The days of simply "showing up" on the Internet and hoping your site will be found are long gone. And if you're a local business, then local SEO is a given. And that means creating great content.
One of the biggest mistakes many small business owners - especially "brick-and-mortar" business owners - tend to make is that content doesn't matter. Not for them. Not a local business with an actual store, shop or office. Just simply having a snazzy website and basic information is sufficient.
RIght?
Not really. In fact, even if you're local, got great signage and great location, you are probably missing out on a wealth of prospective new customers if you are not being found online. And the sad truth is that, nowadays, with so many businesses pushing to be found and to be seen, without a robust local SEO strategy in play, you can still remain invisible.
Even with your snazzy website.
What A Good Local SEO Strategy Can Do
SEO, or search engine optimization, is just another way of describing the tactics employed to help a website show up higher in organic search results on search engines such as Google. (especially Google!) An organic search - in case you've forgotten or are unsure - is what you do when you type in some words in the search box of your favorite search engine in order to find something.
If you are looking for a local dry cleaner, for example you might type in "dry cleaner near me", or "local dry cleaners". The results you get - excluding the paid ads and "sponsored" results - are your organic search results. More than likely, if there are, say, five local dry cleaning shops near you, the one in the first position probably has the most effective SEO going on.
This is, of course, what you would want to happen for your own business if someone local is searching for a business like yours. Consequently, you also want to have a good local SEO strategy that will improve the likelihood of your business ranking near the top of that first page of results.
And because you are a local business, being found by someone in Tightwad, Missouri probably isn't important. Unless your business is near Tightwad! (And, yes, there really is a Tightwad.)
Why Does Content Matter For Local SEO?
That's a great question and one that far too many small business owners are unaware of. Simply put, having quality, relevant and engaging content on your site in the form of blog posts, FAQs, videos, customer reviews or services pages is what will drive your SEO results.
We have created this handy graphic to illustrate and highlight this for you:
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How You Can Make Content Work For You
Part of the challenge for most every business owner using local SEO is creating content. Creating it well, consistently, and frequently. Which is what is needed for a truly effective SEO campaign. The problem is that most owners do not have either the time or the ability to produce content like this.
Perhaps a monthly blog post or two, and maybe an occasional web page addition, but consistent and frequent content is usually more than most owners have time for. Or patience!
This begs the question of whether this content creation, which has been shown to benefit businesses significantly with search results, should be produced in-house or outsourced. When companies like Hubspot consistently find that "best in class" websites have double the amount of content than that of lower ranking average sites, it's no longer a question of "Should we?" but "How should we?"
A great starting strategy is to focus on producing two, or maybe three, types of content on a regular basis. This should include a business blog supplemented with videos, local news and events updates, regularly updated customer reviews, or even periodic guides or other types of downloadable materials.
Delegate this work to a capable employee, if possible, or hire someone to take on this role. Once you feel you can make the budget leap to outsourcing this work - along with planning, research and strategy - it will time to consider a good local firm.
Getting Help With Your Local SEO Marketing Plan
An solid local SEO strategy can effectively boost your your business. But achieving your marketing objectives using a content-based strategy does take time. It won't happen with a few blog posts or other great content. The reality of SEO is that people will typically see your content for a while before they contact you.
The good news is that you don't have to figure out alone. In fact, one of the best investments you can make with your marketing budget is to partner with a solid firm like Petaluma-based BroadVision Marketing. We are your local partner for your local marketing needs.
Click on the button below to get your free Complimentary Inbound Marketing Session so you can make an informed decision, or call BroadVision Marketing at 707-799-1238. And check out our free Business Blogging Guide to get you started:
