Local SEO is the process of improving search engine visibility for local business. Google’s new algorithm is a fresh take on local SEO. It’s time for business to re-evaluate their processes for local search. In this blog, we look at the factors impacting local SEO, what a business needs to do to stay relevant and how a content strategy can help business thrive in the new world of local search. As Google continues to develop their algorithms, it’s becoming more critical than ever to create content for local SEO. This blog article offers some insight to the checklist that can either make or break your local SEO campaign. Local SEO is extremely important for small business. It provides them additional visibility in local searches. Local business need to understand the checklist that would determine their rankings in these searches in order to stay ahead of the game.

The Quintessential Local SEO Checklists – Better Rankings and Customer Attraction

Planning an efficient local SEO strategy and executing it well is a challenge. Following are some of the checklists that optimize a local SEO strategy:

1. Optimize Google My Business – Register your business with Google Business. An integral part of getting your business noticed by both Google and potential customers is setting up your GMB listing. As GMB is one of the first thing that users will come across while searching for a company on Google, it is important to have your business listed, verified and managed. Search algorithms use GMB signals like proximity, contact information, categories, and updated content to analyse and interpret where your business is shown to people in your area. It is incredibly important for business to set up, claim and verify their GMB listings. A comprehensive local SEO campaign, it lets you to be more visible on Google search and Google Maps where your customers can find your information. It will surely work to optimise the listing for enhanced visibility. Your checklist for GMB is:

• Create your page
• Claim, add and verify your profile
• Choose the category that fits you
• Optimize your profile with images and information about your business

2. Technical website criteria – Every local business website needs to be error-free, multi-device-compliant, well-structured and properly optimized. It must have a ‘Contact Us’ page featuring the complete name, address and phone number of all your staffed locations. All location pages are linked that form a high-level navigation menu. If you want to keep your street address private, do not publish the same on your website. However, it is mandatory to provide a designated phone number that is in order during the business hours.
3. Getting local content right – Content is an integral part of any SEO. Hence, you should make sure that there aren’t any duplicate content and focus more on in-depth content. You should keep the following in mind –

• Don’t publish content from other websites unless you are publishing an attributed quote within your own unique content.
• If you are offering the same service or product in multiple cities, you must think carefully about attempting to create a unique page for every possible city or keyword combination. This plan will be helpful only if you have sufficient resources of time, money and talent to create high-quality pages for each combination.
• It is a mandate to think before deciding to take a multi-website approach even if your company offers multiple services or has multiple offices. Experts agree that it is better to build a single, powerhouse website that promotes your brand and its services and branches.

4. Create user-friendly and search-friendly content – You can utilize unique testimonials from customers in your service cities so that your city landing pages maintain a cut from the rest. The testimonials from customers who have used specific products or services for related product and service pages can be useful. You can also build an on-site blog in order to develop your content room. Interview experts within or outside your company and create product-specific content. Sponsor events, teams or organizations in different cities and write up regarding those sponsorships.
5. Submit your Site to high-quality Local Directories – Submit your sites to high-quality local directories and not to the wrong ones as that can have a negative effect on rankings. Submitting to the reputed ones will significantly boost your position in search results in numerous ways –

• Firstly, Google indexes the directory entries. If the directory is reputed, it may return the directory entry in a high position in search.
• Secondly, you may get a backlink out of it. This can elevate general performance in search results.
• Thirdly, you will make your business more visible to anyone and everyone using those directories.

6. Online Reputation – Your online reputation will add a spark in the game. It can win over potential new customers that are searching for local services online. You can manage your reputation in the following ways –

• You can gather positive reviews on Google, social media and review platforms.
• You can engage customers on social media.

7. Social media for local business – You should avoid wasting effort by identifying the right social platforms for your business’ clientele. Rather, you shall focus more on the following factors –

• You should consider the most popular social media sites.
• Designating a person who would monitor and participate on your chosen sites can be useful.

8. Manage Reputation by Engaging with Customers on Social Media – Social media gives you a chance to connect with the local market and speak directly to the potential customers. Hence, it is important to manage reputation by getting engaged with customers on social media. Following are some of the ways to do it –

• You can share happy hours or deals on Facebook.
• Post images of your service and staff on Instagram.
• Follow Pinterest if you operate a visually appealing business.
• Ask your customers for reviews in person.
• Reply to reviews on GMB and Facebook.

9. Out there in the Real World – The online local efforts are but a reflection of offline realities and goals. Hence, to be out there in the real world is important. Remember the following tips –

• Marketing cannot replace good business practices. Do not hire employees without committing to train them in basic communication, customer service and the specification of your products and services. Do not let any employee represent your business who is not trained to represent it.
• You should learn how to deal with conflict while maintaining your self-esteem. And, teach this to your staff too. Making peace with customers and making things right for them are a saviour.
• Don’t limit yourself to the basics of website development, citation building, earning reviews or participating in online social environments. Physical participation in community events and organizations can also help building local brand awareness.

10. Tracking – Track the impact of your efforts, namely your visibility on Google search and Google Maps and in the local and hotel packs along with other SERP features that are on your target SERPs. You can track multiple device types and locations in the same project depending on the level of your account.

An SEO specialist needs to see the most accurate metrics in order to base their strategy on reliable data. If the above mentioned local SEO checklists are followed, increased visibility, traffic and ultimately increased sales will be a walk away.