Search engine optimization is one of the top ways a website can gain traffic and relevant viewers, based on their target audiences.

Another thing to look after (under SEO), is local SEO, which is essential for small businesses which operate in their own areas, compared to companies which cater globally. Use of Local SEO for business can make a lot of difference.

The difference between both national and local SEO is that local SEO would prioritize appearing on search engine results pages in specific locations rather than worldwide.

Through optimizing your local SEO, you have better and more relevant traffic, conversions, and leads because the results are more relevant to your audience.

Ways to Use Local SEO for Business and Get the Right Traffic

But where can you start improving your local SEO? Read on as I show you the effective ways to use local SEO for business and get the right traffic! Also, you must know prices for local SEO while moving forward. 

Wondering where to start when utilizing local SEO? Check out these top six ways to help improve it:

1. Utilize Your Google My Business Account

The way to begin local SEO is through claiming your business from Google My Business. This will establish your presence on Google for free, also being able to show on Google Maps. Not only will your business show on search engines (regardless of what device used), but once your business is legitimate (according to Google), it will start surfacing in sidebar spaces when people search.

BUT, you need to optimize your account on Google My Business. Follow these steps:

•    Verify your listing
•    Provide the updated and accurate information on your business
•    Add your logo, opening hours, payment methods, images, and the service or product your business has to offer
•    Encourage your clients to post reviews and respond well to them
•    Create content on your website and your account (using Google Posts)

2. Get Regular (and Positive!) Reviews

Like mentioned, you should optimize your Google My Business by receiving and responding to customer reviews. However, you shouldn’t stop there!

By having your customers write positive reviews for your business, it will encourage more people to purchase and avail of your service! Take note that up to 85% of consumers believe online reviews, just as much as personal suggestions.

To encourage your clients to leave reviews, try these suggestions:

•    Ask for a review after closing a sale (online or in person)
•    Send a post-purchase message (email or text) asking your clients to write a review. Just make sure you contact customers who are satisfied with your products or services
•    Respond to other reviews professionally, thanking customers and addressing some complaints, if any

3. Optimize Voice Search

While it isn’t booming yet, voice search will start to grow rapidly in just a few years. To get ahead of your competitors, you must learn the way people ask questions when they speak into their devices, compared to how they type out what they’re searching for.

Usually, customers will use long-tail keywords compared to shorter ones when typing. As a result, you’ll need to adjust your content’s SEO to fit the conversational tone of someone talking.

Furthermore, you need to consider the user intent when optimizing voice search. Searches like these are done when someone wants a specific piece of info, wanting a quick and relevant answer. So make sure all information is readily available without having to take long.

4. Improve Your Website for Mobile Gadgets

Many studies are now showing that there is a huge shift to mobile, may it be phones or tablets. The mobile visits on websites and search engines are now growing rapidly, with people wanting to read something quick and on a webpage that’s mobile-friendly.

Because of this, it’s time to look into your page’s theme, ensuring that it works well on mobile gadgets for better user experience. This doesn’t only work for local SEO, but SEO in general. After all, no one wants to scroll through a difficult-to-load website!

Start optimizing mobile searches by:

•    Making sure your site loads fast (it shouldn’t take over three seconds)
•    Use bigger fonts that are readable on mobile
•    Avoid using an overload on images, only showing ones that convey information
•    Make sure that you use intuitive UI for excellent UX

5. Base Your Content on Local News and Keywords

To have better content for your target audience to enjoy (and even sift through what you have to offer on the website), you must create articles based on what they can relate to. And what do local customers relate to the most? Local news, issues, and events at hand!

To start authoring content catered to your local audience, try these tips:

•    Write local news stories, events, and activities, basing your posts on them
•    Create videos on causes and local charities that your business supports
•    Set up location-specific web pages on your site that offers high-quality LOCAL content, which is important if you serve various areas in a region

6. Using Online Business Directories

Last but not least, start taking advantages of business directories online. YellowPages, FourSquare, Yelp, and MapQuest are just some of the websites to look into. By putting your business name and information out there, it can help boost your local SEO.

Make sure that when adding your business, it should contain the following:

•    Description of your business
•    Backlink to your website
•    The accurate basic information: business name, contact information, and address

Wrapping It Up

Up to 35% of search traffic is local, which is why it’s crucial to start improving your local SEO to get the right customers and viewers you need, according to the area you cater. Without the local SEO for business might be losing significant amounts of traffic.

Hopefully, this article on the effective ways to use local SEO for business and get the right traffic gave you an idea of what you should do. So don’t wait any longer and look into testing these strategies now!

If you have any questions or want to share your tips and experiences on improving local SEO (or sharing prices for local SEO for business), then comment below. Your thoughts are much appreciated.