Did you know that almost half of all Google searches are looking for local information?

Have you put your company on the map with a local SEO plan?

Whenever you are looking for a store or service in your area that you can visit the same day, you most likely turn to the Internet. A quick Google search can put you in the right direction, and then you are on the road in no time.

Your customers are no different. They know how to effectively use Google to find what they're looking for.

This is why local SEO tools are critical for your business. In this article, we will walk you through five great ways to implement your local SEO strategy so you can drive customers to your business.

What Businesses Need a Local SEO Service?

It's true that not every business needs a local SEO plan. For companies or organizations that don't run out of a brick-and-mortar site or who offer primarily e-commerce services over the Internet, the local search rankings are far less important.

However, companies who get leads regarding potential customers in the local area are perfect for SEO.

Companies that go to individual homes such as roofing, landscaping, masonry, tiling, paving, HVAC, or other contractors stand to benefit from improving their rank in organic search results locally.

Additionally, local professional services need SEO. This includes dentists, laser eye clinics, lawyers, and cosmetic surgeons also need to have a foothold in the local Google rankings.

Increasingly, restaurants rely on online search results to get people to make reservations. An online presence helps your business stand out and increases the odds of developing repeat customers.

What Are the Benefits of Developing a Local SEO Plan?

There are several reasons to begin implementing a strategy designed by professional local SEO services.

Because people are constantly searching online, you know that increasing your rankings in Google will increase your online and in-person traffic. Online search traffic can be measured, which allows for a precise metric to gauge your SEO efforts over time.

When you show up first or second in the Google rankings for common searches, your customers know where to find you. In their mind, they know that they can easily access the information they need about your business once they have already found it once through a Google search.

You also become better integrated with the local business community. Other businesses who are also improving their SEO status will naturally come to see your business during their own SEO efforts and know that you are a serious professional. You can work together with other companies in your area to help create additional backlinks and cement your position at the top of the rankings.

Eventually, you can slowly reduce your advertising costs once your SEO strategy is in place. You won't need additional funding to secure your positioning to win customers through the Internet.

Five Ways to Implement a Local SEO Strategy

Here are just a few steps you can take to start your SEO plan on the right foot.

1. Do An Internal Audit of Your Existing Site

You want to think about your unique marketing advantages as a business. What types of goods and services do you offer, and how are you different from your competitors?

Next, you need to take a look at the performance of your existing website or have a local SEO expert do an audit.

You want to review all SEO aspects of the site. You'll need to look specifically at the navigability, keyword strategy, and your internal and external links. Almost every local business has areas where they can improve.

2. Do Keyword Research

If you aren't yet at the top of the rankings, you can easily analyze businesses that are. There are many tools available to discover which keywords are driving traffic to the sites, and how easy it will be for you to break into the SEO market for this keyword. You can use this information to target your efforts and find the lowest hanging fruit to get your site in front of customers more quickly.

You also want to look at keywords that are specific to your location. For example, if you want to target customers in the city of Nashville, you want to make sure to include "Nashville" in the keywords you target. Many customers will naturally add on their location within their search query.

3. Master On-Page SEO

On-page SEO involves making your website highly attractive to Google. You do this by structuring your pages in a way that Google likes, and sprinkling in specific text and keywords into your content so that Google knows where to find the best information that you are providing.

You can also create several landing pages for nearby cities, and build out the blog content for each so that you are able to rank highly for each location.

This is a "strength in numbers" strategy and can drastically improve your results.

4. Optimizing Your Google My Business Listing

Google My Business is a fantastic and free local directory that many customers use without knowing. When they search for businesses in their area, it is usually one of the first things they see in the search results.

Google will place the top three business listings at the top of the results, and customers can directly click to access your site. When you fill out all of the information Google requests, you may find that you skyrocket to the top of the results just because other competitors haven't taken the same time or effort.

5. Prioritize Link Building

Link building is the single most effective tool in your arsenal as an SEO-focused business. Specifically, getting local backlinks from high authority domains in your area helps to drastically improve your SEO rankings in a short period of time.

You want to try to get your company listed on local business directory websites or business association websites.

Driving Customers to Your Business with Local SEO

If you haven't started to think about a local SEO strategy for your business, it is not too late. With some focused effort upfront, you can build a fantastic tool that drives customers to your business.

If you are interested in outsourcing this work, MSC Agency specializes in custom local SEO solutions. We know exactly what it takes to get your business to the top of the local SEO rankings. Please contact us today if you are interested in one of our offerings.