Why is Local SEO Important for Small Business?
Many businesses regardless of size realize the importance of having an online presence through the use of SEO to boost traffic for their websites. Search engine optimization optimizes a website for search engines like Google, Bing, Yahoo, etc., and brings more qualified leads for small businesses.
In fact, according to a study conducted by Google, around 78 percent of local business searches from a mobile device results in a sale. 85 percent of the users click on the results from the first page of Google search while a percentage of only 4.97 percent get to the 9th page.
This shows that people pay attention to the first page results and when they don’t find the results they either refine their search or consider your business as never existing.
It’s, therefore, crucial for every business owner to understand the true meaning of local SEO as well as the potential it creates for every business.
How to Use SEO to Drive Qualified Leads to Your Website
If you are wondering how to use SEO to get more traffic, here are some SEO tactics that can help you create the biggest impact on your lead generation efforts.
1. Setup and Optimize Google My Business for Local SEO
Google My Business is a useful tool that enables customers to locate a place of interest through Google map and company information.
Getting on Google Local should be your first step in building a strong web presence to increase your business’s search engine visibility and help keep ahead of the competition.
Listing yourself on Google My Business results in enhanced search performance since your competition will only be other local businesses and not all business offering the same products or services globally.
2. Update your website’s functionality
Long before adding fancy features to your site, you need to ensure that it loads fast, converts and offers a user-friendly experience.
Make sure the website is responsive on all devices and across different browsers and systems so that visitors get the experience that you want them to have.
You want your site to have a lasting impression on your visitors so that they keep coming back.
3. Optimize your homepage and other navigation pages
It’s crucial to optimize your website for mobile users, even if your website traffic mostly comes from desktop search engine queries.
According to a Stone Temple Consulting study report, nearly 50 percent of URLs that didn’t deliver a mobile-friendly user experience dropped considerably in search result rankings.
4. Use long tail keywords
Including keywords in your title, header tags, meta descriptions, and body part is one of the most fundamental aspects of SEO.
To benefit from a keyword strategy, you need to do some research before deciding which ones to go for. Short tail keywords are three words or less e.g. display case or athletic apparel.
Long tail keywords are key phrases that are more specific and longer than the more commonly used keywords.
Examples include refrigerated display case or summer athletic apparel. Although long tail keywords get less search traffic, they usually have a higher conversion value, as they are more targeted.
5. Use local SEO strategies (claim your local listings, use locally modified keywords in your content)
Create a local business listing (containing your business name, address, phone number, and other details) to make your business visible on the Internet.
And to better target audiences in a specific geolocation, you need to include location-based keywords for your local search marketing. Examples include Denver grocery store, a grocery store in Denver, etc.
6. Increase your website’s speed
Not only are slow loading sites annoying, but search engines treat slow load speeds as a ranking factor. Speeding up your website is critical not just for ranking well with search engines but to keep your revenues high. Your best bet is ensuring that your site loads quickly across all devices and browsers.
With these tips, kicking off a successful SEO strategy is now within reach. Starting an SEO campaign can be a daunting task. Leave it to the digital marketing experts to help you along the way in turning your website into a lead generation machine.
[/et_pb_text][/et_pb_column][/et_pb_row][/et_pb_section]