Local SEO has been a major emphasis in the small business world for years. The value of having a strong local presence online can be incalculable in certain industries. For a small business owner who may have limited marketing resources, local visibility could mean the difference between success and failure in their business. In fact, as much as 46% of all Google searches are done on a local level.
In this article, we will explore how a small business gets local visibility and the key factors for success.
Key Factors for Local Visibility
The good news for small businesses is that local visibility can be boiled down to three very simple factors: using local keywords, creating city-specific pages on your site, and getting your business listed in local directories.
Local Keywords
One of the most overlooked elements of local visibility is the use of location-specific keywords on your website. This is crucial, as it serves as a clear indicator to search engines as to what and where you want to show up. One of the best places to do this on a website is the title of each page. For example, if I am a local landscaping company, instead of titling my homepage “ABC Landscaping Services” I should go after local keywords like “Denver Landscaping Company – ABC Landscaping Services.” This not only tells the search engines what services I provide but also the location in which I provide them. Those simple changes carry significant weight in local visibility.
City-Specific Pages
Another powerful tool for boosting local visibility is creating city-specific pages on the site. In the navigation bar, consider adding an “Areas We Serve” section. This section will contain a list of cities and suburbs that represent your service area. Each unique city you serve should have its own unique page. So, if my ABC Landscaping serves the Denver market, I would include unique city pages like Littleton, Aurora, Lakewood, Centennial, etc. To minimize the effort here, the wording and layout of each page can be almost identical, with unique copy specific to each city. This will expand your ability to target your service area, and boost your local rankings as well.
Directories
While the use of cities in your titles and building out city-specific pages fortify your own website, what will really hammer home your local presence is getting listed in local directories. A directory is a website that contains business listings within certain industries. The most common example of a directory is Yelp, which lists businesses across multiple industries and locations. These are crucial to local visibility, as they represent external proof that your business is at a certain location, further confirming to search engines that you are who you say you are. While getting these listings, it’s important to stay consistent with your business information. A good rule of thumb is to use the exact same information as listed in your Google My business listing.
With those three tools in your arsenal, your business can soar in the local rankings and help you achieve the growth you deserve!
