SEO (Search Engine Optimization) is a series of practices designed to increase the number of visitors to your website by ensuring that your website appears high on the search engine results page (SERP).

So why is SEO important? SEO is important because your brand will rank highly on relevant search engine results pages (SERPs) when you leverage it. You will also increase your website traffic, reach your target market early in the buyer’s journey, and promote your business for free. 

Below, we get down to the nitty-gritty of SEO and explain how local SEO works, discuss the importance of local SEO to businesses and highlight the inner workings of social media marketing.  

How Does Local SEO Work?

Before we get into how local SEO works, let us first define local SEO and discuss its importance. 

What is Local SEO?

Local SEO is an SEO strategy that helps local businesses improve their visibility in local search results. Local SEO is carried out by businesses that want to be found more easily by customers within the local area. 

Why is Local SEO Important?

To show you how important local search engine optimization is for local businesses, here are a few fascinating statistics:

• A study by Search Engine Roundtable found that 46 percent of all search queries in Google have local intent. 
• Another study by RankRanger found that 29 percent of all Google search engine results pages contain a local pack in the results. 
• Google reports that 76 percent of customers who use their phones to conduct a local search visit a business within 24 hours, and 28 percent of those searches end up in a purchase. 

As you can see, local searches are important in the SEO world. When you leverage local SEO, you can get your local business to rank highly in local SERPs, and there is a high chance that customers will be walking through your door minutes after finding you online. 

How Local SEO Works

Local SEO works by carrying out a series of actions that raise local search visibility. These include:

• Spam Fighting
• Citation Building
• Local Link Building
• Website Optimization 
• Geotagging of Images
• Reputation Management
• Adapting to Google Search Changes
• Claiming and Optimizing Your Google My Business Profile
• Updated NAP — Name, Address, and Phone Number of Your Business

When done right, local SEO helps local businesses appear more prominently on Google Maps and in the Local Pack, Local Finder, and localized organic results. 

Importance of Local SEO to Businesses

Local SEO is important to businesses because it helps businesses:

1: Increase Conversion Rates

Local SEO helps local businesses increase their conversion rates. A local business can quickly increase conversion rates with local SEO since local SEO brings relevant traffic to our business, and more often than not, that traffic is already interested in your offerings. 

2: Reach their Target Audience

Local search engine optimization uses relevant keywords for marketing your business. This, in turn, increases the likelihood of reaching your target audience. Essentially, this means that the people searching for a specific service or product will find your business and be directed to your website. 

3: Create Brand Awareness

People searching for a specific service or product with keywords are more likely to find your business at the top of SERPs. The more these people see your business at the top of SERPs, the more your brand awareness will increase. In turn, they will click your website or turn to you when they need your products or services in the future. 

4: Increase Traffic

At its core, local SEO is all about getting more traffic to your website. Even though not all visitors will convert to customers, it is safe to say the more people visiting your website, the better it is for your business. When more people visit your website, it increases your chances of selling your products or services

5: Reach More Customers 

One of the underlying goals of local SEO is to market your business. A local SEO strategy can help you reach more customers when implemented properly. A local SEO strategy can help improve your business ranking in the SERP. This, in turn, causes more visitors to view your online business profile and increases the likelihood of converting those visitors to customers. 

6: It Is an Affordable Option

One of the biggest benefits of local SEO is that it is cheaper than other marketing efforts like paid media advertising. Local SEO is mostly free (if you can handle everything on your own); however, if you do not trust your abilities when it comes to coding or algorithms, you are better off hiring an SEO company to help you perform these tasks. 

7: Find Customers Searching for Your Services or Products 

Chances are high that customers are already searching for the services or products you offer. The right SEO tools and strategies help you connect with customers who are still on the lookout for businesses that can meet their needs. They can also improve your website’s ranking and put your business in front of the eyes of relevant customers, bringing in more sales. 

8: Achieve Continuous Business Growth 

Local SEO efforts seek to bring more traffic to your website while improving search engine rankings. As a result, you will notice more marketing leads and improved sales. When your business starts continually experiencing improved sales, it creates a self-sustaining business growth cycle. 

Therefore, if you want your business to scale new heights, investing your resources in local SEO tools and measures would be best. 

9: Create User-Friendly Websites

For most search engines, improved search engine optimization involves having a website with fast load time, easy readability, and a responsive design. For example, Google considers several things before ranking your website, such as how your website looks and the kind of information available on your website, before it ranks your website in SERPs. 

With local SEO, you can build a user-friendly website containing all the important information search engines look for before ranking a website. And ultimately, a user-friendly website attracts more customers and drives up your sales.  

10: Surpass Your Competition

Think of two businesses offering the same service or selling the same product in the same location. However, one business has implemented the right local SEO strategy while the other still use traditional marketing strategies. Of the two businesses, which one do you think customers will choose in this digital era?

An effective local SEO strategy will help your business attain a competitive advantage that sets you apart from your competition and catapults your position miles ahead of similar businesses in the field.  

11: Achieve Long-Lasting Rankings

In traditional marketing, the impact of advertisements lasts only for a limited period. On the other hand, local SEO results are long-lasting. Even though you have to optimize your local SEO by maintaining all the updated details, once you rank on the search engine results page, you will likely maintain that position for a long time. 

Even though it is not always a given, you will achieve long-lasting rankings if you invest in the right SEO tools and uphold all the efforts. 

12: Get Reviews from Local Customers 

Many people read reviews before trying a new service or purchasing a new product. Potential customers may shy away from giving you their money if your business has no reviews. With local SEO, you can get quality reviews from your customers. Most local listing directories allow customers to write their thoughts about a specific service or product or write reviews of their experience dealing with and buying from a local business. 

If your business manages to amass many positive reviews, it will give potential customers the confirmation they need to make a purchase decision. 

13: Target Leads from Mobile Users

Local SEO can target desktop and mobile web users. More than ever, people are using their mobile phones to search for local services. This is economical, especially for local businesses. A study by Search Engine Land found that 81 percent of tablet owners and 79 percent of mobile owners use their devices to search for local services. Local business owners looking to promote their services and products can benefit from local SEO optimized for mobile search because it is very lucrative.

With more searches being done on mobile phones than desktops, taking advantage of Local SEO that is optimized for mobile search is a must. 

14: Access and Analyze Measure Results

In today’s business world, data is king. Accessing business details and analyzing those details are two of the most effective ways to take your business to new heights. For example, local SEO tools like Google Business Profile and Google Search Console allow you to:

• Collect information on how your business is performing, 
• Monitor and manage your business’s search presence on SEO Google, and
• Help you understand what measures you can take to improve your bottom line.

When you invest in local SEO, you can access measurable data, which you can use to improve your business operations. 

What Is Social Media Marketing?

Social media marketing (also known as e-marketing and digital marketing) is the use of social media channels to promote or sell a service or product. Social media marketing (SMM) involves publishing engaging content, listening to and interacting with your followers, and running social media advertisements.  

Why Is Social Media Marketing Important?

Social media marketing is a practice that cannot be ignored. Data from Sprout Social shows that today, 72 percent of companies use social media data to make business decisions, and 55 percent of customers learn about new services and products on social media. Moreover, 68 percent of customers report that social media helps them interact with businesses, and 78 percent of customers are willing to buy products from a business after having a positive experience with the business on social media. 

As is evident, social media influences businesses and customers; therefore, it is vitally important to implement the right social media marketing strategies as this will help you reach a wider audience. 

Why is Social Media Marketing Important for Businesses?

Social media marketing is important for businesses because it helps businesses:

1: Increase Sales

Social media marketing has a higher leads-to-close ratio than other forms of marketing. Social media platforms give you more visibility, which, in turn, gives you more opportunities for converting leads to customers. 

2: Measure the Impact of Social Media Campaigns

A business can easily assess how poorly or how well its marketing campaigns have performed using social media. You can see how many people have liked, shared, or re-posted your post and how many people have responded to your CTA (Call to Action). 

3: Increase Website Traffic

Thanks to social media, your options for attracting potential customers to your website are growing. Every social profile you have has the potential to reel in new customers to your website, and every post you share is an opportunity to tell customers about your business and convince them to visit your website. 

4: Increase Brand Awareness

With over 4.62 billion people using social media, platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram are great places to reach potential customers. When you share content on social media platforms, you can improve your brand’s visibility by pitching your services or products to potential customers, engaging with potential customers, and solving your customers’ queries. 

5: Target a Specific Audience

When businesses post advertisements on social media sites, they specify which gender, age group, or race they want to see those advertisements. Therefore, they will find it easier to meet their target market. Before social media came into the scene, businesses had no way to find out whether their advertisements were targeted or if they had reached their target audience. 

6: Access Customers Directly

Businesses can contact their customers directly or maintain contact with them through social media sites. If a business has launched a new product, is running a promotion, or has other news to share, it can share this information directly with its customers by sending them direct messages. 

Importance of SEO

For a business to survive in the digital age, it needs to invest in local SEO and use local SEO tools alongside effective local SEO strategies. With local SEO, your business can enjoy full benefits, including increased conversion rates, traffic, continuous business growth, and long-lasting rankings. Local SEO also makes it easier for business owners to reach their target audience and potential customers, surpass their competition, create user-friendly websites, and get reviews from local customers. Although different, social media marketing is just as important as local SEO. Social media marketing allows your business can access customers directly, increase brand awareness, target a specific audience, and increase sales. With local SEO and social media marketing as your tools of choice, you can set yourself apart from competitors and take your business to new heights. Contact us for all your SEO needs and get organic traffic to your site.