Local SEO is one of the most prominent digital marketing strategies to help businesses promote their products and services to customers in their locality. The goal of local SEO is to boost a business’ online visibility in local search results, including on listings such as Google My Business and Google Maps. 

By optimizing their online presence for local search, these businesses will generate more interest and attract more local customers, boosting their sales and driving their brand recognition in an upward direction.

Some local SEO strategies include optimizing a company’s website, creating and maintaining a healthy Google My Business listing, building strong local backlinks, and getting listed in all sorts of local directories. When combined, these local SEO strategies deliver tangible results for the business.

Local SEO services are extremely important for businesses that rely on local audiences to make up a large proportion of their customer base. Here are a few quick points on why local SEO is vital for businesses.

Reach local customers

By optimizing your business’ online presence for local search, that business will attract more local customers who are looking for products and services in your area that are similar to the ones you offer. More customers mean more sales.

Stand out from competitors

By creating and maintaining an optimized Google My Business listing, a business can stand out head and shoulders above the competition, by increasing the likelihood that it will be found first or easiest by local customers.

Increase brand recognition

Appearing atop local search results will generate a fantastic boost to a brand’s recognition. This helps to build long-term trust with customers, creating more loyalty and increasing the chances of customers returning in the future.

Improve customer engagement

You can drive your customer engagement by optimizing your Google My Business listing and encouraging customers to leave reviews and engage with your business online. This also helps the business generate more authority and trust in the eyes of the customer.

Now that we’ve seen how we can utilize local SEO to our business’ benefit, let’s take a quick look at some additional tips to help boost your local SEO efforts.

Optimize your website

Ensure your website is optimized for local SEO by including your town, city, or region in your website’s title tags, meta descriptions, and content.

Get listed in local directories

Improve your online visibility and build a strong collection of local backlinks by getting your business listed in local directories, such as Yelp or Yellow Pages.

Use location-specific keywords

The keywords in your website’s content should be location-specific. Consider the difference between saying “best pizza” or “best pizza in Boston” if you are trying to attract customers to your Boston-based pizzeria. 

Encourage customer reviews

We already mentioned this, but it is an invaluable tip: encourage all of your customers to leave a positive review on your Google My Business and other local directories to improve your online reputation and engagement. The power of positive reviews cannot be overstated.

If you’re looking to improve your local SEO rankings but don’t know where to start, the best thing to do is turn to a professional local search engine optimization company. Such a company can help you optimize your website and Google My Business listing, get listed in local directories, and build local backlinks. They can also provide valuable insights and recommendations for improving your local SEO strategy over time, as well as tips and hints you won’t find anywhere else.

At inSegment, we specialize in local SEO services and have helped countless partners improve their online visibility and attract more local customers, regardless of their niche. Contact inSegment today to get more local customers and learn more about how we can help you succeed with local SEO.