Local SEO Basics -10 Elements You Can’t Afford to Neglect

Local searches are those that include the name of locations in the terms that your target customers type on their browser, especially if they are seeking your products and services near their area.

Today, you will learn 10 yet VERY important elements of local SEO basics.

So, let’s dig in.

Here Are 10 Yet Essential Elements of Local SEO Basics That Should Be Implemented On Your Website:

On-Page

• Keyword Research
• Keyword Implementation
• Homepage Optimization
• Local Landing Pages

Off-Page

• Google My Business
• Bing Places
• Apple Maps Listing
• Local Citations (NAPs)
• Link Building
• Reviews & Other On-Going Activities

Who Should Bother About Local SEO Basics?

It goes without saying that everyone who has a business should have a strong and well-thought local SEO strategy. Whether you have a physical business location or don’t — whether people go to you to buy your products… or you deliver your goods and services to your clients.

If you want to attract more customers to your business in this digital world, having a strong local presence is paramount.

So, here’s how you start implementing the basic elements of local search engine optimization. Let’s start with…

On-Page Local SEO Basics

On-page SEO is the practice of optimizing everything inside your website such as your home page and other web pages.

Do Some Keyword Research

Keyword research is not necessarily done directly on your website but it is the process of listing the terms that your ideal customers are using — list these terms and use them on your web pages content.

So, you can target such keywords and get high chances of ranking for them whenever a user types the keyword on their browser.

Local SEO basic tips of keyword research: you can use free online keyword research tools such as Ubersuggest, Keywords Everywhere and Google Keywords Planner.

You can also use these tools simultaneously to compare the metrics—often, it is best to choose keywords that have high average monthly searches but with low difficulty in terms of competition.

Now, basic local SEO keyword research should include brainstorming SILs also known as Service in Locations.

Best examples of SILs are the keywords “plumber in Warsaw”, “electrician in London”, “dentist in Dubai”. Also, you can find these SILs using Google suggested pop-ups when typing the primary keyword.

Proper Keyword Implementation

Keyword implementation is the practice wherein you strategically create content for your web pages and appropriately distribute the keywords in the content — make sure to avoid keyword stuffing.

On a web page, you should have a target primary SIL keyword and a few secondary keywords. Your primary keyword should go into your web page:

• Title Tag
• Headings (especially H1)
• URL (make sure your URL is short to make it SEO-friendly),
• Meta Description (ensure to create an enticing meta description so people will click through your website)

Do not forget that your primary SIL keywords and other relevant or secondary keywords should be evenly placed throughout the content. Remember: do not do keyword stuffing to avoid getting penalized.

Optimize Homepage Around Primary Location

Your website homepage is one of the most important pages on your website. So, make sure to optimize it around your primary location (if you have one). If you have multiple locations, you can include these in the footer your web pages.

Also, when optimizing your website homepage, make sure to include your updated operating hours, business name, complete address, and contact details so your clients can easily reach you.

Create Local Landing Pages

Remember your list of SIL keywords? Use it to build a strategic content structure wherein each location that your business covers is targeted.

For example, if you own multiple dental clinics across the United Kingdom, depending on your SIL keyword research, you can create landing pages specific to:

• Dentist in London
• Dental clinic in Bristol
• Orthodontist in Edinburgh
• Dentist in Liverpool
• Dental clinic in Glasgow

And so on…

Now, make sure to properly implement the keywords on each local landing page, and do not forget to include necessary details such as your complete business name, updated address, and phone number.

Off-Page Local SEO Basics

Off-page SEO refers to the optimization practices done outside your website — there are plenty of techniques and strategies involved for that matter but off-page for basic local SEO generally requires optimization through the following:

Create a Google My Business Account

If you want your business to have noticeable and top-ranking results in Google, you need to create a Google My Business (GMB) account.

GMB is the best way to easily manage your online presence across Google, especially Search and Maps.

Google My Business is one of the top local ranking factors. So, by having a competently optimized GMB account, you are placing your business on the top organic search results pages (SERPs).

Click this link to create your GMB account.

Create a Listing on Bing Places

Bing is one of the most popular search engines all over the world… and creating an account on Bing Places is equivalent to setting up an account on Google.

However, when it comes to the hierarchy of importance… Bing Places comes second place. Still, it’s best to set up your Bing Places listing—it only takes a few minutes.

Click here to get started with your Bing Places listing.

Create an Apple Maps Listing

Remember that the majority of iPhone users use Apple Maps rather than Google Maps simply because it is the default maps app on their iOS phones — and there are millions of iPhone users all around the world.

Plus, Apple Maps is built into Spotlight and Siri searches. So, every time a user asks Siri or Spotlight for directions, Apple Maps will pull up.

So, you must get your business listed on Apple Maps — do it here and check this guide as you go through the listing process.

Add Your Business to Local Citations or NAPs

Local citations are also known as local directories which mention your business online and displays your business name or brand, phone number, and address.

It is also commonly known as NAPs (Name, Address, Phone) which are the most basic yet vital information of a business when ideal customers are searching through the web in terms of location and contact details.

Now, there are 2 types of NAPs or local citations:

• Structured
• Unstructured

Structured NAPs are commonly found in an actual directory or any website where the main purpose is to directly display the name of your business, the address, and contact details.

Unstructured NAPs are commonly found in blog posts — content linking back to your website or a blog post that contains your business details.

Have a Great Link Building Strategy

One of the best practices that you shouldn’t miss when doing the basics of off-page local SEO is link building. This is by far one of the best local SEO services that we currently offer.

Link building refers to the quality (and quantity) of links that point back to your website.

Once you have more trustworthy and high authority websites linking to your web pages, Google and other search engines will consider you as trustworthy as well. Thereby bumping you up on search engine results pages.

Related Post: 5 Mistakes of Link Building You Should Avoid

If you want more relevant websites linking back to your site, you should regularly publish useful resources or content that your niche or industry will love.

Most of the time, if you publish a high-quality blog post, it gets shared on different social media platforms.

Another thing that you can do is Guest Blogging. This way, you can personally choose the website that will be linking back to your site—ensuring that it gives you a high-quality backlink.

Now, if you’re not a “written” person and writing is not your forte, you can hire excellent SEO content writers to produce content for your website regularly.

Monitor Reviews & Other On-Going Activities

When you set something for basic local SEO, you should never forget it. Especially your GMB account — make sure that you keep your profile active.

Always monitor on-going activities and respond to reviews and customer comments. Check and correct wrong edits, especially when it comes to your NAPs.

Take note: never forget to update your NAPs on your GMB account, Apple Maps and Bing Places listings whenever you change location, name, and contact details.

Lastly, utilize Google Posts to keep your customers updated and informed.

Optimizing for Local SEO Basics

When you gear up your website with local SEO basics, make sure that you have conducted thorough keyword research, especially on SILs (Service in Locations).

Optimise your homepage and other web pages such as your local landing pages with correct and consistent NAP across your website and local citations and listings.

Also, it is best to build more relevant citations—perform some citations audit if needed. Lastly, make sure to consistently produce high-quality content.

If you need help with building your local SEO strategy, especially on implementing it… consult the effective local SEO specialists.