Anyone who deals with the online marketplace will have heard about the terms “Local SEO” and “Local Search Marketing”. Being a major part of a successful digital marketing strategy, it helps to connect with your potential clients.
Standing out from local search results, you will be able to get great business benefits. Depending on your strategies, you can manage to directly impact quality traffic to your eCommerce store, increasing sales and conversions. A more detailed definition of Local SEO will be:
A process of promoting your product or service based on geographic location and meeting your customer’s requirements as soon as they need it by increasing search visibility.
How does it Work?
When you do a local search marketing, you will need to put your business on the map in local searches so as people easily find it while making a search. Due to it, your business becomes easily accessible for local searches and appears in the most relevant results.
Like organic SEO, Local SEO as well needs optimization. You need to optimize all the information based on the marketing trends and demands so as it becomes valuable for search engines to put it in its top result pages for easily targeting people.
Relevancy is a major factor here. Since all your information concerning your location is available, you need to keep accuracy in your business name, contact information, address as well as URLs. Otherwise, your business will not be treated as trustworthy and will drop its ranking.
For better understanding the importance of Local SEO for your business, let us go deeper into some of its benefits:
12 Benefits of Local Search Marketing
1. High Visibility in Google Maps and SERPs
Google Maps marketing can bring high benefits to your business. It has become an inseparable and a very important part of the success of local search marketing.
If your business appears in the top list of Google Maps search results, it has greater chances to attract the attention of local searchers and target them. Besides, it drives high-quality traffic and increases the conversion rate.
Being a very powerful investment for your business it can bring you high ROI. Showing geographically-relevant results your customers will get a chance to visit you physically as well.
2. Quality Traffic and Big Sales
Bringing more relevant local customers helps your business to boost sales and get high revenue. Depending on your business type it can become the biggest source of your success.
Only in 2018, the number of searches in America, that required a local business reached over 97%. It means that in many cases people tend to find businesses that are near them geographically.
One of the important points that need consideration when targeting by Local SEO is user intent. In comparison to organic SEO, besides the best, here the nearest as well matters.
3. Long-term and Sustainable Results
Ecommerce business owners know that in comparison to paid options, the results of SEO is long-lasting. Although the process takes much time and needs continual attention in terms of analyzing, auditing and following marketing trends, it promises you to stay on top of search engine result pages for a long time, if you succeed in your SEO efforts.
Things become more vital when we speak about Local SEO. According to statistics, 72% of local searchers visit the traditional store if it is not far than 5 miles. It means that if you manage to reach your customers by search results, you can gain potential clients.
4. Free SEO tools
Since local SEO suggests a number of free tools, it gives an opportunity for businesses to get effective results without much investment. The chances that you may break the bank is zero. However, before choosing a tool you need to compare and find the best one in order to get the desired results.
5. Brand Awareness among Customers
Using location can help businesses to build brand awareness. The massive use of mobile gadgets has given the location-based results in another important role.
If you manage to meet and cover all the important parts of local SEO, you manage to reach more consumers not only through your ranking but with the help of positive reviews as well. Real reviews increase brand awareness and build strong brand recognition among real buyers.
6. Convert a Search into a Purchase
Many businesses can use the advantages of local SEO for converting a single search into a successful purchase. It can become a great sales generator for marketers. People trust companies that appear in the first pages of search results.
Since the majority of sales starts with a search, the companies that appear first have larger opportunities to target the searcher. If a trustworthy search engine like Google, brings your business as the most relevant option in a certain area, people trust it and make a buying decision.
7. Includes Activities that Helps in Ranking ( i.e. citation building)
There are some activities that Local search marketing includes, which give businesses a competitive advantage to rank high. Citation Building is among such advantages. Including citations from authority and relevant websites increases brand credibility and helps in boosting your ranking.
8. Sharing the Same Location with your Customers
Sharing the same location with your customers means more income and sales. Besides reaching your business through your online efforts, your customers get a chance to meet it face-to-face, which really matters in some cases. It can directly impact your expenses as well.
Choosing a location near your customers impacts on how your initial customers find you and how often you get visits from your existing potential buyers. However, geographic location is not enough to encourage your clients to come to your store. It is important to choose a place which is easy to reach in order to encourage frequent visits.
9. High Business Reputation within your Community
The information your customers get through local SEO and the high ranking you get, give an overall image of your business. It builds your business reputation, which is really fundamental for your online presence, business success and sales.
Having a good reputation is the most important aspect of your business. The reasons that your business needs a high reputation. Among them, it is worth mentioning:
- It facilitates engagement
- It gives broader business opportunities
- It provides you with more customers and sales
- It builds stronger relationship with your customers
- It makes your business more trustworthy.
- It keeps you ahead of your local competitors.
10. Saving Advertising Cost
If you deal with a professional digital marketing agency, they will surely suggest you which marketing tactics are the best for your business. Choosing SEO or PPC has been a matter of concern for many marketers. However,the latest marketing trends suggest to use them together.
Things become different when we speak about local SEO, since it helps to reduce your advertising expenses. Local SEO demands less advertising. The reason is that people will find your business on search listings.
11. Building your Brand in your Local Niche Market
Business competition becomes stronger when similar brands are in the same area. Each business wants to outrank the others and show the advantages of their similar products or services. The reason is that it directly impacts on sales, revenue, profit and the business growth.
Being a highly competitive field, local SEO helps businesses to get competitive advantage one over another. Improving the analytics and metrics of Local SEO as well as your SEO strategies, you manage to build your brand. Like organic SEO, it also demands in-detailed competitive analysis.
12. Strong Online Presence
Local online presence is essential for your business, since it helps to improve your local traffic. Many customers start their product research with their mobile gadgets and computers, which not only impacts on your brand-building process, but also your sales. Hence, it is worth thinking of building a solid online presence.
There are many advantages that your online presence can give your store, no matter you have a website or not. Among them:
- Large audience
- Business accessibility
- Free advertising
- Business trust.
Conclusion
Although many things have moved to mobile and digital, the need of local businesses is still vital. It is highly targeted and timely. Any little error can take your customers to your competitors, that is why it is worth analyzing and auditing your website and giving much importance to it.
Since Local SEO is fundamental for your business success, you should never forget about organic SEO as well. Besides geographical components, there are other important tools that are essential for your eCommerce store.
Taking into consideration all the future predictions of local search growth, as a marketer you need to put a strong emphasis on it. Using strong marketing strategies, following trends and tips, will help your business to keep ahead of local competition, which is really fundamental for your business.
Take all the advantages of local SEO and you will have success. Pay attention all the details that can help to improve your business and find the best marketing solutions for your ecommerce store for having high benefits.
