October 28, 2011
Brick-and-Mortar Businesses: The Case for Local SEO
Everyone’s beginning to get pretty comfortable with the notion of SEO and the need for it if you want your business to go anywhere on the Web. We’re finally beginning to see and hear people realizing that there is a difference between SEO and social media – that being on Facebook isn’t going to do anything on its own for your ranking on Google. But the notion of putting local SEO or “local search” practices in place to attract local searchers is just now picking up steam.
The challenge with local brick-and-mortar businesses is how to make headway in organic search results, particularly when trying to reach a local audience, when there are hundreds, thousands, even millions of competitors vying for the same few coveted search results positions. Local SEO is the answer.
How does it all work?
Strategy-wise, it sounds simple enough. Create a Web site, make it live, the traffic will come. Even the most beautifully designed, strategically written, and technically advanced sites, won’t make that scenario come true.
SEO is key. Local SEO is becoming a game-changer. But to be able to figure out how local searchers are looking for you and how to tailor your Web tactics to make it easy for them to find you is easier said than done.
The fact is that local business owners typically just don’t have the time or resources to devote to the demands of creating, implementing, and following through on a local SEO maintenance plan. This is the part in the plan where hiring an SEO expert that can specifically address your local search needs comes into play.
What should we be looking for?
The best local SEO plan will incorporate a strategy that applies traditional search engine optimization tactics to the criteria of a local audience – a visitor who’s already looking for you – and pairs that with a plan to help convert searchers into sales either on the Web or in person.
Targeted keywords and PPC ads are key, but right now one of the most effective tools to leverage is a map search functionality within a search engine. Because of its size, placement, and appearance on a search results page, the Google maps search results, for example, are hugely effective; they’re typically the first thing searchers see when they run a Google search, for example, and they stand out from the text-only listings on the rest of the page.
Having your businesses come up in one of these map search results has become almost as important and necessary in terms of credibility, particularly as you wait for your traditional organic search results to get up to speed.
Where do we go from here?
When interviewing Web marketing specialists to run your SEO plan, make sure you ask for a proposal for a local SEO strategy. You wouldn’t expect your customers to pay for your goods or services without you being able to demonstrate that whatever they’re purchasing is legitimate and best suited to their needs. Don’t expect anything less out of your SEO expert.
