Benefits of Local SEO: The Key to Local Business Growth

The further the online world develops, the harder it is to keep up. After all, staying relevant online has become the number one rule for businesses. 

This even applies to local businesses. With competition as tight as ever, finding a way to stand out in your local community is imperative. 

Luckily, local SEO can help.

This special branch of SEO offers a wide array of benefits. It can help you connect with potential customers in your area and grow your business further. 

If your business is trying to make a name for itself in your community, this article is for you.

This article will tell you everything you need to know about the many benefits of local SEO. 

Even if you're just looking to improve your local search rankings, this article can give you some ideas.

📍 What Is Local SEO?

Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) is a well-known digital marketing tool. It helps businesses grow their online visibility with the aim of finding new customers. 

Local SEO takes this concept one step further. It focuses on optimising websites for local search results.

Simply put, local businesses can use local SEO to get discovered by people in that same area. 

However, local SEO doesn't just aim to position local businesses higher on SERPs.

It's also the ideal solution for small businesses that rely on local consumers. Their brick-and-mortar stores need foot traffic.

Local SEO also aims to:

1. Drive more targeted traffic to your website
2. Improve brand awareness
3. Generate sales

Local SEO includes using various techniques, including:

• Keyword research
• Website structure optimisation
• Creating location-based pages
• Collecting citations from other websites
• Managing online reviews
• Creating external links
• Catering to the needs and preferences of your local audience

Here's an example of how local SEO can benefit your small business. Let's say you run a small coffee shop in Melbourne. 

You can use these keywords in your site's content:

• "coffee shop Melbourne" 
• "coffee Melbourne"
• "coffee shop near me" 

These keywords will signal your location to search engines. This will, in turn, send local traffic to your website.

☕ What Businesses Can Benefit from Local SEO?

You might wonder if your small business needs local SEO. Are there other marketing tactics you could use instead? 

Do you know that 46% of all Google searches are from users looking for local information? Even more so, 86% of internet users look for local businesses through search engines.

That's one of the many ways local SEO can support local businesses.

But what types of businesses can reap the rewards of local SEO? The answer is every business that has some form of physical presence. 

These businesses include:

1. Brick-and-mortar stores

Local SEO can be a powerful tool for brick-and-mortar stores. For example, retail shops, cafés, restaurants, and bars. These locations need customers and foot traffic to stay in business.

2. Service-based businesses

Service-based businesses can also use SEO. These businesses include electricians, plumbers, and lawyers. They can target location-specific keywords and earn local citations for more traffic.

3. Home-based agencies

Home-based agencies can also use local SEO. They include freelancers, consultants, and online stores that operate in home offices. They should use keywords related to their local area.

4. Healthcare providers

Healthcare providers can also reap the benefits of local SEO. These include doctors, dentists, and home care providers. Local SEO helps them gather potential patients who live in the same area.

🚀 Benefits of Local SEO

Traditional SEO is evolving all the time. Not only that, but this field of digital marketing has become incredibly competitive. 

That's why many small business owners are turning towards local SEO. It gives them an opportunity to increase their exposure to customers shopping locally.

Let's take a closer look at the key benefits of local SEO services:

• Increased brand awareness

Local search engine optimisation helps grow your brand awareness and online visibility. In other words, more customers will be able to find you.

• More relevant traffic

Local SEO can help local businesses appear on the first page of search results. This drives organic traffic relevant to your products and services.

• Higher conversion rate

The more visitors your site attracts, the more chances you have to turn them into paying customers.

• Competitive advantage

Using local SEO the right way can help companies gain an edge over other businesses in the same industry. They can also find new clients at a minimal cost.

• Greater credibility

Positive online reviews can make your business more credible. Reputation management and customer engagement also lead to thought leadership.

• Better user experience

Local SEO tactics can help you build a better user experience for repeat customers.

• Increased foot traffic

As a local business owner, you can expect more foot traffic in your physical store.

🙂 Tips for Creating the Perfect Local SEO Strategy

A foolproof local SEO campaign consists of the following steps:

1. Create a Google My Business listing and optimise it
2. Optimise your website for mobile searches
3. Use local keywords
4. Use different online directories
5. Make sure your business information is consistent 
6. Create local content
7. Build links from reputable sources
8. Use local SEO tools

Create a Google My Business listing so that you can appear on Google Search and Google Maps.

The next step is to optimise your Google Business Profile. You can do this by adding up-to-date information about your business, like:

• Address
• Phone number
• Business hours
• Acceptable payment methods
• Business description
• List of products and services offered
• Links to social media

Make sure your website is optimised for mobile devices. This will improve user experience and customer engagement.

You can optimise your website for local SEO by using relevant keywords. Place them into different areas of your website, including your:

• Home page
• Landing pages
• Blog posts
• Contact page
• About us page

Take advantage of online local directories. 

The most popular ones are Yelp, YellowPages, and Bing. Make sure your business information remains consistent across all these directories.

You should also create local content relevant to your target audience. 

Optimise the content by using high-volume keywords. Use them in the body, meta description, URL, title, header, etc.

Make sure to build inbound links from reputable sources and high-authority websites. You can achieve this through guest blogging, paid ads, sponsorships, or partnerships.

Use local SEO tools to improve your search engine rankings. The most popular ones are Moz and Ahrefs.

📈 Ranking Factors for Local SEO

Your local SEO strategy must send local search ranking signals to Google. It's the only way to successfully appear in local searches. 

Here are some ranking factors Google uses for local websites:

• Your Google Business Profile

Make sure your Google My Business (GMB) listing is optimised. Your profile should contain relevant, up-to-date information about your local business.

• NAP consistency

Your business name, address, and phone number must be consistent on all online directories.

• On-page content

Your website's content should be optimised with relevant keywords. It should also include a clear call to action.

• Keyword relevance

You need to optimise your website for relevant keywords. These keywords must be relevant to your local services.

• The physical address of your local business

Your business's address must be correct and consistently used online. That way, your site is more likely to show up in relevant search results.

• Local reviews from customers

Gathering positive feedback will boost your visibility online. This also applies to high ratings on third-party review sites and local listings.

• Domain authority

Google looks at the credibility and authority of your site based on your links. So, make sure to gather quality links from reliable sources.

There are also some SEO tactics that don't have an impact on local searches. These include paid ads, appointment links, and keywords used in your GMB description.

🧪 Optimising Your Website for Local SEO

Optimising your website is an important part of local SEO.

This step ensures your business remains relevant. This is not only in the eyes of search engines but also potential customers.

Website optimisation rests on three important factors:

1. Understanding your target audience
2. Conducting keyword research based on your target audience's needs
3. Creating content around those keywords

Local SEO services focus on the specific requirements of local searchers.

If you don't know much about local SEO, you can always hire an SEO agency.

An SEO agency will optimise your site to gain more visibility and drive more sales to your business.

RankRise offers local SEO services to businesses of all sizes in Australia. 

We can help you create the perfect local SEO strategy that will:

• Increase your online visibility
• Drive qualified leads to your website
• Put your business's name on the map

🎯 Use Local SEO to Your Advantage

There are many benefits of local SEO. However, perhaps the most important one is the ongoing effects of a strong SEO strategy.

If used properly, your local SEO campaign can drive results for an extended period of time. 

Let RankRise help you with local SEO. We have experience building successful local SEO strategies for businesses in different industries. 

Reach out to us if you want to know more about our SEO services.