This guide outlines how to get the most out of local SEO for businesses that focus on a particular region.
If your business serves only one city, you might wonder whether SEO is really worth it. Despite the common belief that SEO is useless for local businesses, investing in SEO can increase visits to both your website and physical location. Even within a small geographic area, customers may have numerous competing businesses to choose from.
How to best use local SEO
Optimising your business from a local perspective helps you achieve your main business objective: to be found and sell a product or service. But let’s see in practice how local SEO works.
Google Business Profile Setup
If you want to appear in local search results, the first thing you should do is set up your Google Business Profile. Without a profile, it’ll be much harder to appear prominently in Google’s local results.
While you do so, make sure all the details are in the right place, especially the country, region and, above all, the city. To appear properly in the local listing, make sure you also complete the precise location with the address and postcode. You would do so because you aim to appear in relevant local searches.
Do not underestimate the power of visual content. Images, links and videos can all help attract your audience if their quality is good enough to be seen and recognised.
Claim and verify your free listing by entering your details, including your business phone number and core business details.
SEO On-Page Optimisation
As an SEO best practice, naturally include your city or service area in relevant website copy, especially on the homepage, service page and product page. Search engines can now understand human language more deeply, but location-specific keywords primarily help signal geographic relevance and match relevant local search intent.
Specific neighbourhoods or areas become more important when targeting customers within a large city like London. If you already work with an SEO agency London, you already know how relevant it is.
As London is one of the world’s largest and most visited cities, someone searching around Heathrow is likely to use highly location-specific language, demonstrating why neighbourhoods, districts and landmarks can matter within a huge city like London.
Therefore, make sure your headings, body copy, meta title and meta description feature your area of service for large cities.
Moreover, create a tailored location page, embed a Google Map on it and include blog posts or events. This can help improve customer engagement; the more they get to know your business, the happier they will be to visit you in store with more confidence and useful information before visiting
Grow Your Reputation: Ask Your Regulars for Reviews
What may seem like just a simple 5-star click from your customers is a huge contribution to your business growth. You know how hard it has been to get where you are now, but you still need to be consistent and show it.
The thing is that asking your customers for a review costs nothing, especially if they are happy with the experience and service. Their effort in writing something nice about you serves as digital word-of-mouth for your potential customers and for Google.
If someone else’s experience has been good, the next person searching will be more likely to visit you. At the same time, reviews can contribute to prominence in local search and, crucially, influence potential customers. Google works for users. It wants its users to have good experiences.
A good practice for earning trust from local customers is also to reply to customers’ reviews, not just the harsh ones. We know how hard it is to remain polite in these cases, but explain your perspective, empathise with the customer and welcome their criticism.
Conclusions
Competitors are real, and in competitive markets, SEO helps you stand out. The secret, no longer so secret, is being found.
If your business is hidden among a bunch of others offering the same service, you won’t be noticeable enough. Using your website to attract and engage potential customers will help you compete effectively, and your business won’t simply be one among many, but a visible one.
See the difference yourself; look for a local business around you. Compare the businesses appearing in the results and consider what makes certain listings more appealing.
