Local SEO

Location Location

“near me” mobile searches that contain a variant of “can I buy” or “to buy” have grown over 500% over the last two years. These include things like “where can I buy stamps near me,” “places to buy shoes near me,” or “where to buy vinyl records near me.” Just add the product or service variation for your business to see why these people are important.

Boost Your Local Visibility

Increasingly searchers are looking online to locate goods and services from local businesses. More often than not using their phone to make that search. Terms that include a place or location name combined with a shop or business type (“cafe my high street”) will often show a different range of extra search results above and around the organic listing. These enhanced elements can include maps and a more detailed business listing, opening times, photos and reviews. This is valuable exposure in the search results at the precise moment these potential local customers are looking.

The importance of appearance in these sections is that only a few are chosen so in a competitive sector it might be that only the top three appear and in turn most likely to get the attention of a potential customer. Get it right with local SEO and be found ahead of your competitors.

Google has also recently indicated that one in three US mobile queries is now ‘local’ and 87% of people use their phone when on the go. Google also found that 95% of mobile users look up local information on their phones and the primary functions are calling or visiting a business.

Local SEO & Google My Business

First stop for Local SEO is Google My Business (GMB) it is the route provided to add all this background information and one of the most powerful ways to improve a business’ local search engine optimization and online visibility. If you’re a local business, claiming your Google My Business profile is one of the first steps you should take to increase your company’s online local presence.

In addition it is also valuable to ensure that you have optimised you web pages and other listings correctly and consistently. Using different address formats or naming can dilute your online impact.

Whilst Google attracts the most users and probable sends you the most visitors there are similar opportunities to claim your business and boost local SEO on Bing Places.

Get in touch and we can help you become optimised to make the most of local search opportunities