Local businesses have to be smart in their marketing approach, hyper-targeting clients within a certain distance of their physical address is one way to getting higher conversions and a better return on internet marketing expenses. Getting multiple search listings on the first page of Google requires an understanding of paid advertising, local “maps” listings and website listings. Both the maps listings and website listings require an understanding of search engine optimization or SEO.

Most business owners have heard of backlinking or link building as a method of promoting a website across the web and allowing search engines to find and index a website. The more links, typically the more authority a website will have over it’s competitors and potentially rank higher in the search engines. We say “potentially” because there many other ranking factors that influence the position of your website in the search listings for a particular search term.

SEO For Local Map Listings

For map listings like Google Plus Local, high rankings rely both on optimizing the page for services being provided and also the number of mentions a business has across the web on other business directories. These mentions are also called “citations” and represent a big part of ranking a map listing above a competitor. The logic for this is simple, a more credible and established business will have more presence on the web and naturally more pages where the business has been discussed.

The benefit of building directory citations is a business will have the opportunity to be in front of more consumers who are using the directories and also give the business a boost in map rankings.

SEO For Local Business Websites

Good SEO for local business websites starts with including information the search engines can use assign a location to a local business. Adding the business name, address and phone number to each page is a simple but effective way to identify the website as being local.

Posting articles on local community websites (chamber of commerce, community magazines) and utilizing social engagement (comments) from local authority sites is an effective way to build links back to your website. The practice of building links on local websites provides you with an opportunity to identify your website as having local intent.

So what are the benefits?

1. It helps to ensure that your business starts to appear in search engines such as Google, Yahoo or Bing. Getting your business to appear in the top 3 results is key to bringing in the most traffic. Heat map research shows that most people will most often click on the first website in the list of results as they believe this one will offer them the most relevant answer to the question they have.

2. Building listings and links on related websites ensures your business has a larger share of voice on the search engines when compared to your competitors. If your business appears more often in the search results, potential customers will naturally trust your business more. If the listings or links appear on popular and well respected websites, a consumer is more likely to trust what you have to offer.

Performing a steady local search engine optimization campaign will not only increase traffic to your website but also boost online credibility in the process. Online credibility can increase the number of leads your business receives and improve sales conversion rates.

Halo Effects specializes in SEO for local businesses and understands how to increase search engine rankings, online visibility and share of voice for local search terms. Contact us for a free online visibility report to find out how your business compares to local competitors.