In today’s blog we’re going to look into the work that local SEO experts do and answer the question ‘What is local SEO?’ The only place to start with a topic like this is the very beginning, and build your knowledge from there – but by the time you’re finished you’re going to know exactly what local SEO is and how it can help you - so you can make better decisions for your own business. Better decisions equals more money, saved, more money saved means you can make more good decisions and decisions to do the right things with that money... And local SEO experts are the people that can help you make good decisions as regards local SEO.
So what does ‘search engine optimization’ mean? It is generally the act of doing certain web design and content writing activities in a certain way, so that your site is found higher search engine results. Of course, it doesn’t take a local SEO expert to know that the big name in this area is Google, which like other search engines, uses several different algorithms to determine the results it presents to users, and the order in which they are seen.
Let’s talk about the local SEO algorithm next, which is used for about 40% of all Google searches. As a local SEO expert will tell you, if you're in an area and you search for something like ‘latte near me’, ‘coffee shop near me’ – whatever it may be – as long as you include that element of what local SEO experts call ‘geolocation’, Google will give you a special set of results. These results will be tailored to show you things around either where you are right now, or things in the area that you specified. For example, I could actually be in Leicester, but if I Google ‘Chinese food Manchester’ I’ll get results specifically about Chinese food in Manchester.
But Google is a worldwide platform offering worldwide exposure - why would you want to limit yourself to local SEO and call upon the services of a local SEO expert? It's a great feeling when someone types in your business name and you show up at the top of the results – but think about it - you should be one of only a few businesses that have a name similar to yours, especially at a local level… You should be towards the top of the rankings for that search term. Where the real money is made online is when a potential customer searches for ‘what they want’ (and – in the case of local SEO - ‘where they want it’), rather than your business by name – the problem is that in such searches your business then becomes a smaller fish in a bigger pond.
In this case the person running the search knows what they want, but they don't know who they want - or maybe even who is available – to provide that thing. As a result your business is now in competition with other companies like yours to earn the customer’s business – and the first thing that can make a difference to your chances of coming out on top in that competition is how well your local SEO has been done.
Local SEO experts know that ranking towards the top of the Google results for a given search term is a surefire way of generating more website traffic, so If you can show at the top of Google for free in the ‘Google local three pack’ (that familiar shortlist of local businesses that we’ve all seen at some point), as a website included in the organic local SEO listings, or even via advertising if you wanted to pay for that - then you're giving out a lot of opportunities for potential customers to learn more about your business. And maybe as a result, if you're good at persuading them to do so, they’ll do business with you.
That's why you want to contact a local SEO expert and enlist their help. Ranking well in the kind of search that we mentioned above can really help your business get seen online, and it’s is precisely the kind of thing that local SEO experts can help you with.