An illustrated skull. Skull reads "Wayfarer Wisdom" denoting series title

December 30 2019

by David Tillson

SEO

Wayfarer Wisdom: Local SEO

Although you may not realize it, the benefits of using SEO in the content you create can be the difference between 1 new customer and 1000. Sounds exciting, right? This brings up the question: where to start? SEO can feel like an unscalable mountain without the proper resources or knowledge to guide you along. A great way to get your foot in the door with upping your SEO strategy is by utilizing Local SEO. This term refers to the additional geographical component of search engine optimization, which helps get your content in front of local customers and networks to build your business. Read on for three dynamic ways to improve your company’s local SEO.

Claim Your Business on Google My Business

This is arguably the most important (and easiest) ways to get started on your local SEO. Google My Business is one of the most important factors in ranking locally compared to your competitors. If you haven’t already, claim your business listing on Google My Business. From there, upload a keyword-rich description of what your company does, such as services, brand values, and overall identity components that define the business. Support the listing by adding visually descriptive photos of the business and updating any key information auto-populated on the page. This can be contact information, address listing and even a website url. It’s important to ensure that all the information provided is correct to see the best success from this tool!

Utilize Local Contacts for Link Building

Link Building is the process of exchanging links with other websites to increase your own site’s backlinks and quality backlinks. (source) Backlinks, or referral links back to your website, are one of the most important factors in ranking for SEO on both a local and global scale. Utilizing this can be done by tapping into the network of contacts you have established among other local businesses and see if they are willing to put a link of your website onto theirs. Having just one backlink with a high domain authority goes a long way in your search engine rankings. As you get more comfortable with SEO strategies like this one, you can expand into other metrics such as keyword diversity and bounce rates to make continual optimizations and keep your website ranking high.

Prioritize Customer Reviews

Having solid customer reviews are one of the top factors in ranking in your local area. There are a few ways you can ask your customers for reviews. Popular methods include asking at the end of a transactional email and offering an incentive such as a discount for reviews left on Facebook or Google. Another great method is to include it in a post-sale follow up with the customer. Not only will this give you a greater chance of receiving a review, but it will also speak highly of the level of customer service offered by your business for keeping that channel of communication open after a sale.

Improving your local SEO is a great gateway path to help take control of your brand’s digital presence and to secure a high search rank for your business. If you’re interested in expanding your SEO strategy and making game-changing improvements, reach out to us. We’d be happy to help.

Hear from VSSL Client Manager, Liz Floyd about the benefits of Local SEO by checking out her episode of Wayfarer Wisdom on our IGTV feed.

To view the entire Wayfarer Wisdom series, click here.