You are currently viewing The Benefits and Importance of Local SEO
These days, it is common for people to turn to the internet to find information for a product, service or a local company that is close to where they live. As a business owner, you now have the the added advantage of optimizing your business website to target local searches to enhance your market share and sales. This is done by adopting a local SEO strategy. Below are some pointers to explain the benefits of adopting a local SEO strategy for your business. But first, what is the meaning of local SEO?

Meaning of local SEO

While Search Engine Optimization (SEO) is the process of optimising your website to work well (achieve good rankings)with the various algorithms deployed by search engines like Google, Yahoo and Bing. Typically the major objective of SEO focuses on acquiring a higher rank in a given search query but a local SEO specifically emphasises a match to a search that mentions a geographical location.
 

How local SEO works?

Search engine like Google, Yahoo, Bing and the smaller ones, aim to deliver results that accurately matches a search query. They do this by indexing websites and then through a complex algorithm, determines relevancy of the contents and a suitable rank is assigned when a search query is made. Thus, your ranking level will majorly depend on how you meet the demands of Google. If your website has contents that speak to the location of your business and the community you serve, and your optimised keywords are correspondingly location centric, then it stands a higher chance of ranking high when a a search query with an emphasis on location is made.

Benefits of a Local SEO

1. Increases traffic

People living in the vicinity of your business would naturally be your most potential customers. Thus it would make perfect sense for you to apply local SEO on your web site to rank when these potential customers do a search that is relevant to your product or service. The objective of ranking is search engines is to get better exposure and what better exposure than to rank well for a search that emphasises a specific location where you operate in. The opportunities for such a query to convert to a sale is tremendous. That in essence is smart targeting.

2. Improves authority and trust

Customers , by nature, need to have a sense of trust and confidence in your business before they take the next step to decide to patronise you. A high ranking in a search engine, and in this case, a specific location search query, gives the impression of credibility. Besides, if competitors in your locality are not ranked, then all the more you reap the rewards of the exposure.

3. Keeps you visible online

It is undeniable that a business is hugely dependent on its visibility. Before the internet, good visibility was largely pegged to locations with high foot traffic. The internet has change all that. The strategy now is to make sure that you have a good website and that is is ranked high whenever a search query is made that specify a location in which you operate in. It has become habitual , these days, for customers to search the net, Google to look for products and services before physically going out to make the purchase. Make sure you are visible (ranked) when these queries are being made.

4. Improves your sales

When your website is consistently ranked high in answer to a relevant search query, you are quite assured of substantial traffic visiting your website. A voluminous traffic can only mean better sales conversion opportunities for your business. With the consequences of the pandemic and people not willing to go farther afield from their locations, to make purchases, local business opportunities are on the rise.

5. Local returns to customers

Businesses would naturally like to develop deeper relationships with their customers especially with those who reside in their locality and vice versa. Local businesses provide us with a feel of familiarity, trust and a hometown affinity. But local residents have to know of you first. The best and most cost effective way for you to be known to your local residents is to get your website optimised with local SEO to get high local search rankings.

6. Decreases ad costs

Local SEO is very cost effective compared to any other mode of advertising available out there. Literally everybody searches the internet for information, engage in social media activities, transact etc. The cost of engaging a professional agency to manage your local SEO is a fraction of the monetary benefits your business would receive as a result.