Local SEO should be at the core of any digital marketing strategy. It allows your business to connect with potential customers near them while simultaneously driving more visitors to its website.
Google uses several factors when providing local search results in Staten Island NY, including relevance and prominence. Relevance is at the core of any search engine algorithm; its importance for local searches cannot be overstated.
Keyword research
Locating keywords relevant to your locality is key when developing any SEO strategy, as it allows you to understand which terms people are searching for in your region and optimize your website accordingly. Furthermore, local keyword research helps uncover competitors ranking for these terms that may pose competition.
Start by brainstorming all of the solutions your business offers and identifying keywords that best describe them (seed keywords). Use tools like Ubersuggest to see which search terms are most frequently searched in your local market or gain inspiration by spying on competitors to come up with ideas for relevant local keyword phrases.
Consistency is also key when it comes to your NAP (name, address, phone number) citations across the internet – this ensures Google recognizes that your business is legitimized locally and ranks it higher for local searches and snack packs. Integrating keywords into header tags or body content can also boost local search rankings because search engines favor pages with relevant information when ranking websites.
On-page optimization
Content plays an essential role in local SEO. To attract both customers and search engines, your site content needs to be relevant, useful, engaging and capture user intent – this way your rank higher in local search results.
Step two of on-page optimization involves building a quality link profile. Moz’s 2017 Local Search Ranking Factors report indicates this as one of the two primary ranking factors for both snack pack and localized organic search rankings, so make sure any links that you build come from trusted, related sites.
Be sure to utilize your target keywords in your title, meta description and throughout your content – but be wary not to overdo it – keyword stuffing could lead to a Google penalty that damages your ranking. Instead, utilize them in ways that make sense for your audience; perhaps using long-tail keywords specific to your niche as examples.
Link building
Link building is an integral component of local SEO, helping search engines understand your location while driving highly-targeted traffic to your website and increasing brand recognition. This is particularly vital for smaller businesses competing with larger firms with multiple locations and brand recognition; building links from local sources that relate directly to your business and topic should carry more weight than internal or non-local links.
To increase your local SEO ranking, it is crucial that all pages on your site are optimized with targeted keywords and utilize local-related terms in their content. In addition, reduce bounce rates and increase page visits per session as these behavioural signals signal to Google that your content is helpful and relevant – helping increase rankings in search results.
Content creation
One of the best approaches for local SEO is creating content specific to your area, such as blog posts about local events, businesses and people in your community. Doing this can bring organic traffic directly to your website as well.
An effective strategy for local SEO content creation is using tools such as Semrush to quickly discover geo-specific terms people are searching for in your locality. These tools can reveal search volumes and competition levels so that you can select appropriate keywords.
Consistency of NAP information across all online platforms is also of great significance for local SEO, and will increase credibility with search engines and enhance usability on websites. Incorporating consistent NAP details will increase your chance of appearing in Google Map packs as local users tend to click more on results that pertain directly to them.