For smaller businesses and those that target customers in their local area, local SEO is an essential online tactic for your company. Local SEO helps you to appear on search engine results for people in your area. This makes customers who are physically near you aware that your business exists and that you are close to them
Here are 9 tips to help improve your local SEO.
Increase Your Page Load Speed
Page load speed is incredibly important for your ranking on search engines. If you look at two different websites, exactly the same in every other way, but one loads quicker, that quick-loading one will be ranked above the other on Google.
But how can you increase your page speed? Here are a few things you can do to improve your page load speed:
- Remove or compress any large images
- Get a faster hosting provider
- Use Content Delivery Network (CDN) service
Post Relevant, Unique Content
When we say post relevant content we mean content that relates directly with your local community in order to grab the attention of customers who live locally.
You can attract local attention with the following strategies:
- Writing about local news stories
- Writing about local activities
- Writing about local events
- Creating videos about charity events or in aid of certain causes that your business support
You can also help attract local attention by setting up web pages that are location-specific. If you’re a business that has shops in different areas of a city or region then it’s a good idea to set up a page for each of your locations. On these pages, you can feature your local content around the news and events in that particular area. This type of strategy will also increase your local SEO for each specific location your business is in.
Write Engaging Page Titles And Meta Descriptions
Having the right page title to attract a customer and the perfect meta description to match is a must when it comes to SEO.
Below are some examples of how to write good meta titles and descriptions.
Titles:
- Keywords at the front: People are impatient and don’t like to read so by putting the most important part at the start it will make your titles easier to scan.
- Consistency is key: If your page title says one thing then the page it takes the user to should be similar. Don’t send them to something they wouldn’t expect.
- Be clear and concise: If you keep it short and easy to understand then your user will know what your webpage is about a lot quicker than if it was long and complicated.
Descriptions:
- Make them descriptive (obviously): Describe what is on the page in a concise manner so the user knows whether your page is what they’re looking for.
- Make them unique: Each of your meta descriptions should be different and unique. No copy and pasting!
- Make them short: Google has a limit on meta descriptions and its 160 characters or less. This means you have to get to the point quickly but still keep it informative.
Claim Your Google My Business Profile
Having a Google My Business profile is a great way to establish your presence on a search engine and it’s absolutely free.
To get started all you need to do is claim your business and you can do this by simply searching your business’s name on Google. If it shows up you can click on claim business to begin the process. If it’s not there, just go to Google My Business and register your business with them.
Having a Google My Business profile will help your business to show up on Google Maps for local searches. It can also allow you to show up in the valuable sidebar area of a Google search.
When you have gotten access to your Google My Business, here are some things you should make sure to do in order to optimise your account.
- Make sure your listing is verified
- Provide up-to-date information that is accurate
- Include your logo, photographs of your business, opening hours, payment methods, your products or services you offer and contact information
- Encourage customers to leave feedback and reviews
- Respond to any reviews that are given
Correct Contact Information
This might seem like an obvious one to you, but you’d be surprised how many people either forget to put their contact information on their website or don’t update it.
Your customers need to be able to contact you so make sure that all contact information is correct on your website and isn’t in an obscure location that is difficult to find.
Contact information includes:
- Phone
- Mobile
- Address
Not having contact information on your website is guaranteed to put you as far away from the front page as possible.
Make Your Website Readable
You may have a lot of relevant content on your website but if it’s not easy to read then it’s not good enough for your visitors. You want your customers to be able to engage with what you have written on your website so make it clear and easy to understand.
Avoid using any jargon or terms that a regular user wouldn’t be able to understand. If your blog posts or any other content on your site is difficult to read then your visitors are going to skim and click off the page quicker.
Optimise For Mobiles
Most people access the internet on their phones these days. This is why it is important and necessary that your website is optimised for the use of mobile phones.
To achieve a mobile-friendly website:
- Ensure that your website has a fast load time (three seconds or less!).
- Use big and bold fonts that are easy to read.
Optimise For Voice Search
In the next couple of years, VUI (Voice User Interface) will only get bigger and bigger. There are virtual assistants installed on every phone and everybody knows at least one person with an Amazon Echo aka Alexa. This means people will be searching the web and asking Google questions with their voice rather than typing it out.
A lot of people presume that voice search will be the same as any regular search but this isn’t true. When we type on our phones or computers we tend to shorthand our searches or miss words that would make up a complete sentence. However, when we speak things become a lot clearer. Customers will begin to use more long-tail keywords in their searches meaning that you will have to optimize your website to fit more of a conversational tone.
Take Advantage Of Online Business Directories
Taking advantage of online business directories such as Yelp, YellowPages, and MapQuest will not only help boost the visibility of your business but also increase your SEO as well.
When making your company listing try to include the following:
- Business name
- Address
- Contact details like phone number (make sure it’s consistent across all directories)
- Backlink to your website
- A description of your business, what you do and what you sell.
We hope our tips on local SEO have helped you learn a thing or two. If you’re still confused or if you have any questions why not complete the form below or click here to contact us!