How to increase consumer attraction using local SEO

Right now, it is very possible that someone in your region, city or even neighborhood is looking for a company like yours, needing exactly the service you offer.

With so much competition on search engines, how can you attract these immediate business opportunities that are emerging so close to your company?

Local SEO is an area of ​​digital marketing that can resolve this impasse. This is a series of optimization strategies created to improve the organic positioning of your website specifically for searches carried out in the vicinity of the company’s headquarters.

In this article, we will talk a little about how this possibility works and what advantages can be obtained by your company.

Are you interested? Come with us.

What is local SEO?

Just like any other Search Engine Optimization technique , local SEO is aimed at working on the company’s website ranking in search engines. However, the difference lies in the central element used to do this work: the geolocation feature.

The strategy is centered on better positioning whenever a user searches for keywords corresponding to their area of ​​activity using Google’s location resources as a guide.

The work is focused on generating an organic result when the potential customer carries out a search using the “near me” suggestions or citing the municipality and/or neighborhood in which they are located.

The intelligence of the search engine’s own algorithms is also a factor taken into consideration. After all, when a user searches for a non-specific term related to business, without any details (for example, “tattoo studio”, without further specifications), the automatic conclusion is that the person doing the search wants to find the nearest establishments to her.

Based on this premise, the mission of those who invest in local SEO is to maximize the information entered on Google My Business – the page that causes the box with your company’s contact details to appear on the right side of the screen when someone clicks. research related to it – and do a strong job to show the importance of the enterprise in the place where it operates.

How does local SEO ranking work?

There are, essentially, three basic criteria that form the basis of good positioning on Google according to the requirements taken into account in local SEO.

Are they:

• Distance;
• Relevance;
• Popularity.

Let’s understand a little more about how each of these criteria works?

1. Distance

It’s not difficult to understand why the distance at which an establishment is located from the user doing the research is important when we talk about businesses, isn’t it?

Google’s algorithm is constantly improving to always provide the best possible experience for those searching. Therefore, we always work to offer the most relevant result possible. In the case of those looking for a specific type of business, the proximity factor is very important when making a decision.

This detail is particularly important in a scenario where 50% of users carry out their searches via smartphone. Thanks to GPS, cell phones, in turn, offer an even more precise geographic location, which turns distance into a crucial point for the user to decide which company to use.

2. Relevance

As with other types of SEO strategy, the relevance of the result is a determining factor in its positioning in the search.

This criterion concerns the percentage of correspondence between the keyword searched by the user and your company. To decide this, the algorithm will use the data you provided when setting up your page on Google My Business .

3. Popularity

Among the criteria that make up the tripod, popularity is the most complex.

In this item, Google takes into account the reputation of your business in the digital world. As with any other SEO strategy, factors such as links that redirect to the company’s website, for example, are considered.

Due to the nature of this type of research, the search engine also computes the evaluations and comments made by its customers. Therefore, the call to action and any type of incentive to engage your clientele to leave this type of virtual feedback is very important.

However, in addition to this, there is another crucial factor: Google takes into account the popularity of your company in the offline world, taking into account how many people visit the business daily.

And how does the search engine know this? Simple: analyzing data from users who activate Google’s location history device.

So, it’s not enough to build solid popularity on the internet. This work needs to translate into movement in analog life, too.

In addition to the special criteria

As it is still a ranking strategy, good local SEO work does not only include these specific criteria.

To work on the organic positioning of your company website, it is also necessary to invest in traditional optimizations, carried out directly on your business page. The job is the same as always: informing the search engine that your website offers something relevant to your target audience.

This is done through common SEO practices such as:

• Inbound Marketing Practices ;
• Optimization focused on user experience (UX);
• Link building work;
• Responsiveness and security.

How local SEO ranking happens

The work focused on local SEO works to rank the results well on three fronts. To understand what they are, let’s remember how Google displays results when we search for a business?

When typing, for example, “pharmacies in Salvador” in the search bar, the first thing we will see is a map of the region informed. Below, we will see three links corresponding to the three main results, with their evaluation, and address and opening hours below. This section is called the Local Pack .

Immediately after the Local Pack, we will see a blue link, with the description “More Places”. When clicking on it, we are redirected to a second page, which contains a list with more results than the first three originally displayed. This list is called the Local Finder .

Finally, on the search results page, below the Local Pack and the “More Places” link, we will see the organic results , exactly as in a conventional search.

Consistent local SEO work aims to position your company in the best possible ranking in these three spaces: Local Pack, Local Finder and organic results.

How to Make Local SEO Optimization Work

As we said previously, continuing to work on traditional SEO strategies on your website is an important factor for ranking in organic results .

However, to improve your positioning in the Local Pack and Local Finder, you will need to dedicate efforts to optimizing Google My Business .

The tool is relatively simple. After the initial registration, carried out with some basic information about your company – such as name, address, category and the possibility of serving customers at home, for example – and a simple confirmation carried out with a cell phone number, it will be possible to view the box with your business data whenever you do a related search on Google.

After that, Google will carry out a second verification, which takes place by mail. Within a few days, a letter from Meu Negócio will arrive at the company’s address entered in the tool. This document will have a step-by-step guide explaining how to continue confirming the registration.

And ready! From there, you will be able to manage your page on Google My Business. There, it will be possible to add multimedia content (such as photos and short videos, for example) and. Mainly, keep track of your reviews, which will be very important to ensure the success of your local SEO strategy.