
Local Search Marketing
What is Local Search Marketing?
The vast majority of Americans today (95%) own a cellphone of some kind. The share of Americans that own smartphones is now 77% and still climbing. If you are a local or regional business you want people to be able to find you, so being properly indexed by Google and Bing is first step and then a comprehensive program to get listed in the vast array of service search directories so people can find you is important.
With an SEO optimized site, supported by a consistent local search marketing program, your ideal client will be able to find you, and not your competitors. Dead Trees Yellow Pages are quickly becoming a thing of the past. To be successful in today’s marketing world, you need to be found in the online directories and search tools that people are using to find B2C and B2B services.
Local search optimization might seem daunting, but we have many tools to help your company drive more focused traffic to your specific city, state, region or whatever geographic area you’re targeting.
Whether you’re running a restaurant, a beauty salon, a tax preparation office or some other type of bricks and mortar business, your prospective customers need to know where you are, what region you’re serving and how they can find you.
Customers also look for online reviews to find out what other customers thought of the service you provided. Search engines also want to know that too. Reviews in Google, Yelp, Facebook, and other online service directory reviews are important to build and manage.
Google, Bing and Yahoo now prioritize local search results based on your location so being in local directories and using local keyword terms in your web site SEO is vital to remain competitive and keep your company on the first page of search results for your geographic area.
Prioritize and Manage Local Search
Local search is highly cost effective, but rather complex. Using it to acquire new clients effectively requires careful implementation and continual management.
We can help make your local search efforts manageable whether you have:
- One Business Location
- Several Business Locations
- Many Retail Store Locations
Considering that Google is by far the largest search engine, we start with Google Local Listing optimization and then expand out to the many local search directories, and make sure those listing are consistent and regularly updated as needed.
Here is a list of the different types of local search and the top local search sites:
- Search Engine Maps (Google, Bing and Yahoo)
- Review Sites (Yelp, Urban Spoon, Zagat)
- Yellow Page Directories (Yellow Pages, Insider Pages, Superpages)
- Local Directories (CitySearch, Localeze)
- Business Directories (InfoGroup/InfoUSA, Manta, Acxiom)
- Niche, Industry Specific Directories
Our Local Search Marketing Services ensure that your local search listings are:
- Claimed / Verified
- Accurate
- Optimized
Why is Local Search Marketing Important?
70+% of people online are shopping for local products and services. With smart mobile phone usage booming this is going to increase and further reinforce the importance of local search.
Local search marketing is a critical aspect of search engine optimization for retail stores, doctors, restaurants, hotels and more. For businesses that are not so regionally focused like large B2Bs, local search marketing is still an important customer touch point since vendors, customers, partners and potential employees will likely be looking to get directions to your office. A bad experience can quickly erode brand affinity.
Plus, bad data is rampant in local search engines and local online directories which is a key reason for duplicate local listings that can negatively affect your customers’ experience.
What does a Local Search Marketing Program include?
Below is a list of the key local search marketing activities that are typically included in a local search marketing engagement:
- Claim and Verify Local Listings
- Managing Listings for Multiple Locations
- Optimize Local Listings for Increased Local SEO Traffic
- Eliminate Duplicate Listings
- Help You Increase and Manage Reviews
- Submit Your Business to Additional Local Directories
- Setup Analytics Tracking to Properly Track Local Activity
- Promote Your Local Listings
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