Here’s What Local SEO Can Do for Your Small Business

When you’re running a small business, you don’t need to advertise to people on the other side of the country. You need to attract local business, and you don’t need to rely on traditional marketing methods to make it happen. You can bring in a lot more business with local SEO. 

Forty-six percent of all Google searches are querying for local information, such as “plumbers near me” or “hairdressers in Peoria.” This is the kind of traffic you want if you’re a small business, because your potential customers are likely coming from your local area. Local SEO can bring you more traffic, especially more traffic that will lead to conversions. You’ll spend less on advertising while growing your business and surpassing your competitors. You can build stronger relationships with other small business owners in your community, as well as spreading awareness of your brand and strengthening your relationships with customers. You can get more local reviews, and might even make it into the Google 3 pack for your area.

Attract More Local Traffic and Make More Customers

When you’re running a small, local business, your potential customers are just as local as you are. Optimizing your website for local search means that when local people search for products and services like yours near them, they’ll find you. If you’re running a small business in Phoenix, for example, you’re going to need an SEO company that can optimize your site to attract search traffic from people in Phoenix. That way you can be sure of reaching the right people with your brand messaging. 

Spend Less on Advertising

Local SEO can save you a bundle on advertising costs. Not only is SEO cheaper than many traditional forms of marketing, but it’s also more cost-effective. Your initial investment in SEO will keep paying dividends for years, especially if you continue to focus on putting out the best possible content for your site. Good SEO will lift your brand’s profile and generate good PR for your company, buying you equity with your target customer base.

Grow Your Business and Outpace Your Competitors

The focus of local SEO is on always bringing in new traffic to your website and turning some of that traffic into conversions. Over time, sales will increase because of your SEO campaign, and that will grow your business. You’ll get an edge over local competitors who may still rely on more traditional marketing techniques, and you’ll be able to at least keep up with those who also use an SEO strategy to bring in more business. If you can get your company site to the top of search engine returns pages (SERPs), then you may be able to beat out your competitors long-term, because more traffic and more customers are going to go to those top few businesses that pop up with a search. 

Strengthen Your Local Network

You’ll also get the chance to build stronger relationships with vendors, other local business owners who aren’t in direct competition with you, and members of the community. Believe it or not, SEO is largely social. Sure, there are technical aspects to it, but SEO professionals also work to build relationships with bloggers and website owners who can share backlinks, or customers on social media who might share links or leave a good review. Building these relationships can cement your place in your local small business community. 

Spread Brand Awareness

SEO is a great way to spread brand awareness, just by virtue of the fact that it lets you reach new people who may not have been aware of your brand before. You’ll expand your brand’s target audience, and SEO should boost your credibility, too. If you have a well-optimized and responsive site that appears in the first few search results, you’ll seem more credible than a competitor at the bottom of the page.

Create Loyal Customers

Plenty of people want to support their local communities by patronizing small businesses. SEO can help those kinds of customers find you. You’ll also boost engagement with a responsive site and useful content, so they’ll be more likely to buy from your brand in the future.

Earn More Local Reviews 

Local SEO brings in local customers, who will leave local reviews, and if they’re positive, they’ll help you bring in even more customers. Seventy percent of people read online reviews before making a purchase. More reviews will bring in more traffic from organic search, and it’ll be people who are likely ready to make a final purchasing decision. 

Get into the Google 3 Pack for Your Area

The Google 3 pack refers to the three top local businesses that appear in answer to local search queries. They’re the businesses that Google deems most relevant to the search query, based on their SEO. The 3 pack contains information about your business, including operating hours, contact information, a description of your business, and so on. Getting into it can bring a lot more traffic to your website.

There’s a lot local SEO can do for your business. Make sure your website is well optimized for search, so you can bring in more traffic and get more business.