You know when you're running errands and you do a quick search from your smart phone for a specific type of service provider? And Google returns a list of results that are for businesses in your local area? That's local search in action, and for any and every business owner, it's the key to driving more of the local customers you need, right to your door.
Adding local SEO to your business' digital marketing strategy is valuable for a number of reasons:
If you sell goods or services from a retail location, own an office or any other business where customers come to you to make purchases, you've got to take advantage of local SEO or risk losing business to your competitors.
Want to ensure your business is found by the people who are searching for a provider like yourself, right now? This is what it's going to take:
An Optimized Google My Business Listing: You know the snazzy business profiles or listings that appear at the top of the Google search results, and that contain a map of a business' location, their address, phone number, some images and reviews? Create a professional and complete (no field skipping!) profile for your business in Google My Business and ensure prospective customers find your company. Optimizing your profile with location-specific search terms will also ensure your business' profile - and not your competitor's - is the one Google ranks ('website designers Grande Prairie' or 'flower shops Edmonton,' for example).
Create Listings in Online Business Directories: By creating keyword optimized profiles in as many online business directories as possible, you expand your company's reach within your local area.
Optimize Your Website's Content with Location-Specific Search Terms: Make sure your website ranks well for the keyword terms that your local market is using to find businesses like your own. At Saltmedia, for instance, our website designers work with our SEO team to ensure every aspect of a website is geared for ranking in the markets that matter most for a particular business.
Consistency is Key: While it's important to create business profiles in places like Google My Business, Bing and other online directories, the contact details (address, phone number, etc.) you use must always be consistent. Google and website searchers don't like trying to decipher discrepancies in addresses or any other contact details. Make it as easy as possible for people to find and/or contact you!
Of course, no local SEO strategy would be complete without quality local SEO link building efforts. Unless you work in this field, your time and energy are probably better spent focused on your business and your local SEO left up to a team of experts.
To ensure your business is found where it matters most - in your local area - contact us to learn more about the local SEO services we provide for businesses in Grande Prairie and the surrounding areas.
We live, work, and gather on traditional, unceded, and treaty territories of First Nations, Métis, and Inuit Peoples from coast to coast to coast. We’re committed to our collective responsibility to the original caretakers of this land and to listening, learning, and acting in ways that support reconciliation.
