Local SEO involves the process of optimizing your website so that it appears at the top of Google’s search engine results when someone searches for your business name or location. By doing this, you can attract customers who are looking specifically for businesses like yours—and they may be more likely to choose your company over competitors who are not showing up in their searches.
And since local search is so important, it’s no surprise that Local SEO has been growing rapidly over the last few years. In fact, many businesses now realize that it’s not enough just to rank on Google anymore—they need to rank locally as well!
What does local SEO include?
- Local directories such as Google My Business and Yelp
- Documents that list local businesses, including phone books and pamphlets distributed by local chambers of commerce
- Searches for specific types of businesses like restaurants or plumbers
Local search includes both organic results (the ones you see when you type something into your browser’s address bar) and paid ads that appear above or below organic results. If a business wants to rank in the top spots for searches related to its name or products, then it needs to pay for those ads.
Reasons Why Local Search Matters for a Business in 2023
1. Gain people’s attention and trust
People tend to prefer buying products and services from companies that are local because they can trust them more easily than they can trust those located in another city or state (or even country!). In addition, local SEO increases the chances that potential customers will find your business when they’re looking for it online—and that means more customers, more revenue, and more success for your business overall.
2. Build your brand
The first thing to note about local search is that it can help you build your brand. Google has stated that local listings help to establish a business as an authority in its market area by showing off its name, address, phone number, website URL, photos, and reviews. This helps potential customers see how long your business has been in operation and whether there are any problems with service quality or delivery times.
3. Local drives high-intent
Local businesses receive more than twice the number of leads from paid searches than non-local businesses. According to a study, local businesses, like plumbers using SEO, receive an average of 4x more leads per local search click. That’s because people searching for a service or product near them are typically more interested in making a purchase than someone who is just looking for something to buy online.
4. Google loves local businesses
In addition to higher conversion rates, Google also gives preference to local results in its organic rankings. This means that if you have a brick-and-mortar store or have an actual office location where people can visit, your website will rank higher in the search engines when people search for your brand name or products/services — especially if they’re looking for information about your location or pricing ranges. This can be especially effective when combined with AdWords advertising (more on this below).