Guide
LOCAL SEO FOR SMALL BUSINESSES What do you mean by local SEO and what is it’s importance? Local SEO is the techniques that help to come in search results based on location such as cities or districts. Mainly appear in geographical areas, when you search such as New restaurants near me” or mechanics in New York. The main aim of local SEO for small businesses is to increase website visibility and reach the maximum local targeted audience within the geographical space as a result the website traffic will be added on. This will benefit your brand’s growth in the industry of business. Differentiation between Local and General SEO? Local SEO is for creating visibility widely across the globe whereas local SEO has the presence of your business within a limited area. In the context of competition, local SEO has less competition compared to general SEO which is an advantage for small businesses to grow among the big businesses. In local SEO for small business, you don’t need to have a website for your business to get attention from the audience. In overview, local SEO is the best option to run a small business. People will visit your business spot by tracking the location which you will provide in local SEO. These statistics show how local SEO is beneficial for small businesses. 46% of searchers try to find services or businesses in their area. 78% of people search on mobile phones are local information like visiting shops near them. 92% of searchers select the business that reaches the first page on the search engine. Local SEO for Small Business Steps 1. GMB setup It stands for Google My Business, which is an online tool that helps to create an account that creates great recognition of your business profile and provides updation about business to the targeted audiences on Google search engine and Google Maps. Log in to Business Google. Add your business details. Select your business type. Add your target location. Fill contact information. Verify your business profile. Optimize your business profile. 2. On-page SEO Add keywords in the meta title and meta description to optimize your business website. Add schema to your business. Mobile Optimization for user-friendly. 3. Off-page SEO Citations: Present NAP in local directories like Yelp, and Facebook. NAP stands for Name Address and Phone number. It is an essential part of GMP because Google only picks out accurate information for its users. Reviews: Positive responses on your business and handle negative responses professionally. Backlinks: Links from authoritative websites and collaboration with local organizations and businesses. 4. Managing Online Performance Check SEO ranking performance by using Google Console, Google Analytics, and GMP performance. Monitor keyword ranking and traffic. Keep engagement with the customers online. 6. Tools and Resources Use these tools and resources based on your business goals, budget, customer support, accessibility, and ease of use. Google My Business Google Console Google Analytics SEMrush Ahrefs Yext Sharing some relevant resources for further learning. Check out the following : https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/local-seo https://www.brightlocal.com/ https://hurrdatmarketing.com/seo-news/best-local-seo-resources/ Local Search Ranking Factors They are the elements of Google that decide the ranking list based on the user’s query in a specific geographical area. For information on Local Search Ranking Factors, check out this website Local Search Ranking Factors – What Are They? Conclusion Overall, this guide provides information on how local SEO is important to running a small business and steps to implement it for your business profile using SEO tools and resources. As a Digital Marketing Freelancer in Bangalore, I would advise always having patience and consistency so your business can grow through local SEO efforts and the output will be worth it.