Local SEO & Ranking Factors
First impressions mean a lot. The old adage of not judging a book by its cover may be partially true in terms of your website and nowadays it’s even more important your cover is nice and shiny. But what you may not realize is that 76% of search users will visit the same day.
Everyone with a business or organization needs to perk up. When it comes to search results and getting locals to notice you, there are a few things you must do right now!
8 Ways to Improve Local SEO
- Optimize your website for local search
- Make sure your business listings across the web are accurate and functional
- Schedule regular weekly or monthly updates
- Accurate NAPs
- Multiple Locations = Multiple Listings (which equates to extra effort)
- Post photos of inside and outside of locations, services, programs, and products
- Respond to Reviews positively and accurately, *don’t forget to include keywords.
- When a user asks a question, answer quickly
The Map Pack is where you want to be.
Unfortunately, this ranking is determined by a user’s physical location and search query. But… where there’s a will, there is a way. You can run paid ads to rank higher on the map pack.
Top 8 Ranking Factors for Local Search
- Make sure you claim your GMB profile: Proximity, categories, keyword in business title, etc
- Linking Signals: Inbound anchor text, linking domain authority, linking domain quantity, etc.
- Review Signals: Review quantity, review velocity, review diversity, etc.
- On-Page Signals: Presence of NAP, keywords in titles, domain authority, etc.
- Citation Signals: IYP/aggregator NAP consistency, citation volume, etc. (Are you 1000% accurate on all listings?
- Behavioral Signals: Click-through rate, mobile clicks to call, check-ins, etc.
- Personalization: Making it personal: use branding, images, photos, text. Your citations need to be all about the business!
- Social Signals: Google engagement, Facebook engagement, Twitter engagement, etc. Customers tagging you or using your location in posts.
Finally, you can work on the landing page titles, descriptions, meta-data, and include location details in the content you share on your web pages.
Doing all these items will help you rank higher in local searches.
Have more questions or want to know how Good Intents can help? Contact Stephanie by email.