Delco SEO

Many small business owners might not know what local SEO is, or all of the benefits. It is often overlooked causing businesses to loose huge opportunities. According to a recent study done in April 2024 by SEO.AI:

• over 75% of local searches convert into leads
• 28% of local searches result of a purchase within 24 hours
• 40% of local SEO campaigns achieve a 500% or better ROI.
• 58% of people search for local businesses on smartphones daily.
• 98% of consumers turned to the Internet for local business information in 2022.

In this article, we’ll give you some ideas on why local SEO is so important and some tips to make sure you site is optimized and visible in local searches.

What is Local SEO?

Local SEO is a digital marketing strategy that increases your online visibility in a specific geo-targeted area with a specific audience. In other words, ranking in certain locations for keywords and phrases that your target audience is searching for. It is a different strategy than regular SEO and requires a different approach. The results in Google also show up a bit differently as you can see below with Google’s local pack. There are also different elements involved like a Google My Business profile and local business directories.

Why Is Local SEO So Important?

The main reason is online visibility and brand awareness. With 46% of Google’s 8.5 billion daily searches being local, businesses have an opportunity to reach customers in the local area and with the added benefit of “near me” searches. According to localseojet.com, there are “1.5 billion “near me” searches per month. 84% of “near me” searches are on mobile. 82% of smartphone shoppers use “near me” searches. 200%+ growth in mobile searches for “Open” + “now” + “near me”.

With all these searches being done, it leads to the next reason why local SEO is so important, which is increased web traffic. Google My Business shows you how many users have visited your website from the business listing directly. You can also utilize tools like GA4 and Google Search Console to see what search terms users are querying to find your website and their general location.

Local SEO is also extremely cost effective with generally only time involved. A Google My Business profile is free to create, gives your business location, hours of operation, reviews, links, services and more. That is free advertising! The only cost involved would be the investment to optimize the profile if you choose to select a professional to enhance your listing.

Local pages can include services, service areas, target audience information, location based information, etc. which targets users in your community who are looking for a specific solution to a problem they are having. The only cost involved would be to hire a professional copywriter, web designer, or SEO specialist to optimize the page.

To ensure your NAP (name, address, and phone) numbers are consistent across the web and local directories, there would be a minimal cost involved from companies like Bright Local or Yext. They will submit, create, update and maintain the listings for your business. These listings are often called citations.

How Do You Improve Local SEO?

There are a lot of ways to improve your ranking and visibility locally.

Optimize Your Google My Business Listing

There are a lot of opportunities in your GMB profile to optimize and enhance your profile. The first is to make sure you have a well written business description. Also ensure that you have nice pictures of the building, staff and products or services which are geo-tagged. Third, make sure all of your products and services are listed with descriptions and links. Make sure all of your hours, address, phone, etc. are consistent with what is on your website along with the locations your serve. Lastly, there is a lot of information that may seem unimportant or trivial to you, but make a difference in being discovered. This would include items like women owned business, transgender space, languages spoken, appointments required, etc. The trick is being sure the profile is complete and filled out in its entirety.

Next, be sure to ask clients for reviews! According to a study done by Management.org, “90% of customers read online reviews before visiting a business (Invesp) Whether your store is online or in-person, 90% of customers are now reading your reviews before paying you a visit.” For the local pack and your GMB profile, ranking is determined by how many reviews you have and the frequency. However, don’t stack them all at one time as that can be suspicious, be consistent and steady. Getting reviews is really easy and Google My Business provides a link for clients to easily and quickly leave their testimonial.

Create Local Pages

Local pages are landing pages on your website which have location and service based information. This includes information about the community, the services your business provides to the community, and how your company helps the community. What problem does your service provide a solution to? Local pages also include any local business affiliations and any awards (especially local business) that you have been given. Do you sponsor any local sports teams? These are also great elements to include. List reviews from clients and include ones that match the service areas on the local pages. Include links to community events, important community information and helpful links that users will find useful. This includes blog posts around the topics and services you provide.

Local SEO Provides Huge Opportunities

If your business is not currently taking steps to improve their local SEO visibility, you are missing out on a wave of opportunities for brand awareness and online visibility. There are several elements that are very easy and cost effective to implement that could create a solid lead stream of connections and conversations which convert into clients. These include creating local pages, optimizing your GMB listing, linking your website with local businesses and organizations in the community, and more!