In 2018, there were 26.5 million nonemployer businesses in the United States. Ninety-eight percent of businesses in the United States employ less than 20 workers.
But while small businesses are larger in terms of sheer number than larger companies, they are still at a disadvantage. Especially when it comes to marketing.
Smaller businesses have to compete with larger companies without the benefit of vast sums of money to market their business. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t strategies to help you compete.
Here are five top local SEO tips for small businesses.
Five Local SEO Tips For Small Business Success
1. Claim Your Local Listings For Local SEO
One way to increase local SEO in an easy and budget-friendly way is to claim your local listings.
Your Google Business Profile is the most important listing to claim, verify and optimize.
After that, many search engines and business listings exist, and your business should be listed on as many core business profiles as possible. The task is time-consuming if you try to do it alone. Luckily, most marketing companies provide this service to their clients.
They’ll make sure there are no duplicate listings that hurt your SEO. They’ll also ensure that your business name and contact information are properly listed.
Photos of your place of business or products can also often be added to boost SEO.
2. Ask for Reviews
Reviews are a great way to increase SEO. With 90% of people conducting an online search before they make a purchase, every company needs to start asking for reviews.
Reviews are a great way to increase trust.
In 2020, 79% said they trusted online reviews as much as the recommendations of family and friends.
People buy from people, not businesses. And they buy from people they trust.
Start asking for reviews to place on your site. Then start placing yourself on review sites to increase your SEO.
Sites like Amazon, the Better Business Bureau, and Google My Business are great places to list your business.
3. Local SEO Can be Increased by Using Social Media
Social media is a great way to increase your online presence. Simply create a profile on your favorite sites where your niche audience is most likely to be found.
Many social media sites allow you to set up posts in advance to help you plan your marketing strategy. If you do choose to advertise on a social media site, it’s extremely affordable.
Facebook allows you to do a campaign for as little as $1 per day. You can also target your niche audience by geographic location, interests, age group, and money they make.
While all of this is a fantastic way to grow your online presence, unfortunately, it has a very small impact on your SEO – at least as far as Google is concerned. This is because Google will only factor things into their algorithm that they can track accurately.
So how can you use social media in a way that will improve and impact your SEO?
Use the channels Google tracks and factors – Google Business Profile and Youtube. Actively using these two social media channels can potentially have a powerful and positive impact on your SEO.
4. Optimize Your Site with Keywords
Keywords are a great way to increase SEO on your website. But you need to figure out which keyword phrases are best.
Take a look at which keywords your competitors are using on their sites. Pretend you are a customer looking for a business like yours. Use keywords they would tend to use to find you.
Google also has a keyword search you can use. Or you can work with a company to help you figure out the best keywords that will help boost your SEO.
Just remember to think like a customer!
More often than not, using your industry jargon will not be the terms your potential clients use in their search queries.
5. Use Link Building
Internal and external links are helpful for a few reasons. They add an extra layer of trust and help to set your business up as experts.
Internal links bring more visibility to other sections of your site. They can back up what you’re explaining without adding duplicate content.
External links bring added credibility to your site. They also help generate more traffic.
Link building is critical if you want to distinguish yourself from the competition.
To succeed on the local level, gaining locally relevant links to your site is how to get an advantage over the larger players in your space.
For some practical link-building ideas and tips, check out other articles featured on our blog related to link building.
Work with Us
Hopefully, you’ve found these Local SEO tips helpful and useful.
If you’d like to explore the possibility of having our agency help, know that we have many available solutions that can help you boost your local SEO.
We want to help your business succeed.
To get started, try our free SEO audit tools. Or call us today for a free consultation @ 1-855-970-GURU or 216-202-3386
We look forward to helping improve your online visibility & Local SEO.
