit in the future. 

For more professional tips, please get in touch with us today.

Thanks for taking the time to review our Local SEO Guide for Small Business. We hope you found this informational and valuable to your overall marketing efforts.

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