Foundations of Local Search Marketing

We do more than build websites that look good, we create strategies that make them perform. The more you give us the better we can perform for you with content. Does your website get you the results you expect?

What is Local Search Marketing?

Local search marketing is simply promoting a physical business through search engine optimization that helps local businesses show up in relevant online searches so customers can find you. This incredibly effective form of targeted marketing can be scaled to fit any size business – from single-location small and medium businesses to national enterprise brands, and chains.

The foundation of good local SEO is built upon a base of clear and accurate business information and utilizes an array of marketing practices to increase the visibility and build the reputation of an unknown brand and turn it into a household name.

This graphic displays an excellent overview of the core elements that make up a local SEO campaign, from the fundamental on the bottom to the more advanced elements at the top.

Why is local search marketing important for my business?

Good local SEO is built on a strong foundation with the goal of ultimately gaining the competitive edge. Those elements of the foundation are displayed in the above pyramid above and the definition of each of these tasks is explained below, starting at the bottom.

Guideline Compliance

The first decision you need to make will be how you set up your Google My Business listing. Since this is the most important listing you can build for your company, it is important to keep in mind that failure to comply with Google’s guidelines may result in ranking failures and possible removal of listings before you even get stated. There is no shortcut here, you need to structure your website the way Google wants and follow their guidelines.

Website authority

Your website authority is simply your website ranking score. The best way to actively pursue authority is by earning mentions of your business as well as links from relevant, high-quality sources. Not only do the quality and authority of your links have an impact on your local search rankings, but your site can also accrue some authority due to its age and longevity if your site has been active for a while.

Website quality

The goals for your website should be to load quickly, feature a sensible structure, render properly on all devices, feature high-quality content, be free of malware or other malicious elements, and be easy for people to use. If all those features are working correctly, your quality score should improve. Always remember that no amount of marketing will make up for a poor user experience on your site.

Website optimization

Search engine optimization (SEO) can increase the organic search visibility of your site. In addition to traditional SEO, Local Search Engine Optimization also takes geographic location into consideration meaning the search results are relevant to the locations in which the business serves – in addition to keywords about products, services and information.

NAP consistency

“NAP” stands for “name, address, phone number,” the three key pieces of data that make up the core of your business information when it comes to local search. It is very important to make every effort to ensure your NAP is consistent across your website and on all third-party platforms where your business is listed because. Inconsistencies with NAP may seem insignificant, but they can end up misdirecting customers and costing you revenue. An audit of all the places your business is listed is the first step of confirming your NAP consistency. You can do a free check your NAP consistency here.

NAP breadth

Once your NAP is consistent, the next step is spreading it across the internet by building relevant structured citations (local business listings) on major advertising platforms like Google, Facebook, Bing and Yelp.

Mentions and citations on social platforms, blogs, news sites and other resources will continue to help you grow the breadth of your NAP as search engines find your business referenced in more places across the web.