Local SEO is a digital marketing strategy that focusses on ranking your business locally in google searches.

Any business that has a physical location can benefit from Local SEO as your visibility is increased and you attract more business locally.

Fact is that 4 out of 5 people use Google Search and Maps to find local information. Most of the online searches in today’s world are location specific so local searches are increasing and helping to skyrocket your online business. For example, somebody looking for a plumber in Macquarie park can search – “Plumber in Macquarie Park” or “Plumber in 2113” (using postcode), another example may be searching for Local SEO company – “Local SEO Company in Macquarie Park” or “Local SEO Company 2113″ (using postcode). By doing this you are making your searches location specific and telling Google to show results for those services within that area.

Also, the other reason for increased local SEO searches is the use of Mobile phones when searching for products and services. If you have noticed Google always shows the Google Local Pack at the top of the search results to show the top 3 local businesses relating to the search results. It also shows their information like phone number, location, reviews etc.

Local SEO is a powerful Digital Marketing strategy that will help you gain a local audience and increased visitors. Local SEO strategy helps you to outrank your competitors and rule your niche in local searches.

If you want your business to take advantage of Local SEO then Absoltz can help you achieve that ranking in your local search pack.

SEO focusses on ranking your website nationally or globally;

Local SEO focusses on increasing business visibility/ ranking locally based on local area/suburb/postcode.

With Local SEO focusses on all

Local SEO is all about location, location, location. It’s a way to get your products and services in front of your target audience in a specific geographic area. It entails all the nuts and bolts of usual SEO – content, on-page optimisation, keyword research, link building – just with a local focus.

Search engines look for signals in local content, links, social profile pages and profile listings to provide the most relevant local results to the searcher. For example, Local SEO typically focuses on city or town names because people add a city or town name to their search request, e.g. “salons in Sydney”. With a good Local SEO strategy, Google starts associating your business with a certain area, bumping you up the rankings and boosting your profile in the community.

The other thing about local searches is they’re more often highly relevant. Either they focus on a town or city, or things like product availability, opening hours and directions. That’s why Local SEO puts a big focus on directory listings, Google My Business profiles and social media profiles. Your Google My Business location is the number one factor impacting your local search results. No question about it, it must be part of your Local SEO strategy.

Another factor that’s important for Local SEO is citations. This is your name, address and phone number (known as NAP) on other inline listings. There are lots of places where you might want to claim or add your citations, depending on your business. For example, there might be niche directories for tradespeople, salons or childcare centres.

Reviews are also essential for Local SEO. Just make sure they’re good reviews! Send people who have a good experience with your brand to your Google My Business listing. Encourage and incentivise reviews where you can. Good reviews will always help you generate leads and conversions. This is true for companies local and global. Though in particular for Local SEO, reviews will define your success when it comes to ranking with Google.

So when would you use Local SEO versus SEO? You won’t be surprised to learn that Local SEO is mostly (but not exclusively) used for local bricks-and-mortar businesses. We’re not only talking about shops, cafes and restaurants but also services, like plumbers, lawyers and real estate agents. Think about it – if your business has a physical location or wants to appeal to people in a certain geographic area, you want to make sure it pops up in the SERPs when people search for “plumber in Richmond” or “Thai restaurant in Paramatta”.

If your business is online (such as e-commerce), national or even global, the location doesn’t matter so much. Your target audience isn’t limited to a geographic area, so you don’t need a Local SEO campaign.

Doing well in SEO? You will do well in Local SEO. After all, they’re made up of many of the same tactics. So, if you can get SEO right (or you have an agency who is doing a stellar job), your Local SEO will surely succeed too.