Every business owner with a website needs local SEO. If you aren’t sure what that means, don’t worry because we’ll get into that in just a moment and the benefits of this type of Internet marketing.

But until then, let me ask you a question.

What’s the benefit of spending a large chunk of your marketing budget on phone book advertising each year when barely anyone uses the Yellow Pages anymore?

With business reviews and contact information readily available online, phone books are dead to most consumers. According to comScore, over half of all Internet users would prefer to use the Internet to search for local products or services instead of a phone book. This is the whole reason why local search is so critical to small business success and building your online web presence.

What Exactly Is Local SEO?

Did you know that 97% of Americans turn to the World Wide Web when on the prowl for local products and/or services? According to Google, that’s a true fact. And according to comScore, 90% of local online searches result in a purchase offline. With those two facts alone, a small business owner can see how powerful a properly optimized website can be for their business.

The Places That Matter

For local search to really benefit your business, you need to understand that you need more than a simple profile in Google. Your website needs to be submitted to all the popular search engines, such as Google, Yahoo and Bing.

Your business also needs to be a part of Google Places, Bing Local and/or Bing Business Portal, YellowPages and Yelp. Your business address should be submitted to Google Maps and other search engine maps in addition to top local business directories.

This strategy helps you in reaching more consumers with the potential of converting them into customers as well as increasing your business’ credibility.

Why You Need a Social Media Profile

You also shouldn’t belittle the importance of creating a social media profile on Facebook, Twitter, FourSquare, or other social sites. More and more consumers are willing to do business with a company that has a social profile. 35% of local business searches are made on social networking sites daily, according to comScore, who also says that 93% of consumers used Facebook in 2011 for local business information.

Local Goes Mobile

In order to increase traffic, listing your business in all the local directories to get your name out there is necessary. With the number of users with smartphones, it is also beneficial to have a mobile-friendly web design or a mobile/tablet application for your small business. A 2011 comScore study showed that over 77 million mobile users accessed local content on their cell phone and that 16% of tablet users made a local business search online every single day. Those numbers continue to rise.

Local SEO Keyword Tip

When considering keywords for your website, you need to consider what your potential customers would type into the search engine to search for your business. For example, an Internet user may type in the Google search engine “Charlotte health spas” or “health spas in Charlotte”. Alternatively, if someone is looking for a specific service in a city, they may type something similar to “Swedish massage in Charlotte”. Figuring out which keywords people use to search for your product or service will help you create content and optimize your website.

Critical Keys to Effective Local SEO

When consumers are searching for a business within your local market, you want to make sure that it’s your business that appears–not just the competition. In order to do that, first you need to define your target market. Then you’ll need to determine the keywords that potential consumers would use to find your business. Researching your competition will also help you determine your own SEO and local marketing strategy. Finally, you’ll need to optimize your website so that it appears in the local search engine results for the proper keywords.

SEO Company Minnesota

Now that you understand the importance of local search, why not give us a call or send us an email and see what we can do for you in terms of local search engine optimization? Snap Agency is an SEO company in Minnesota that helps businesses grow through the power of Internet marketing.