So, you have set up your business! The store is open, and you are ready to convert all the leads that are going to come your way. While you have allotted a budget for promotional purposes and have planned to run advertisements in traditional media like newspapers, radio and television, you have not really thought about promoting your business online.
What you must note is that today’s consumers are mostly Millennials and prefer to look up businesses online before they decide to engage with it. Most consumers shop online. Even if they choose to check out the collection at a mortar and physical store, they gather all the information about it beforehand from online directories. So, if you are not investing in search engine optimisation for your business, you are basically compromising its chances of success. After all, how do you plan to succeed and eventually grow your business if nobody gets to know about it in the first place?
In case you are already aware of the digital marketing practice called search engine optimisation or SEO and are sitting on the fence about availing the service of a digital marketing agency, now is a good time to start as any. It would be wise to do your bit of research and learn the basics of SEO first, though. If your business is locally based, you should ideally opt for local SEO services. For companies that operate in a particular area and target specific audience pool, local SEO can be more fruitful than general SEO.
What is local SEO?
Local search engine optimisation is an effective technique to promote a business to local audiences and customers when they are looking for them. Think about it, if a company is located in Milan and it is being promoted in London, that won’t be of much use. Local SEO differs from general SEO in some ways. To get the best results, the former gets the business listed on frequently addressed directories like Yelp, Yellowbook, Foursquare, Bing Places and Google My Business listing for Business and more. It makes use of localised content with keywords containing the name of the place and online reviews to get more local attention. Innumerable customers search for businesses/services/products in their locality to make availing services and to shop for products more convenient, cost-efficient and less time-consuming. You can multiply the chances of your success by working with a company that provides local search engine optimisation services.
Reasons Why local search engine optimisation has become so popular:
The popularity of local search engine optimisation has been skyrocketing for the last couple of years. There are ample stats to prove the importance of this type of SEO. Check out some of the major reasons why local SEO has become so important for businesses of all sizes and from all industries:
1. Local customers prefer to look up local businesses online on both desktop and mobile:
No, the type of consumers who look through phone books to contact companies has not gone extinct entirely. However, their numbers have undoubtedly reduced over the last few decades. Today’s consumers, as stated earlier, are very comfortable in the online space, and they also search for information about local businesses through online searches. Did you know that 96% of desktop owners carry out local searches? Also, did you know that more than 45% of all Google searches are local? 505 local mobile searchers look for contact details of locally based businesses. More than 75% of local mobile searches soon lead to offline purchases. Do you still think you can ignore local SEO?
2. Local search marketing is not just targeted but timely too:
Many of those who conduct local searches are trying to know more about a particular business. They at least have a name in mind. Many just put in the name of a service or products accompanied with the name of the place and search. There are still many others who do not have anything particular in mind when they conduct a search. Local SEO, with its incredible targeting, helps to promote local businesses to all these types of searchers. It shows accurate results and often contributes to making the searches more streamlined. As a result, searchers often get to know more about businesses about whose existence they were previously unaware of. They get to enjoy content on their own terms.
3. Local search engine optimisation provides high conversions levels to those who avail the service:
In fact, local search engine optimisation has highest conversion levels than all other local advertising channels. It helps businesses dominate the first pages of local searches. Some directories like Yelp, Foursquare, Citysearch, fetch almost 50% conversion. So, by accurately getting your company listed you can work towards improved conversions, success and eventual growth.
From the above discussion, the benefits of local SEO is understandable. What you must also keep in mind is that while local SEO is beneficial, it is not magic. Local search rankings depend on many factors. It cannot work wonders if there are problems with your web design (for example – if your website is not responsive or not easily navigable) or if your site is located on a remote server. Setting impossible expectations would be unwise.
If you are not aware of the best local SEO practices, you can consult renowned digital marketing agencies. A reputed Agenzia SEO Milano can not only help you understand the intricacies of the processes and practices but can also provide you with the guarantee of first page rankings. Any form of SEO, even local, takes months to fetch substantial results. When it does, you can expect improved conversions and greater return on investment.
Guest article written by: Elena Andrews is a digital marketing expert. She takes particular interest in search engine optimisation and the latest trends that have a considerable impact on SEO practices that are in vogue round the globe. She is associated with one of the biggest agenzia SEO Milano. She regularly blogs about the latest practices in SEO which are very popular among industry veterans and freshers alike.