Do you ever have that moment when you put in your business name into Google, cross your fingers, and hope for a miracle to happen overnight? And I know sometimes you might even say a little prayer to the gods of the search engine, just like you would if you were trying to get a houseplant to grow back after it has lost all its leaves.
And then, bam! You see your competition at the top of the search results list as if they’ve got a pass or a key to this special club that you don’t have. And you can’t help but think in a quiet voice to yourself, “How do I get my local business ranked in the search engines?” And you’re feeling that it shouldn’t be as difficult as it is, and wondering.
Good news: you are not the problem; there’s no secret handshake that you don’t have; and if you did, you definitely would not want to stuff as many local SEO for small business keywords on the internet as possible to win a carnival game.
What you really need is a way to create clear pathways and consistency, plus a way to develop a strategy that actually matches how today’s consumers are searching locally for businesses. So get a cup of coffee and relax; I’m about to give you clarity that should’ve come from Google a long time ago.
Why Your Local Business Isn’t Ranking
Google does not spite you; it merely hasn’t found enough evidence that your business actually exists, actively participates in your community, and deserves to appear first in the results returned by its search engine. This all starts with some of the basic things business owners skip doing, as they are typically viewed as boring.
However, this is the same boring stuff that generates results!
Fix Your Google Business Profile Before Anything Else
Your Google Business Profile is the online equivalent of a storefront. If it’s covered in dust and emptiness, customers will quickly scroll past you without ever clicking on your profile.
Make sure you:
- Upload photos that accurately represent your business, not blurry images from an outdated camera.
- Update the hours that you will be open for business, including holiday hours.
- Add your services or products, and write very descriptive words about each.
- Write naturally while still referencing the services you offer and your location, gun-shy of “keyword stuffing.”
Your profile must be active (alive) rather than inactive (neglected).
Clean Up Your Local Citations
Citations are like filing cabinets in the online world, but Google treats them as references for character. But if you use different versions of your Name, Address, and Phone Number across different websites, a little alarm bell starts ringing for Google.
Always keep your NAP (Name, Address, Phone Number) information:
- The Same
- Completely Updated
- Across ALL Websites
If you sign up on a site like Yelp or Facebook for a business, and then create a directory account on a website you forgot about in 2017. Making sure that your NAP is 100% accurate will help your SEO and Local Business Ranking faster than any other fix!
Your Website Might Look Good, but Can Google Understand It?
Aesthetically pleasing websites tend to have lots of eye candy: beautiful designs (animations), bright & warm colors, and stunning imagery. However, Google does NOT consider your site’s “look” or how it “feels” when compared with other sites.
What is the truth about Google?
They are interested in how quickly a page loads, whether it answers the user’s question, and whether it helps the user achieve their goal.
Create an SEO Strategy for a Small Business That Actually Has Structure
A legitimate strategy for search engine optimization (SEO) isn’t simply guessing or putting keywords all over the place – it requires:
- Having separate pages dedicated to each of your main services
- Clearly communicating your business’s location to customers searching for those service providers
- Delivering information quickly by having fast-loading pages
- Utilizing schema markup to help Google put your content in the correct category
- Using a navigational structure that’s easy to understand.
It’s like providing Google with a map rather than trying to get them to figure out where things are from your rough sketches.
Blog Like a Human
When visitors see your blog posts begin with dull, formal phrases written as though the author paid the words their dues, they will lose interest quickly.
Instead of doing this:
- Use examples
- Talk with readers about their customer experiences.
- Provide easy-to-understand conversational versions of complicated subjects.
- Use casual references to subjects related to local business marketing, small business search engine optimization, or local marketing for small businesses.
Write as if speaking with a friend and not giving a keynote address.
Use Local Content That Shows You’re Part of the Community
Google loves local relevance. Your customers do too. One of the biggest missed opportunities is failing to show how and where you operate.
Build Service Area Pages That Feel Personal, Not Copy-Pasted
If you operate your business across several locations (close to each other), create individual pages for each area you serve. For example:
- “Phoenix Plumber”
- “Water Heater Repair Scottsdale”
- “Drain Cleaning Tempe” etc.
Use a conversational tone on each page. If all of your pages contain the same content except for the city name, Google will see this and rank your site lower.
Share Local Stories and Partnerships
Consumers enjoy patronizing businesses that are founded on a commitment to their community. You should consider writing about:
- Nonprofits that you support
- Vendors you partner with locally
- Events that take place near your location that you participate in
- Customers from your region
These pieces are not fluff; they are credibility-enhancing pieces.
Reviews Are Probably the Most Underrated Ranking Tool You Have
No offense, but if you’re anything like most businesses today, you’re probably not getting enough reviews.
In all likelihood, this is due to your competitor’s ability to obtain a higher volume of reviews than you have, regularly reaching out to customers through an organized, frequent system to request reviews and humanly respond to customers.
Build a Simple Review Request Habit
There’s no need for complex systems to get testimonials. The key to getting testimonials is to ask for them consistently.
Here are some ways to do this:
- Send a quick text after service asking for one.
- Include a link on your invoices to review your business.
- Bring it up casually at the front desk.
- Ask when you know your customer was pleased.
Most people are much more willing to provide you with testimonials than you realize, provided you make it easy for them to submit one.
Respond to Reviews Like a Real Person
Nobody likes reading “We appreciate your input” written in robotic format. Use an approachable tone to strengthen your relationship and provide some entertainment value to keep people coming back for more.
This will build customer loyalty and show that you´re committed to long-term customer relationships (and that your company cares). Google loves it when companies show human traits like warmth, good humor, or any personality type through their written correspondence.
Build Local Backlinks Without Feeling Like You’re Cold Calling Strangers
Using backlinks provides Google with the much-needed social proof that others endorse you.
The positive aspect is that you’re unlikely to need large-scale national publications linked to your business to succeed with SEO when operating as a small business.
Connect with Local Media Using Non-Salesy Approaches
You could do the following:
- Have quick conversations with journalists about industry trends
- Provide comments/insights on trends in the industry
- Offer up small, interesting statistical information about your community
Local journalists love to receive tips and information regarding the local angle.
Form Partnerships With Other Small Business Owners In Your Community
Consider some of the businesses that your target market utilizes today, i.e., spa/wedding photographer, gym/nutritionist, café/bookstore.
Cross-promotional partnerships are effective ways to share your audiences and, through a collaborative relationship, have the potential to generate more backlinks; the more you share your content, the greater your chances of generating solid links.
Ads Aren’t Cheating. They’re Just Fuel While SEO Builds.
Organic search takes time, and paid ads fill the gap.
So if you’re trying to figure out how to advertise your local business effectively, then consider paid ads as a fast way to get the ball rolling on your long-term plan.
Begin Small and Have an Area-Specific Focus
Some Helpful Hints:
- Be Realistic with Your Budget
- Target Specific Neighborhoods
- Test Out Different Offers
- Track What Actually Converts Rather Than Making Assumptions
Paid ads won’t replace seo; they’re used alongside it.
Track the Metric No One Talks About
A lot of people focus way too much on how well they rank in search engines. Yes, rank is important, but it isn’t the only thing to consider. What is more relevant for assessing whether or not your SEO strategy is successful? How many potential customers are contacting your business through local search? Are they:
- Calling your business?
- Requesting a price quote?
- Making an appointment?
- Visiting your business?
If so, then your SEO strategy is actually being effective.
Conclusion
All that needs to be done is to have a good rank, be relevant, and benefit from a lot of visibility through social media or other channels. Then, when someone in the area is looking for what your business sells, you will be the obvious choice.
If you want to raise your business’s rank higher when doing local search engine optimization (SEO), you’ll want to take one small step and work up from there.
The consumers who will be purchasing from you are already doing a general search. The question is whether your business will appear on the list or among the competitors currently at the top.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. How to improve your local business’s ranking on Google?
To improve your rank, you need to optimize your Google Business Profile, keep getting reviews from your customers consistently, and make sure that you are doing all that you can to improve your website’s local SEO as well as build local citations. Generally speaking, small, consistent actions for your local business will yield better results than complicated strategies.
2. What is the most effective way to make my local business visible?
Making sure you have updated your Google Business Profile and having approximately 10 new customer reviews will create a quick jump in visibility. You should also add new photos regularly, clarify the services you provide, and ensure that your phone number, email, and address are listed the same across the internet.
3. Should a small business invest in SEO?
Absolutely! SEO allows customers to find you when they are actively searching for the type of products or services you provide at that moment. SEO is a very cost-effective way to promote your small local business online.
4. How can I promote my local business without spending a lot of money?
You can utilize local Google and Facebook Ad campaigns with tight geographic targeting. Always promote one offer at a time and measure the results from those campaigns every week. If you have strong local SEO in place and you’re using both ad types simultaneously, your advertising dollar will stretch much further.
