3 Surprising Factors That Impact Local SEO Ranking
Local SEO ranking is becoming more sought-after by small businesses. That’s because more business owners are realizing location continues to matter to their success in an online world.
In the following article, we’ll be discussing the key differences between local SEO and traditional optimization techniques. We’ll also touch on what it can mean for your business and the three most surprising factors to get your ranking up. Let’s begin!
How Local SEO Differs
Local SEO ranking factors differ from those of traditional SEO in that they incorporate keywords from where you live and work. Where traditional optimization might call for a keyword like “vacuum cleaners” for an appliance store, your Sussex-based appliance store would target “where to buy vacuum cleaners in Sussex” or some variation.
While there are many places you can go to discuss scores of local SEO ranking factors, such as how Google My Business affects it, we promised you the most surprising. The following three are deemed that way because they have very little to do with the keyword factors but are no less important.
1. Traditional Media
Your SEO local rank can be greatly helped along by getting the attention of local mainstream media sources. It’s important to get out in your community, note the publications and broadcasters nearby, and develop relationships with them.
These sources work hard and invest resources in breaking news and fostering trustworthy relationships for content that matters in your area. Being able to reach out to them at your leisure with an item of interest can do more good than a thousand cheap-quality backlinks.
2. Local Directories
Another factor for how to improve your local SEO ranking is to seek out local directories and get listed in them. Yes, you may dream of having a top-notch Yelp score, but people trust local sources way more than they do faceless corporate entities.
We’re not telling you to neglect Yelp and Google and Facebook (that would be business suicide), but we are encouraging you to look inwardly and get listed with local websites or magazines. Again, one good connection is worth its weight in gold.
3. Offline Networking
Finally, offline networking is important in how to rank for local SEO. That’s because the people you network with will have networks and (probably) websites or social media pages of their own. Each recommendation you’re able to pick up from these sources is a high-quality backlink that will feed your ranking juice.
What It Can Mean for Your Business
Intertwining topic terms with the locations that you serve gives you a key advantage over local competitors. Truthfully, most businesses that are at least somewhat location-based are shooting too broadly for customers, and this opens up an opportunity if you understand the local SEO ranking factors for 2020 and beyond.
In concrete terms, a strong local SEO game plan can mean page one (and even position one) results on search engines. It can mean mobile-optimized messaging. This pings your customers with special offers while they’re at a competitor’s store.
This can give you a clear advantage provided you’re protecting user data, according to UK-based firm WeProtectId.uk. It essentially makes you the industry leader in your geographical area for whatever your specialization is.
Local SEO Ranking Is a Big Driver of Online Success
Yes, everyone is online these days. That’s where life happens and businesses become successful. Investing in local SEO ranking should be about more than pouring your money into online tools.
Invest in your community through partnerships, sponsorships, and relationships. The return on investment will be well worth it. For more helpful online marketing advice, check out some of our posts!
