No matter what kind of business you are in, you need to optimize for local search. Local search is one of the last great untapped resources of search engine marketing and optimization and if you can ensure that you are leading on local search you are going to end up with a huge audience. So, how do you do that? There are several things that you can do to optimize your business for local SEO. Here are some tips.
1. Claim your business listing. You would be surprised how many businesses fail to complete this one, very simple step. If you want Google to list you locally, you need to let them know that you are there. Make sure that you are claiming your business listing for each of your locations. For more information see Listing Sync Elite.
2. Next, you want to be consistent. Having the same business name, address and phone number across the entire internet will be much more effective and inspire trust, plus, the local SEO bots will not get confused by conflicting information and categorize you incorrectly.
3. Make sure that you choose the right categories for your business. Most businesses will easily fit into a single category, but some will need more than one. You want to make sure that you know what categories you are listed in.
4. Make sure that you use citations. Citations are places around the web where you can list your business – to “prove” to Google that the information is correct. Not only will this give you credibility with Google and consistency with customers, but it will also give your website an SEO boost if you are linking back to your website. Some of the citation websites that you can lose include the Better Business Bureau, the Chamber of Commerce in your local city or town, any associations that you are a member of, any industry groups that maintain directories and pretty much anywhere else that you can think of.
5. Get reviews and testimonials and make sure they are posted on visible sites. It goes without saying that we’re talking about positive reviews here. Websites like Yelp, Angie’s List, Google reviews and other sites that are listed fairly high in the search engines can make a pretty significant impact on how your customers see you and whether they buy from you. Everyone uses reviews these days to make buying decisions.
