Written by Maria Rivera.
A comprehensive SEO plan is vital for any business visible online. Local SEO focuses on specific strategies for brick and mortar businesses or those with a certain service area. Notice the search results with a star count and map marker?
This is called the Local Block and if you don’t have a comprehensive Local SEO plan, you probably will not be appearing on this coveted space. If you don’t have a clear idea on where to start, read the following to get your business on the right track.
1. Google My Business
By far, the most important step for Local SEO success is to claim your business on Google. “Claiming” is a quick process of verifying the ownership of your business. Google has a detailed guide on how to do this. It is important because your business will appear as verified on Google – not only giving authority to your potential clients on the authenticity of your business but to the search engine as well. Once you have verified your business, you will have access to a dashboard with your address. You can customize your service area by city or even specific zip codes. You will also have data available called “Insights” on your dashboard. You will see how many people have viewed your business listing on Google, clicked on Directions, and more. Be sure to optimize by filling out a detailed business description, adding images, and a cover photo. Images you add on your business listing will eventually populate Google Map images so choose great, high-quality photos.
2. Citation Building
A large part of a solid Local SEO campaign is citation building. Citations are business listings created on major directories. Have a Yelp listing? How about YellowPages? Most major directories offer free business listings and you should do your best to get on as many as you can. A great free tool is the Moz Citation Search Bar. Search for your business and you will see the top 15 business directories that you need to be listed on to ensure best results. Now, you might already be listed on these directories but your listing may not be complete. Moz offers tips on what you can add (usually more categories or images) to improve your listings and to avoid inconsistency. Each directory has a different way to create a listing so please refer to the individual directories FAQ page for instructions.
3. NAP Consistency
Before you go on a citation building rampage, you want to make sure you choose the exact way you want to appear online. For a successful Local presence, consistency is the name of the game. We call this NAP consistency — Name, Address, Phone Number and to a further but just as important extent, Website. The inconsistencies you want to avoid are slightly differing business name formatting, various phone numbers, or old information like previous addresses. So remember to have a clear idea as to the exact information you want customers to see when they search for you before you create anything.
4. Reviews
You might be well on top of your Yelp game when it comes to consumer reviews, but you might be neglecting Google Reviews. Remember those stars I talked about at the beginning? Your business will receive them only after 5 reviews have been written on your Google Business Page. You might still appear on the Local block as the example above demonstrates but a customer will more than likely click on a star studded listing over a bare one. Be sure to read Google policy on reviews.
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