A bit of local pride can go a long way to helping your design business attract new customers. According to TechJury, 46 percent of all Google searches are local.
With a local search engine optimization (SEO) strategy, you can turn these local searches into a competitive advantage. Local SEO can help increase your company’s visibility so customers see your company before a competitor’s.
Here are eight local SEO tips to help your company get ahead of the competition!
The 3 Big Benefits of Localized SEO
Before we dive into our SEO tips, let’s review a few (of many) benefits to localized SEO.
1. It’s Free & Easy
That’s right—these strategies are free! They’re also easy enough to set up on your own.
Free SEO strategies help you get in front of customers without breaking the bank. As a result, you can focus your marketing budget towards additional strategies, such as print or digital advertising.
2. Reach Relevant Customers
When a local client runs a search for a design company, they’ll find you.
Local SEO helps you reach your target audience when they’re searching for your products and services. As a result, you won’t miss out on potential customers.
3. Boost Website Traffic & Sales
SEO helps you attract potential customers to your website. As that web traffic increases, your search engine ranking rises as well.
As your website reaches the top of the search page, your design office gains credibility. This will also place you above competitors, helping you gain more sales and build your business!
Local SEO Tips For Raising Your Ranking
Now that you know how local search engine optimization can help build your design business, here are our eight local SEO tips to get you started!
1. Get Google My Business Going
According to a survey by Google, 18 percent of local searches lead to sales. With a localized SEO strategy, you can send those searches straight to your website.
A Google My Business listing stands out from other search links. These listings appear in their own box on the righthand corner of a Google search.
With a Google My Business listing, you can display your company name, phone number, address, website, and business hours in a prominent location. This makes it easier for customers to find your business.
It also displays in Google Maps, so local customers have easy access to directions.
2. Claim Those Local Listings
Google My Business isn’t the only local listing you should keep updated.
Facebook, LinkedIn, Bing, Yelp, Yahoo, Yellow Pages, and dozens of other websites display your design office’s information as well.
It’s important to claim these local listings so you can control what information displays. That way, you can make sure your address, phone number, and other essential pieces of information are accurate and up-to-date.
3. Keep it Consistent
Once you find all your listings, make sure the information you display is consistent.
That way, search engines won’t get confused, and neither will your customers.
4. Ramp Up Reviews
In addition to displaying in your Google My Business information, local reviews are also an essential component of your localized SEO strategy.
Reviews help boost your website ranking. They also help you take up more space in your listings.
When potential customers see five-star reviews, they’re also more likely to click on your design website. That credibility and click increase helps boost your SEO ranking even more.
Here are seven SEO techniques to put your design business on the map!
5. Put Local Pages Live
These local SEO tips don’t just cover external strategies. For the best local SEO, you need to update your website, too.
Create pages on your website that cater to nearby cities or regions. Make sure to update your website’s schema as well, which helps your content stand out in search engine results pages.
These new pages can include keywords that feature your design company’s services and the name of a local city.
Then, when customers search for a company that’s within their region, they’ll find you!
6. Check Local Trends
The best local SEO strategies are research-based. Check out Google’s Keyword Planner or Google Trends to discover what keywords have the highest search volume.
That way, you can determine what terms your customers are searching that relate to your design business.
These tools will tell you how competitive these keywords are as well. By focusing on low-competition keywords, you can develop an SEO strategy that puts your design website on top!
With these tools, you can find the right balance between high search volume and low competition. As a result, you can use these SEO marketing tips to improve your reach while jumping ahead of the competition.
7. Step Up Your Social Game
Social media platforms are another effective method to boost your localized SEO.
In addition to providing Google with more content to crawl and index, social media also allows you to communicate directly with locals.
When those local customers click on your social media posts, you can direct them to visit your website. The more website visitors you gain, the more Google sees your content as relevant to your customers.
Google will also take a look at any reviews your customers have posted on social media, further boosting your SEO.
8. Love Links
Use your connections to your advantage. If there are any local businesses that you partner with, or that you sponsor, ask them for help!
These businesses can place links on their website pages or blog posts that send their audience to your website. Link building is an effective SEO marketing strategy that can help boost your ranking.
It also helps local customers associate your design company with brands they already know and trust!
8 Must-Know Local SEO Tips for Business Growth
With these eight local SEO tips, you can give your website ranking a boost and get in front of more customers. Try out these SEO marketing tips and watch your website rise!
Check out the Business Resources section of the blog for more helpful SEO marketing tips.
