Introduction
Local search has become an invaluable tool for small businesses looking to expand. SEO consultants Melbourne can handle multiple local SEO projects.
The Rise of Mobile and Voice Search
Local SEO: How it Works
Why is Local Search Important?
Optimizing your Google My Business Page
Optimizing Your Website for Local Search
Local search has become an invaluable tool for small businesses looking to expand.
Local search has become an invaluable tool for small businesses looking to expand. But many companies continue to ignore the importance of local SEO, which can be costly for their business.
As you know by now, local search works by helping customers find businesses in their area based on location-based data like ZIP codes and street addresses. It’s an essential part of online marketing because it allows customers to easily find nearby businesses they’re already familiar with—and it’s one of the most effective ways for small businesses to grow their customer base without spending too much money on advertising or marketing efforts.
Local SEO is also important because it helps drive traffic from organic results (i.e., when someone searches using a keyword) as opposed to paid advertisements that appear above organic results in Google SERPs (Search Engine Results Pages). Since consumers tend not want ads shoved in their faces at all times while browsing online—especially if they’re not interested in what those ads are selling—it makes sense that many prefer organic results instead because they provide more value than simply generating clicks through paid ads.
The Rise of Mobile and Voice Search
- The Rise of Mobile and Voice Search
The role that mobile search has played in the evolution of local SEO is undeniable. A study by comScore found that more than 50% of searches are now carried out from mobile devices, and this number is growing rapidly. As a result, Google has been making significant changes to its algorithm over the past few years in order to prioritize mobile-friendly content as well as give users more relevance-based results.
- The Rise of Local Search (and Yours)
When you combine this trend with another major development — voice-based searches — you have a recipe for success: your business’s ability to capture leads through local search marketing efforts is greater than ever before. Voice is becoming an increasingly popular way for consumers to interact with their devices, so you need to make sure your SEO strategy accounts for it when optimizing content or creating new pages on your website.
Local SEO: How it Works
Local SEO has a much bigger impact on the overall search engine optimization strategy than some may realize. Google’s algorithms determine local search results based on where you are and what you’ve searched for in the past. If a user is located in Washington, D.C., for example, then they will see different results for “restaurants” than if they were searching from somewhere in Oregon.
Local SEO also plays a role when it comes to click-through rate (CTR). Your CTR is essentially how many people clicked on your website over others when presented with similar content. For example: If there are two restaurants competing against each other that offer similar dishes at similar prices, but one has better reviews online with higher ratings, then chances are its CTR will be higher because more people want to eat there compared to the other restaurant—and this means more customers!
Why is Local Search Important?
Local search is important because it drives traffic to your business. It’s no secret that people are more likely to buy from someone they know, like and trust. And when you’re a local business, the process of meeting and building trust with potential clients is especially critical. If you can show potential customers that you are a trusted source of information—and prove that through reviews or customer testimonials—you can build relationships with them at the same time as they learn about what services or products you offer.
Local search also increases brand awareness by allowing you to reach out to new audiences who are specifically searching for businesses like yours in their area. This means getting your name in front of people who might not otherwise have heard of it before; at this point in time, there’s nothing more valuable than being recognized as an expert in one’s field by those outside of it!
Optimizing your Google My Business Page
Having a Google My Business listing is a great way to show up in local search results, especially when combined with your other efforts. To get started with GMB, you’ll need to create an account on Google and verify it for your business’ location. You can also add photos, videos and links from your website here. Once that’s complete—and you’ve added some information about what makes your business special—you should start responding to reviews left by customers so they don’t look like spam coming from the company itself (more on this below).
It’s important to keep all of this information fresh; since Google uses machine learning algorithms to determine which businesses are relevant based on customer activity like visits or reviews, keeping these types of interactions active will help boost visibility in local results over time.
Finally: don’t forget about Bing! If we’re talking about optimizing sites for local searches then we shouldn’t ignore Bing either; though its share has fallen steadily since 2013 (from 33% at its peak down toward 20% today), it still receives almost three times as much traffic as Yahoo does (#3)!
Optimizing Your Website for Local Search
When it comes to local search, there are several easy ways you can optimize your website to drive more traffic.
- Make sure your website is mobile friendly. Google has said that having a mobile-friendly site will help with SEO. It’s also true that mobile devices are the most common way people find local businesses. To make sure your site is ready for this growing trend, check out our guide on how to optimize your site for mobile users here: https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/206485
Understand the impact local search can have on your business and create a strategy to take advantage of it.
Local search is a powerful way to gain new customers. But does it stop there? Not by far. Local search can also be used as a long-term strategy that extends beyond just driving traffic and leads. It can also be used to increase brand awareness, which is never a bad thing! Here are some tips on how to take advantage of local search:
- Understand the impact local search can have on your business and create a strategy to take advantage of it. It’s very important that you understand what it is, how it works and where you stand in relation to your competitors before implementing any changes or additions for your business’ online presence.* We recommend checking out these articles below for more information about this topic:
Conclusion
If you’re still not sold on the power of local search and how it could benefit your business, take a look at the numbers. According to research by BrightLocal, more than half of all Google searches are now made with smartphones, and over 75% of those searches are made within a one-mile radius of where they live or work. This means that people are using their phones to find nearby businesses and services when they don’t know exactly what they want—and they’re trusting Google with this task more than ever before. In Australia I meet greg gillespie one of the top expert in SEO, he give me some thoughts on how to turn things around with my business.