“Local SEO” refers to optimising your online presence to attract more business from relevant local searches on search engines like Google.
For us geeky marketing types, it involves strategies such as optimising your
Google Business Profile, ensuring consistent NAP (name, address and phone number) details across directories, gathering local reviews, and creating location-specific content to improve visibility for people searching for services in a particular geographic area. The goal is to rank higher in local search results and drive traffic from nearby customers.
Your Google Business Profile is important for businesses that have a local presence, or a physical business local - especially if you have a shop, bar, venue, hairdresser or restaurant etc.
It’s a free tool provided by Google that allows businesses to manage their online presence across Google Search and Maps. It helps businesses improve local visibility by showcasing important information like operating hours, location, photos, services, and customer reviews. An optimised Google Business Profile ensures that potential customers can easily find and engage with your business when searching for relevant services or products in your area, making it a key asset for local SEO.
A well-optimised Google Business Profile (GBP) is crucial for any local business due to its direct impact on visibility, trust, and customer engagement. Here's why it's important:
Increased Visibility in Local Search! An optimised profile ensures your business appears in local search engine results and on Google Maps, particularly when customers search for businesses “near me.”
i.e. ‘dog friendly pub near me’, ‘gluten-free lunch near me’, ‘gift shop near me’, ‘balayage highlights near me’, ‘best fish and chips near me’ etc. etc
This is a prime opportunity to be seen by people in your area (either residents or visitors) who are ready to make purchasing decisions or are motivated to look for something they need right away = like a good lunch, a gift, or a haircut!
Reviews play a significant role in shaping customer perceptions.
Positive reviews not only boost your business’s ranking but also build trust with potential customers. Keeping reviews visible, responding to them, and encouraging satisfied customers to leave feedback makes your business more credible and approachable.
When you have a profile set up, there’s a bespoke URL (link) that you can send to customers to ask them for feedback. You might want this displayed on your premises and provide some motivation for a review - i.e. a free drink or 20% off for all positive Google reviews with a QR code!
We all know how frustrating it is when people have misconceptions about your business and you want to shout from the rooftops who you are, what makes your business exciting and unique.
Your Google Business Profile is the perfect place to do this - you can include all the up-to-date information customers need, including your opening hours, location, and contact details. You can also include more detailed information like the types of products you sell or services you offer. Even better if you can do what we call Keyword Research to find exactly what people are looking for, i.e. ‘vegan pancakes’ or ‘excellent Guinness’ or ‘charity shop’ or ‘short back and sides’, or ‘best roast dinner’.
Keyword research is one of my favourite nerdy pastimes; I am obsessed with learning what people search for!
If people encounter inaccurate or incomplete information, it can lead to a loss of business. For instance, if they don’t know you are closed on a Monday, they might turn up and be disappointed.
Updating your profiled ensures that customers know exactly how and when to engage with you.
Photos and videos are key for attracting attention and visually showcasing your products or services on your Google Business Profile. Engaging visuals helps customers make purchasing decisions and can set you apart from competitors. People are more likely to engage with a business when they can see what they’re getting.
I got an email alert recently to tell me that the review I wrote for my favourite restaurant, Escocesa, had been seen by 8,000 people! It’s a good job I included images of their delicious and gorgeous-looking food and a glowing review! Escocesa has 806 Google Reviews - which is probably one of the reasons it’s always packed. Well, that, and their amazing staff and Gambas Pil Pil!
Google’s algorithm favours businesses with optimised profiles. A profile that includes all essential details, good reviews, and relevant keywords and phrases will rank higher in search results. This means more exposure for your business and, ultimately, more new customers.
There are many sections of the Google Review Platform that people don’t complete or optimise, and this is a real missed opportunity!
When your profile is optimised with relevant keywords, categories, and location-specific information, it helps improve your Local SEO, making it easier for people to find your business when they search for services or products in your area.
7. Understanding Your Customer’s Behaviour
Google Business Profile provides analytics such as how customers found your business, how they interacted with your profile, and what actions they took. These insights help you understand customer behaviour and adjust your marketing plans accordingly.
Remember that an optimised Google Business Profile is your local shopfront online. It keeps your business discoverable, builds trust, and gives potential customers the confidence to choose you (sometimes over your competitors). This profile is particularly important for businesses with a brick-and-mortar presence rather than an online service.
To boost your local SEO beyond creating and optimising your Google Business Profile, there are several other strategies that you can focus on to enhance your business's visibility and attract more local customers.
Here are some ideas to consider:
This is all about ensuring that your business website is optimised for local search by focusing on keywords.
Keywords or keyword phrases are the words or short phrases people type into search engines when looking for information, products, or services. Using the right keywords for your business in your website content helps you appear in search results when potential customers search for related topics.
Ensure your business information is consistent across local online directories such as:
While Google reviews are vital, don’t limit yourself.
Encourage customers to leave reviews on:
Facebook, Yelp, Trustpilot, or other niche review sites related to your industry.
Good reviews on multiple platforms build credibility and signal to search engines that you are a trusted business that is awesome at what you do.
Backlinks from other local businesses, community sites, or local publications enhance your credibility and local SEO. Think about some of the following opportunities:
Create content that resonates with your local audience. Some strategies include:
Social media plays a role in local SEO by helping create awareness and engagement. Consider:
“Alexa, where’s the best place to buy funny birthday cards near me?”
As voice search grows in popularity, it’s a great idea to optimise your website content for voice search queries, which are typically more conversational and longer. Some things to think about here:
Using local business schema markup helps search engines understand your business’s important details, like your specific location, opening hours, and products/services. This increases the chances of being displayed in rich search results or knowledge panels.
Linked to your Google Business Profile, which we mentioned above, your Google Maps listing should be fully optimised to improve your chances of appearing in the ‘local 3-pack’ (the top three results in Google).
Make sure:
Local engagement signals trust and authority to customers and search engines.
Being active in the online and offline community can generate a buzz around your business.
This includes things like:
I’m no influencer, but my local fish and chips shop,
Sutton & Sons, which also has an awesome fishmonger, often reposts Instagram images I share of me eating and cooking their goods, thanking me for posting, etc. It’s a lovely way to engage with customers.
Consider running Local Google Search Ads or Facebook ads targeted at specific geographic areas. Ads with a local focus can increase visibility to nearby customers searching for your services.
As a marketing consultant, I tend to work with businesses on Search Engine Optimisation first before encouraging paid activity like ads - it’s a bit like fixing any holes in a bucket before putting the tap on.
By implementing these strategies alongside an optimised Google Business Profile, you'll cover the essential bases for improving your local SEO and driving more local traffic to your business.
Do you want to implement any of the ideas above but don’t have the time or the inclination?
Then I’m your girl! I have a geeky passion for all things Search Engine Optimisation, and I love supporting businesses in achieving their growth goals. Give me a shout today for a free initial consultation, and we can chat through your ambitions or any marketing challenges you might have!
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