Local SEO is the type of Search Engine Optimization that is targeted for a local market rather than the whole internet. The goal is to achieve rankings on locally searched keywords that often include the name of the town, city or state where your business is located. There are many elements to a good Local SEO campaign, some of which are discussed in detail below.
Keyword Research
A good Local SEO campaign starts, much like any SEO campaign, with keyword research. The big difference with Local SEO keyword research is volume. You probably won’t find a lot of keywords with a ton of search volume for your business in your local area unless you are in a highly searched industry or a very large market. Most of the time, you will find a few relevant keywords that are searched regularly. You will also find that there is a lot more competition for those keywords. Those highly competitive phrases are very valuable so you will want to add them to your list of keywords to optimize for. However, it is very likely that there are gold mines hidden right in front of you. The more general search terms that have no local focus could become top producing phrases. The general terms tend to have even more competition than the local focused phrases. So how do we optimize for those phrases as well as the local terms? The answer is intuition.
When viewing a general search phrases such as “HVAC” you will notice high search volume, and high competition. By simply making that general phrase into a long-tail keyword you can create dozens of great keywords for your local SEO campaign.
“On Page”
Once you have a good list of keywords to optimize for, creating content for your website is the next step. The tried and true method is to simply write about your business, your services, your service area and publish examples/testimonials from successful clients/projects. One simple way to cultivate this type of content is through a blog. Developing a network of pages with this type of content is also encouraged. This task can be very time consuming and it is important to do it the right way. You do not want to stuff your posts with keywords. Trying too hard to get ahead will hurt you in the long run. It is best to let the content write itself. You must make sure that the content is fresh, unique and try not to repeat yourself too often. Also include any images and videos you may have created for your business as this improves SEO as well. If you find that this step is too time consuming give us a call. We are experts at generating unique, fresh content that works very well in our local SEO campaigns. Many of our Portland SEO clients have experienced success in their local SEO campaigns from our content writers. There are many other factors that contribute to on page SEO. Currently we are one of the highest rated Portland SEO Companies. We take pride in the fact that our on page content is of such a good quality that our clients websites are effectively optimized.
Design
Having good graphic design for your logo and your website is important. User experience makes up a big part of SEO. Although you want your website to load fast, you also want it to look good. A balance must be struck between aesthetic and optimal load time. If a website looks good, it’s easy to navigate and has valuable content, you can go far in your Local SEO campaign.
Social Media
Social interactions with customers are very valuable. This is true on Facebook and in person. Search engines understand that value and they incorporate it into their algorithms that factor rankings. Improving your social presence through regular interaction, proper brand identity and social media marketing can greatly improve results in your Local SEO campaign.
PPC
Pay Per Click (PPC) marketing is also often referred to as Search Engine Placement. This form of advertising allows you to place your websites on search engines in their sponsored ad spots. This form of advertising can increase traffic to your website and generate new business. With the tools made available to us we can target a very small or large market for advertising on Google, Yahoo or Bing. This increase in traffic leads to more leads, business interactions, social interactions and ultimately helps SEO improve.
Print Marketing
This may sound unintuitive to some. Print marketing allows you to connect with people who might not have heard of your business through flyers, door hangers, mailers, etc. This will likely generate more business for your company. How does this help SEO? Simple. By including an incentive on these print materials for users to follow you on Facebook, visit your website or use a coupon online, you can increase quality traffic to your website and improve your social media presence. The difficulty of figuring out design and distribution can often cause many business owners to set aside print marketing as a viable option. We can get you answers to your questions and solve some of the hardest problems for you. Let us save you some time with all of your Local Marketing needs.
Across the United States and Canada we have helped small businesses grow in their local market. In our own backyard (Portland, Oregon) we have had many successful SEO campaigns which have resulted in long lasting satisfied customers. Visit our Testimonials Page to see some of the success stories. Also visit our Portfolio to see some of our local Portland SEO clients. All the elements discussed above factor into Local SEO and whether you choose to hire us or to do it on your own we hope the information on this post was helpful. Our local Portland SEO customers enjoy the benefit of having us nearby to visit and discuss their campaign. Even if you are not in our local market area, we are always available to meet over the phone or via video chat to discuss your campaign. Let’s get started today, call us toll free at 1-877-340-6319.